BLM LIBRAHT j II 88000471 DESERT FEVER An Overview of Mining in the California Desert Conservation Area #f33S7// DESERT FEVER: An Overview of Mining in the California Desert Conservation Area Contract No. CA-060-CT7-2776 Prepared For: DESERT PLANNING STAFF BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 3610 Central Avenue, Suite 402 Riverside, California 92506 BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT LIBRARY Denver, Colorado 88666471 Prepared By: Gary L Shumway Larry Vreden burgh Russell Hartiil February, 1980 3u of Land Management Library Denver Federal Center Denver, CO 80225 9 — ; Desert lever F 868 Shumway, Gary L. • R6 Desert lever: an overview ol mining S5 in the California Desert Conservation Area / prepared by Gary L» Shumway Larry Vredenburgh, and Russell .Harti 11 prepared lor the Desert Planning Staff, Bureau ol Land Management, United States Department ol the Interiors — [s.l»? s«n»], 1S80. r 215 leaves % 28 cm a. Bibliography: leaves 204-215* Contract No. CA-060-CT7-2776. ) CEivLM DECAdc SEE NEXT CSD (^ '•"> ,v Copyright (c; 1980 by -^ cy Russ Hartill -• Larry Vreden burgh Gary Shumway .-*•'' TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Illustrations \\\ Preface iv f Introduction ] \ rf •-% V Chapter One: Imperial County 4 \ J* ^sP v Chapter Two: Riverside County 17 - Chapter Three: San Bernardino County 40 Chapter Four: Kern County 119 Chapter Five: Inyo County 146 Future of Mining in the California Desert Conservation Area 177 Summary of Mining in the California Desert Conservation Area 179 Preserving Our Mining Heritage 186 Glossary of Mining Terms 200 Bibliography 204 Appendixes 216 Index i CA«t*_r L«3t H U C*>(L ^ r Li-/- ^^ fit* - PREFACE . When I learned through Eric Redd and Paul Clark that the Bureau of Land Management was offering a contract for an overview of mining in the California desert, my own interest in mining in the American West led me to apply for the contract, which I subsequently was awarded. Although growing up in a mining family, working as a miner, and doing both my masters and doctoral research on mining topics, my specific knowledge of mining in the California desert was limited. As I began in earnest to obtain the background information that I would need to fulfill this contract I began to have the unsettling feeling that I was jumping well-established claims to this scholarly gold mine. This uneasiness on my part grew considerably when I became acquainted with Larry Vredenburgh in the summer of 1978. Struck at once by the depth of his own background, the enthusiasm with which he had pursued his scholarly interest with no monetary inducement and his unselfish willingness to give me without charge the benefit of his research, I decided to invite him to participate in the compilation of this overview, sharing with him both the credit for this work and the stipend being offered by the Bureau of Land Management. Mr. Vredenburgh gratefully accepted this offer and begim immediately to push research and writing on Riverside and San Bernardino counties, which represented his area of responsibility. A short time after this, Russell Hartill, who had just returned from a mission for his church in Chile, and was considering enrolling as a history major at California State University, Fullerton, came to see me at my office. It took only a few minutes to learn of his own background and interest in mining in the California desert, and shortly, Mr. Hartill accepted the same responsibilities (and financial and scholarly credit) for the imperial, Kern, and Inyo counties that Mr. Vredenburgh had for Riverside and San Bernardino. I have never regretted my decision to share this opportunity with these two excellent young scholars. Without exception, our association has oeen most agreeable and intellectually stimulating, and I am convinced that this study has a depth and quality, thanks to the dedication and background of these two, that it would not have had without them. Because of their primary responsibility for the information contained in this overview, those good things about it must be credited to them. Similarly, because I have ultimate responsibility for this study, and have carefully reviewed, edited and reworked each of the chapters, any defects are mine. In addition to those individuals who have already been mentioned, several others have made significant contributions to this study. Russ Hartill's parents, William R. and Inza, graciously allowed many a side trip to visit old mining areas during family vacations throughout the West. Dr. Ray Allen Billington showed Russ the wonders of the Huntington Library and inspired him with a determination to continue his interest in mining history. Robert K. Hoshide accompanied him on many a "prospecting" trip into the California desert and has expressed his enthusiasm for the publication of their findings. Susan