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Mining Notes 1898-1905 Refer also to the general news reports, and: Mining Notes 1851-1870 Mining Notes 1871-1890 Mining Notes 1891-1897 Mining Notes 1906-1957 Ten tons of ore from the Free Coinage produced twenty-one ounces in gold. The concentrates went $150 per ton. The ledge is 3 feet wide and is seven miles east of Ashland. Hawley, Plummer & Corbus have bought Sharp Bros.' nine placer claims on Powell Creek near Ashland for $10,000 and are working them. The Virginia is sinking on the ledge. The cleanup after seventeen days' run on the Braden, near Gold Hill, was 100 ounces of gold. Beekman & Huffer are in 300 feet on their tunnel. The Powell Creek placer mine was sold on the 18th to J. H. Hanley, H. B. Plummer and B. F. Mulkey for $10,000. It is twenty-five miles west of Ashland and embraces 200 acres. W. H. Reed has purchased the Hammersley mine and is pushing work. A drift was started on a vein 8 inches thick, which has increased to 2½ feet, and the rock runs $75 to the ton. The Browning & Hannum, on Grave Creek, in Southern Oregon, has a 2-foot ledge at a depth of 100 feet. Since May 1st it has produced $8000. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 1, 1898, page 11 The Big Four hydraulic mine on Pickett Creek, at Grants Pass, is kept busy day and night. J. W. Sherer last week, on Rogue River, brought thirty ounces of gold to Grants Pass from a twelve days' run. C. W. Burdsal, near Oro Fino, has struck a 2-foot vein of high-grade ore. Much development work is being done on quartz and placer mines in Douglas County. The Miller ledge, Josephine County, in its first six weeks' run cleaned up $60,000. The owners are Eureka. Cal., people who paid $28,000 cash for the property. The vein is 18 feet wide. Browning & Hannum got $1540 from eleven tons of ore on Grave Creek, in Josephine County. W. H. Reid is running a drift in the Hammersley mine that is turning out $75 ore. The ledge is 2½ feet. Portland and Eastern people will construct a smelting and copper refining plant. Among those identified with the enterprise is Samuel Barron. The proposal is to erect a 400-ton plant. Goucher & Co. of Portland, on the Oliman Reece, near Grants Pass, have their No. 2 giant at work. The ground is said to be rich. F. Huston, on Althouse Creek, is ground sluicing a porphyry dike, getting nuggets from $35 to $75. C. Bennett, on the Marshall placer, is running two giants on a 10-foot bank. H. C. McIntosh is running three giants day and night near Grants Pass. H. D. Sluter is operating his placer on upper Wolf Creek. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 8, 1898, page 39 Ten tons of ore from the Free Coinage, near Ashland, produced twenty-one ounces in gold. The concentrates went $150 per ton. The ledge is 3 feet. W. H. Reed has purchased the Hammersley mine, Southern Oregon, and is pushing work. The ledge is 2½ feet; the rock runs $75 to the ton. W. J. Stanley has bonded the Homestake at Woodville to J. E. Frick for San Francisco people for $5000, and they will begin at once to develop it. The first payment of $5000 on the purchase price of the Ashland mine was made Jan. 3rd. The ledge on Browning & Hannum's mine is 2 feet and the ore averages $15. P. Scheringson has a 70-foot tunnel near Grants Pass on a 16-inch vein of $150 rock. Samuel Barton and others propose to put in a copper refining plant at Portland, two stacks, each of 200 tons capacity. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 15, 1898, page 159 Valley Record: The handsome returns from Barron & Shepherd's milling test of ten tons from their mine on Sampson Creek, ten miles east of Ashland, has caused much interest to be manifested in that section, which is a new district in a mining way. Jacksonville Democrat: J. C. Lewis will build a ditch from Placer to Leland, Josephine County, of ten miles. Three creeks now center at that place--Wolf and Coyote creeks, carried there by ditch, and Grave Creek. The Myrtle Creek Mining & Development Co., Jackson County, in their mines at the head of Johnson Creek, at a depth of 50 feet, have a new ledge which prospects $10 in free gold. Grants Pass Observer: J. W. Robinson came in with $350 worth of gold dust--the result of an eight days' run at his Brass Nail gulch placer. One nugget in this batch was worth $138. Four other pieces range from $20 to $85. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 5, 1898, page 162 The Seven Devils mines is making daily shipments of high-grade ore. C. Martin is hydraulicking with good success near Medford. Read & Broad are operating the Oregon Belle quartz claim on Forest Creek, Medford. At the Braden mines, near Ashland, about $1000 was cleaned up in a ten days' run. The Lucky Queen mine, near Ashland, has been leased to Spokane parties. F. McCracken is working a promising placer mine near Leland. Three tons of ore from the Golden Standard, Ashland, yielded $436, an average of $145 a ton. There is a large quantity of quartz in sight. Over $1000 in gold has been taken out of the new mine found about a mile from Canyon City. Returns from ten tons of ore from Barron & Shepherd's mine in Sampson Creek district, Ashland precinct, have caused quite a number of claims to be located there. Ashland Tidings: The purchasers of the Bonanza group of mines, which includes the Eclipse, Hidden Treasure and Oregon Bonanza, paid a cash consideration of $4000 for the properties. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 12, 1898, page 193 In Saxe Creek district, Jacksonville, there are eighty-seven mining properties actively operated, fifteen hydraulic plants and twenty-six quartz mines. The Powell Creek M. Co., near Grants Pass, has seventy-four men at work. The Eureka Co., operating the Miller mine on Soldier Creek, near Ashland, will put on six concentrators. W. Newhouse purchased the placer claim on Galls Creek and will work it on an extensive scale. The Soda Springs M. Co. has incorporated, with principal office at Ashland; capital stock, $60,000. Wimer Bros., at Waldo, are running two giants on good gravel. The Sterling mine, Jackson County, is running two giants. Smith & Beers are running two giants seven miles from Waldo. They have several hundred acres of placer land. New placer ground is being opened seven miles above Grants Pass. The Jewett mine, four miles from Grants Pass, is running on $18 ore. The ledge is 8 feet wide. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 19, 1898, page 210 C. P. Thore has bonded the hydraulic mine, at Waldo, and begun work. A. N. Ashley is supt. The Rocky Gulch Mining Co., at Galice Creek, is paying $100 per day, but the water supply is limited and work days are scarce. Tidings: A large dike between Wagner Creek and Arrastra Gulch, and from 400 to 600 feet in width, has been discovered near Ashland. As far as prospected and assayed it runs from $2.50 to $28 per ton, carrying cinnabar and silver. Garvin & Co. are working the old Pilgrim mine near Ashland. A crosscut tunnel that will tap the ledge at a depth of 150 feet is being driven and will be in by the first day of April. If the ore is as rich at tunnel level as on top, reduction works will be put on this summer. One hundred tons of ore from the Ashland mine are being brought to the Hicks mill for reduction. The Rocky Gulch mine turned out $400 in gold last week, the result of a few days' run and a limited water supply. W. G. Ingels, who bonded the Alford quartz ledge on Galice Creek, Ashland, is driving a tunnel to tap the ledge about 100 feet below the surface. Should the ledge continue to show up as well as it has been doing, a 5-stamp mill will be put upon the property. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 26, 1898, page 234 Riggs & Bacon have discovered a vein of quartz near Woodville, 18 inches wide, which prospects well in free gold. The Jewell Hardware Co. of Grants Pass bought during February gold dust to the amount of $7404. Jones & Co. near Grants Pass struck a ledge which shows 18 inches of good ore. Good ore is being taken out of the Big Mountain mine at Missouri Flat. The ore carries gold, lead, iron and silver. The Rock Gulch hydraulic mine at Galice Creek produced $600 in five days' run. Development in the Ashland & Mattern group is progressing steadily, thirty men being employed. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 12, 1898, page 290 Development in the Ashland & Mattern group, near Ashland, is progressing, thirty men being employed. Coffman & Bristow discovered a 9-foot vein in a porphyry and slate formation near Grants Pass. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 19, 1898, page 321 W. Wiley, fifteen miles above Glendale, uncovered a quartz vein at his placer diggings between slate and porphyry, containing seams of decomposed quartz and clay, from which he secured single pieces of leaf and wire gold that weighed an ounce. The Oregon Bonanza mine, near Ashland, is being worked by R. Rogers & Son of San Francisco. The Oregon G.E. Co. are working the cyanide plant near Ashland to its full capacity. Browning & Hannum are running a tunnel on the Greenback ledge near Jacksonville. They have extracted about $10,000 from the mine during the past year. Considerable work has been done on the Elk Creek mines during the past few months. The ore will go from $18 to $20 per ton. The Braden mill in Gold Hill district is running day and night on good ore. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 26, 1898, page 346 The Courtney & Kramer mine, seven miles from Grants Pass, crushes three tons per day. The result of a run of fifty hours yielded 13½ ounces of amalgam valued at $135. The Jupiter G. M. Co. have begun extensive operations in the same neighborhood. The Grants Pass Journal says that quicksilver is soon to be produced from the Black Butte mines in Lane County, seventeen miles from Cottage Grove, by the Black Butte M. Co. The ore runs as high as 56 percent mercury. A 30-ton furnace condenser and dryer is in course of construction. The property is expected to be in operation the coming season. The property consists of 1040 acres along the top of Black Butte. The cinnabar ore mixed with a decomposed quartz crops out for 4000 feet. Six cuts and two tunnels have been made, from which assays were made showing from 3 to 40 percent quicksilver. The Oro Fino M. Co. near Merlin has contracted to furnish sixteen cars of ore to the smelter. From a shipment made some time ago the company realized from one ton $1760. R. D. Hume has bought the Huntley mine, a copper property, for $20,000. The mine is fifteen miles from the mouth of Rogue River. The Greenback mine, near Grants Pass, make a cleanup of $3500. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 2, 1898, page 374 J. L. Wright is developing a quartz property near Grants Pass with satisfactory results.… The Lawrence M. Co. are doing extensive development on a property near Leland. A 50-ton capacity mill will be in operation May 15th. Twenty men are employed.… The Golden Eagle struck an ore body of good grade.… The first cleanup of the Oregon G.E. Co. at Ashland was made last week. One of the bricks of amalgam weighed eight pounds. This is a cyanide plant and is pronounced a success on the low-grade ores of that section. The Shorty Hope mine at Jacksonville is crushing twenty-four tons of ore per day in a 10-stamp mill.… Van Dorn & Giflin are developing a quartz property from which mill tests produce satisfactory results.… A 5-foot ledge has been discovered in the Miller mine, near Canyon City, that yields good returns. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 23, 1898, page 446 The first cleanup of the Oregon Gold E. Co., proprietors of the new cyanide plant in operation at Ashland, was made and information is given out that the test has been sufficient to ensure the success of the process in extracting gold from the ores of Southern Oregon. Several bricks of amalgam were realized at the cleanup, one of which weighs eight pounds.… Knighten & Mayfield shipped ten tons of ore to the Huffer mill near Jacksonville.… The Lewis M. Co. of Leland has 200 men building their ditch from Grave Creek.… Operations at the Ashland-Mattern property are progressing. A quantity of good ore is being taken out daily, and the mill is kept at work with good results.… M.Van Brunt, the New York capitalist who purchased the Steam Beer mine near Leland, is enlarging the ditch to his mine, seven miles long, and will put in a pipeline 3500 feet. He also contemplates building another ditch ten miles long for getting a greater head of water, with the end in view of working his mine all the year. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 7, 1898, page 494 A. A. Davis, near Jacksonville, has a promising ledge, and has sixty tons of ore on the dump.… E. Pierce has sold his interest in the Hamburg quartz ledge to Scott, Merrill & Co. The new proprietors expect to put up a mill soon.… The Barron & Shepherd, near Ashland, is hauling fifty tons of ore to the Ashland mill.… The Ashland-Mattern mine is running a full force and keeps its 10-stamp mill busy.… The American Bar claim is yielding good returns, and work is prosecuted day and night with a force of thirty-eight men.… A ledge of copper ore has been discovered near Ashland.… The Shasta Courier says the existence of an immense mineral lode, at a point on the Oregon side of the California and Oregon boundary line near the summit of the Siskiyou Mountain, has been known to Murray Bros. of Shasta, who also knew that the formation resembled, as far as investigated, the Iron Mountain mine. Recently the Murray Bros. located twelve claims on the Siskiyou Mountain mineral outcrop. Associated with them are Sheriff Houston, Tillotson, Pryor and others. Assays of the ore taken from different locations show well in gold and copper. In Elk Creek the Pearl Mining Co. is increasing its force and will do considerable development work this summer. Daley & Potter are working their ledge, with fair prospects.… J. T. Cook of Missouri Flat, while removing some earth near his residence a short [time] since, struck a ledge from which as high as $2.60 was obtained from a pan of dirt.… The Sterling Mining Co. is running its mill and a good-sized force day and night. As a comparatively small quantity of snow fell in the mountains last winter, the run will not be as long as usual. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 21, 1898, page 542 Southern Oregon.
Quartz mining in Southern Oregon had its
beginning in the discovery of the Hicks ledge on Jackson Creek in 1859.
