Clarkdale, Arizona
Posted by: 
brwhiz
N 34° 45.571 W 112° 04.051
12S E 402300 N 3846893
Clarkdale is home to the Verde Canyon Railroad, a excursion railway that offers an opportunity to enjoy the geological, historical, and scenic aspects of the Clarkdale area.
Waymark Code: WMBVC8
Location: Arizona, United States
Date Posted: 06/22/2011
Views: 3
Clarkdale started life as a town for the United Verde mine in nearby Jerome. For many years copper from this mine was smelted and delivered to outside markets. That came to an end in 1953 when the mine and smelter were closed. Little did they know that they had left behind a large fortune in the waste slag dumped from the smelter.
Recent investigations have determined that the huge slag pile next to the old smelter contains a fortune in gold and other by-products. The slag contains about one ounce of gold for every ton of slag. But certain obstacles have to be overcome to obtain these precious resources. If (when) they are successful, they will not only recover precious metals, but the residue can be conveyed to the nearby Phoenix cement plant to increase the strength of concrete by up to 800%.