At Monroe Park, a re-created Depression-era gold mining camp shows how many of Virginia's gold mines operated and how miners lived during the 1930s. Based on actual mining camp layouts, the site includes places where miners lived, ate, played, and worked, along with equipment and processes used to take ore from the ground and turn it into gold. Hornet Balls smashed ore apart as they rolled, a head frame brought ore up from underground, a Chilean mill used horses pulling large wheels to crush ore and separate some gold from the rock, and a stamp mill used large steam- or electric-powered pistons to separate more gold from the remaining ore. An assay office evaluated the ore's worth, a mess hall served meals, and a bunk house provided living quarters for some miners. Gold mining in Virginia began as early as 1806, expanded on a larger scale in the 1830s, declined after most mines closed during the Civil War, and revived after 1934 when the federal government raised the price of gold to $35.00 per ounce, prompting some people to reopen abandoned mines in hopes of making mining profitable again.