Road between Horseshoe and Leavick

Abstract

Photograph showing the road between Horseshoe and Leavick with Horseshoe Mountain in the background. The towns of Horseshoe and Leavick were located along Fourmile Creek in Horseshoe Gulch. Horseshoe was founded when silver was discovered there in 1878 and it had a population of about 300 by 1881. During its peak, the town had two smelters and two saw mills in addition to other businesses. The Horseshoe area provided lumber for the Hilltop and Last Chance mines, which were located above timberline. Horseshoe went into decline in the late 1880s and was abandoned after the crash of the silver market in 1893. Leavick was founded around 1892 when a mill was built there to process the silver ore from the Hilltop and Last Chance mines, and officially named Leavick in 1896. The mines in the area were operated only sporadically after 1899 and closed by 1923, and the town of Leavick was abandoned.