Brief History of Monte Cristo	...back to home

History of Monte Cristo By KAREN SYKES SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER In 1889 Joe Pearsall climbed to the top of a mountain near Silver Creek and viewed the terrain through a field glass. His eye caught a radiant gleam on the side of Wilmon Peak, which turned out to be an ore deposit consisting of galena and iron pyrites. Monte Cristo was born and by 1893 Barlow Pass could be reached by railroad. Large mining operations grew into full production when wealthy capitalists began to invest, and Monte Cristo grew to nearly 2,000 inhabitants. Tramway systems, an ore concentrator and a railroad were built to move ore to a smelter in Everett. Mining operations continued on and off until 1907, when the mines shut down. Today most of Monte Cristo remains in private hands, although it is surrounded by national forest, much of it inside the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness. Many of the peaks in the basin are riddled with tunnels. One goes all the way through Wilmon Peak, with one entrance overlooking Glacier Basin and the other overlooking Seventysix Gulch, the moodiest place I've ever been. Today most of the mines are barricaded and considered dangerous. The basin is quiet. You may hear a marmot whistle or the muffled conversation of occasional backpackers, but Monte Cristo never died completely. Some active mining, as well as much scheming and dreaming, persist to this day. A stubborn spirit lives on in Monte Cristo in the remaining battered cabins.

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