Lost Dutchman's Mining Association - Stanton Camp
Members-only gold camp in the restored ghost town of Stanton, below Rich Hill
- Where
- 15650 Stanton Rd, Congress
- Land
- 120 patented acres, plus members-only claims
- Season
- October to May; closed in summer
- Camping
- 132 full-hookup RV sites and 65 dry sites
- On site
- Museum, clubhouse, laundry, showers, caretaker
- Methods
- Mostly metal detecting and dry washing
- Access
- LDMA membership, or the camp's public events
Club with mining claims for members
Based in Congress, Arizona.
The club's claims are for members only: contact the club to join.
Prospect on your own near Congress
183 gold spots on open public land with no claim on record, within 50 miles.
There are more on the map, some of them with a possible mining claim.
About Lost Dutchman's Mining Association - Stanton Camp
Stanton is a ghost town at the foot of Rich Hill, north-east of Wickenburg, in one of the richest corners of Arizona's gold history. It grew in the 1870s as a stop on the road to the mines, with a reputation as an outlaw hideout. In 1976 the Lost Dutchman's Mining Association, a private gold prospecting club founded that same year, bought the townsite and made it a camp for its members.
Because the town was closed to the public for decades, its old buildings survived far better than most ghost towns in Arizona. The camp office was once the stage stop, and the old Hotel Stanton now holds a small library, a kitchenette and a game room. LDMA calls Stanton its flagship camp: 120 patented acres with 132 full-hookup RV sites, 65 dry sites, a museum of mining artifacts, a clubhouse, laundry, showers and a caretaker on site.
The gold is the reason to be here. Members work the association's own claims around the camp, mostly with metal detectors and dry washers, since the ground is dry for much of the year; Antelope Creek runs through the camp when there is seasonal water. Nuggets and fine gold still turn up.
The camp is open from October to May and closes in summer for the heat. Outside public events, it is for LDMA members only; a few times a year the association holds outings, and the year-end one is the biggest.
For a visitor, the simplest way to see Stanton is during one of the association's events.
Other clubs and places nearby
- Weaver Mining DistrictClub · 7 mi
- Gold Mine Experience (Bloo Nelly Mine)Pay-to-dig · 11 mi
- Wickenburg Gem and Mineral SocietyClub · 13 mi
- Lynx Creek Gold Pan Day Use AreaFree public dig · 32 mi
- American Gold Prospecting AdventuresPay-to-dig · 33 mi
- Prescott Gem and Mineral ClubClub · 36 mi
Where to buy gear nearby
- Dry Mining EquipmentOnline shop · 7 mi
- Nugget Shooter Metal Detector SalesOnline shop · 22 mi
- A & B Prospecting Supplies (Prescott Valley)Shop · 37 mi
- Rob's Detector SalesOnline shop · 42 mi