An elderly man left his job in high school and moved to an abandoned city where no one else lives. Previously, there was a silver mine, and a pensioner hopes to find treasures in this place. Unable to withstand a hermit life, his wife rode from him, but the man is not going to leave his beloved town.
Greasy Hill
The name of the city of Cerro Gordo in Spanish means "fat hill". Probably, the town received this name because there used to be a silver mine in this area of California, and specifically this place was the most fertile. Searchers mined silver ore in very large quantities here, and it was the money earned from these mines that made it possible to pay for the construction of such a world famous city as Los Angeles.
The town of Cerro Gordo was founded in 1865. The small settlement grew rapidly to the scale of the city, and its population at its peak reached 4500 inhabitants. The town flourished, silver mines made a profit and enriched the seekers. However, over time, silver began to be less and less, and gradually the inhabitants left the once noisy settlement.
Now there is only one person living in this ghost town - former high school teacher Robert Louis Desmare. He came here hoping to find treasures and has been living here for over 20 years.
From teacher to treasure seeker
70-year-old American Robert Louis Desmare was a high school teacher. Now the man is the caretaker of the ghost town and is trying to find a silver vein, being fully confident that he will ever succeed in doing this.
First Desmare came to this abandoned town during the holidays, explored the area and looked for treasures. But in the end, he decided not to waste time in vain, but to spend all his time behind an exciting occupation, for which he came to live in this city.
The difficult life of a hermit
Together with Desmare, his wife arrived, who for a long time tried to get used to a new life in conditions of complete isolation. But the woman could not cope with such conditions and difficulties. She began to experience health problems, because her body was unsuitable for life at such a height. Therefore, the wife of Demare went to live in Nevada.
For two years, Demare lived in a ghost town until he was presented with a house that once belonged to local miner William Hunter. The former teacher is very pleased with his home, which is located at an altitude of 8,200 feet (about 2.5 km). The whole valley in front of the city lies at a glance, and Demar, in addition to admiring the view, can notice visitors who have come to the city long before they appear in the settlement.
Every day, an elderly man collects and cuts firewood. There is electricity in this area, but there is no water. Demar brings her in a truck from the nearest town of Keeler, which numbers only 30 people. And he brings all the products from another town - Lon Pine - which has shops, cafes, and other establishments.
It should be noted that visitors to Cerro Gordo are quite common. People come here as tourists, and Demare is happy to conduct excursions for them, telling about the history of the city and about his own passion for silver.
22 years in search of silver
Demare is sure that a lot of silver has been preserved in the city and one day he will be able to stumble upon a precious vein. It is supported by the current owners of the city, Brent Underwood and John Beer, who want to turn the town into a profitable place and a popular tourist route.
Demare, on the other hand, continues to search for silver, he goes down into the old mines underground and with the help of a chisel and hammer tries to get the precious metal. For the 22 years that a man lives in an abandoned city, he managed to collect a total of a wheelbarrow of silver.
Now he is selling this raw precious metal to tourists visiting the city. But the 70-year-old adventurer is sure that there is ore, and he will find it, so he is not going to leave anywhere, but plans to continue his search.
