Small mining town west of Driggs rose and fell in 50 years, and now it’s nearly forgotten
July 8, 2024
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1:11Now PlayingSmall mining town west of Driggs rose and fell in 50 years, and now it’s nearly forgotten
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as posted by the channel#eastidahonews #museummemories #mining
DRIGGS – About eight miles west of Driggs at the end of Horseshoe Canyon was once the home of a thriving coal mining town.
Sam, named for Henry Floyd Samuels — one of multiple investors of the Brown Bear Mine — was home to about 200 mine workers throughout the 1920s and 30s. They brought their families and built homes. There was a school, a post office and a store.
For about 30 years, the mine played a significant role in the area’s economy before it went bankrupt and the town folded.
Today, the path the mine cars followed has been replaced by a paved road leading through the canyon. At the end of the road is a trail head with campsites, but there are no visible signs that the mine or the town ever existed.
The Teton Valley Historical Museum off ID Highway 33 in Driggs contains the only surviving remnants — a mine car, some tools and a written history of what happened.
Despite the museum’s efforts to document this piece of history, knowledge of Sam and the Brown Bear Mine seems to have faded from memory. Here’s the story of this now forgotten town in a secluded area of eastern Idaho.
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