Rodriguez Hartill has continued, as Russ' wife, the interest and assistance she manifested as his fiancee. Tim Allen, Marion Arnote, Clota Bowen, Dixon Chubbuck, Dr. 0. N. Cole, Every Darbin, Arda Hanszeal, Hugh Huebner, John Jordan, Cecil Lopez, Germaine Moon, Jack Moore, J. B. Roberts, and Fletcher Tweed, each provided Larry Vredenburgh with significant iv information on different aspects of San Bernardino and Riverside county mining history. Stephanie Snair Vredenburgh, first as Larry's fiancee and then as his wife, _ - assisted immeasurably in the first typed draft and critical review of his portion. .Eric Ritter of the Bureau of Land Management Desert Planning Staff has overseen this study from its inception and has been a major factor in its having been an enjoyable undertaking. For graciously allowing us the use of photographs from the California Division of Mines and Geology Library, we wish to thank Angela Brunton, the Librarian. Mr. Chris Brewer, of the Kern County Historical Society, and Mr. Glen Settle, of the Tropico Mine, have also supplied several Kern County photographs. Bob Ford, Don Havlice, Dorothy Lynn, and Betty Mitson of the California State University, Fullerton, Oral History Program made a major contribution in typesetting this report. Finally, we would like to express appreciation to our wives, who continue to love and sustain us even though they have lived through the countless, lingering crises this study has occasioned. Gary L Shumway February 20, 1980 INTRODUCTION On August 20, 1896, D. A. Blue began walking carefully along the bottom of a gully on the east side of Rand Mountain. Blue had learned of the exciting discovery of the Yellow Aster Mine the previous year, and now of several additional promising locations in this same vicinity in eastern Kern County, California. Enticed by the allure of gold, Blue noted the fault zone that shimmered through the heat as he began walking up the gully, and remembered with rising interest what he had heard about hydrothermal solutions that at some time in the geological past had boiled up along fault zones, and, if conditions were right, deposited precious metals somewhere in the host rock of the area. Stopping to break promising looking rocks with his prospector's pick as he went along the bottom of the gully, he suddenly found what he was looking for: a piece of "float," or ore that had washed down from a gold bearing vein somewhere nearby. If this float could be traced back to the vein outcrop, perhaps the deposit could be developed into a paying mine. As Blue found additional pieces of float, his interest made him forget some of the discomfort of the California desert in August, and he began to sense the heady feeling of being on the verge of discovering great wealth. Carefully tracing the float to its source, Blue found himself standing in front of three parallel quartz veins, ranging in width from 18 inches to 3Va feet, in an outcropping of schist. He broke off a piece of quartz with his pick, looked it over briefly, then used his magnifying glass to look more carefully at a couple of promising specks. Enlarged by the glass, the towjdots became what he had hoped they were: two small but very real pieces of gold. With the nation having codified, in the Mining Law of 1872, the common-law assumption that deposits of precious metals belonged not to the federal government but to the discoverer, Blue knew that he had the right to claim any deposit he discovered and to retain it or sell it as he wished, so long as he properly recorded the discovery and performed at least $100 worth of assessment work each year. Blue staked his claim by establishing rock monuments at the four corners of a 1500 by 600 foot rectangle. A location notice was posted at the point of discovery, indicating the locator, date of location, geographic position, name of the claim, and the specific minerals being claimed. He then legalized his claim by recording it in the San Bernardino County courthouse. After staking and recording his claim, which he named the Blackhawk, Blue then proceeded to obtain a more accurate sample of the veins for assay. Ten pounds of rock from different parts of the vein were crushed to the size of peas, and poured into the shape of a cone. The cone was quartered and two opposite quarters thrown out. The remaining quarters were further crushed and reduced until each weighed one pound and consisted of fine sand. One of these pound samples was sent to an assayer, while Blue kept the other for future reference. When the assay results came back, Blue learned that his mine would indeed be a paying proposition: at the then prevailing price of $20.67 an ounce, his ore was worth $60 a ton. With such a favorable assay, Blue could depend on financial assistance in developing his claim, and this assistance was soon proffered by a Randsburgh businessman, D.