- 6 months ago
🌵 | Forgotten Ghost Towns of Arizona
Ever wonder what history looks like when it’s left untouched in the middle of the desert?
Join A&G Adventures as we journey deep into Arizona’s forgotten past, exploring three eerie ghost towns that most have never heard of: Sasco, Alto, and Sundad.
🏚️ Sasco, AZ
Once home to the Southern Arizona Smelter Company, Sasco was a bustling company town west of Red Rock. Now, it’s a crumbling ghost town where you can walk through the haunting remains of its smelter, workers’ quarters, and graveyards of rusted metal.
⛰️ Alto, AZ
High in the Santa Rita Mountains lies Alto, once known as El Plomo. With steep mountain mines and rich stories—like Mimi Bond, one of the first female postmasters in the U.S.—this place is as scenic as it is historic.
🌵 Sundad, AZ
A town with a strange and mysterious past—first a mining site, then a proposed sanatorium in the 1920s. By the 1950s, it had already slipped into legend. Explore eerie desert ruins and the remnants of what could have been.
Ever wonder what history looks like when it’s left untouched in the middle of the desert?
Join A&G Adventures as we journey deep into Arizona’s forgotten past, exploring three eerie ghost towns that most have never heard of: Sasco, Alto, and Sundad.
🏚️ Sasco, AZ
Once home to the Southern Arizona Smelter Company, Sasco was a bustling company town west of Red Rock. Now, it’s a crumbling ghost town where you can walk through the haunting remains of its smelter, workers’ quarters, and graveyards of rusted metal.
⛰️ Alto, AZ
High in the Santa Rita Mountains lies Alto, once known as El Plomo. With steep mountain mines and rich stories—like Mimi Bond, one of the first female postmasters in the U.S.—this place is as scenic as it is historic.
🌵 Sundad, AZ
A town with a strange and mysterious past—first a mining site, then a proposed sanatorium in the 1920s. By the 1950s, it had already slipped into legend. Explore eerie desert ruins and the remnants of what could have been.
Category
🏖
TravelTranscript
00:00Hey guys, we're still working on getting our daily driver up and running, so we've got a special of
00:05four adventures for you. And maybe a little surprise in between. Have a great day. Thank
00:10you for watching. Bye. Hook Road, this is the roof rack we installed. Their logo is to make a
00:19difference. We would really recommend this roof rack to anybody who is interested in a roof rack.
00:25It was fantastic and has been. And here we go on another adventure. This time, we're going to the
00:31old abandoned town of Sasko. Come with us and see what we find.
00:45In 1903, the Union Mine and the Mammoth Mine in the Silver Bell Mountains were combined
00:55to form the Imperial Copper Company and the Silver Bear Mine one year later.
01:03In the town of Sasko, also known as the Southern Arizona Smelting Company, Sasko for short, was
01:14formed on August 10th, 1906. But due to some financial problems, work didn't begin on the
01:24new smolter until the summer of 1907. And it was not completed until February of 1908.
01:34Hi, welcome back to our channel. This is Historic Mines, and we're investigating the town of Sarasso,
01:48the great big silver mine in the 1800s. Yeah, it's called the Silver Bell Mine.
01:53You didn't push the button? No. So this is the Rock Hotel?
02:09Yeah, it's called the Silver Bell Rockland Hotel.
02:13Okay, and then over here was the rooms? I think so. Like, possibly this first structure might
02:21have been like a reception or something. Lobby, okay. And maybe these were like hotel rooms?
02:32They're going four, so not that many. They're definitely collapsed right here. I mean, you can tell.
02:55Yep. All sorts of stuff like that happens over time.
03:00Yeah, and definitely people have camp here. Yep. And then there's some rocks here. One says MRP.
03:11Yep. Huh. And then you said this is baby's breath flyers?
03:19Yeah, these are from bouquets, because this small stuff right here, this is called baby's breath.
03:26Well, this is very cool. The Rock Hotel.
03:35When the smelter was finished, work on the town to attract settlers were undertaken.
03:43Soon, the town of Sarasso was home to a residential neighborhood of 600 people,
03:49as well as a few stores and saloons.