It proved to be a pocket, but quite a snug little sum was token out by
Secora Hicks and S. R. Taylor. Gold Hill was the next noted find in the
way of quartz. It was discovered in January, 1860, by Messrs. Hays and
Graham, and before it was abandoned had produced some $200,000. Henry
Klippel and others had purchased the mine within a week after its
discovery, for a good round sum. The discovery of the Gold Hill ledge
quickly led to further quartz discoveries, and among others the Fowler,
which yielded $316,000; the Jewett, $40,000; Blackwell, $10,000;
Holman, $10,000, and Davenport, $8000. Some of these mines are still
being worked at this time, notably the Jewett."Mining in the Northwest," Silvertonian, Silverton, British Columbia, May 21, 1898, page 5 SHOWING UP RICH.
Work on the River Junction placer mines of the Co-operative Mining
Syndicate in Jackson County, Oregon, is developing very satisfactory
results. C. W. Coltorn, of Portland, now in this city, made a trip of
inspection to the mines April 26.Co-Operative Mining Syndicate's Oregon Placer Properties. "I panned out some dirt seven feet from bedrock that had never before been tested," he said yesterday, "and got 3 cents worth of gold. At bedrock on the channel they are now getting 4 to 15 cents to the pan. "It is a hydraulic proposition, and the mines are better equipped in every way than any others I have seen. On the night of my arrival at the camp they began to run the giants night and day. The flow of water is very good and allows of work all the year through. I was told that last year 60 to 80 cents to the pan had been taken out twenty feet from where I worked. I think the officers and stockholders of the company are justified in feeling that they have a good thing." Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 22, 1898, page 5 E. W. Calkins came over from the Beekman & Huffer mine, near Jacksonville, last Saturday for a visit to his friends and to his lodge--the Odd Fellows. He reports mining fairly good at the mine. Says with a three-stamp mill he put through thirty-five tons of rock in seventy-five hours. He has been cleaning up some refuse rock during the past week and from a four days' run on this rock they took out over $200 in gold. The rock was supposed to be of no value. "Purely Personal," Medford Mail, May 27, 1898, page 6 The Barron & Sheppard quartz mine, near Ashland, is having fifty tons of ore hauled to the Ashland mill.… The Ashland-Mattern mine is running a full force and keeps its 10-stamp mill busy.… A ledge of copper ore resembling that of Iron Mountain has been discovered near Ashland.… The placer ground of Phillips & Co. has averaged 20 cents a yard for their season's work.… The Nonpareil cinnabar mines in Douglas County have been bonded to A. B. Quinton of Topeka, Kansas.… The Ashland Journal says that C. E. Potter struck a piece of placer ground near Oak Flat which pays at the rate of 50 cents a wheelbarrow load. Three days' work, after hauling the gravel 250 feet, yielded $27.50.… Browning & Hannum, on the Greenback mine on Grave Creek, brought to Ashland a lot of gold dust and nuggets which were melted up into two gold bricks, one weighing $2500 and the other $1500, the result of crushing sixteen and one-half tons by an arrastra. The Ashland Tidings says that Jones & Co., who purchased the Mt. Reuben mine, have at a depth of 350 feet crosscut the ledge and have 14 feet of quartz assaying well. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 4, 1898, pages 593-594 The hydraulic plant near Woodville has changed owners and started up again last week.… E. B. Jennings has sold his mine near Table Rock, and the new company will put on a large force to further develop the property.… The Risdon Iron Works of San Francisco are building a boat 30x70 feet on the river near Tolo, to dredge the river. The machinery consists of three engines, one driving an endless elevator of thirty-six buckets, each bucket of a capacity of 800 to 1000 pounds of gravel, at a speed of eighteen buckets per minute, handling from 2000 to 3000 yards per day. One engine drives the buckets, one a centrifugal pump for washing the gravel, one an electric light plant. The machinery runs night and day. The plant is the property of Hickler & Berrey.… Work on the River Junction placer mines of the Cooperative M. Co., in Jackson County, Watkins district, is developing satisfactory results. At bedrock on the channel they are getting 14 cents to the pan. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 11, 1898, page 621 Mining in Southern Oregon.
At some of our people are interested in mining in the district to which
the following relates, we append these extracts, clipped from the San Francisco Chronicle's weekly report on mining matters, published the 20th inst.Senator Jones is one of the heaviest and most successful mining operators on the Pacific Coast, and never does things by halves. If he starts in on Mount Reuben the people of Southern Oregon will see what scientific mining means. When Senator Jones controlled and operated the Crown Point mine, on the Comstock, a vast amount of water had to be raised to permit work on the lower levels, 2600 feet from the surface. To furnish the necessary power, a 300-horsepower engine was placed at the pumping station, and this operated a Cornish pump capable of keeping the mine clear of water. The rod of this pump was made up of sections 100 feet long of 14x14 inches Oregon pine. To offset the great weight of this rod it was counterbalanced by weights suspended over pulleys at regular intervals. The scale of operations at the Crown Point was in keeping with the big pump. Browning & Hannum of the Greenback mine, on Grave Creek, recently brought to Grants Pass a lot of gold dust and nuggets which were melted in two gold bricks, one weighing $2500 and the other $1500. This was the result of crushing eighteen and a half tons of ore by an arrastra. Senator Jones of Nevada, who recently purchased the Mount Reuben mine, has a bonanza, says a Josephine County exchange. At a depth of 350 feet they crosscut the ledge, and have seven feet and nine inches of solid quartz, the lowest assay of which goes $25 and the highest $2700. Jones intends, if the ledge recently pierced on the side of the hill is found equally as rich, to have 500 men at work in the Mount Reuben mines early in the fall. W. H. Barry of Oakland, Cal., and John Hickler of Buffalo, N.Y., form a company who have commenced preparations for dredging the bed of Rogue River for gold. A dredge 40 by 100 feet in size is being built for them at a point two miles below Tolo. These gentlemen have been successfully engaged in like schemes in different parts of the coast, and believe this one will be no exception. It promises to be one of the most important mining enterprises that has ever been inaugurated in Southern Oregon. Humboldt Times, Eureka, California, June 24, 1898, page 2 Concentration of Cinnabar Ores.
TO THE EDITOR:--A
Southern Oregon correspondent in last week's issue suggests
concentration of low-grade cinnabar ores. I wish to show that such
concentration can be of no advantage except in very rare cases.The furnace treatment of cinnabar ores is one of the simplest and least expensive of metallurgical processes. No method of concentration can do away with the cost of mining, and it is the cost of mining and not the cost of reduction which is the important factor. The cost of both mining and reduction must vary widely according to circumstances, but in a country like Southern Oregon, where wood is only worth $1.50 per cord, the cost of reduction is less than 10 cents per ton for fuel, and the handling of the ore is the only other part of the expense of reduction, except coarse crushing through a breaker at a cost of less than 5 cents per ton. Any method of concentration involves fine crushing, vanning or jigging, and a handling of the material, costing fully as much per ton as the furnace treatment. Briefly then, concentration is unavailable because it generally would cost more than direct treatment of the ore as it comes from the mine. The only possible exception to this would be where a large body of low-grade ore could be quarried and concentrated by free water power in a locality where cordwood was very expensive. The small furnaces suggested are not conducive to economy. Those of 10-ton capacity are being supplanted by 40-ton furnaces, corresponding with the practice in ironworks where the capacity of furnaces is ten times what was thought desirable thirty years ago. Referring to the idea that the manipulation of the Spanish mines is the reason for the quicksilver business not being lucrative, I think one does not need to go so far afield as Spain to find the cause. The paying mines of today are properties which had been abandoned, or had been worked at a loss, or had been thought to be exhausted because some rich bunch of ore gave out, till taken hold of by men who knew how essential it is constantly to keep prospecting ahead of immediate requirements. R. B. SYMINGTON.
Mining
and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 25,
1898, page 664Work on the River Junction placer mines of the Cooperative M. Co., in Jackson County, Watkins district, is developing satisfactorily. At bedrock on the channel they are said to be getting 14 cents to the pan. A. Underwood of San Francisco has purchased the Hammersley mine near Wimer and begun work. The cyanide process used by the Oregon Gold Extraction Co.'s plant at Ashland is giving satisfaction and the company will extend its plant. They have worked only a small portion of the tailings of the Ashland quartz mill. Grants Pass Journal: Great things are promised from the development of the lodes in the Mt. Reuben district, near Grants Pass. The Gold Bug mine, in which it is said a million dollars' worth of ore has been exposed, will shortly pass into the hands of Senator Jones and associates of Nevada. These men will erect two 20-stamp mills, and 200 men will be given employment within six months. Ashland Tidings: The Ashland mine shipped a carload of ore and one of concentrates to the smelter. The mine also made a cleanup of 160 tons with satisfactory results. Senator Jones it is said will build a 20-stamp mill on his mine in Mt. Reuben district. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 25, 1898, page 671 The ditch of the Steam Beer mine, near Leland, is finished. It will carry 3000 inches of water and will enable the company to run their mine for six months in the year. L. C. Basye of Missouri Flat district, near Jacksonville, unearthed a pocket from which he obtained $600. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 2, 1898, page 10 Neff & Wright have built 700 feet of wing dam near Gold Hill, and will soon commence mining the bed of Rogue River. Times: The Seattle M. Co. is enlarging its ditches in Watkins district, near Jacksonville, and will resume piping at an early date.… W. B. Comstock has struck a small seam of high-grade ore.… The Sterling mine is making its annual cleanup. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 16, 1898, page 61 In the Sterling mine, near Jacksonville, Or., a nugget was recently found that weighed sixteen ounces. "Concentrates," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 23, 1898, page 79 J. Savage is putting an extensive wing dam in Rogue River near Grants Pass. The Risdon Iron Works of San Francisco is building on Rogue River, near Grants Pass, dredgers at a cost of $35,000 for a company that has five others on rivers in California and Nevada. Three engines are required to do the work. One works the dredger, another pumps the water with which the gold is washed from the gravel and the third will operate an electric light plant on the boat, the operations being carried on day and night. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 23, 1898, page 86 The Rogue River Courier says the Wimer Bros., operating a placer mine near Grants Pass, made a cleanup after an eight months' run and that it amounted to about fifty pounds in gold.… The Gold Bug group, comprising six claims on Mt. Reuben, upon which J. P. Jones and others have been exploiting for a year, has been bought by them, and the property will be further developed and equipped with machinery. The ore varies from a few inches to 15 feet and much of it mills $50 a ton. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 30, 1898, page 110 Work on a large scale has resumed at the Braden mine near Jacksonville.… Browning & Hannum of the Greenback mine near Grants Pass cleaned up $3700 from thirty-two tons of ore.… On the Applegate property, bought by G. E. Morse & Co. of San Francisco, work has begun.… Jones & Co. will have their stamp mill at Glendale running by Sept. 1st. R. W. Jones is in charge of the properties.… A. M. Jordan of Cripple Creek has bonded the Homestake mine near Woodville and will put twenty men at work.… The Sugar Pine mine near Grants Pass has been bonded to E. F. Wallace & Co. for $4000. They have begun work.… W. K. Rogers of the Oregon Bonanza mine received a return from the Selby Smelting Co. on 116½ pounds of ore, $185.52. He has seventy sacks more of the same kind of ore, which is of a refractory nature, and the gold can be secured only through a smelting process. The Sugar Pine quartz mine at Grants Pass is showing well. The company will drive an extensive tunnel to tap the ledge 1000 feet below the surface. The Lance M. Co., near Jacksonville, is putting in a pumping plant to utilize the waters of Rogue River. The enterprise promises to be successful, despite the obstacles it has met.… Kubli Bros. started their stamp mill at the Golden Standard mine, near Ashland. They expect to crush four tons per day. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 13, 1898, page 161 Browning & Hannum near Ashland cleaned up $3700 from thirty-two tons of rock.… A. M. Jordan has bonded the Homestake mine near Woodville and will put twenty men at work. The Grants Pass Journal says that good ore has been uncovered in the old Reno & O'Farrell mine, near Grants Pass.… Near Jacksonville the Seattle M. Co. is piping in Watkins district, but will commence cleaning up soon.… A. M. Jordan has bonded the Homestake mine, in Woodville district, and will soon develop the property on a large scale.… R. Cook has a force drifting in the Sterling M. Co.'s property and doing well.… A carload of concentrates was shipped from the Shorty Hope mine to the smelter a few days ago.… Beekman & Huffer have a force running a tunnel to strike the ledge, which has paid well. Near Grants Pass, J. Sowell in a 140-foot tunnel struck a ledge of copper sulphides carrying a fair percentage of gold. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 20, 1898, page 185 At Hull & Beck's quartz mine, near Jacksonville, the vein increases in width as work progresses; it is now several feet wide. A 5-stamp mill is crushing the ore taken out by six men.… J. R. Mitchell of Colorado, who represents foreign capital, has bonded the Braden and Alice mines in Kanes Creek district and the Lucky Bart and Gray Eagle in Sardine Creek district. Development of some of the properties is proceeding.… The Jones Co. has twenty men developing its properties in Mt. Reuben district, Josephine County.… Near Ashland, Molander & Felger of Port Townsend have bought 160 acres of land on Evans Creek, Josephine Co., having four cinnabar ledges which are reported running 8 percent of quicksilver. One of the ledges is said to be 400 feet wide and 1½ miles long.… L. D. Fay & Co. are getting their mine on Powell Creek fitted up for work this winter. They have 120 acres of placer ground and have their ditch almost completed and have pipe and giant ready for work. Stith & Phillips have bonded the Free and Easy mine, near Grants Pass, to Bonneau &, Mohr of Denver, Colo., for $10,000.… At the Golden Standard mine, near Jacksonville, the mill will be put in operation as soon as water can be had. A large amount of good ore is ready for crushing.… Fifteen cars loaded with hydraulic pipe, ranging from 15 to 38 inches in diameter, are being put on the J. C. Lewis placer mine, near Leland.… The C. Cook mine at Glendale is down on the ledge 117 feet. He will put a mill on the property soon.… The Victory mine has the reservoir completed. Wood & Smith of the Lincoln mine are also building a reservoir. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 17, 1898, page 287 The Forest Queen placer mine, near Grants Pass, was bought last week by G. W. Seeley of Aramosa, Cal,, and M. J. Seeley of San Francisco. There are three ditches and a reservoir, 1400 feet of Hume and 1000 feet of pipe on the property; the new owners will begin work immediately.… Bonneau & Mohr bought the Free and Easy mine in Josephine County for $10,000 and will commence work on it on a large scale.… The dredger at Tolo has begun operations and works well. Two concentrators are being put in at the Eureka Co.'s mine on Soldier Creek, Josephine County, formerly known as the Denver City. It has produced considerable bullion.… The Browning-Hannum mine, near Grants Pass, at a depth of several hundred feet has a vein 3 feet wide of good grade ore.… Stalker & Davis, near Browntown, made a strike in a locality that had been mined as far back as 1852 and has been mined over and over ever since. In June, Stalker & Davis landed in Browntown, and struck their shovels in the hills above the old town where they exposed a high channel never before touched and in a few days took out twenty-eight ounces of channel gold. Journal: E. B. Jennings of Table Rock has sold a three-fourths interest in his quicksilver mines to Folger & Molander. The conveyance embraces 260 acres. The ledge has been developed by a 100-foot tunnel and a 75-foot shaft, and it is said to be 100 feet in width. The purchasers are said to represent English capitalists, and it is their purpose to at once develop the property on an extensive scale.… The thirteen-mile ditch which has been under construction on Grave Creek for the John C. Lewis Co. has been finished. The two ditches together are about twenty-eight miles in length.… Work on the Greenback mine near Leland under the new management is being vigorously pushed. The men who have the mine under bond are E. Smith of Denver, W. J. Carton of Bland, N.M., and W. H. Brevoort of New York. F. T. Sutherland is in charge of the work. The old tunnel is being pushed by night and day shifts; the men are working 170 feet under the surface. A 5-stamp mill and other machinery have been ordered. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 24, 1898, page 311 FIFTY POUNDS OF GOLD.
