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Just a few miles down the road is Georgetown Lake, a reservoir of Flint Creek with several beaches and campsites managed by the US Forest Service. While some who travel to Philipsburg come for the architecture, immersive museums, and ghost towns, still others come seeking recreation and mountainous thrills. Having stood the test of time and served the community through thick and thin, it has earned the title of the oldest continually operating theatre in Montana. Most of the buildings have seen occupants come and go, but the Philipsburg Theatre, founded in 1891, still hosts a variety of live entertainment to this day. Everywhere you turn is a reminder of how much the world has changed around these storefronts. Informational plaques detailing the previous uses of various buildings give insight into what a boom town it used to be-Philipsburg was once home to everything from a ballroom to a basketball court to a masonic temple, grand hotel, opera house, and general store. The heart of Phillipsburg evokes a scene from the old west that has been given a vibrant new paint job. While the emergence of synthetic sapphires had significantly slowed sapphire mining operations by the 1930s, Gem Mountain remains active and has rebranded itself, providing travelers with a chance to try their hand at sifting through gravel to find blue, mint green, yellow, orange, red, and pink treasures. At the Gem Mountain Mine southwest of town, small round sapphires were initially sought after and shipped to Switzerland where they were used as watch bearings. Rock Creek-a major tributary of the Clark Fork River- flows along the nearby Sapphire Mountains, named for the prized blue gemstone found in the creek in 1892. Silver wan’t the only valued mineral that brought fortune-seekers to the Philipsburg area. Preserved at the state park are historic structures like the superintendent's house and the ruins of the miners’ Union Hall. Soon regarded as the greatest silver bonanza of its time, the mine went on to produce $20 million in silver between 18. When the upper levels of the Granite Mountain mine were being developed, a massive silver deposit was found at about 200 feet of depth. The most renowned and profitable of the mining operations was located southeast of town, now home to Granite Ghost Town State Park. The key to this longevity is an inherently beautiful location coupled with its inhabitants’ devotion to preserving and enhancing the area’s rich history. The town of Philipsburg, founded in 1867 and named for Peter Deiesheimer, is the lone survivor and remains intact and lively. As a reminder of that frenzied search for prosperity, today, 24 ghost towns are left scattered throughout the county. Because of this flint’s great beauty, it has been respected throughout the ages in the tools, weapons and ceremonial objects of native cultures and in modern times in the production of jewelry.įlint Ridge Ancient Quarries & Nature Preserve is managed locally by the Licking Valley Heritage Society.In the 1860s, as large deposits of gold, silver, copper, and other valuable minerals were discovered in Granite County, many mining settlements sprung up along creek beds and mountainsides. It has been called the “Great Indian Quarry of Ohio.”įlint Ridge seems to have been well known in the ancient world, as small amounts of it have been found at American Indian sites across the present-day eastern United States. Hundreds of quarry pits and workshop sites are scattered across more than 2,000 acres of ridge top in these Appalachian foothills. Average visit time: Allow 1+ hours Historyįlint Ridge is a nearly eight-mile-long vein of high-quality flint located in Licking and Muskingum counties of eastern Ohio.
![flint creek flint creek](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/7hIroAOfBuE/maxresdefault.jpg)
Within the museum, learn about Ohio’s official gemstone and the shaping of flint into tools, known as knapping.Ī picnic area with tables, grills, drinking water and restrooms is available for visitors to the quarry. The unique rainbow-colored flint was used as an item of trade, tools and weapons. Hike trails through the 533-acre preserve and see ancient pits left by American Indians who came from the surrounding area to quarry flint. Masks are no longer required but please practice social distancing whenever possible.