The mill (which was built by a master carpenter of the German
shipyards) was in ruins, but the Hotel del Monte (second in the
trees) stood.
On July 3, 1897, a newspaper called the _Pine Cone_ began publication at
Apex and carried frequent delightful items about American City. Captain
E. M. Stedman, one of the principal stockholders, was also manager. On
April 28, 1900, it reported that he was becoming an expert at “skeeing”
since “he made the distance on Tuesday from his residence in American
City to Apex, about a mile and a half, in five minutes.”
One of American City’s proudest possessions was its mill built by Gus
Meyer in 1903. Meyer was a master craftsman from Germany and did
contract work in Denver. He was the boss carpenter on the Barth Block.
Because of his excellent work on the business building, William Barth
gave him $100 in gold coin in addition to his contract money.
In the succeeding years up to around 1910 the Stedmans frequently
entertained at house parties, using their own palatial cabin and
overflowing into the cabins of other Eastern stockholders as well as the
Hotel del Monte. My mother and father were present at a number of these
affairs, and I can remember the fuss of getting all the luggage packed
with a correct riding habit and a number of evening gowns for Mother to
dress for dinner. It was indeed a glamorous place.
Then the gold petered out, and American City was abandoned. For years it
was almost lost to view and to memory. Only the late wealthy Mrs. John
Anthony Crook maintained a summer cabin there. In the 1930’s she was the
lone resident. Finally a few others followed her lead until the town was
partly saved....
Nugget, on the way to Kingston, had a few remnants in 1960. But uncared
for, the fierce elements were wreaking havoc on the buildings as they
also were at Kingston. The havoc was more serious at Kingston because of
the beauty of the dormer-windowed boardinghouse close to the London mill
and mine and because of the unusual latticed log cabin down on Secreto
Creek at what is humorously called South Kingston.
In the late 1890’s and early 1900’s there were many residences along the
ridge that runs between Pile Hill and Kingston Peak, and down the banks
of Mosquito Creek. In 1960 some of these were still partially standing
and many of their foundations were intact; but all were deteriorating
fast. Kingston, like American City, was purely a mining, milling and
residential town and depended on Apex for commerce, merchandise and a
newspaper. But the details of its history are lost. Kingston is unique
because of its mystery.