Stampede To Timberline: Ghost Towns & Mining [Paperback]

Muriel Sibell Wolle (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 595 pages
• Publisher: Swallow Press; 1 edition (May 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804009465
• ISBN-13: 978-0804009461
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,386,267 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than a "Ghost Town" Book for Tourists, August 28, 2006

By 

A. R. Barry - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Stampede To Timberline: Ghost Towns & Mining (Paperback)

I have been researching the area of Colorado where my great grandparents were pioneer settlers in the 1870s. Their town, Rosita, in Custer County, is listed in many "ghost town" books, with a paragraph or two about its history. That's what I was expecting with Stampede to Timberline, but this book provided much more in-depth information.

In the 1940s, Muriel Sibell Wolle traveled to Rosita, and to dozens of other old mining areas. In each community, Wolle interviewed the oldest residents she could find. She asked them to recall details of the earliest days of the area and she recorded their stories in this book. Wolle also sketched a scene from each community, which she used to illustrate her stories.

In this book, I was delighted to find historical details about the area I have researched, that I have not found anywhere else! This is a large book, and every locale included in it has first-hand reports of historical information. This book was a huge undertaking and accomplishment for Muriel Sibell Wolle.

I would very much recommend Stampede to Timberline for students of Colorado history and for tourists, as well.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the finest ghost town books ever!, June 18, 2008

By 

ZoneIII (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stampede To Timberline: Ghost Towns & Mining (Paperback)

Having had an interest in ghost towns since the 1960s, I have accumulated a large collection of books on the subject. I can say without any reservation that the books by the late Muriel Sibell Wolle and also books by Lambert Florin are in a class all their own. I have not seen this particular addition because mine was printed in 1974. The first printing was in 1949. This latest version should be the best of all.

Muriel's books are what ghost town books should be. They are filled with stories about the towns and the people who lived in them and that brings the towns to life. I also have many newer books on ghost towns but none come close to those by Wolle or Florin. For example, newer books by Philip Varney have nice color pictures but they lack the real heart of ghost town books... the stories. Varney and later authors tend to simply present dry facts and statistics about the towns (and not many of them!) accompanied by color pictures. They treat the towns more as scenery while largely ignoring the history that makes the towns so interesting. Wolle and Florin's books are mostly text and the are illustrated by charming b&w drawings. Wolle, an artist, did her own sketches. I have no problem with color photographs of ghost towns since I am a professional photographer myself and ghost towns are one of my specialties but there is just a timeless quality and moodiness to sketches and b&w photographs that link them to the past.

It's hard to put Stampede to Timberline down once one begins to read it. In fact, reading it has rekindled a dream I have had about moving to Colorado (I am retired), getting an old but rugged 4WD vehicle with good ground clearance and searching for more of these towns and mining camps. Be warned that if you are not from Colorado or are otherwise not used to driving on mountain passes, you will be in for a shock when you try to get to some of these towns. Some of the "roads" are so narrow that one car barely fits on it with it's wheels hanging over cliffs that may be thousands of feet high. Some of them couldn't even be called trails! They're more like incredibly steep boulder strewn riverbeds that cling to cliff faces. You will read about some of Muriel's adventures on those roads in this book.

The only negative about Wolle's books and those by Florin is that they are dated and many of the towns described in them are greatly changed since the books were first written. Some towns have vanished; some have crumbled to near oblivion; some have been re-born and are thriving. But no other books about ghost towns give you greater background information on these old towns and mining camps or treat you with such fascinating reading.

Wolle and Florin made a tremendous contribution in preserving the memory of these towns. Their books should be the foundation of any library about ghost towns. I cannot recommend this book or Florin's books more highly.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TONS OF FACTS AND ANCEDOTES OF COLORADO HISTORY, July 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Stampede To Timberline: Ghost Towns & Mining (Paperback)

I ENJOYED THE BOOK AS IT TELLS IT LIKE IT WAS.

REAL GOOD STUFF ON BLOODY BRIDLES WAITE, ONE OF MY UNSUNG HEROES OF THE WEST. THE GOVERNOR COMES ALIVE IN THIS BOOK AS THE TRUE HERO OF LABOR.

IF YOU LIKE HISTORY AND WANT THE FACTS, THIS IS THE BOOK THAT DOES JUST THAT.