19 American Towns Purchased by a Single Owner

Gold came first, the town much later. As a young man in 1970, Ivan Coffman wandered into California’s Feather River Canyon during a break from masonry work and found gold in a creek near Belden. He stayed connected to the area for years, eventually purchasing the historic town in 1989. By then, the former mining and railroad outpost had seen far better days. Coffman revived its lodge, cabins, and event grounds, while the tiny unincorporated community continued serving travelers, hikers, festivalgoers, and the handful of people who lived there.