During the late 1960's and early 1970's the Dave & Arvilla Mills family began hauling in historic local Kern Valley structures, (many of which were slated for destruction) to the present site in Bodfish. "Represented in this composite town are over twenty historic buildings (most not visible from Lake Isabella Blvd) from the mining camps of Keyesville, Whiskey Flat, old Isabella, Claraville, Hot Springs, Miracle, Southfork and other local frontier settlements" Silver City was closed for over 15 years until it was purchased by the Corlew family in 1990 and re-opened to the public shortly thereafter. Over the years it had fallen in disrepair and had been "modernized". The Corlew's have logged more than 20,000 man hours of loving restoration work on the site.  Many people have donated labor and support (special thanks to Hal Brown and Don and Emily Diggles) and materials to the effort.

It is now operated as a museum to the Kern Valley's long and colorful history. Like Bodie Ghost Town in Northern California, Silver City has adopted a policy of “arrested decay”. Corlew says, “We want to show how local gold outposts may have looked after the gold ran out and the miners moved on, we are not trying to make it look brand new”. Visitors can go inside the original Isabella jail (gunslinger, Newt Walker was locked up here in 1905).