An original ghost town from the late 1800's, Bodie stands today in a state of "arrested decay". In 1859 William (a.k.a. Waterman) S. Bodey discovered gold near what is now called Bodie Bluff. A mill was established in 1861 and the town grew to an estimated 10,000 people by 1880 when it flourished with families, robbers, miners, store owners, gunfighters and prostitutes of all kinds. There was reported to be 65 saloons in town with brothels, gambling halls and opium dens. At one time the town epitomized the wild west and it's been reported that at its peak someone was killed everyday in Bodie. The last permanent residents moved from the town in 1962. The name of the town was changed at some point in time and there are different stories as to why - one says it was to keep the correct pronunciation of town's namesake. Another says that the sign painter didn't have the room for the tail of the lower-case "y". Today, Bodie is lost down a dusty 13 mile long road, off of California state highway 395 near the Nevada border.