EXPLORING OPHIR, UTAH

Grandma Doris Bracken Sagers  with siblings growing up in Ophir.

I spent today visiting Ophir, Utah at the Aaron Watson Bracken reunion. It was interesting to reconnect with a lot of relatives that I don't see very often, and meet some that I didn't know.  Interesting that a lot of them have ended up in Texas.  I think there were probably as many people there from Texas as there were from Utah.  I really appreciated seeing some of these old photos from the albums of my Aunt Jessie Johnson and cousin Carol Cluff.

History buff John Skinner shared with us a lot of stories from Ophir's boom town days, when the mines there were producing thousands of dollars' worth of silver. And yes, our ancestors were part of that era. 

When I was a kid, I remembered  hearing that Ophir was a "ghost town," and that sounded pretty scary to me!  I don't remember ever going there, although I probably did as a kid. 

Awhile back, the city (permanent population:16)  erected a site with the old historic buildings, school house, Post Office, etc., to show what life what like back then. I loved seeing John's collection of old bottles that he's found over the years.  Some are whiskey or beer bottles; others once held tonics and "home remedies." An interesting day!

Uncle Orson Johnson and LaVerle Bracken on the tour.

My dad, Jay Sagers, probably in the 1930s. 

Not sure if any of our ancestors used this drunk tank!

Part of the historic site.

Some of the buildings were original; I think the double outhouse is a replica!

Cousins taking the tour.

Beautiful mountains that were once full of silver...and maybe still are.

Photo of my Grandma Doris Bracken Sagers.

John Skinner's old bottle collection.

How would it be cooking on that wood-burning stove?

Ophir's town hall.