Medford, Or., Sept. 28.--The greatest mining excitement ever known in
Southern Oregon has been caused by a rich strike just made in the
Siskiyou Mountains, one mile from the Jackson County line, on what is
known as Sterling Butte. William Angle and Jordan Brown are the lucky
discoverers. They came to Medford last night with 50 pounds of gold
dust, which they deposited in the Jackson County Bank The ledge is of
porphyry formation and is about 20 feet wide, the pay streak being from
four inches to two feet in width. They have been prospecting for about
six weeks, and struck the pay dirt about two weeks ago. They have taken
out about 60 pounds of gold, and are very enthusiastic as to future
developments.Two Oregon Miners Secured a Fortune in Two Weeks. Mr. Angle was formerly a merchant in Medford. Two years ago, while selling a bill of goods to a miner named McCombs, he learned of the nature of the country in which the claim is located. He made several attempts to get tracings, but did not succeed until this season, when he took Mr. Brown, a pocket-hunter, with him, and within two weeks they made a find. Mr. Angle calls the claim the "Klondike," and he says the country is a fine one for prospecting. The mine is 7,200 feet above sea level. It is situated 15 miles from Cole's station, on the Southern Pacific railroad. People's Advocate, Chehalis, Washington, September 30, 1898, page 2 At the Black Butte cinnabar mine in Douglas County the smelting furnace for the reduction of the ore is just finished. There are fifty men on the company's payroll. Near Ashland fifteen men are cutting the three-mile ditch to the Poorman mine.… The Shorty-Hope mill which has been shut down for several weeks on account of a shortage of water has started up again.… Edwards & Evans have begun development work on the Fairview property.… At Mount Reuben in Josephine County, Senator Jones of Nevada has eighty men developing a quartz ledge and on Grave Creek are miles of new ditches and new hydraulic pipe to carry water for placer mines as soon as the fall rains set in. Journal: Near Grants Pass the Gold Key, operating the Braden mine, are putting in new machinery.… J. J. Martin, supt. for the Seattle M. Co., has bought seven claims in the Big Applegate district for $5250.… The S.F. people interested in the Hammersley property at Jumpoff Joe district will shortly resume work.… D. Cameron has bought the Chinese property on Pleasant Creek paying $2400, and is preparing it for the winter season.… J. D. Stevens has sold to Lister & Calvert his half interest in three placer claims for $1000.… The Rogue River gold dredger started last week near Tolo. They found 8 feet of gravel. The dredger is run night and day.… On Upper Grave Creek near Leland this winter three hydraulic plants will be in operation in addition to those already established, and every claim along the creek for a distance of six miles seems to be taken up. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 1, 1898, page 335 (Special Correspondence).--The amount of gold found recently by two professional pocket hunters, Brown & Angle, on Sterling Mountain near Coles is about $9000. They report the ledge to be in a porphyry formation, the pay streak running 4 inches to 2 feet in width. The ledge has been uncovered about 150 feet, but no depth of any consequence has been reached. Whether there is anything in this find aside from the hand-mortar process of operation will be ascertained by future developments, which, however, cannot be carried to any great extent because of the winter storms that will soon make their appearance in that section, which is at an elevation of 7000 feet. Medford, Oct. 2nd, '98. The Gold Standard M. Co., near Jacksonville, have their mine in good order and began crushing quartz on the 4th inst. They have a large quantity of ore on the dump.… Operations have been resumed at the Sterling mine and the cleanup of last season's work will be completed. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 8, 1898, page 358 Operations at the Braden mine near Gold Hill are being pushed. Many improvements have been made and the mine and mill will be worked to full capacity. Grants Pass Journal: Near Grants Pass the Sugar Pine mine has been bonded to R. Jones, who has let a contract for tunneling.… H. M. Chapin is opening up a mine near Merlin.… C. D. Crane, supt. Oro Fino, has resumed work at the mine. All ore taken out will be shipped.… The Eureka M. Co. will have their cyanide plant in operation in three weeks.… Ten men are working on the dredger near Tolo. It is said that the machine is a success.… J. Hill has sold a half interest in his placer mine on Rogue River to M. Pyles, who will equip the mine for hydraulicking. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 15, 1898, page 383 A MOSSBACK MINING COUNTRY.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, October 16, 1898, page 15
A veritable mossback mining country is to be found in Southern Oregon,
which has produced millions of dollars in gold with very little noise.
Its riches and the peculiarities of its people were well depicted by
James H. Lee, who spent a few days at the Northern after a trip to
examine the Black Channel.
"That country is just beginning to move," said he, "and several good hydraulic properties are being opened up. The people down there don't know what they have got. Most of the ground is held by farmers, except the Black Gold channel, which is held under patents, and the Gold Bar, which is held under the mining laws. The farmers farm in the summer and in the winter take their pick and sluice boxes and wash out a little gold. One farmer struck a rich pocket and took out over forty pounds of gold. They will not sell; they say that when they want anything all they have to do is to wash out a little gold. It is just the same as having a bank. One old fellow was dumping a wheelbarrow load of dirt when he was asked, 'How much do you get to the barrow load?' He said, 'About two drinks.' "That section offers the best chance I know to open up big hydraulic mines, for the ground is all easily handled, as it is loosely packed. The gravel is broken quartz porphyry and some granite, with a good deal of slate, but it is so decomposed that a good stream of water will break it up. The gravel beds are very extensive, and the old channels are very deep. The miners have not really got into the deep channels except in one place in the Black Channel on Foots Creek where they have run a tunnel about 1,700 feet. They have done nothing except along the rims, where they can get the dirt out easiest. One party is trying to pump water from the mouth of Foots Creek on Rogue River for a mile up the hill. The hydraulics are being opened up, one on Briggs Creek, in Josephine County, and one other on Foots Creek, in Jackson County. On one of these properties I took a space two by three feet and one foot from bedrock and got 63 cents out of it. Then I ran through a rocker six pans from the surface to bedrock and got 18 cents. Some shafts have been run sixty-five to seventy feet to bedrock and prospect pay dirt all the way down for hydraulic purposes. All that is needed is to get a good strong company to take hold of one of these properties. I never knew anything to carry me back so vividly to the old days in California as to what I saw down there. "Across the mountains in Josephine County, at the head of Briggs Creek, they have what is called the Yankee ledge. It is traceable for miles and is supposed to have been the feeder for the placer grounds of that whole country. I think that is correct, for there is good quartz on top of the mountain. The miners have two or three tunnels and several shafts in on the quartz, and some of them have shipped ore down to a mill on the Applegate River and got good returns. I have secured a half interest with William Griffin in a ledge sixty feet wide, which ran from $3 to $42 on the surface." Mining Items.
