The Alma Queen is a reconstruction of a hard rock mine. It was designed to give visitors a taste of what it would have been like in an old hard rock mine.
"It was a big job- but now it's done," said South Park City Historical Foundation's President, Harley Hamilton. After receiving several grants totaling more than $100,000, Mr. Hamilton went to work and designed the initial layout for the new Mining display. Architect Neil Katz from Colorado Springs did the final plan to be approved by the town, and in the summer of 2008, work began with excavating the mining shaft and pouring concrete walls.
Ray Butler, a local Fairplay builder, experienced in mining construction, was the general contractor. Ray has completed several other building construction projects here in South Park City during the past four years. This phase of the Mining exhibit restoration and repair project was for all the outside exhibits, such as the recreation of a hard-rock mine tunnel, the extension of the mine car trestle, repair to the mine shaft headframe and cover, additions to the placer mining exhibit, new stairways and walkways. Further improvements to the mining building will follow with the arranging of pictorial and display exhibits on the inside when additional funding is secured.
"This is as close as a visitor can get to the real mining places. Historic South Park will give everyone a good inside view on the hard labor miners went through in the late 1800s to find precious metal in the hard rock," mentioned Hamilton while inspecting and walking the grounds at the new exhibition area.
