They lived in towns and large ranches, no families living isolated from these settlements. In the Ratone Mts, we met two men from Denver, who admitted that they had been run out of Denver. Of course he did not know us and we had some fun. He had wife and two kids, a boy 2 years and a girl 8 months old. John and I helped some in hotell and finally got hold of some quartz claims, some gold and others - no good.
Mountain City is in Gregory gulch halfway between Central City and Black Hawk.
The inhabitants at that time were composed almost entirely of men between 18 and 30 years of age, such a community as one seldom meets. Strangers to each other, jolly, good natured, rough to a point of recklessness. Each knew that he must depend upon himself for protection and for justice. Mountain City was founded near the site of the original John H. Gregory strike in Gilpin Co, in the spring of 1959. It was the first city in the area.