On Aruba’s rugged, desertlike northeastern coast sits a remnant of the island’s once-bustling gold mining industry— the Bushiribana Gold Mill Ruins. Constructed in 1872 by the London-based Aruba Island Gold Mining Company, the stamp mill harnessed the power of strong ocean winds to crush stone and isolate gold ore. A smelter on site processed the ore into fine gold, which was driven to a nearby harbor for export. The mill operated for a decade, refining more than 2,000 ounces of gold before production halted in 1883 (likely due to the…
