In the 1860's placer gold was found in Fall River and Silver Creek. A tent city sprang up in the area. In 1868, the first mine opened up, the Alice Mine. The town took its name after the town. The Alice Mine only lasted for 6 months. By 1881, Alice was a mere 15 to 20 tents, but a few cabins were being built and the road to Idaho Springs was being improved. Alice saw minor booms through the years, but they couldn't stop the decline in Alice.
Today, all that is left are a few log cabin walls and the 1915 Alice school, which closed in 1936.
Apex started in 1896 in the Pine Creek Mining District. The main mine in the area was called the Mackey. It was discovered in the 1870's by Dick Mackey. It took many more years for the mine to produce, and it happened by accident. Mackey leased the mine to a man named Mountz and his partner. His partner took off with $30,000 worth of the returns from the first ore. It left Mountz almost penniless. He carefully used the rest of his money to tunnel another 110 feet looking for the main part of the ore body. It didn't produce anything notable. Frustrated, he put all of his dynamite in the tunnel and lit the fuse. The next day he came to take on last look at his mine. He discovered a very rich vein of gold. He quickly contacted the Denver supplyhouse and orderd some ore sacks. He said, "I haven't a dollar, but I've struck it rich. Send the sacks in the next train." Todayin Apex, you can find the old hotel and a few old cabins.
To get to Alice, take I-70 exit 238 (Fall River Road & 275 RD). Go 8.5 miles northwest to Alice. To get to Apex, start in Blackhawk/Central City (Apex is 6.6 miles to the northwest). Take Eureka Street north to Central City Cemetaries. From here take road 3 north and continue 5.5 more miles to Apex.