J. C. Davenport, who is running a tunnel in the Siskiyous west of
Cole's to tap a copper ledge at a depth of 300 feet, has not yet
reached his destination, though he has had a force of men at work
several months. The rock is much harder than anticipated. The property
belongs to Mrs. W. W. Walters of Phoenix and Mr. Carlson of Los
Angeles, and Davenport pays $100 per month on the bond while
prospecting. It showed some very rich copper ore on the surface, and
should it pan out at the present depth equally as well it will prove a
great enterprise, as it is generally understood that Mr. Davenport has
it sold to Spokane parties representing big capital.Ponnay Bros. are prospecting the extension on Davenport's claim and have opened up a ledge of fine ore. Dr. Bunnell and brother are also developing a copper proposition that parallels the Davenport, with very encouraging results. H. V. Winchell, the Minneapolis mining expert upon whose report the Ashland mine was sold to its present owners, stopped off Sunday en route from Yreka to Butte, Mon. He is now with the celebrated Anaconda Company of Montana, the property owned by the Marcus Daly, J. B. Haggin, Hearst estate and the Rothschilds and he was making a geological survey of the Siskiyou district for this syndicate. The Shorty-Hope mine is about to invest in a 16-horsepower gasoline engine to do the hoist act in the mine. It will cost $1200. The Ashland-Mattern mine keeps right along with a force of 35 men. The new lower tunnel on the Mattern is in on the ledge some 200 feet, and they are said to be taking out some rich ore. H. S. Sanford, president of the Shorty-Hope Mining Co., has been examining his 84 acres on the Kilgore tract and will quite likely soon put on a plant to operate the property on an extensive scale. Wm. Angle and Jordan Brown, who were driven from their rich find at Mt. Sterling on the Siskiyous two weeks ago by a snow storm, returned there again yesterday to do as much work as possible. We learn that the report that they took out $9000 from the rich pay chute was considerably exaggerated. Lon Edwards, who has been absent several years and recently returned to this district to prospect and develop some of his favorite propositions, has everything ready to give the Anderson mine on Wagner Creek Gap a thorough prospecting. Chas. Evans, an engineer of Los Angeles, is operating with him. D. B. McDaniel, who keeps right along in season and out of season developing his valuable quartz proposition west of Cole's, and W. N. Coleman, who is engaged in packing for the miners of that section, were in town Sunday and Monday shopping. Chas. Hosley and Wm. Patterson are prospecting Bear Creek for a placer mine. B. E. Haney and C. E. Brown of Star Gulch were here Monday with L. R. Hare and Fred Reichert, San Francisco men interested in mining with them. E. C. Palmer and Harry D. Lee were at Hornbrook yesterday looking at some tailings. Will Q. Brown, the Riddle nickel mine promoter, was on Tuesday's north train returning from Siskiyou County. ----
E. W. Roberts is operating the Mathews ledge on Louse Creek with a force of men.S. M. Butters and others have bought the Hansen property near Waldo and intend having an outlet tunnel run immediately. San Francisco parties are operating the Hammersley mine. T. F. Bounean, president of the Gold Belt Consolidated of Cripple Creek, Col., is in Josephine County, where he is prospecting the Free and Easy, now under bond. Thos. Couch, of Montana, one of the greatest authorities on practical mining in the United States, has been in the country for a number of days hunting something in the mining line to take hold of. Mr. Couch has been manager of the Boston and Montana mines for years, and his experience as a mining man has given him the confidence of capitalists everywhere who are seeking mining investments. Southern Oregon is coming to the front when it attracts such men as Mr. Couch.--Grants Pass Courier. Cottage Grove, Or., Oct. 17.--Very little is known of the Bohemia mining district outside of Oregon. It is situated in the Calapooia Mountains, 35 miles east of Cottage Grove. The ores of the district are free-milling gold ores. At present there are seven stamp mills in the district. In the Helena mine owned by Jennings Bros. & Bruneau, a depth of nearly 400 feet has been attained, and immense bodies of free-milling ore have been uncovered. The mine has been extensively developed during the past summer. Seven tunnels have been run on the vein, making seven levels, uncovering a continuous chute of high-grade ore six feet wide for 1000 feet along the surface. Valley Record, Ashland, October 20, 1898, page 3 Ashland Tidings: A half interest in the Tunnel Six mine, Glendale, was sold for $30,000 cash. The company will run a tunnel 12 feet in the clear and over 1000 feet in length with double track. A 20-stamp mill is in process of erection and chlorinating works will be built. Lighting and power by electricity are to be installed. Jacksonville Times: The cyanide plant being put up at the Eureka Mining Co.'s plant on Soldier Creek, Josephine County, will be in operation soon.… T. Gilmore of Kerbyville, who owns a placer mine in Indian Creek district, brought several hundred dollars in nuggets to Grants Pass last week. Ashland Record: The Rogue River Dredging Co. intends to put in a number of dredges, and this fall there will be one put in perhaps at the mouth of the Applegate River. This company has control of 120 claims which cover all of the river supposed to be fit for operation.… The bridge and flume across the Big Applegate recently completed by the Swayne M.&M. Co. fell to the bottom of the stream last week. The company paid $10,000 for the mine and has expended $7000 for improvements. The bridge was built to support a flume of 2200 inches capacity. The mine has been in operation only a week. The wreck is supposed to have been caused by dynamite. Ashland Tidings: The Golden Key Mining Co. has twenty-five men at work upon the Braden mine in the Gold Hill district. This company has also bonded several properties in the district.… Twenty-two hundred feet of 22-inch pipe has been added to the hydraulic plant of the Lance Mining Co. operating on Foots Creek; they will work day and night all the season.… B. N. White of Spokane is negotiating for an interest in the Free Silver mine in the Sampson Creek district near Ashland. The property has made a good showing as far as prospected.… The Oregon and California M.&M. Co.'s property near Pokegama has been bonded to Tryer & Kile, from Colorado, who began operations Oct. 1. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 5, 1898, page 460 Ashland Journal: The gold output for Jackson County this year is $150,000--two-fifths less than last year on account of scarcity of water.… Ferguson & Sorrick, who bought the Miller & Dysert and other placer claims on Jumpoff Joe, have incorporated under the name of the Jumpoff Joe G.M. Co. Their new ditch is completed and everything will soon be in shape for the winter's run.… H. B. Compson and others recently bought the General Sheridan and Custer quartz claims in the Wolf Creek district, Josephine County. The price is not made public. The ledge shows 12 feet of ore, which is high-grade concentrating. The new owners will begin operations in the spring.… The Vindicator M. Co. has made application to the government for patents to 220 acres of mining ground in Grave Creek district, Josephine County. Ashland Tidings: The Lewis mine at Leland is working twenty men.… Operations will shortly be resumed on the Basin mine on Briggs Creek.… A. Carter has bonded the Anderson mining property on Williams Creek for Colorado people.… The cleanup at the Sterling hydraulic mine on Applegate is just being completed and operations will soon begin on another season's run.… The Booth & Carter mine on Grave Creek received a carload of iron pipe last week. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 19, 1898, page 510 Ashland Record: At Paisley, Lake County, J. W. Howard's quartz assays $60 per ton and a cyanide test is being made in San Francisco.… The mile ditch has been completed for the Jumpoff Joe M. Co. The company employs twenty men getting ready for the winter run.… The J. C. Lewis placer mine at Leland is in operation with twenty men. He will operate two mines this season. The Steam Beer mine is ready for operations, the water in the big ditch having come through last week.… E. A. Smith is having a test carload of ore crushed in the Ashland mill from his Uncle Sam mine near Gold Hill.… C. D. Crane of the Oro Fino mine, Jumpoff Joe, had two carloads of ore crushed in the Ashland mill this week. Jacksonville Times: Booth & Clark have put a carload of hydraulic pipe on their property in Grave Creek district.… G. E. Morse of San Francisco and M. Cooper are visiting the Swayne M. Co.'s property on Big Applegate, in which they are largely interested. The enterprise promises well. Grants Pass Journal: M. McWilliams is opening the Beswick & Potter mine, near Grants Pass, and has considerable ore on the dump.… Dr. DeBar, Jacksonville, has over forty tons of ore out, and as soon as there is sufficient water the mill will be started.… J. J. Martin, supt. Seattle M. Co., in Watkins district, is getting ready for the winter's run.… The Lance M. Co. started the pumping plant on their extensive placer ground last week.… The Golden Key M. Co., which has bonded the Braden mine and other properties near Gold Hill, will soon begin work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 26, 1898, page 534 Jacksonville Times: Cook & Howland, near Jacksonville, have their mines ready and will make a big run if water does not fail them.… The Black Channel M. Co.'s property on Foots Creek has been leased by J. P. Lee, who is operating with a strong force.… It is locally reported that a strike has been made on the Applegate.… The Gold Key Co., operating the Braden mine, is sinking a well to obtain water to operate the mill.… The Sterling M. Co. has finished its cleanup for 1898, which was good, and is making preparations for next season's run.… The Gold Standard M. Co. will erect a concentrator soon; they have a large quantity of base ore on the dump. The free-milling quartz which has been worked paid well.… The Isabella M. Co. is pushing work on their property near Glendale. The company was organized last October and began work immediately. They have ordered a 10-stamp mill, which will be in operation soon. They are building a dam across Cow Creek and will bring water two miles through pipes and flumes. Grants Pass Mining Journal: W. Greder of San Francisco bought the Young copper property near Waldo. He represents a company and will put men at work immediately to developing the property. Ashland Record: The dredging company operating near Tolo has closed down for the winter. Sixteen men were employed. The returns are said to have been satisfactory. The last day's work cleaned up twenty-one ounces of gold. The owners of this plant will erect another, somewhat larger, in the spring to operate near Grants Pass.… B. T. Wyant & Sons, who operated the Anderson placer mine near Ashland with success last season, have again leased the same, and last week began a run of nine months.… The two river mines operating in Klamath River below Henley quit last week for the season. The American Bar has been operating since last February their day and night crews being thirty men. J. Weinzlnger, who has a wing dam near Henley, has been at work with a force since May. He will begin work on his placer mine near Fool's Paradise for the winter.… Kubli Bros. made a short run of ore through their 5-stamp mill at their Golden Standard mine and realized $1500.… J. P. Lee has leased the Black Channel mines near Gold Hill and began operations with a large force last week. Ashland Tidings: The Vindicator Placer M. Co., on Wolf Creek, will put in what is said to be the largest dam in the state. Its dimensions will be 50 feet high, 250 feet across the top and a depth of 25 feet.… Douglas and Josephine counties report great activity in mining, unprecedented in their history. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 3, 1898, page 559 AN OREGON MINE LEASED.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, December 7, 1898, page 6Black Gold Channel Hydraulic to Be Worked by James H. Lee.
The Black Gold Channel Mining Company, of this city, has leased its
mine in Southern Oregon to James H. Lee on a royalty basis for a term
of years, after having operated with a hydraulic plant for two years
and washed out an average of 25 cents per yard.
The property consists of 1,000 acres of ground on Foots Creek, a mile and three-quarters from Rogue River, and covers both the old and the present channel. The company has run about half a mile of tunnel along and across the old channel, opening up a body of ground from rim to rim which will pay for hydraulic mining. The pay gravel is from 600 to 1,000 feet wide and about sixty feet deep, and pays an average of 25 cents per yard from the grass roots to bedrock, the dirt on bedrock paying $2 per yard. It has been worked by a No. 4 giant with 1,500 feet of 11-inch pipe. Mr. Lee proposes to go ahead with the tunneling in order to define the extent of the pay ground, hauling out the dirt and dumping it into the sluice box. He will at the same time continue to hydraulic from the surface to bedrock in the present channel, where there is a sluice box 2,000 feet long. Near Grants Pass, the Browning Bros. have made another discovery, which shows well.… Harmon & Green of Galice Creek have been operating their mine two weeks. They have enough water for a full head through a 6-inch nozzle. Grants Pass Journal: Grater & Brown bought 160 acres in the Klamath River section and will equip it for mining on an extensive scale.… The Sterling M. Co. has finished its cleanup for 1898, which was good, and is making preparations for next season's run. Jacksonville Times: Senator Jones & Co., who are operating on a large scale in Mt. Reuben district, have applied for patents to several quartz claims.… J. Young of Waldo, who has been developing a copper prospect in Preston Peak district for several years, has sold it to W. Grider of San Francisco, who represents a company. A force will be put to work on the property at once. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 10, 1898, page 586 Jacksonville Times: The Star Gulch M. Co., near Jacksonville, has the ditch completed and everything will be in shape for work when the rainy season sets in.… Wyant & Co. are operating a placer mine near Ashland.… Harmon & Green are making a good run in upper Galice Creek district. They have enough water to operate a 6-inch nozzle.… J. Young of Steamboat precinct is crushing ore with an arrastra.… F.G. McWilliams of Ashland, who is working a quartz mine in Farmers Flat district, will have ore crushed in a short time.… The Hansen mines in Althouse district, recently bought by S. N. Butters and others, is being put in shape for extensive operation. Ashland Record: The Gold Hill Q.M. Co. last week resumed work on the old Gold Hill ledge which produced the $200,000 pocket in early days. The company have bought the Copper Queen, Daisy and Flora quartz claims and will have them developed also.… P. H. Oviatt owns a coal mine on Evans Creek, which has a 14-foot vein.… R. Van Brunt has started up his placer mines for the season. Ashland Tidings: The Seattle Cooperation Co. is preparing to hydraulic near Watkins.… At the Shorty-Hope M. Co.'s property work is pushed.… It is locally reported that the Brownings have made a second discovery near the Greenback mine that is promising.… The coal mine owned by Andrus & Reynolds on Evans Creek is prospecting good.… The Free Silver mine of Barron & White, near Ashland, will be started soon.… Men are reported making $1.50 per day at the Cameron placer mines.… The Gold Hill Quartz M. Co. has bought the Cooper, Flora and Savage claims in the Gold Hill district.… The Jumpoff Joe M. Co. has received two carloads of pipe at their mine near Leland.… The Lewis placer mine near Leland was started up last week. Grants Pass Journal: At the Ray Cook mine, near Grants Pass, there are twenty men at work and they are in about 200 feet. The drift is from 50 to 100 feet wide and covers the old river channel. The gravel is being taken out of the tunnel in dump carts and thrown into sluices.… In the Hannum mine the new ledge is about a foot wide and assays $80 a ton. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 17, 1898, pages 612-613 The Grants Pass Journal is informed that Senator Jones & Co.'s mill on Mt. Reuben will start up this month.