Skidoo
In 1906, during the rush to Harrisburg, Harry Ramsey and 'One-Eye' Thompson got lost in fog a few miles from that camp. They stumbled upon gold, and once word of their discovery spread prospectors from around the region fled to what would become the new camp of Skidoo. Bob Montgomery, of Rhyolite fame, quickly gobbled up several claims for $100,000, further supporting faith in the ore to be found here. Harrisburg quickly emptied in favor of the new camp, and soon Skidoo was a platted townsite with stores, saloons, and a post office - first called 'Hoveck' after Montgomery's developer. The unusual name 'Skidoo' was derived from a popular turn of phrase at the time, "23 Skidoo", meaning to scram or go away. There are several stories as to why the name was chosen, many revolving around the number 23. Apparently, the postal service refused to add 23 to the official name.
By mid-1907, Skidoo's population jumped to 700, with a bank, school, newspaper (the Skidoo News), red-light district, and brewery. A pipeline drew water from a spring 23 miles away, and a telephone and telegraph line were extended across Death Valley to Rhyolite. Unfortunately, the national financial panic at the end of the year harshly affected Skidoo. The Skidoo Mines Company completed a stamp mill and cyanide plant early in 1908 and eventually took control of the entire camp and its mines. Operations continued until 1913, when the pipeline froze and burst, followed by a fire which destroyed much of the mill five months later. A new ten-stamp mill was quickly built by fall and placed into operation; in April 1915 an additional battery of five stamps was installed. By September 1917, ore was depleted and operations ceased. Skidoo was abandoned, after producing some $1.5 million. A brief revival in the 1930s reopened the Skidoo mine and allowed the mill to be fired up a final time, but this came to an end before the close of the decade.