03:58The Sasko smelter employed 175 men,
04:03and by 1910 had already processed 245,000 tons of copper ore.
04:13So, this is all that's left of Sasko.
04:24So, you can see the...
04:29...de-pap lit it and...
04:34...old building site here.
04:39It's all part of the smelting operations they had.
04:49Although Sasko was set to become one of the premier smelting towns in the southwest,
04:58its existence was very short, between 1909 and 1911.
05:05So, this is smelting plants and this building up here, we don't know.
05:15Oh, wow, look at that. That's quite a structure there.
05:35Yeah, that's huge.
05:36And it goes all the way over there, too.
05:40See, and then there was this stuff here.
05:47And then there's something flat up there.
05:49I'm gonna go up that way and see what I can see.
05:54I believe, like I said, this was the old silver mine.
05:58So, what the structures became, I don't know.
06:05It became a shooting gallery for people.
06:08Well, that much is obvious.
06:13Shotgun shells.
06:1622s.
06:17I don't know, what do you think? It closed on it?
06:20Maybe.
06:21Where they just dug into the side of the mountain?
06:25Yeah, it's something.
06:27In the late 1930s, most of the buildings in Sasko were demolished,
06:33along with the railroad that served the town.
06:37The remains of several structures can still be visited today, including the Hotel Rockland
06:44Sasko Jail and the smelter complex.
06:47Okay.
06:48And this would have been probably another smelter building.
06:52Yeah.
06:53Right here.
06:54I'll bet you this is where they had that and then dropped off waste in this.
06:59Possible.
07:00You know, whatever they processed through.
07:02Okay.
07:03Well, take a broadcast look this way.
07:14I'm going to go down and check out that building right there.
07:32Aaron's going to take Finn and get him some water.
07:36I'm going to go check out this building right here.
07:41I'm going to go down and check out this building right here.
07:45I'm going to go down and check out this building right here.
07:50So, let's...
07:52Huh?
07:53When you get into it, count the rooms.
07:54Okay.
07:55Count the rooms.
07:56Okay.
07:57Count the rooms.
07:58Okay.
07:59All right.
08:00So...
08:01Is it a drop or is it...
08:04Oh, it's got steps.
08:05Cool.
08:06Yep.
08:07There's a little, like a hallway right there.
08:21Yeah, it's full of junk.
08:26This could be a maze.
08:32Little Palo Verde tree growing right here.
08:36Let's see if we can get past it without getting scratched up too bad.
08:40Oh, yeah.
08:41Right here.
08:42A little hallway.
08:43Yeah.
08:44That's where we were.
08:45That's the dead end.
08:46Another entrance or exit.
08:47Come back this way.
08:49So, that's where we were.
08:54That's the dead end.
08:56Another entrance or exit.
08:58Come back this way.
09:01So, that's one room.
09:04Let's see if we can bend down and get through here.
09:10Another hallway.
09:11A little window through there.
09:22We've got some Halloween decoration.
09:25Another little hallway right there.
09:26Wow.
09:27Yeah, this would be great for Halloween.
09:28Another little window.
09:30There's a whole skylight.
09:31There's a skylight right there.
09:37So, it'd be like, it'd be one, two, three.
09:44It's not really like rooms, I think really.
09:45It's just kind of like a big mansion.
09:46It's not really like rooms, I think really.
09:48It's just kind of like a big maze.
09:49Oh, there's one where the wall collapsed.
09:50Oh, there's one where the wall collapsed.
09:51Oh, there's one where the wall collapsed.
09:53So, this would be like rooms, I think really.
10:00It's just kind of like a big maze.
10:02Oh, there's one where the wall collapsed.
10:21So, this would be like, what, four or five rooms right here?
10:26and wall closed blocking sort of blocking the pathway right there
10:43little hallways
10:48wow this is interesting
10:56low roof i just make it fit in here see i don't know if you can see it but see how close i am to
11:06the ceiling i just fit in here like my brother-in-law he would never be able to stand up in
11:14here he's 6'2 but yeah but i have to duck on this beam here this is a low ceiling
11:25there's another exit another hallway one
11:32two
11:40low bridge
11:43i'm too tall for this one i hit this one so there's what three
11:57four
12:08four
12:17this is insane
12:18five
12:34six
12:43I'm a little disoriented, I'm not going to lie.