… The Star Gulch Hydraulic M. Co. has everything in readiness to start when rain sets in. Ashland Record: It is locally reported that the Black Jack gravel mine, near Hornbrook, will be put in operation again.… Knapp & Pollard of San Francisco will run the Dugan & Knapp placer mine, near Ashland.… The Swayne mine, on Big Applegate, is working twenty men.… F. G. McWilliams had nine tons of ore crushed from his quartz mine near Jacksonville the other day. It did not come up to 50 percent of the assay. He will make another test. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 24, 1898, page 638 Ashland Record: Supt. James has started a shaft at the Shorty and Hope claims from the 150-foot level, and has put three 8-hour shifts at work. They have found high grade ore, which will be sent to the smelter.… The Shorty-Hope 10-stamp mill and residences are lighted with acetylene gas of twenty-four 25-candlepower lights.… Supt. Crane of the Oro Fino mine is reducing five carloads of his ore at Ashland. Grants Pass Journal: Ferguson & Ferrier have sold their two-thirds interest in the Riverside group near Grants Pass to Cottage Grove and Portland people. The mine has 160 feet of tunnel on two ledges, showing in one place 4 feet of ore averaging $40 to the ton, and the other ledge, 40 feet wide, shows an average of $12 to the ton. Jacksonville Times: The ledge discovered by Hannum & Browning near Jacksonville is a foot wide and the ore assays $90 a ton.… D. DeBar, who is developing a ledge near Jacksonville, had fifty tons of ore crushed with favorable results.… Hull & Beck, who are running a mill at their mine near Grants Pass, after a run of fourteen days cleaned up $600. Houck & Cox are developing a cinnabar mine near Gold Hill.… A quantity of ore from the mine prospected by F. G. McWilliams was lately crushed with good results.… Work will be resumed at Beekman & Huffer's mine Jan. 1. A long distance of tunnel has been run; a shaft will be sunk. Two tons of ore crushed last week yielded $100. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 31, 1898, page 663 Near Grants Pass the quartz mine recently developed by Knight & Co., was sold last week to Berry & Rolfe for $2000 cash. The new owners will erect a cyanide plant which will be operated with a new extracting compound, instead of zinc filings as used in similar plants. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 7, 1899, page 7 Jacksonville Times: Piping was resumed at the Sterling mine, near Jacksonville, last week, with a good supply of water.… The Black Channel mine, in Foots Creek district, is being operated by M. Lee, who has leased the property.… Kitchen & Huggins have leased the Miller mine, in Farmers Flat district, and have everything in readiness for a big run.… At the Shorty-Hope mine, in Wagner Creek district, operations on a large scale have begun.… Beekman & Huffer have put a small force to work in Shively Gulch district.… Near Roseburg, thirty-five men are employed at the Gold Bug mine, in Mt. Reuben district, and a twelve days' run with a 5-stamp mill produced $8700.… J. Behrman, Mgr. Black Butte Quicksilver M. Co., in Lane County, says that statements that the mine has shipped $80,000 worth of quicksilver are misleading. They are getting the mine into shape. The sum of $75,000 has been expended on roads, bridges and other improvements. Next spring the mine will begin shipping. Grants Pass Journal: The Black Channel mine near Grants Pass has a force of men getting ready for the winter work.… F. R. Wardle has a force at work on the Houston property, which his company recently bought.… The Eureka mine has plenty of water, good rock, and mill and concentrator at work day and night.… J. D. McMahon and some Portland people have bought the Bliss mine near Gold Hill, named it the St. Lawrence, and have begun work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 21, 1899, pages 68-69 Grants Pass Journal: The ABC M. Co., near Glendale, has ten men at work.… The Oro Fino mine, near Grants Pass, is working four men.… B. J. Allison of Roseburg is developing a good ledge of gold-bearing ore near Glendale.… The Miller mine, in Farmers Flat district, has been leased to Kitchen & Muggins.… The Sterling hydraulic started up again last week with a good supply of water. Jacksonville Times: The placer miners about Jacksonville are at work and making the most of the opportunity.… Miners are developing the Free Silver and Gold Standard mines in Sampson Creek district near Ashland.… A. Watts is operating his placer claim on Horsehead on full time, with good results. He recently brought $500 in gold dust to Grants Pass.… Next spring Washington parties will prospect the big Yank ledge in Galice Creek district, and deep shafts will be sunk. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 28, 1899, page 95 The Shorty-Hope M. Co. at Ashland are running their 10-stamp quartz mill day and night. Barron & White of Spokane have let a contract to drive a 300-foot crosscut tunnel near Ashland at a depth of 200 feet below the surface. They expect to have the work finished in 100 days and began operations this week. This property is a dike formation and one class of ore worked $45 per ton and another $15 per ton gold in milling tests. The ore was taken out at a depth of 80 feet. Grants Pass Journal: G. W. Woodcock of Woodville brought $175 in gold dust to Grants Pass last week.… The Pickett Creek M. Co. have six men at work on their hydraulic, piping plenty of water.… At Camp Jupiter a company is developing the F. Houston property.… From the Hayes, Jewell & Moore placer on Oscar Creek the result of only three days' piping one nugget worth $242 and some smaller ones, making in all over $500, were brought to Grants Pass recently.… The Jumpoff Joe M. Co. is running two giants night and day. An electric light has been installed. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 4, 1899, page 128 Grants Pass Journal: Near Grants Pass, Mr. Sturgis has struck a quartz ledge 2½ feet wide that assays $24 a ton.… A. W. Sturgis, near Jacksonville, is piping off considerable ground.… The Black Butte quicksilver mines, near Bohemia, made their first shipment of quicksilver last week to New York. The shipment contained thirty flasks.… At Althouse the Hickox mine is running night and day. Jacksonville Times: The Hansen mines in Althouse district will soon be in operation.… California people have taken charge of the Hammersley mine in Jumpoff Joe district and are unwatering the property.… The placer mines of Pleasant Creek precinct have a fair supply of water. About twelve mines are operated with hydraulic plants.… Four mines are operated with hydraulic plants on a large scale in Wolf Creek district. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 11, 1899, page 157 An attempt is being made in Southern Oregon to smelt ores on a commercial scale by the use of oxygen and hydrogen gases with carbon generated from crude petroleum. It is, in fact, a huge oxy-hydrogen blowpipe. "Concentrates," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 11, 1899, page 259 Jacksonville Times: A number of claims have been located on a body of quartz near Merlin, Josephine County. The ore is said to assay from $10 to $80 per ton, and the belt is reported to be several miles long. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 18, 1899, page 296 Grants Pass Courier: Three hundred tons of copper ore is being packed on mules from the Siskiyou copper mines on lower Illinois River to Selma, fifteen miles, from which it will be hauled in wagons twenty miles to Grants Pass and shipped by rail to San Francisco. "Siskiyou," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 3, 1899, page 590 OREGON.
"Mining Summary," Mining
and Scientific Press, July 1, 1899, page 15
The Wong Back
Fawn mines, at the mouth of Sailor Creek, have been sold to the
Canadian Co., Ltd., of London, Eng., for $16,000. The land includes
several bars on the Illinois River, twelve miles south of Kerby. The
Illinois River bars have never been mined, though the tributary streams
have been dug over for forty years. The dredge to be used will excavate
to a depth of 60 feet and is said to have a capacity of 3000 yards of
gravel per day. The sale was made through S. N. Butters, who is
interested in placer ground in the vicinity, known as the Hanseth
property.
The dredge operating at Weatherby is said to be in successful operation, hoisting 4000 cubic yards daily. Monroe & Morgan of Seattle, Wash., have bought the Grand Applegate ditch near Medford. It is 12 feet wide at the top, 6 at the bottom, 6 feet deep, 7 miles long. A part of the Squaw Lake mine is to be worked from it this summer. Josephine County.
"General Mining News,
Oregon," The
Engineering and Mining Journal, July 8, 1899,
page 48
Old Channel.--This hydraulic placer property, comprising over 630 acres
on Six Mile Creek, 32 miles from Grants Pass, was recently sold by the
owners, J. O. Booth, F. D. Burns and others, to C. B. Beardsley, W. H.
Thompson and associates of Chicago. It is said that a ditch
3½
miles long will be built, giving 2,000 miners' inches under 300 ft.
head.
Jacksonville Times: Lund Bros., who are developing the cinnabar ledge in Beaver Creek district, for the Siskiyou Quicksilver M. Co., have struck good ore.… J. Berham of Portland, who is interested in the cinnabar mines in Meadows precinct, has let a contract for running a tunnel. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 8, 1899, page 42 OREGON.
"Mining Summary," Mining
and Scientific Press, July 15, 1899, page 67
Ashland Record:
Miners have struck the ledge in the Free Coinage mine in Sampson Creek
mining district near Soda Springs. The 320-foot tunnel entered the
ledge at a depth of 200 feet from the surface. It was 5 feet wide. The
ore carries free gold and zinc and lead sulphides. There are specimens
exhibiting native silver. This ledge is also known as the Barron and
Shepherd and is eight and one-half miles southeast of Ashland, and was
the first gold-bearing ledge found in that section of the
county.… The
Shorty Hope M. & M. Co. is about to sink 100 feet on their
property
near Ashland, and will determine the character of machinery that will
be purchased. The shaft will be sunk on the line between both
locations, and it is now 60 feet below the level of the present
workings; 1000 feet of drifting has been done on the vein. The business
of the company in Ashland and at the mine is looked after by Pres. H.
S. Sanford and supt. T. James.… Supt. H. Mattern, of the
Ashland and
Mattern mines, has shipped a carload of ore and concentrates to San
Francisco. It was from the new workings in the west side shaft, from
which $80 per ton was realized by the last run through the 5-stamp mill
in Ashland. The mine is opened by a 400-foot tunnel that struck the
vein at a depth of 150 feet from the surface. A 500-foot tunnel reached
the vein at a depth of 500 feet and did considerable drift work in
low-grade ore. The owners are G. F. Reynolds of Sheboygan, Mich. and R.
M. Bennett of Minneapolis, Minn. They paid $20,000 for the mine a year
ago. Mr. Bennett and Mr. Mattern are the owners of the Mattern mine,
from which some high-grade ore has been taken.
Josephine
County.
"General Mining News,
Oregon," The
Engineering and Mining Journal, August 5, 1899,
page 168
Illinois &
Josephine Gravel Mining Company.… This company, composed of
San
Francisco men with $100,000 capital stock, now controls the Alexander
Watts placer property, including water rights and ditches at the
junction of Josephine Creek and Illinois River, 5 miles northwest of
Kerby. L. H. Carver has charge of the improvements.
During the past year 110 placer and 224 quartz mining locations were recorded in Jacksonville. Gold nuggets valued at about $12,000 are exhibited [at] the Medford Bank, a part of the cleanup of the Sterling M. Co. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 2, 1899, page 263 The Ashland quartz mine, near Ashland City, is sold to Montreal and Spokane men. The company is incorporated as the Montreal & Oregon Gold Mines and will commence development work. H. Mattern is local manager until October 1st. C. G. Griffith is managing director. The selling price is reported to be about $120,000. The Gold Bug Mining Co., Mount Reuben, is reported to have sold its properties to C. D. Lane and A. Hayward of San Francisco, a ninety-day bond for $1,000,000 being given, with an initial payment of $100,000. The property was owned by J. P. Jones of Nevada. There is a 5-stamp mill in operation. The report is locally denied. G. F. Wheeler of Grants Pass, receiver of the Siskiyou Copper M. Co., operating near Waldo, says that the carload of copper ore shipped to the Selby Smelting Works at San Francisco turned out so well that 100 tons more will be shipped to the same establishment as soon as possible. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 9, 1899, page 291 The formalities of the sale of the Ashland mine to the Ontario & Oregon Gold Mines, Ltd., show the consideration to have been $125,000. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 23, 1899, page 347 Jackson
County.
"General Mining News,
Oregon," The
Engineering and Mining Journal, September 16,
1899, page 348
Ashland.--The
Montreal & Oregon Gold Mines, Limited, a Canadian corporation,
of
which Charles G. Griffith is manager, has purchased the Ashland Mine
for a consideration understood to be $120,000. R. M. Bennett, G. F.
Reynolds, H. V. Winchell and H. Mattern were the former owners of the
mine, but they did not have sufficient capital to do the work needed.
The new company, it is understood, is planning to start extensive
development at once. H. Mattern, one of the former owners, will have
charge until October 1, however.
OREGON.
The managers of the Oro Fino mine in the Jumpoff Joe district propose
to put a stamp mill on the property. The wide vein of medium values in
the Oro Fino fully justifies the construction of a good plant, and its
operation can only be profitable to those interested.
"Mining News," The Mining Reporter, October 5, 1899, page 214 Ashland Record: At the Golden Standard, ore has been discovered which resembles the Gold Hill quartz. The vein is 8 inches thick, with walls of slate and porphyry. One rich deposit follows another, with high-grade between.… Another discovery like the Golden Standard is reported on Horse Creek, south of the Big Applegate. C. Grater was the discoverer. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 7, 1899, page 411 Ashland Record: In the vicinity of Hornbrook, Roberts & Co. continue to employ sixty men. This mine has kept ten stamps running on high-grade ore for eighteen months, averaging twenty tons per day.… Laflesh & Miner have seventeen men at work in their mine and mill.… Rose & Nikirk commenced crushing ore October 2nd, in their new mill on Ash Creek.… Doney Bros. tapped a heavy flow of water in their mine and are compelled to suspend until a pump can be put in.… H. Mattern has bought from C. Harness a half interest in the Ohio mines for $2000. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 21, 1899, page 467 Crescent City Record: Reports from the Blue Ledge copper mines, owned by Del Norte parties, are that the vein has been tapped at a depth of 146 feet and the ore found is rich in copper. The mine is in the Siskiyous, eighteen miles from Jacksonville, Or. "Del Norte," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 11, 1899, page 551 The Oregon Midland Ry. Co., of Ashland, proposes building a railway sixty miles down the Klamath River from Klamath Falls to Klamathon, Cal., a station on the S.P.R.R. "Industrial Notes," Mining and Scientific Press, November 18, 1899, page 583 Dr. E. O. Smith, who has bonded the Haggin mine at Tolo for $25,000, proposes to sink a 1000-foot shaft. The first gold dredger in Southern Oregon is being operated by the English-Canadian Co., at Faun's mine, on the Illinois River, near Waldo. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 2, 1899, page 639 Southern Oregon Mines.
The Josephine dredger at Sailor Diggings started up again last week.
Henry Rissue has made a valuable strike on one of his claims in the Bohemia district. The ledge is a well-defined one, eight feet wide, and will assay $30 to the ton. A large deal was recently made of 640 acres of patented land, containing placer and quartz claims, on Galls Creek, near Gold Hill, formerly known as the Klippel property. It was an all-cash deal, and the buyer was F. H. Osgood, of Seattle.… Grants Pass Mining Journal. Aberdeen Herald, Aberdeen, Washington, December 7, 1899, page 3 Josephine
County.
