In 1881, four prospectors were leaving Grapevine Station (present-day
Barstow, California) for a mountain peak to the northeast. After they described the peak as "calico-colored",
the peak,
the mountain range to which it belonged, and the town that followed were all called Calico. The four prospectors discovered
silver in the mountain and opened the Silver King Mine, which was California's largest silver producer in the mid-1880s. John C. King, who had grubstaked the prospectors who discovered the silver vein (the Silver King Mine was thus named after him), was the uncle of
Walter Knott founder of
Knott's Berry Farm. King was sheriff of San Bernardino County from 1879 to 1882. A
post office at Calico was established in early 1882, and the
Calico Print, a weekly newspaper, started publishing. The town soon supported three hotels, five general stores, a meat market, bars, brothels, and three restaurants and boarding houses. The county established a school district and a voting precinct. The discovery of the
borate mineral
colemanite in the Calico mountains a few years after the settlement of the town also helped Calico's fortunes, and in 1890 the estimated population of the town was 3,500, with nationals of China, England, Ireland, Greece, France, and the Netherlands, as well as Americans living there. In the same year, the
Silver Purchase Act was enacted and drove down the price of silver. By 1896, its value had decreased to $0.57 (~$ in ) per
troy ounce, and Calico's silver mines were no longer economically viable. The post office was discontinued in 1898, and the school closed not long after. Using the old photos, and Walter's memory and that of some old-timers who still lived in the area, von Klieben was able to not only restore existing structures, but also design and replace missing buildings. Knott spent $700,000 restoring Calico. Knott installed a longtime employee named Freddy "Calico Fred" Noller as resident caretaker and official greeter. In 1966 Walter Knott decided to donate the town to San Bernardino County, and Calico became a County Regional Park. ==Current status==