Skidoo

WHEN: 1906 - 1922

POST OFFICE: 1907 - 1917                          

POPULATION: 700

SUMMARY: Gold deposits were discovered here in 1906. The initial claims were purchased by "Bob" Montgomery in 1907. The townsite which was previously known as Hoveck, quickly grew to 700 residents.

Skidoo proudly featured a post office, saloons, shops, a lawyer, a physician, and a telegraph line connecting to the town of Rhyolite.

A 23-mile water pipeline was built in 1907, at a cost of $250,000 to feed the town and mill. The 15-stamp mill was the only water powered mill in the Death Valley region.

Skidoo operated successfully for a decade. Nevertheless, the gold resources started to diminish by 1917. By 1922, only one individual was left before it was permanently deserted.

The infamous lynching: The town gained notoriety in April 1908 after the lynching of Joe Simpson, a saloon co-owner who murdered the popular businessman and bank cashier James Arnold. Legend states his body was dug up and re-hanged for the benefit of reporters who missed the original event, earning him the nickname "the man who was hanged twice."

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