12:577, 8, maybe like 8 or 9 rooms in this thing, that is insane, that would be awesome for
13:07Halloween.
13:14That's pretty cool.
13:15I mean, it kind of sucks that it was vandalized with all the graffiti, but that's pretty cool.
13:23We just came up that hill over on that side to come check this out.
13:31I'm not exactly sure what these structures are.
13:46Finn, take it easy.
13:55He's an Anatolian shepherd.
14:02Yeah, look at these.
14:05This structure, it just keeps going all the way to the end down there.
14:13What?
14:14There's another structure way down there.
14:18Oh, cool.
14:19We will be.
14:20I'm going to cut across here and join Finn and Aaron again.
14:34I feel there's bats in this cave.
14:37Bats in the belfry.
14:38Where are the bells?
14:41So do you think that vampires have a better chance of surviving now since they have sunblock?
14:56Depends on how strong the sunblock is.
14:58True.
14:59Oh, a lot of structures here.
15:02Yeah.
15:03Yeah.
15:04Some steel thing there.
15:07Oh, yeah.
15:08Actually, that's wood and steel.
15:12Yeah, that's newer.
15:13You know what I'm wondering is if maybe they've done some things here.
15:17Like that was a door for this when we had the metal structures, so that was not part of the original thing.
15:24I'll bet you this would be an awesome place to just like, if you could find, get permission to do it, to do a paintball war.
15:32Mmm.
15:33Especially with that one building that I just went through.
15:36Yeah.
15:37This whole area.
15:38I mean, you can work it out, but you'd have to get permission from the, I imagine steel and my own this land.
15:47So if you like this video, please give it a thumbs up, like, share, and subscribe.
15:57And turn on that notification button so you can be the first one to see it when it posts.
16:03This tripod we have been using on this whole trip or adventure today.
16:10It has been awesome.
16:13We have used the tripod on every adventure beginning with Copper Creek.
16:19It allows us to get incredible footage.
16:31Simulated drone footage.
16:43And the tripod lets us get amazing sunset shots.
16:52And the selfie stick is about 66 inches high, allowing incredible angles.
16:59And we will leave a link in the description.
17:02And to get 15% off, the discount code is ANGADVENTURES.
17:08I'm going to help Aaron get out of here a little bit.
17:11I'm a mess Sundan.
17:13So Do Lady Sli� editor and also point your footsteps on that continues.
17:16Oh!
17:17Let's go!
17:23You're ready for aокс콘 thinking.
17:26Yes?
17:27I'm gonna be ready for it.
17:29I'm gonna be ready for that today.
17:30I'm about to Rick.
17:31You'reça wer Vouscoignez, Donnie.
17:32Help me.
17:33I'm gonna be sure.
17:34You're gonna come back on.
17:35I'm gonna be right here.
17:36I came back in here a minute.
17:38This is cause we're a guy from R Brooke.
17:39welcome back to our channel we're sitting outside the adobe ruins today we're taking
18:08an adventure to the adobe ruins and to the wandering jew mine this is in southern arizona so come with us
18:38do you want to air down at all yeah i was thinking about that we should air down
18:49maybe just a little yeah
18:54i was just looking for a spot we could do that right there
18:58yeah that's probably perfect yeah because this looks kind of like just where two roads merge
19:04what does the road look like so we didn't turn right no okay is this okay yeah
19:28stay here for a minute
19:34so
19:47so
20:59So we stopped to see this sign.
21:16Good, do you want to read this sign to me?
21:25There's nothing there.
21:32Yep.
21:33Good.
21:34Good.
21:35Good.
21:36Good.
21:37Good.
21:38Good.
21:39Good.
21:40Good.
21:41Good.
21:42Good.
21:43Good.
21:44Good.
21:45Good.
21:46Good.
21:47Good.
