History of Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Cripple Creek
The Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine, site of a deadly incident Thursday, is a former gold mine now turned into a tourist destination in Cripple Creek that takes guests on a vertical descent 100 floors below ground, according to its website.
The mine was named after Mollie Kathleen Gortner, who in 1891 became the first woman in the Cripple Creek gold camp to discover gold and strike a claim in her own name, according to the website.
1 dead, 23 rescued at Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Cripple Creek after equipment malfunction
Emergency crews responded to an equipment malfunction during a tour of the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine, according to the Teller County Sheriff’s Office.

About two dozen tourists were trapped 1,000 feet down the mine before being rescued Thursday night.
It’s not the first time tourists have been trapped down in the historic mine.
In the summer of 1994, an elevator failed twice, stranding tourists below the earth for hours, according to a report by The Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph.
On June 17 that year, 13 tourists spent 12 and a half hours stuck in the mine after a metal elevator pulley broke, causing a cable to slip off the wheel, according to the report. It happened again the following month, and 50 tourists were stuck for about four hours.
In both cases, no injuries were reported and the mine was closed for a few days after each malfunction.
The last day of the tours this season was scheduled to be Sunday, according to the Mollie Kathleen website.
The mine closed in the 1960s, but with mine tours doing well at the time a decision was made to continue them, the website stated.
Revenue from the tours is used to maintain the mine and ensure it is in “safe operable mining condition,” according to the website.


Get OutThere
Signup today for free and be the first to get notified on new updates.




