Summer 2020: Ghost Town Wild West Museum

When you see a beat-up roadside billboard for a “Ghost Town” museum, only to discover that it’s located in a strip mall parking lot…you park and head on inside! My expectations were low, yet my curiosity was piqued.

This recognition is awfully specific. I also love the quotes around “Ghost Town.”

I appreciated that their deer was following Governor Polis’ mask mandate!

Admission was only 7.50 each, which in hindsight was a bargain for the experience. The Ghost Town Wild West Museum is an indoor experience, comprised of genuine artifacts and preserved buildings from Colorado’s gold rush era in the 1850’s.

The museum was very strict on Covid safety, providing plenty of hand sanitizer, limiting the capacity, and adding directional arrows on the floor to control the flow of traffic. For a majority of our visit ( it takes about 45-60 minutes to tour), we were alone with the exhibits.

We were immediately “wowed” as we entered the museum, surprised to find ourselves in the middle of a town. It was like being on the backlot of a movie studio.

We were able to enter most of the buildings, which were filled with antiques representing the nature of the business. The first stop was the general store. I love all of the old logos and packaging, some from companies that are still in business.

There are many interactive exhibits requiring quarters. If we had realized this we would have brought about ten dollars worth of quarters to check it all out. I scrounged around in the bottom of my purse and we had enough for the player piano.

The livery had some creepy mannequins and I love creepy mannequins!

The most fascinating shop was the apothecary. Medicine has come a long way and this is one of the biggest reasons that i’m grateful to be living in modern times!

Every town, especially a gold rush town, needs a bank.

and a barbers/dentist.

A boarding house, aka the precursor to AirBnB.

If we were living in the old west, Dan and I would likely have spent a lot of time at the town saloon!

In the saloon we found another player piano, a fortune teller, and several Mutoscope machines, some with scandalous movies. We ran out of quarters, otherwise we definitely would have been checking out “Gorgeous Girls Galore-Banned in Chicago.” What a tease!

The museum had several modes of transportation, including stage coaches and a turn-of-the-century Cadillac.

There was a nod to Colorado’s ranching history. We just moved to Colorado last year, and I had no idea that Colorado has such a deep history with cattle. As proud residents of our new state, we attending the Great Western Stock Show in January, taking in this apparent local tradition. We also have cows that occasionally graze in the field at the end of our street. It’s delightful.

One of my favorite exhibits was the old circus posters. I know that circus’ are mostly a thing of a bygone era and for good reason, but I have fond memories of childhood circus trips in the 80’s, when Ringling Brothers would come to Los Angeles every August. In particular, I remember being very excited to see the “Unicorn” that they heavily advertised, only to get to the show and find a sheep with a horn stuck on its head. My childhood ended that day.

The museum takes a dark twist with a separate section called the “Old Home.” We were on a mini-vacation to celebrate Dan’s birthday, so he took exception to the idea that I was taking him to an “Old Home.”

Kidding aside, the “Old Home” was a bit unsettling. It’s a glimpse into a home of the 1800’s, complete with very, very eerie mannequins and old photographs. Even being there during the daytime was an unsettling experience. Seriously, take a close look at these pictures for the stuff of horror films.

The Ghost Town Wild West Museum is both an educational and entertaining experience. I highly recommend adding it to your Colorado Springs itinerary and don’t forget to bring quarters!

England 2018: The Clink Prison Museum

Midway through my week in London, I woke up early to walk across town to The Clink Prision Museum. With so many different attractions in London, The Clink Prison Museum is not likely to be at the top of a visitor’s “must see” list, but it should. Clink Prison was one of the oldest prisons in England: it opened in 1144 and ran until the late 1700’s. The museum is now located on the original location of the prison and provides a detailed look at crime and punishment in previous centuries.

It was a beautiful, sunny morning when I set off and I got quite lost. I can think of worst things than getting lost in London, especially when I wasn’t actually in a hurry. I found a beautiful outdoor shopping center, where I recharged with a Starbucks latte and discovered this steampunk ship.

I also walked across the London Bridge to find a memorial for the 2017 terrorist attacks on the other side. I was quite startled, because I didn’t realize that I was visiting a year after the attack. I spent some time looking at the flowers and notes that people had left on the bridge. It was a sobering and reflective part of my vacation. I also had an uncomfortable realization that I had forgotten about the attack, because similar events have become a normal part of the news. The idea that this has become part of the norm is sickening.

On my walk, I found The Golden Hinde, which was the first ship to circumnavigate the globe and was captained by Sir Francis Drake. The ship is now docked and acts as a living history museum with actors dressed as pirates.. I definitely plan on visiting The Golden Hinde on my next trip to London, but on this morning, it was very crowded with tour groups.

By mid-morning, I found myself at the foreboding entrance to The Clink Prison Museum. The entrance looks like a dungeon and I had to walk down a dark set of stairs to the bottom. I’m a chicken and really can’t handle “scare actors,” jumping out at me, so not only did I read reviews to make sure that I wouldn’t experience jump-scares, but I confirmed it with the employee who sold me my ticket.

Admission was only eight pounds and I also received a souvenir guide book. Although I did not take part, the museum offers guided tours and ghost hunts. I would definitely consider another visit with a tour to take a deep dive into the history. Of special note for Americans, The Clink was the origin of the Mayflower settlers, who spent time in the prison for their separatist beliefs, eventually founding their religious philosophy that would carry them to the new world.

The Clink Prison Museum is family friendly and to make it more enticing for kids, they have many of the exhibits marked with signage that is directly aimed at children, with a friendly cartoon rat explaining some of the realities of life in The Clink. I think they did a good job at making heavy topics and scary imagery palatable for kids, however, The Clink is likely to be frightening to many. I was alone during most of my visit, however, I saw one family with younger elementaryaged kids, leave crying. I think this is best for older elementary or junior high aged children.

Here are some examples of the rat signage. I like the one about debt- yikes!

The creepiest thing in The Clink Prison Museum is all of the mannequins. Walking alone in the museum, through the dimly-lit halls with these mannequins, gave me the chills. I’m not sure that I would be able to work in this museum, especially if I had to walk through it alone at opening or closing. When I was in my 20’s, I worked for Universal Studios Hollywood in the theme park and I often had to walk the tracks of the attractions. I was always a bit fascinated and freaked-out by the animatronics.

I have no idea why I took this picture or what it is referencing, but there is just so much going on, that I had to share it…

Unlike modern prisons, those imprisoned at The Clink, had to pay for all of their needs, including food. Those who could not pay, had to beg through gates and hope that citizens would take mercy on them.

Many prostitutes found themselves a new home in The Clink.

Not only was the museum built on the original site of The Clink, but they were able to preserve an original piece of the prison wall.

There was an exhibit showing various medical quackery and ideas regarding charms for warding-off problems. The hat has real human teeth.

The most horrific part of the museum details different torture techniques. The creativity used to cause suffering is incredible.

The last part of the museum is in memory to the people imprisoned at The Clink, including Charles Dicken’s father, who was in for debt.

The Clink Prison Museum is a worthy addition to your London itinerary. It only takes about two hours to tour and is located close to many other attractions, such as the Tate Modern.