"General Mining News,
Oregon," The
Engineering and Mining Journal, December 16,
1899, page 739
McCroskey &
Mills recently sold their placer mine, on Upper Grave Creek, to C. E.
Smith and others, of Colorado Springs. This property contains 50 acres
of good ground, with equipment.
H. S. Woodcock sold recently to Erasmus Wilson and B. E. Meredith of Kansas City, Mo., a group of 5 claims on Josephine Creek, comprising 100 acres of mining ground. The sale included all water rights. The consideration was $11,000. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
"Mining
Summary," Mining
and Scientific Press, December 16, 1899, page
695
The
Josephine dredger at Sailor Diggings has started
up again.
H. Rissue has made a strike on a claim in Bohemia district. The ledge is 8 feet wide. A deal was recently made of 640 acres of patented land, containing placer and quartz claims, on Galls Creek, near Gold Hill. The buyer was F. H. Osgood of Seattle. Medford Mail.
James McDougal is piping on his claim on the Ralls place, with
encouraging prospects of a good cleanup.
Houston & Ingram are running their pipe with a fair head of water on their Lane Creek claim, and are encouraged to believe the season's work will be a profitable one. Ralph Dean has a force at work ground sluicing on Willow Springs Flat, where there has never been a failure to make good wages. It is reported that the late run at the Beekman & Huffer mill, on rock taken from their ledges on Jackson Creek, resulted in a cleanup of something like $900. Dekum & Wright, of Portland, principals of the Apollo Company, of Elk Creek, sent an expert up there to make a careful examination of the mines in that section. The report, it is learned, was favorable, though the ore is low grade and some of it base and hard to work. The country is porphyritic in formation, and much like the Bohemia district. J. W. Short, of Foots Creek, says that miners in that section have plenty of water, and that there are three hydraulics in operations on the right-hand fork and five on the left. The Black Channel company has been piping for the past week with a good head of water, and 250-foot pressure. The prospects for a large output from this district were never better than at present. Kubli Bros. have about completed a 100-foot crosscut in the Gold Standard, which will tap the ledge 100 feet below the surface. This crosscut was run for the purpose of tapping the new mine from which the rich ore was taken. Placer miners in the vicinity of Gold Hill are anticipating an unusually good winter's run. C. Vrooman, who is operating a good-paying placer on Sardine Creek, reports that he has washed off more ground already this year than during the whole of last season. The high water on Applegate last week carried out one of the dams of the Seattle Mining Company, on Elliott Creek, and did considerable damage to the head works of the big ditch belonging to the Applegate Mining Company. The company was obliged to close the mine down until such time as it could repair the break, which will take about three weeks. The C. & C. Hydraulic Mining Company, of Jumpoff Joe, which is constructing a large ditch from Pleasant Creek to cover its mines so as to operate them by hydraulic process, is pushing the work with all possible speed. The mine is that formerly owned by Cook & Howell, to which there have been added several purchases, rendering the property one of large value. The company is also building a new sawmill with a capacity of 20,000 feet per day. There is almost an inexhaustible supply of timber, and of the finest quality. The company is working 45 men. Oregonian, Portland, December 21, 1899, page 6 Southern Oregon Mining
Notes. Medford Mail.
At
the Broad & Reed ledge, near the head of Jackson and Forest
creeks, about eight tons of quartz are being put through the crusher
daily. The ledge is three feet in width, and the quartz is said to be
very rich. E. L. Haney, who is now operating a giant at his mine some 12 miles from Jacksonville, reports the outlook for a big cleanup as the result of this season's work very promising. L. L. Love and son, of Tolo, will commence piping on their placer ground, on the east fork of Sardine Creek, next week. Dr. Ray. who bonded the Swinden ledge in Gold Hill district, has a force of 15 men at work on the property, and the 10-stamp mill is being run to its fullest capacity. Indirect information conveys the belief that this season's output will be large, and it is also reported that Dr. Ray will take the mine under the bond. H. A. Perkins recently made the discovery of a rich quartz ledge near the Hayden mine. The ledge is three feet in width and contains a good prospect of free gold. Oregonian, Portland, December 31, 1899, page 10 Southern Oregon Mining Notes.
Grants Pass Courier.
The
Copper Company, at Preston Peak, has a good force
of men at work developing the mine, which is showing up a large body of
rich ore.
H. C. Perkins, of the Old Channel mine at Six-Mile Creek, says they will be ready to begin piping there in about a week. They have a force of about 20 men at work, riveting pipe, cleaning ditch, building sluices, and other necessary operations incident to the equipment of a large hydraulic mine. H. A. Corliss, the Dry Diggins miner, says that he has already worked as much ground this winter as he did during the whole season of last year. This is a section which has been known and worked for years, by every method known to placer mining. As a placer deposit, it is somewhat peculiar, there being little washed gravel, and in some places none at all. The gold is mostly coarse, rough, and the larger pieces are mingled with quartz. C. E. Harmon says that the present season has been very favorable for the operation of the mine at Galice which belongs to himself and Dan Green. The large amount of water in Galice Creek has been of material benefit in sluicing the old tailings out of the creek channel and thereby enlarging their dump. The ground they are working this year is yielding rich returns. Mr. Green recently picked up a piece which weighed nearly $60. Morning Oregonian, Portland, January 12, 1900, page 6 H. F. Ankeny, of the Sterling mine, is operating his hydraulics night and day under a full head of water and expects to sweep a large area of bedrock. He has twenty-six men at work. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 13, 1900, page 45 Southern Oregon Mining Notes.
Ashland Tidings.
Newt Haskins
has leased the Terry Bros.' mine on Big Applegate and is operating a
giant on it, with good prospects.
A chemical laboratory in Jacksonville to determine the value of ores is something new, and will meet a want that has long been felt here. Ed Fauset has about completed a ditch from the Butte fork of Applegate to his mine, and is getting out timbers for the necessary fluming. As soon as all preliminary work is done, Mr. Fauset will put a hydraulic plant on his mine. He has 20 acres, and it is considered first-class ground. His season's run will be necessarily short, on account of extended improvements, but with the new plant and more effective work, the output will no doubt exceed any former year. George Wait, who is mining on Big Applegate, six miles above the Watkins place, owns 20 acres of mining ground there, and 80 on Dividend Bar, Squaw Creek. He is ground-sluicing on his Big Applegate claim, and has 3000 inches of water available for that purpose the year round. He has all the fall he wants, and says he drives seven- and eight-pound boulders through his flume without any trouble. The gold is coarse, heavy, and most of it rough and free from wash. The nuggets run from $1 up, the largest yet being taken out being $28. The freshet took out part of the filling of the dam from which the ditch issues, causing quite a stoppage in his season's work. He says his output for the season will be as good as usual, notwithstanding the break. Morning Oregonian, Portland, January 19, 1900, page 6 The gold output of Jackson County for 1899 is estimated at $250,000. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 27, 1900, page 99 Southern Oregon Mining Notes. Ashland Tidings.
Ingram
& Houston have been running their pipe
since the heavy rainfall on their claim on Willow Springs Creek, near
the old Schumpf ledge, and have off more ground now than during any
season in the past 10. They have already picked up a number of handsome
nuggets. E. H. Pearce, from the Pearce mine, on Forest Creek, reports piping going on steadily as the water supply will permit, and says he considers the ground being worked off now the best on the claim. The late freeze has somewhat diminished the volume of water, but a much larger area of bedrock will be uncovered this year than during any former season. Winningham & Co., of the ledge west of the Sturgis placers, have been pushing work on the vein, and have out now 50 tons of rock, which they commenced to crush in their own mill Monday. Reports are to the effect that there is no decline in the value of the ore from the first crushing, which yielded $36.50. R. F. Dean has a force of men at work on Willow Springs flat ground sluicing. This flat has been worked since 1854 and always with satisfactory results. It would have been worked out years ago but for the fact that the eastern part of it is embraced within the limits of the N. C. Dean donation land claim and the western part in that of the Houston donation land claim. James McRunnels has leased ground and is also mining on the flat. The heavy rains this winter have largely increased the water supply for these diggings, and Mr. Dean expects to make a cleanup far exceeding any former year. Jesse Huggins was down from his mountain claim Friday and had a lot of dust changed at the bank. He is more sanguine than ever that he has discovered one of the richest placer deposits in this section. The discouraging feature in connection with all the sections of this old channel is the utter impossibility of procuring a water supply. This channel appears to traverse the high ridges except where it has been broken up or diverted by slides, and the altitude is so great there is no available water source high enough to reach it. It may be suggested that if the dirt is very rich it might be hauled to the foot of the mountain and there washed with profit. This would involve the construction of an expensive road, and when, in addition, it is considered how slow and costly it is to transport such heavy material, it can be seen at once that such an enterprise could not be made to pay unless the ground was fabulously rich. Oregonian, Portland, February 1, 1900, page 5 A contract is to be let for the longest mining ditch in the West, ninety-three miles, beginning above Rogue River Falls and terminating at Gold Hill. It will drain 100,000 acres of placer ground, and is to cost $700,000. M. P. Warde says the preliminary surveys have been finished and the right of way secured. For four months past eighteen surveyors, in charge of J. S. Howard, have been running the necessary lines. Estimates are now being made. The territory which the ditch will drain is recognized as rich placer ground, the mines of which heretofore could only be worked during the wet season. The company proposes to furnish electric and water power to quartz mines. J. R. Huggins, west of Jacksonville, recently took $200 out of a pocket. W. H. Lee extracted an equal amount from a pocket near Applegate. I. Humason of Portland wants to put up a mill between Rogue River bridge and Houck's mill. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 3, 1900, page 127 The Montreal & Oregon M. Co., which recently bought the Ashland group of claims for $125,000, contemplates the building of a 10-stamp mill when the lower tunnel and the west shaft on the 250-foot level meet. C. D. McDonald, Ashland, is supt. J. B. Scott, who bonded the Messenger mine, is having ore tested preliminary to building a mill. The Chicago men who bought the Old Channel mine, on Six-Mile Creek, and connected it with the Illinois River by ditch, have started piping with one giant. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 17, 1900, page 182 At Grants Pass, B. E. Meredith, supt. Wilson placer mine, on the Illinois River, is piping day and night, with a good head of water. The Big Yank M.&M. Co. is under the management of J. P. Wickham. Fifteen men are employed at the mine. At the Eureka mine work goes steadily on. They are getting out ore and storing the same until they can pack in a new mill of ten stamps. At the A.&B. [Alexander & Bent] placer mine, Galice Creek, the break of 300 feet in the flume, caused by a landslide, has been repaired, and two giants are at work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 24, 1900, page 210 The gold dredge Josephine, near Waldo, has resumed operations. The quartz mill on the Winnington-Pence mine, on Forest Creek, is running on rock reported to average $36 to the ton. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 3, 1900, page 238 Ivan Humason, son of Mrs. P. M. Dekum, who was summoned to Portland last week to attend the funeral of his grandmother, Mrs. Anna Jackson, who died at the age of eighty-nine years, returned Thursday. Mr. Humason expresses himself more enthusiastically than ever regarding the brilliant and prosperous future of Gold Hill. He says the undeveloped resources of this part of Oregon are astonishing, and every week he hears of some new possibility. It will take time for capital to come in and become interested, but that enough capital is already here to make business boom this summer. Mrs. Humason will join her husband here in about two weeks. The plat of the Dekum addition to Gold Hill arrived by express and will soon be placed on file at the county seat, and the lots placed on the market. Mr. Humason brought with him two curtains handsomely lettered in gold, which read: "Gold Hill Quartz Milling Co." and "Gold Hill High Line Ditch Co." These have been hung in the windows of the brick office and give it quite a metropolitan appearance. Now that Mr. Humason is here work will be resumed on the quartz mill and the structure pushed to completion. Mrs. Dekum, who has recovered from her recent severe cold, will come to Gold Hill as soon as her residence is completed. Gold Hill News, March 10, 1900, page 4
(Special correspondence).--Thirty-five miles north of Medford
the
Lower Elk Creek mining district is an undeveloped and nearly
unprospected region, with plenty red fir timber, good streams and fine
climate; country rock, andesite; cutting this are numerous parallel
dikes of felsite, in width 5 to 200 feet. These white dikes
are
well mineralized, a fine-grained variety of iron pyrites being
generally disseminated through them, in places concentrating into
considerable bodies of irregular shape of a nearly pure sulphuret ore.
This carries a little gold, $4 to $6 per ton, but no appreciable
quantities of copper or lead.
