 In
mining communities, it was often the enterprising people of the
time who struck it rich. They became wealthy not by
swinging a pick or hefting a shovel but by providing services to
the miners. Shovels could cost $50 and bartenders often
made hundreds or even thousands of dollars profit on a single
barrel of whiskey.
In 1869, several men built the first
road into Bullion Canyon and then set up a toll station.
At this time there were several rich claims being worked in the
canyon and it was now possible to haul ore by wagon.. To the
dismay of the toll road operators, the miners built a second
road into the canyon to avoid paying a toll their teamsters
considered unreasonable.
This second road closely follows the same route we drive
today. The remains of the toll road are visible on the
right side of the road (north) and lie 25 feet above this
stop. Look for short, graded sections of roadbed now
overgrown with oak. The course of this old road can be
seen from this spot for a distance of about 150 feet up and down
the canyon. All of these early roads were built by pick,
shovel and dynamite.
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