It's mine! 300-acre California ghost town changes hands for half a million dollars more than expected as entrepreneurs plan to turn 300-acre site into tourist mecca

  • Cerro Gordo, a long-abandoned mining town 200 miles north of Los Angeles, was bought for $1.4million
  • Hospitality entrepreneur Brent Underwood and public relations boss Jon Bier plan to make it a tourist site
  • The site has 22 buildings remaining including a well-preserved church which doubles as a theater 

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A California ghost town from the 19th century will become a tourist hotspot with a music studio and observation deck after it sold for half a million dollars more than expected.

Cerro Gordo, a long-abandoned mining town 200 miles north of Los Angeles, had been listed for $925,000 but has changed hands for $1.4million.  

The buyers are hospitality entrepreneur Brent Underwood and public relations chief Jon Bier, who purchased it from family owners who supported the duo's plans to transform the 300-acre Lone Pine property into a destination for tourists.

The ghost town of Cerro Gordo in California which has changed hands for $1.4million, significantly more than expected

The ghost town of Cerro Gordo in California which has changed hands for $1.4million, significantly more than expected

A church in the 19th-century mining town of Cerro Gordo which also doubles as a theater 

A church in the 19th-century mining town of Cerro Gordo which also doubles as a theater 

A cart on the 300-acre Cerro Gordo site reveals the ghost town's mining heritage from the 19th century 

A cart on the 300-acre Cerro Gordo site reveals the ghost town's mining heritage from the 19th century 

The new owners of the 300-acre Lone Pine property plan to transform it into a tourist destination

The new owners of the 300-acre Lone Pine property plan to transform it into a tourist destination

Public relations chief Jon Bier
Entrepreneur Brent Underwood

Public relations boss Jon Bier (left) and entrepreneur Brent Underwood (right) are the buyers who will transform the site

The site has 22 buildings remaining including a well-preserved church which doubles as a theater, a hotel, a bunkhouse, and a superintendent's house.

Co-owner Mr Underwood plans to move to the former mining town in August to oversee the transformation which will a further $1million or more, the New York Times reported. 

Mr Underwood, the founder of hostel HK Austin said: 'We might get quite a bit more done because there's not too many distractions when you're up miles away from anybody else. You very much feel like you're back in time. 

He told CNN: 'It isn't often you're entrusted to maintain such an interesting part of American history. The town is so rich in history and has impacted so many lives.' 

His business partner Mr Bier, the head of Jack Taylor PR, posted on Instagram to say: 'Apparently people like a good ghost story...or a bad one.'

According to the town's website, smelters arrived to the site in 1869 and 'ultimately turned it into the largest producer of silver and lead in California.' 

Held by the same family for decades and only recently put on the market, the property expands over 300 acres of patented mining claims.

Jake Rasmuson, of Bishop Real Estate, speaking prior to the sale, said: 'The site has been extremely well protected from diggers, artifact looters and Mother Nature herself.

'Restoration has been undertaken on most of the buildings and the rest are in a state of protected arrested decay.

'The site is historic as the first major mining camp south of the Sierra Nevada. Cerro Gordo is a privately-owned Mining Town located in the Owens Valley near Lone Pine, California. 

'The town was the silver thread to Los Angeles, being partially responsible for its growth and economic development. For those looking to acquire a piece of American West, Cerro Gordo is for you.'

A store house full of goods in the ghost town which will now be transformed into a tourist destination 

A store house full of goods in the ghost town which will now be transformed into a tourist destination 

An aerial view of the ghost town where 22 buildings survive and which has been sold for $1.4million 

An aerial view of the ghost town where 22 buildings survive and which has been sold for $1.4million 

The inside of a bar in Cerro Gordo which shows the 19th-century mining town's historic feel 

The inside of a bar in Cerro Gordo which shows the 19th-century mining town's historic feel 

Some of the preserved buildings in Cerro Gordo which the new owners are intending to turn into a tourist destination

Some of the preserved buildings in Cerro Gordo which the new owners are intending to turn into a tourist destination

The site is historic as the first major mining camp south of the Sierra Nevada, according to estate agents 

The site is historic as the first major mining camp south of the Sierra Nevada, according to estate agents 

The site has been extremely well protected from diggers, artifact looters and Mother Nature herself, an agent said 

The site has been extremely well protected from diggers, artifact looters and Mother Nature herself, an agent said 

One of the new owners plans to move into the site this August to oversee the former mining town's transformation 

One of the new owners plans to move into the site this August to oversee the former mining town's transformation 

Smelters arrived to the site in 1869 and ultimately turned it into the largest producer of silver and lead in California

Smelters arrived to the site in 1869 and ultimately turned it into the largest producer of silver and lead in California

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