In a portion of the district a number of the felsite dikes are accompanied by a system of well-defined quartz veins. Some of them possess gouges, polished faces, slickensides, ribbon structure and other evidences of true fissure veins along which more or less faulting has occurred. The ore in these veins is galena and chalcopyrite, carrying a good value in both gold and silver. Although highly refractory, requiring concentration and smelting, two properties have opened up bodies of ore--the Collie Dog and the Bright & Sparkling, adjoining mines on the same vein. There is one thing of great importance which has to be taken into account in prospecting this district: the ore lies low and shafts have to be sunk to reach it. The amount of chalcopyrite and galena in the veins increases from higher to lower levels, i.e., from the original surface down, until a level is reached on which they are in sufficient quantities to constitute it [sic] what may be called the mineral zone--the zone where deposition of copper, lead, gold and silver was most active. Unlike the pyrites disseminated through the felsite dikes, the galena and chalcopyrite in the quartz veins were not derived by lateral secretion from the country rock, but were introduced from below at a great depth and brought up in solution in hot, alkaline waters. Deposition occurred all along the vein, but as the surface was approached it greatly decreased. The rocks being of early Tertiary age, much newer than the mineral-bearing formations of California, erosion has not cut so deeply into them, and the mineral zone is barely exposed in the deeper gulches. The district differs decidedly from any California district, belonging rather to the class of Colorado and Montana deposits. About fifty miles north on this same belt is the Bohemia district, now coming into prominence. So far as I can learn, its geological conditions are similar to this. Medford, March 10.
Chrysoprase is a rare variety of chalcedony, and is of value. It is found in limited quantities in Tulare County, Cal., in Jackson County, Oregon, near Rutland, Vermont, and in lower Silesia. "Concentrates," Mining and Scientific Press, April 7, 1900, page 371 At Gold Hill the Humason 10-stamp custom quartz mill is expected to be in operation May 1. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 14, 1900, page 406 Southern
Oregon Placer Conditions.
Mining
and Scientific Press, April 21, 1900, page 432Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Theo. F. Van Wagenen.
The hydraulic
mines of the placer region of northern California and southwestern
Oregon, near Galice in Josephine County in the latter state, are
deserving of notice. The discovery of the extensive gold
fields of
this vicinity, extruding through the counties of Siskiyou, Trinity and
Humboldt in California and Josephine and Jackson counties in Oregon,
followed quickly upon the first rush into California in
1849. As
early as 1850 gold was found in Althouse Creek, one of the tributaries
of the Rogue River; and for several years, while the tide of discovery
was running high, the output of gold rivaled that of many parts of the
more extensive auriferous region in central California. But the valleys
of the Klamath and Rogue were carved out upon a different plan from
those of the lower Sacramento and San Joaquin, the result of which was
the deposit of much less alluvium along the former than the latter. In
consequence, the primitive methods of mining in those days yielded
large profits but a short time in the northern districts, and by 1855
the bulk of the roving population had drifted northward to the Columbia
and Frazer rivers and eastward
towards Idaho and Montana, where later equally rich discoveries
were made.
The geological situation in the region under consideration is interesting. Where now stand the rugged and picturesque Siskiyou and Rogue River ranges, built up upon a massive core of serpentine and slate, there used to be in former geologic time a broad and deep inlet from the Pacific reaching as far eastward as southwestern Idaho. Into the head of this the Snake River, which now heads in Wyoming and empties into the Columbia, poured its floods. The coast lines of the ancient gulf may today be traced with considerable accuracy, and they indicate a comparatively narrow inlet from the ocean at about the region of the Oregon-California line; a broad interior basin with an average diameter of fully 500 miles, along which numerous bays extended in several directions towards the center of the continent, connecting probably with the Humboldt and Salt Lake basins and certainly with the region now known as the Snake River desert. The series of seismic disturbances which later elevated the floor of this extensive gulf and covered much of it with vast beds and ridges of lava, forcing the Snake northward to a junction with the Columbia and sealing the outlets of the Humboldt and Salt Lake basins, is a story which when rightly deciphered by the geologist will prove not only interesting, but economically valuable; for, during these changes, very large marine deposits of auriferous conglomerates were formed in northern California and southern Oregon, not very dissimilar in character to those at Johannesburg, South Africa; and great dikes of auriferous diorite were thrust upward through the earth's crust near the present Pacific coast line, both of which have been the immediate source from which came much of the gold being at present recovered in this region. One of these latter has been traced almost in an unbroken line through southwest Oregon, from Riddle to Waldo, a distance of forty miles. So persistent is this fissure and so straight its course--from N.E. to S.W.--that it probably marks the line of a fault plane, east of which the country slowly was elevated, while west of it there was as gradual a subsidence. Parallel to it and so close that the two may be said to adjoin--for they are never separated by more than a few rods--is what is locally called an ancient river channel, but which actually consists of a deposit of small breccia and soil from 50 to 150 feet in depth and from 500 to 2500 feet wide, through all of which gold is disseminated to such an extent that its yield when the channel is worked in large quantities averages between 15 and 20 cents per cubic yard with great uniformity. As might be expected from its soft nature, this gold-bearing channel has been very extensively eroded and washed away. Wherever crossed by a river, a gulch or a ravine it is totally gone, while its golden contents have been caught and concentrated in some part of the newer channels below, or swept westward to the ocean, there to be thrown up on the beach and form the profitless diggings of the gold coast. Only fragments remain here and there, yet these fragments may be and have been traced and found by the prospector in his tramps across the country, and, whenever extensive enough to offer a commercial basis for a mining enterprise, have been taken up and are being worked. In the vicinity of Galice, south of the point where the Rogue River has cut its way through the dike to the canyon, the gold-bearing deposit, crossing the gorge diagonally, rests upon a slate bedrock 50 feet above the surface of the water. The word "channel" does not convey a correct idea of the nature of these deposits. Although the slate bedrock appears to have a fairly uniform slope of about 15 feet per mile, within the limits of this property at least, from south to north, and although its surface is worn smooth in the same direction, as if by the action of moving gravel, yet the mass of the material is in no sense a water deposit, nor is any considerable proportion of the rock fragments it contains water-worn. On the contrary, they are for the most part angular pebbles, scattered irregularly through a mass of soil, which near the surface is deeply stained with red and yellow iron oxides and consists mainly of clay. In some of the blocks there is evident stratification of the material, but the planes of these earthy and gravelly beddings slope from the west to the east across the course of the channel, and not from south to north along its length. So far as I have been able to discover, the eastern wall of the channel is gone, or, more correctly, seems never to have existed, so that the floor upon which the auriferous material rests is a shelf of varying width, bounded on the west by the wall of the dike or by a nearly vertically tilted uplift of the slate bedrock resting closely upon the dike. The following section across is through one of the blocks of ground lying between Rich and Applegate ravines, locally known as Thoss Flat, is typical. In the Alexander & Bent property, herewith illustrated, of the 750-odd acres nominally included within its patented lines, about half have been washed away by the numerous ravines and gulches that cross it, and fifteen to twenty acres of the various blocks between these have been washed since it was first located by the various owners. As nearly as can be learned, the yield under operation has ranged from $5000 to $10,000 per acre, according to the depth of the banks. This corresponds to a production of about 15 cents per cubic yard. The costs have varied from 3 to 5 cents or more per yard, according to conditions. When well equipped, the first-named figure should be the maximum. Water for operation is furnished by Galice Creek. Fifteen miles of ditches collected it, but only eight miles are in use: The available watershed above the levees of these is about thirty square miles. Over that area the annual precipitation averages 40 inches. so that quite 4000 inches of water is available. The season for working is about eight months. At the present time the mine is only partially equipped. Not over 2000 yards per twenty-four hours is being washed. The principal operations are carried on at a point near the northern end. Fig. 1 shows the working pit. Fig. 2 is a near view of a piece of the bank shown in Fig. 1, which displays not only the cross-stratification of the mass, but its remarkable freedom from boulders. The climatic and other conditions in the Rogue River Valley are peculiarly favorable for hydraulic mining. The altitudes of the deposits above sea level rarely exceed 1200 feet. The winter, which is the mining season, is mild; the rainfall is very rarely deficient, and the deep canyon of the river with its great volume of water and regular fall carries away all tailings to the ocean. The proposed High Line ditch is 93 miles long, and taps Rogue River to bring water to a point 400 feet perpendicularly above Gold Hill. It will be 8 feet wide at the bottom, across the top 14 feet, a depth of 6 feet, to carry 10,000 miners' inches of water for operating placer mines and irrigating down Rogue River Valley. The contracts are to be let in 10-mile sections. There will be 2000 feet of fluming to be constructed on the line, where the water is to be led across small streams or along steep hillsides upon which the ditch cannot be dug. There are also 2000 feet of 31-inch iron pipe to be laid where the line crosses Trail Creek, 25 miles above Gold Hill. The laying of this pipe will save the digging of over 20 miles of ditch, as the water will be carried down one hillside and up the other, where otherwise the line would have to be dug along the face of steep hills. The Eureka mine on Sailor Creek, A. F. Nelson supt., has been bonded to C. G. Griffith, Gen. Mgr. Montreal & Oregon G.M., Ltd., 52 Broadway, New York City. The reported price is $75,000. The Eureka mine is what is known as the Denver City ledge, with a face width of 30 feet, a pay streak 2 feet wide abutting against one of the walls. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 21, 1900, page 436 The Harris gold dredger, eight miles from Waldo, is dredging 200 acres lying along the lllinois River, daily handling 1000 cubic yards gravel. Mgr. Jno. Wickham of the Big Yank M.&M. Co. of Galice has a property yielding copper, with traces of gold. The copper runs 8½% and the silver about $1.75 a ton. He intends to put in a smelter. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 28, 1900, page 466 H. S. Sanford is operating the Shorty Hope mine and mill at Ashland, Oregon. "Personal," Mining and Scientific Press, May 5, 1900, page 497 J. S. Howard, chief engineer High Line Ditch, that is expected to bring water from Rogue River to Gold Hill, says the work of digging the 4-foot berm on the right of way is progressing, several miles being already prepared for excavation on the Gold Hill end. A right of way has been granted the company by the Southern Pacific Co. for a 50-foot strip 35 miles long. There now remain but a few rights of way to be obtained along the 93 miles of line. When this right of way has been secured contracts will be let for digging the ditch in 10-mile sections. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 26, 1900, page 585 (Special Correspondence).--We have now a post office at Greenback mining camp, Alta by name. Supt. Thompson runs the mine and 10-stamp mill, and is postmaster. There are fifty men employed. Alta,
May 25.
Silver State: A suit involving the title to the Gold Bug mine, near
Grants Pass, owned by Jones, Gorham, Lester & James, is decided
in
their favor at Portland by the U.S. Circuit Court."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 2, 1900, page 615 J. J. Martin will reopen the Seattle Cooperative Co.'s mine in Applegate district. J. S. Howard, of the High Line Ditch Co., Gold Hill, says work begins in September. The ditch is to tap Rogue River at the upper rapids, and will be 94 miles long, terminating at Gold Hill. There will be 11,000 feet of flume, 11 feet wide and 6 feet deep, using 1,500,000 feet of lumber in its construction. Where excavated, the canal will be 14 feet wide at top, 8 feet at bottom, and 6 feet deep. A right of way 50 feet wide has been obtained through the railroad and desert lands along its route. The grade is 1 inch in 1000, or 5.28 feet per mile, and the velocity of the current will be 3.96 feet per second, or 2.7 miles per hour. The capacity will be 15,681 cubic feet per minute, equals 10,455 miner's inches. Two siphons are figured in the estimates--one at Trail Creek Canyon, 2870 feet long, 400 feet depression, with 40 feet head, consisting of three parallel lines of 34-inch diameter steel pipe. At Elk Creek a similar siphon, 4740 feet long, will cross the canyon. These pipes will save the construction of over 20 miles of canal in a rugged country. The company hopes to put the work through within one year after the excavators have been put to work. Several hundred men will be given employment during its construction, which will be begun at the upper end, in order to float the lumber needed for flumes and culverts down from sawmills to be erected above. The ditch will supply water for a number of placer mines in that vicinity. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 23, 1900, page 706 It is reported that the dredger on Rogue River, near Tolo, which has not been working for some time, will resume operations in the near future. Aberdeen Herald, Aberdeen, Washington, June 28, 1900, page 3 The cleanup at the placer mine of Wimer Bros. & Co., at Waldo, is reported to be $20,000. The run was from Nov. 1 to June 1. Hackler & Prinzanlar of Pasadena, Cal., have started up their $46,000 steam dredger in Rogue River, near Tolo. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 30, 1900, page 738 An Old Mining Law.
E. J. Northcutt of Melrose, this county, hands the Teller a
copy of the first mining laws ever enacted north of the California
line. He says the meeting was held on Canyon Creek, a tributary of
Josephine Creek in Oregon, on the 1st day of April, 1852. Forty miners
assembled under a big fir tree and organized by electing Mr. Northcutt
chairman and Philip Althouse clerk. This meeting laid the foundation
not only for the laws that now govern all the camps in this district
then included within the Territory of Oregon, but the whole United
States. These simple but comprehensive rules are surely historical
items for the consideration of not only miners and prospectors, but the
legal fraternity, as well, may study them with profit. Following is the
copy:
"Know all men by these presents, That the miners in council assembled on this the first day of April, A.D. 1852, do ordain and adopt the following rules and regulations to govern this camp: "Resolved, first, That 50 yards shall constitute a claim in the bed of the creek extending to high water on each side. "Resolved, second, That 40 feet shall constitute a bank or bar claim on the face extending back to the hill or mountain. "Resolved, third, That all claims not worked when workable, after five days, be forfeited or jumpable. "Resolved, fourth, That all disputes arising from mining claims shall be settled by arbitration, and the decision shall be final "E.
