A look back at the demise of Monte Cristo, the town at the heart of the Cascades gold rush

A look back at a former mining town after devastating flood

Established in the early 1890s, the mining magnet was once ripe with gold and silver. What started as a couple dozen claims in 1891, skyrocketed to 200 a few years later. At one point, Monte Cristo was considered one of the richest mining stretches in the country.

MONTE CRISTO, Wash. - This week 43 years ago, a powerful flood cut the town of Monte Cristo off from the rest of Snohomish County.

Established in the early 1890s, the mining magnet was once ripe with gold and silver. What started as a couple dozen claims in 1891, skyrocketed to 200 a few years later. At one point, Monte Cristo was considered one of the richest mining stretches in the country.

David Cameron, the former president of the Monte Cristo Preservation Association, says the town was indeed named after the famous Alexander Dumas novel "The Count of Monte Cristo."

"You put the magic name on it and the investment money comes in," said Cameron.

Within a few short years of its founding, there were saloons, a handful of hotels and a general store. At its peak, roughly a thousand people called this Cascades community home. Among those looking to strike it rich was former President Donald Trump’s grandfather, Frederick Trump. The infamous John D. Rockefeller bought in too. He invested in a railroad which connected the city to Everett.

"That became the funding background: the romance and the geology in Monte Cristo developed from there," said Cameron. "Very large number of people made a lot of money."

There were three strikes that contributed to the downfall of this boom town. One contributing factor was the longevity of the mines.

"Unfortunately, they didn’t know enough about the geology to realize this isn't in the Rocky Mountains, this is the Cascades, which were much younger, and as a result, the ore bodies didn’t have as much to develop," said Cameron.

Frustrated miners finding little beneath the surface opted instead to seek their fortune up north in the Klondike.

Multiple financial panics also contributed to Monte Cristo’s demise. Cameron argues the flood in 1897 escalated the situation from bad to worse. Families were displaced and the critical passage in and out of town was log jammed.

A news article, published in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, details the aftermath: "The river swollen by a deluge of rain and melted snow, rose to the dimensions of a restless torrent… it undermined great trees until they toppled into the flood."

After that, Rockefeller abandoned the project. The railroad was never repaired.

"Monte Cristo almost rolled over and died," said Cameron.

The mining ceased, but this presented an opportunity for tourism.

For a time, there was an inn and cabins accessible by car and bus. There was even a big parking lot. According to Cameron, access to that area disappeared following the flood of 1980, which was a catastrophe eerily similar to the weather event nearly 83 years prior.

Now to visit Monte Cristo, you need a pair of hiking boots or a bike.