21:48Good.
21:49Good.
21:50Good.
21:51Good.
21:52Good.
21:53Good.
21:54Good.
21:55Good.
21:56Good.
21:57Good.
21:58Good.
21:59Good.
22:00Actually, those are all Jeeps.
22:29I don't know what that means, did we get three ducks, how did they get over there, I don't
22:39know, I'm not going to cross that, they probably came down one of the side roads, but it's okay.
22:59You want to take fun with us, we'll walk together.
23:04Yeah, I think we should.
23:06Oh, is he okay?
23:09Yeah.
23:10Yeah.
23:17Yeah.
23:18Yeah.
23:20Yeah.
23:26Yeah.
28:01We're going to need to do is get as much information about that adobe room structure, historical-wise, as we can.
28:17And we'll try to include all that in the video.
28:20Okay.
28:21That's really crazy, because I didn't want to know what it was.
28:29Yeah.
28:30Mine hazard, no trespassing.
28:32Maybe that's a mine.
28:33I'm going to help Aaron get out of here a little bit.
28:35So, if you like this video, please give it a thumbs up, like, share, and subscribe, and turn on that notification button so you can be the first one to see it when it posts.
28:46I think so.
28:47I think so.
29:00I think so.
29:12What do you think?
29:30What do you think?
29:30I agree with you.
29:32And we use the selfie stick for a lot of simulated drone footage, which we will like, too.
29:39Yeah, that works pretty good.
29:40The tripod has just been fantastic for that.
29:44Yeah, we do have it with us today.
29:47We did bring it.
29:47We have used the tripod on every adventure, beginning with Copper Creek.
30:00It allows us to get incredible footage, simulated drone footage,
30:08footage, and the tripod lets us get amazing sunset shots.
30:25And the selfie stick is about 66 inches high, allowing incredible angles.
30:31And we will leave a link in the description, and to get 15% off, the discount code is ANGADVENTURES.
30:41In July 1846, the Mormon Battalion of nearly 550 men left Council Bluffs and marched to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
30:58During the months of January and December, the battalion crossed Arizona and arrived in the San Diego area.
31:07They had been the first to take wagons through the country and had established a wagon route for future use.
31:18The Mormon Battalion Trail, August 1846 to January 1847.
31:27The Mormon Battalion Trail was formed when President Polk needed California secured for the U.S. after annexing Texas.
31:34This was during the Mexican-American War.
31:37An army of 500 volunteers were recruited, and the Mormon Battalion started out from Fort Leavenworth.
31:43Oh, cool, this is what the pay rates, too.
31:51The captain gets 50 bucks plus 20 cents per day.
31:55Second lieutenant.
31:56First lieutenant, second lieutenant.
31:58Plus 20 cents per day.
32:00Second lieutenant.
32:01Private.
32:02Private.
32:02And then everybody else.
32:02Seven.
32:03Seven dollars a day?
32:04For a private.
32:05Private.
32:09General Philip St. George Cook.
32:12And then, like, this is, that is super cool.
32:16Mormon Battalion.
32:17Some of the original members of the Mormon Battalion at their 50-year anniversary.
32:23It's kind of faded.
32:24You can't really see it.
32:26Private Christopher Leighton Company D.
32:29And they get the map.
32:31That's super cool.
32:35And so this must have been the way they marched.
32:40Along the canal.
32:41Well, remember, there was no canal.
32:43True.
32:44But there is now.
32:48That is super rushing.
33:00Cholla skeleton.
33:02Cholla skeleton tree.
33:03And right here, we are about to cross over the Gillespie Dam Bridge.
33:17In 1912, state highway engineer, Lamar Cobb, began planning the construction of the dedicated bridge across the Hilo River.
33:36The Gillespie Bridge was constructed to bypass a concrete apron through the river in front of the dam, which was often closed due to flooding.
33:52Construction of the bridge.
33:53Construction of the bridge started in 1925 and completed in 1927.
34:05And now, the bridge is part of the historic U.S. 80 route.
34:10And then there's a canal right there.
34:25Yep.
