Even though Chancellor was one of the first and more prominent mining towns in the Methow Valley. Prospectors came to the area in 1872 amid a rush for gold throughout the Slate Creek area. Mines popped up at Three Fools Peak, Barron, and other potential veins all over the upper Methow region. For years, prospectors staked their claims in Chancellor.

Some hit a small jackpot, but many left empty handed. By 1892, the town was practically abandoned. Some rotting structures still remain.