A typo saved this California mining town from obscurity—now it’s impossibly haunted and beautiful

Bodey’s Fatal Blizzard and Cain’s Bodie Empire

William “Waterman” Bodey struck gold near Mono Lake in 1859 but never saw his find turn into a boom town. Just months after his discovery, he froze to death in a brutal November blizzard while on a supply run.

His name lived on, though a sign painter’s error changed it from “Bodey” to “Bodie. ” Twenty years later, James Stuart Cain showed up with big plans.

This 25-year-old built a lumber empire, ran gold mines, took over the bank, and got rich quick. After Bodie went bust, the Cain family kept watch over the ghost town for decades.

The dusty streets of Bodie State Historic Park still tell both men’s stories today.

Tinsmith Left Family Behind for Gold Fever

Bill “Waterman” Bodey ran a successful tin shop in Poughkeepsie, New York at 345 Main Street. He lived with his wife Sarah and four kids at South Hamilton and Montgomery streets.

Though folks in town liked him, Bodey couldn’t say no when he heard about California gold. In 1848, he told his family goodbye and got on the ship Mathew Vasser, hoping to get rich in California’s goldfields.

Cape Horn Voyage Kicked Off His Adventure

Bodey took the risky sea route around Cape Horn to reach California.

He landed in San Francisco in 1849 when gold fever was at its peak and fortune hunters packed the state. For almost ten years, he barely got by, moving from camp to camp.

By 1859, Bodey tried his luck in the Sierra foothills, joining three other gold seekers who thought they’d find riches in the rough mountains near Mono Lake.

Gold Finally Showed Up After Years of Searching

In July 1859, Bodey and his friends struck gold north of Mono Lake in eastern California. They found it about seven miles west of the Nevada border in what later became Mono County.

The men built a small mining camp they called “Bodey’s Diggings,” with just a few rough shelters and basic tools.

Word of their find spread slowly, bringing only a handful of miners to the faraway spot that summer and fall.

November Blizzard Caught Miners Unprepared

On November 20, 1859, Bodey and his mining buddy “Black Taylor” left camp to get supplies from Monoville. They needed food to make it through winter in the mountains.

The men didn’t get far before a fierce Sierra Nevada storm hit with howling winds and heavy snow. The air turned freezing as they couldn’t see through the blinding snow.

The miners found themselves fighting to stay alive in one of California’s harshest spots.

Freezing Cold Claimed the Life of a Future Legend

When Bodey couldn’t push through the deep snow anymore, Black Taylor left him to get help. Taylor struggled forward alone, hoping to come back quickly with supplies.

The storm made it impossible for Taylor to find his way back to where he left his partner. Bodey froze to death in the brutal cold, never knowing that the gold he found would create a busy town with his name.

His Body Turned Up Months After the Storm

People found Bodey’s body several months later when spring melted the winter snow. Some stories say his body moved to a deep ice-filled crack twenty years after he died.

The mining area went through different name spellings as it grew, like “Bodey,” “Body,” and others.

The current spelling happened when a sign painter in nearby Aurora wrote “Bodie Stables” on a building, and the wrong spelling stuck.

Bodie Turned Into a Wild Boomtown

In 1876, the Standard Company found large gold deposits in the area, turning the small camp into a busy town. Rich strikes in 1878 brought thousands of gold-seekers rushing to claim land.

By 1879, Bodie grew to about 7,000-10,000 people with around 2,000 buildings across the hillsides.

The town had 65 saloons, several newspapers, banks, and got known for lawlessness and fighting that matched any Wild West town.

Young Canadian Arrived With Big Dreams

James Stuart Cain was born in Canada in 1854 and moved to Carson City, Nevada in 1875. He married Martha D. Wells from nearby Genoa and came to Bodie in 1879 at just 25 years old.

Cain started making money in the lumber business, putting boats on Mono Lake to move timber to the growing mining town. His wood helped build mine shafts, fuel boilers, make buildings, and heat homes throughout Bodie.

Mining Deal Made Him Rich Almost Overnight

Cain and his friend Joe Maguire rented land from the Standard Consolidated Mining Company and hit it big. They pulled $90,000 in gold from their claim in just 90 days.

When Standard wouldn’t renew their rental deal, Cain fought back in court.

He won control of the Standard mill and company, becoming one of the richest men in Bodie and a key player in the mining area.

Business Empire Grew As Town Shrank

In 1890, Cain bought the Bodie Bank from E. L. Benedict and moved into banking. He bought properties all over town as other folks and businesses left during Bodie’s decline.

Cain ran many businesses including lumber, shipping, banking, and mining all at once.

He soon owned Mono County’s only bank and became Bodie’s main property owner, controlling much of the town as people moved away through the early 1900s.

Family Protected Ghost Town For Decades

When Cain died in 1938 at age 84, his family continued watching over the abandoned town.

They hired caretakers and security guards to protect the buildings from vandals and looters throughout the 1940s and 1950s as Bodie sat mostly empty.

In 1962, the Cain family transferred ownership to California to create Bodie State Historic Park.

Their preservation efforts saved the town from complete disappearance, allowing visitors today to walk through an authentic Wild West ghost town frozen in time.

Visiting Bodie Ghost Town, California

Bodie Ghost Town preserves the story of William “Waterman” Bodey, who found gold here but died in a 1859 blizzard before seeing the boom town named after him.

James Stuart Cain arrived in 1879 and saved Bodie from ruin, maintaining it until 1962 when California made it a state park. Entry costs $8 for adults, $5 for kids 4-17.

Take Highway 395 to Route 270 east for 13 miles total.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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