34:26So, you're saying that that could possibly be volcanic rock?
34:32Yep.
34:33That's what it looks like to me.
34:34It may not be, but it sure looks like it.
34:58We are.
35:00Hi.
35:03Hey, everybody.
35:04Uh.
35:06We are...
35:08In the middle of nowhere.
35:11As usual.
35:12Mm-hmm.
35:13We're following my dad's maps.
35:15We're headed off to a place called Sentinel.
35:18And we're going to go along the ways of a town called Sundad.
35:25Sorry.
35:26Phoenix pulling me.
35:28So, I'm hoping that this ends up being pretty cool.
35:33You've got to see the view here.
35:36Good morning, guys.
35:37Good morning.
35:38You see our Vanessa's jackets here?
35:40Yep, and he's got his on, too.
35:42Yeah, these are fantastic.
35:44We were able to get the company that produces these to give everybody who watches A&G Adventures 20% off.
35:51You can do so with the checkout code AGADVENTURES, and there'll be a link at the end of this video.
35:59Gidget and I have been using Vanessa's heatless jackets since November of 2024.
36:05They've been a game changer for our winter adventures.
36:07We stayed warm during a winter camping trip in the Valley Fire.
36:12We took them to the Oregon coast while exploring the sea lion caves.
36:16And most recently, when we ran out of propane at the Christmas campground, as seen in this video, these jackets were our lifesavers.
36:24If you love winter adventures but hate the cold, this is a jacket I would definitely recommend.
36:33There's a jeep right over there.
36:45Now there's Gidget and Finn.
36:47We're loading everybody back up into the jeep to continue on with our adventure.
37:04We use the selfie stick for a lot of simulated drone footage, which we really like, too.
37:17The tripod has just been fantastic for that.
37:23Yeah, we do have it with us today.
37:26We did bring in a crack ink tripod selfie stick.
37:31Really awesome.
37:32There's your plug right there.
37:36Yep.
37:36Somebody pile some rocks in a circle right over there.
37:48Don't know why.
39:20I have volcanic rock on this one side and washes in sand over on that side.
39:28Mountains in the background.
39:29It's just really kind of cool.
39:31If you get a chance to do this drive, I would do it.
39:33And here we finally come across the historical area of Sundad.
39:44The Sundad was initially a mining town in the 1920s.
40:14With the proposed site of a sanitarium.
40:18By the 1950s, Sundad was referred to in the local press as Ghost Town.
40:25The Sundad was introduced to the local press.
40:33And here we go.
40:35Whoa!
40:35Oh man.
40:36Don't you hate it when that happens?
40:41You just drop a coffee cup and it breaks.
40:45Well, you know, if I had been smart, I'd use this one instead.
40:50Because the A&G Adventures mug is stainless steel with a coating.
41:01And you could get one of these to help support our channel.
41:04The other thing is, it's got a lid that keeps stuff from spilling.
41:08So, you can see a lid that has open and closed.
41:16So, if you're there, and like for us, when we're off-roading, you can just keep this closed.
41:20Your drink doesn't spill.
41:23So, now you can get your own cup.
41:25Sundad is in an area in the far west of Maricopa County, Arizona.
41:47It is located north of Agua Caliente and east of Secassian Flats.
41:55And the BLM considers Sundad and a historic site.
42:17We'll see you then.
