1880 General Store: Chloride, NM is an old silver mining town that was founded in 1880 when silver was found in the area. The Silver Boom lasted from 1880 to 1896. The Pioneer Store...

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1880 General Store

Jan 25, 2012 14:33:15 #

rballard29 Loc: Albuquerque, NM

Chloride, NM is an old silver mining town that was founded in 1880 when silver was found in the area. The Silver Boom lasted from 1880 to 1896. The Pioneer Store was built in 1880 and a Post Office added to the front of the store in 1881. The store actually operated until 1923 at which time most of the residents of Chloride moved on. The owners of the store at that time decided they could not continue to operate the store so they made the decision to board up the building and leave. When they boarded up the store they left the entire inventory inside the building. It was sealed for 68 years. When opened it had some water damage and was the home of a large number of bats and rodents. It was resealed and left until 1989 when it and an adjacent building were sold to someone with the intent to refurbish the buildings. The purchase included the entire inventory in both buildings. The inventory was carefully removed and cleaned. The building was refurbished and the inventory placed back on the shelves. The Pioneer Store Museum was opened to the public in 1998. Learn more about this building and the reason the inventory was left in the building when it was boarded up by visiting http://www.pioneerstoremuseum.com/Pioneer_Store_Museum.html . Chloride is about 30 miles off Interstate 25 in southern NM but if you are ever in the area it is definitely worth your time to visit this unique town and the Pioneer Store Museum. The family that did the restoration is very proud of their results and are excited to give you a personal tour. There was no charge when I visited Chloride.

Part of Main Street, Chloride, NM