From One Train Wreck to Another
If you think 2020 is a train wreck, the nascent railroad industry was deluged with train wrecks…
Death
Thanksgiving 1918 and Thanksgiving 2020
Perhaps no year is more relevant than this one to take a look back at Thanksgiving 1918,…
Black Jack Murphy: Why the Nickname?
The Park City Museum recently hosted a lecture on a series of murders in Park City, the…
Whatever Happened to the Silver Mine Adventure?
It was only open for a few years; yet the Park City Silver Mine Adventure, where visitors…
The Life of Mary Rasmussen
Much of Park City’s population was made up of immigrants when it was a silver mining town. …
My story: John Judge
(Eighth in an occasional series about founders of the storied Silver King Mine). My life was tough…
The Grim Reaper at the Hamilton-Sprague
It was just after four o’clock in the afternoon of August 18, 1923 when James Healey and…
Dizziness and Shortness of Breath
Entry into World War II left Park City’s mines shorthanded. By early 1942, a total of 346…
Edward LeCompte, Pioneer Doctor to All
When the 1918 flu epidemic reached Park City, the town went under quarantine at the insistence of…
Death Knocks at the Door
The lore of Tommy Knockers was so integrated into Park City’s mining history, one jeweler decided to…
Death Shrouded in Mystery
Albert Holindrake, furthest left, sitting, and his family in 1906. His wife, Nancy, and his children were…
Unable to Heal
Life in Park City was not always easy for those who lived in the early 1900’s. Diseases…
The Fatal Flagstaff Fall
Somewhere about the 35-foot level of the Flagstaff Mine, and moments after he called his friends above…
I’ll Be All Right
Unlike this year, Tuesday, June 18, 1940 broke all records for June heat when Salt Lake City…
John Alvus Reed’s Wild West
It is often said that losing a child is the most enduring pain a parent can suffer. …
Perfect Courage
Think for a minute what it would be like to bail out of an airplane from 14,000…
A Shocking Crime in Old Park City
“One of the most foul and cowardly murders that has ever darkened the criminal record of Park…
Accidents, Misdiagnoses, and Untimely Deaths in Early Park City
Rebecca Simmons was born in Brazil in 1866. Her family came from Cornwall, England, a place where…
Ellen Sloan Mawhinney at Peace in Glenwood
Ellen Sloan was born in Ireland in 1855, before silver was even discovered in Park City. She…
Glenwood Cemetery Holds Many Tragic Stories
On September 22, the Park City Museum will be hosting tours at the Glenwood Cemetery. In anticipation…
Glenwood Remains Unforgettable
In 1996 the Glenwood Cemetery was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. As unique as…
The Tragedy of the Truscotts
“It seems almost a libel on our city government, on the fire department, and on the entire…
Strike Three
On November 17, 1941, a B-18 Army bomber fell from the sky above Park City, engulfed in…
A Cornish Miner’s Tragedy
Samuel Simmons was born in Redruth, Cornwall, England in 1869. As you may have read in this…
Difficult Decisions at the Height of Disaster
At 11:20pm, July 15, 1902, a powder magazine stored underground at the Daly West mine exploded. At…
Poison is Unregulated
We might imagine the “Roaring ‘20s” and Prohibition as a time of excess and excitement. However, the…
The Perfect Storm, part II
On Sunday, November 15, 1941 airmen of the 88th Reconnaissance Squadron based at Fort Douglas prepared their…
The Makings of a Perfect Storm
Those of us fortunate enough to live full-time in Park City are accustomed to severe and abrupt…
But for a Box of Apples…
We know next to nothing about Armendio Novario outside of the few details in the Park Record…
Deadly Avalanche at the Quincy Mine
“Terrible disaster has visited our camp leaving death and sorrow in its wake and casting a gloom…that…
Uncommon Valor
The United States Marine Corps War Memorial is located on a high ridge overlooking the nation’s capital.…
Dawn’s Early Light
Morning came early for Jim Murphy on Thursday, September 20, 1917. At daybreak, a bugler sounded reveille…
Supreme Sacrifice
In honor of Veteran’s Day on November 11, we’re going to spend the next few weeks profiling…
The Mysterious Case of William Kennedy
Deep in the middle of the night in mid-July of 1882, men were roused from their sleep…
The Strange Disappearance of Richard Cordell
Unsettling stories of mysterious disappearances like those of Amelia Earhart or the lost colony of Roanoke have…
Bridget Sweeney…Poisoner!
In November 1887, citizens of Park City were shocked to learn of the attempted poisoning murder of…
Fighting to be Flu-free
As you read here last week, Park City did not escape the “Spanish flu” pandemic that ravaged…
Pandemic arrives in the Park
For those unfamiliar with details of the 1918 “Spanish flu” pandemic here are some statistics: it affected…
The Widow’s Walk
Everyone loves ghost stories, especially when they’re true. One of Park City’s spine-tingling tales is the story…
Murder (?) on the Utah Central
When it comes to the story of Edward Rowan’s life and death, we have only the barest…