TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — You have to take a road less traveled to find the ghost town of Ruby, Arizona.
But as you make your way down the rough and winding dirt road south of Arivaca, you will be transported back in time to the old mining town of Ruby.
More than 100 years later, Ruby is still "Absolutely Arizona."
"People ask me if I see ghosts," said Leslie Cherry, the caretaker and lone resident of Ruby, Ariz. "I tell them I'm more afraid of humans than I am of ghosts."
It's a ghost town with a ghostly past.
At the turn of the last century, in the shadow of Montana Peak in Santa Cruz County, Ruby grew from a small mining camp into a town of 1,200.
By 1912, as Arizona became a state, a post office opened in Ruby.
It was named for the postmaster's wife.
The Montana mine became the richest zinc and lead mine in the state. But there was a dark side to Ruby.
There was a pair of double murders in the 1920s, both involving the Ruby Mercantile.
The most famous, in 1921, bandits robbed and killed the Pearsons, the husband and wife owners of the mercantile.
"They tried to kill their children but they didn't get the girls," Cherry said.
The bandits were eventually caught, after trying to sell Mrs. Perason's gold teeth.
By 1940, the ore ran out and the mine closed.
Not long after, Ruby became a ghost town, apparently with real ghosts.
"Most of the ghosts that have seen here, they're pretty nice. None of them are mean," Cherry said.
As the caretaker of Ruby, Leslie is in charge of the 20 buildings still standing.
That includes a very important building in the center of the old mining town.
"I live in the old Santa Cruz county courthouse. If you look at the one side it has some bullet holes in it," Cherry said. "Somebody probably didn't like what the judge had to say. But he would come down like once a month and conduct court there. It's interesting and it has a lot of that history."
That history includes the original schoolhouse, which is home to the Ruby museum.
Patricia Frederick and her husband Howard, co-own the town of Ruby.
"So this really was the schoolhouse. These three rooms were the schoolhouse," Patricia Frederick said. "They actually had three teachers here at one point."
The ghost town has been in her family since her father bought the land in 1961.
"A lot of people that come here in the winter think of it as a historic place because they're interested in ghost towns and mining," Frederick said. "The old history of Arizona is mining, mining, mining. Other people come just to hike. A lot of people come in the summers to camp and swim in the lake."
And also to fish in the lake with a breathtaking view.
While efforts continue to maintain some of the historic buildings in Ruby, the bigger efforts are behind conservation.
"The buildings we're falling behind on," Frederick said. "The conservation is easier in a way, as long as you have water."
Other visitors also flock to Ruby.
"We have over 100,000 bats coming out of that mine," Frederick said. "They're Mexican free-tailed bats. That is an experience to see."
Cherry captured some amazing video recently, at sunset.
"As it was going on I was laying back farther and farther until I was finally laying completely on the ground because they were just going right over me," Cherry said. "Absolutely amazing though."
The bats and ghosts add a lot of character to the ghost town of Ruby.
"I'd say it's a great place to come on Halloween everybody," said Cherry.
The gate to Ruby is open Thursday through Sunday for self-guided tours. You must go to the Ruby website and sign up for a permit.
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Pat Parris is an anchor and reporter for KGUN 9. He is a graduate of Sabino High School where he was the 1982 high school state track champion in the 800 meters. While in high school and college, he worked part-time in the KGUN 9 newsroom. Share your story ideas and important issues with Pat by emailing pat.parris@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.