42:47like a lot of these they've got glass down the center of the artwork
43:17looks like four one two three four and then check this out it's a star a heart
43:32and a square thing
43:37this one looks like it's diamond with the same thing with that broken glass in the center
43:43and there's an arrow
43:58and this other side
44:01this is sundat
44:13and we've got a long arrow pointing off this way
44:33looks like that leads up there
44:43and right here is like what somebody used for a fireplace or something
44:50and we have this shape right here which is interesting
45:01so this is sundat that we're in right now and some people
45:12made these shapes with the rocks and you got this over here and you got a little monument
45:24and this says son dad as well
45:33see in memory of preston wiseman
45:37and there's a little bench that people have put stuff on
45:44nice poem that's on there too
45:46okay so i don't know if you can really see this shape that they made here but it's pretty cool almost like a sun or something it's pretty cool
46:02cool
46:07there's quite a few designs of stars that people did out here
46:10like
46:12like this one here
46:14a couple circles
46:19a couple circles
46:22but pretty interesting
46:24this place
46:28check this one out here
46:31a couple of shapes
46:32and the rumors
46:35and the rumor is
46:36that nobody knows
46:39who came out here
46:41to make these designs
46:44it could have been
46:45a long long time ago
46:46but we don't really know
46:49who did that
46:51and some people might have been added to it
46:54over the years
46:56there's something way up there
46:57we're gonna walk up that way and take a look and see what this thing is up here
47:06so let's go check this out
47:22huh
47:23there's nothing real in particular about this
47:26it's got some stuff in it but not much
47:38we're gonna head up over there to see what that is
47:41meet you over there
47:45this is that mine
47:49shaft or audit whichever one it is
47:53that was up here
47:54it's barred off
47:59pretty much filled in
48:03as you can see
48:08it pretty much filled it in
48:12this spot right there
48:15it looks like it does
48:16it wasn't covered
48:18that's what this is
48:23there's another one
48:26right over there
48:27that's been fenced off
48:29we're gonna take a look at that
48:30and then we'll go take a look at that building piece up there
48:33that structure
48:43yep here it is
48:58mostly filled in as well
49:00that's fine
49:00yeah it's pretty much filled in
49:17yeah it's pretty much filled in
49:19i left aaron and finnick back over that way
49:28it's okay
49:33it's okay
49:35they're exploring all
49:36everything over there
49:39and we came up here
49:40okay
49:47i'm gonna climb up this
49:49and see what that structure is
49:50and i'll meet you again in a minute
49:54looks like aaron and finnick are coming up
49:55this area was definitely mine
50:18i think he's trying to figure out where to go
50:21all right let's see what this is
50:25oh
50:27oh that's deep
50:29it's got cans and rocks
50:31maybe like a well
50:34preserve water preserve or something
50:37right there i don't know
50:53okay i hope this works
50:55i think i'm gonna go back to the jeeping video
51:07here what are you doing
51:23i'm trying to get video of the mine here but
51:27you know the gate makes it so you can't go in
51:30so i got our selfie stick on my arm
51:33don't drop it okay
51:35uh i won't i hope
51:37that's not funny
51:41i'm not i hope you guys are going to do this
51:42i think i'm gonna do this
51:44i'm gonna go back to the grave
51:54um
51:56if you don't have a dance
51:57i think that's true
51:57if i have a cell phone
51:59you know what i'm going to do
52:00make sure you can get it
52:01in here
52:02like you know you know you're in your garden
52:03so you can get it
52:04that's not fair
52:05but i love you
52:06all right
52:07so you can get it
52:08and i love you
52:08Transcription by CastingWords
52:38CastingWords
53:08CastingWords
53:38CastingWords
53:48CastingWords
53:49So if you like this video, please give it a thumbs up, like, share, and subscribe.
53:55And turn on that notification button so you can be the first one to see it when it posts.
54:00So you can get an A&G Adventures t-shirt. This is the front.
54:21Actually, this is the back. This is the back, sorry.
54:25And this is the front.
54:26And this is the front. The other thing we've got is some really cool camping mugs.
54:31These are the metal ones. These are really good for when you go camping. They don't break. And these are the glass ones.
54:42Okay. And the other ones are taller, right?
54:46Mm-hmm. And we have this one. It's her. It's got a little straw, built-in straw in there.
54:52Okay.
54:53And we have these. We've got silver and white.
55:00And those are stainless steel, right?
55:01Yes.
55:02Okay.
55:04There you go.
55:05And they're real deep.
55:07And the other thing you could do is get a fennec dog.
55:11A plush fennec doggy.
55:13And as you guys know, fennec dog is a rescue.
55:17And we got these just to kind of celebrate him and to help us support our channel.
55:24What if you could embark on an off-road adventure to the Grand Canyon,
55:30exploring hidden trails and encountering untouched vistas that remain unseen by most visitors?
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