The first stop in Chloride is usually at the entry fence. It's there that visitors realize they are entering a town like no other. But the fence art - an unorganized and seemingly abandoned conglomeration of mostly glass bottle necks and rusted tins, and mostly from the mining era-perhaps gives a false sense of what the town is really like.

Its history dates back to the mid-1800s when veins of major minerals were found in the area. In the 1870s, the town began to prosper, and the post office - one of the oldest continually operating POs in Arizona - was established. By 1900, thanks to the extension of the Santa Fe Railroad and to the successful operation of two major silver mines, the town's population reached 2000.

In 1935, however, the railroad ceased operation to Chloride, and by 1944 the mines had closed. Chloride became a near ghost town.

But all was not lost forever. Today, Chloride is a tourist hot spot and a winter destination for snowbirds. It's filled with local art shops of jewelry and various handmade crafts which bring in tourists from all parts of the globe. The residents pride themselves on keeping the town alive. It is considered the oldest continuously inhabited mining town in Arizona.

Chloride is located off Highway 93 northwest of Kingman.