J. Northcutt,
Daily Teller, Lewiston,
Idaho, July 6, 1900, page 3"Chairman." The Humason 5-stamp custom quartz mill at Gold Hill is at work. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 14, 1900, page 42 Ankeny & Cook of the Sterling mine near Cole's have a second cleanup of 1270 ounces valued at $21,000. S. J. Fore, the superintendent, expects the mine to yield $50,000 for the season's run. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 21, 1900, page 70 At the Elder copper mine, near Waldo, the company is running two tunnels, the lower one of which is expected to tap the lode at a depth of 200 feet. They have six teams hauling ore to Grants Pass and have sent four carloads to the Selby Smelting Works, Vallejo, Cal. The Alexander & Bent placer mine on Rogue River, 25 miles below Grants Pass, containing 510 acres of land and extending 3½ miles along an ancient channel, is reported sold to Chicago men for $100,000. The A.&B. mine has been operated at a profit for years. It was described and illustrated at great length in the issue of April 21, 1900. Its water supply is taken out of the west fork of Galice Creek, in a 7-mile ditch, and gives a pressure of 350 to 400 feet at the mine. The bank is 80 to 150 feet high, the gold being principally in a stratum of blue gravel at the bedrock, 6 to 12 feet deep. The mine is well equipped with pipe and giants, a sawmill furnishing the necessary flume lumber. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 28, 1900, page 98 The Swayne M. Co. will resume operations at its mines at Applegate. W. D. O'Brien will be in charge. A San Francisco company has 300 acres of land 3 miles from Gold Hill and will test the efficiency of their dry-washing process. The John L. Ferris Co. has 600 acres of land for dredging purposes in the vicinity and will place dredgers in ponds dug therefor. The dredger at Waldo has been shut down. Ganguish & O'Neil are erecting a 5-stamp quartz mill on their property at the mouth of Palmer Creek. The Gold Standard mine on Jackson Creek is shipping concentrates to the Selby smelter. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 4, 1900, page 128 The last of the season's cleanups in the Sterling hydraulic mine of Ankeny & Cook gave $14,000 in gold bricks and $10,000 in coarse gold nuggets, some of the nuggets weighing nearly five ounces. The entire season's cleanup will amount to $100,000. The Oak Flat placer mines, 700 acres of undeveloped placer ground, with a 5-mile ditch and water rights, are sold to Poole Bros. & Tomlinson of Denver, Colo., for $8000 and one-third of the capital stock of the company. The purchasers have organized the Oak Flat M.&M. Co., capitalized at $200,000, and will prepare for next season's run. The ground is on the Illinois River and Briggs Creek, and consists of an old river channel having a deposit of gold-bearing gravel, which shows fine and coarse gold. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 11, 1900, page 162 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
Supt. R. A. Jones of the Gold Bug mine, near Glendale, says he is
employing thirty men, working night and day. They have about a year and
a half's work for their 5-stamp mill now in sight and are doing
development work; have just completed surveying a new 1600-foot tunnel
in the south side of the mountain; they are working 413 feet below the
surface. Supt. Jones of the Gold Bug mine, Mt. Reuben district, says the company is employing thirty men; they have a 5-stamp mill operating and are working 413 feet below the surface. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Wimer Bros.' mines in Waldo district are reported sold to Wain, Draper,
et al., for $40,000. The property consists of 400 acres of ground,
equipped with ditches, flumes and mining appliances. J. S. Howard, engineer High Line Ditch Co., says the strike by J. C. Nye at Galls Creek is notable. Nye bought the prospect for $600 and sold a half interest for $9000 cash, and since that time $50,000 has been taken out. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 18, 1900, page 193 The Old Channel M. Co. have men enlarging and rebuilding their main ditch at Galice. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 25, 1900, page 225 W. E. McMartin, vice president Big Yank M.&M. Co., is in San Francisco regarding the bonding of the property in Galice mining district. The ledge has been cut at a depth of 100 feet by a crosscut tunnel, which exposes a streak carrying copper and gold. The strike in copper made by H. C. Booth is on Little Pickett Creek, near Merlin. There are two parallel veins. The assays give a return of $12 per ton in gold and 19% copper. The 12-mile wagon road recently constructed at a cost of $19,000 by the Goldbug M. Co., from Glendale to the Goldbug mines, Mt. Reuben, has been made a toll road. The ore chute in the Ashland at the 425-foot level is 170 feet long. The shaft is down 575 feet. Twenty-five men are at work. B. Carlisle is supt., with general manager Ingersoll. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 1, 1900, page 257 A FORTUNE IN THE BILL NYE.
Spokane Man Strikes It in Jackson County, Oregon. Special Dispatch to the Post-Intelligencer.
SPOKANE, Sept. 2.--H. B. Nye, an old Spokane prospector, arrived here
today, bringing with him a sackful of fabulously rich ore that was
taken from his claim, the Bill Nye, in Jackson County, Oregon. The ore
assays $40,000 in gold to the ton. In speaking of his rich strike, Mr.
Nye said:
"The great pay chute is ten inches wide, and the native gold is visible all through it. On July 25 I bonded the claim for $600 and by August 6 I had taken out $12,000 in gold ore. I have a fortune in the property and propose developing it upon an extensive scale. The country surrounding the Bill Nye claim has yielded fortunes in placer mining, but until recently no effort seems to have been made to find the ledges. Seattle Post-Intelligencer, September 3, 1900, page 6 Gold Hill Mining News.
Gold Hill, Or., Sept. 1.--For nearly half a century Gold Hill has been
recognized as a mining camp of great promise, if its ledges were
properly developed. From time to time a considerable amount of gold has
been taken out, all by surface mining, with one exception. That was in
[1860], when $750,000 was taken out of the hill back of the present
city of Gold Hill, and it was that which gave the place its name.
Placer mining has been the principal mining of Southern Oregon for the
past 40 years, but in the past two or three years much attention has
been given to prospecting and developing quartz mines. Within a radius
of five miles of Gold Hill there are nine quartz mines which are being
successfully worked. They have from 500 to 2000 feet of development
work, showing veins from 3 to 10 feet in width, the quartz assaying
from $10 a ton to $30 a pound. The Kubli Bros.' mine on Galls Creek is
the oldest, and has much the greatest amount of development work.
Several thousand dollars are taken from it yearly, while the different
veins are increasing in width and richness. It is said that the owners
have repeatedly refused $100,000 for their property. They run a
five-stamp mill.The next quartz mine in value is the newly discovered ledge of Mr. Nye. After running a tunnel about 75 feet he struck a vein so rich that $1600 was mortared out. Since then several thousand dollars have been milled, and an expert told the writer that at least $50,000 in quartz was in sight. Then comes the Fort Lane, which has been a dividend-payer for some years, and the Braden mine, owned and worked quite extensively by Ray. The Braden has been a paying mine longer than any other of the group except, perhaps, the Kubli Bros. Then comes the Lucky Bart, owned by Joseph Beeman, which has given the owner a good revenue and promises large things in the future. The Ruth group of five claims, owned by the Oregon Development Company, has 12 distinct veins. The ore at 50 feet deep assays $27 on a five-foot ledge. There are the Ross mine, the Bowden, the Victoria, all paying something above working expenses, with the promise of developing into very large dividend-paying properties. Valley Record, Ashland, September 6, 1900, page 1 S. J. Fore of Cole's, Cal., has bought a seven-eighths interest in the Hungry Feeder and forty acres adjoining the property for $17,500. On the Whitney ledge supt. Mitchell has ten men at work. The ledge is 4 inches wide, the pay chute 40 feet long. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 8, 1900, page 289 Weaverville's Dredger.
C. D. Galvin, one of the bonders of the Junkans' property below town,
passed through Redding the latter part of last week on his way to Tolo
on the Rogue River, Oregon, to oversee the taking apart and shipment of
the dredger at that place, recently purchased by the company for use
here.The dredger is a new one of the Postlethwaite patent and has a capacity of 2500 cubic yards daily. It had been used only six weeks on the Rogue River when work was abandoned, owing to large boulders being encountered and poor returns. The machinery, which weighs about seventy tons, will be transported as soon as possible. The lumber for the barge had already been ordered, and work on the dredger will be pushed to completion as rapidly as possible. The company, if they have no setbacks, expect to be working by the first of December. The operation of this dredger will be of great benefit not only to Weaverville but to the county at large, as its undoubted success will stimulate the placing of other dredgers along the Trinity River on the numerous low bars which will pay well under this method of mining. Trinity Journal, Weaverville, California, September 8, 1900, page 3
SPOKANE MAN FEELS RICH.
Spokane, Sept. 10.--H. B. Nye, an old Spokane prospector, has come
home, bringing with him a sackful of fabulously rich ore that was taken
from his claim, the Bill Nye, in Jackson County, Oregon. The ore assays
$40,000 in gold to the ton. In speaking of the rich strike, Mr. Nye
said:Claims His Mine in Jackson County, Or., Is a Wonder. "The great pay chute is ten inches wide and the native gold is visible all through it. On July 25 1 bonded the claim for $600 and by August 6 I had taken out $12,000 in gold ore." Yakima Republic, September 14, 1900, page 3 JACKSON COUNTY.
Applegate reports the discovery of a quicksilver mine in Meadows
precinct by Behrman & Kauffman. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
H. B. Nye has a small ledge of white quartz with a vein about 6 inches
wide, from which about $10,000 has been taken. He has struck another
pay chute which is thought to contain as much more."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 15, 1900, page 318 H. E. Ankeny is putting the Sterling mine in readiness for the coming season. Booth & Wilhelm are opening up newly discovered copper property on Pickett Creek. W. T. Cope has bonded the Golconda mine on Williams Creek for $12,000. The Old Channel Co. is making improvements on the A.&B. property at Galice, lately purchased, and will operate four giants. At the Old Channel mine, on Six-Mile, they will run three giants. The Hammersley mining property has been bonded to H. Phillips of the Preston Peak copper mines. The Yellow Horn mine, near Placer, will put up a quartz mill. The Waldo C. Co. has bought the copper mine near Waldo, formerly owned by Strong, Kelly & Shipley, and the smelter on the mine placed there by Brown & Wheeler. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 29, 1900, page 378 F. H. Osgood has purchased the Josephine mine on Rogue River and has men fitting it for operation. Kelly & Shipley have sold their group of copper claims to T. M. Draper of San Francisco. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 6, 1900, page 407 MINING ITEMS.
Supt. S. J. Fore was over yesterday from the Blue Jay mine near Cole's.
He started the fine new 10-stamp mill on that property Monday and it
works fine. The mill is equipped with Jacobs concentrators but as they
are at present working free-milling ore the concentrators are not
employed. Mr. Fore and the company who own the Sterling mine nearby are
considering the matter of putting up a 40-stamp quartz mill on the
Sterling mine, which is being operated now with a 10-stamp mill. Work
will begin on the new mill in the spring.Dr. J. K. Reader and W. J. Messenger are working on a ledge between porphyry and granite walls at the old sawmill up Ashland Creek canyon. Assays made show from $2145 to $126 per ton. The Swinden ledge, near Gold Hill, which was discovered in 1860, which for a number of years past has been owned by Dr. Jas. Braden, was sold a few days since to Dr. Ray, who has been operating it the past year under a bond. The price paid could not be ascertained. The mine has a ten-stamp mill on it, which has been run night and day most of the time since the Dr. has had it bonded. This enterprise has furnished employment for from fifteen to sixty men since the Dr. has had it in hand. The report is current that the noted Sturgis hydraulic mine on Forest Creek has been sold, and that the deeds are in escrow awaiting payment of the purchase price. The agreed amount could not be learned, nor could the names of the purchasers be ascertained. As this is one of the largest and best mines in the district, the price is no doubt commensurate with its extent and value. Forest Creek in situated in the heart of the best mining locality in Southern Oregon. The camp was discovered in April 1852 by Jas. McDonnell, who, strange to say, has worked on the discovery claim ever since and is working on it today. About four million have been taken from the creek since its discovery, and how much remains can only be conjectured. Valley Record, Ashland, October 18, 1900, page 3 OREGON TOOK FIRST PRIZE
HAD BEST MINERAL EXHIBIT AT THE SPOKANE EXHIBITION. Ore Came from the Bill Nye Mine, in Jackson County-- Was Wonder of the Northwest.
MEDFORD, Or., Oct. 18.--The rich ore discovered in the Bill Nye mine,
on Galls Creek, a few months ago, and which created such a sensation at
the time, has been heard from at the Industrial Exposition at Spokane,
Wash. It carried off the first prize in competition with the mineral
exhibits at Washington, Idaho, British Columbia and Oregon. Three
hundred pounds assayed at the rate of $67,116.52 per ton. A ton of gold
is considered to represent a value of $602,799.21. Taking this as a
basis, the percentage of gold to quartz in the 300 pounds can be easily
estimated.
The Southern Oregon exhibit was the wonder of the Northwest, and proves that people need not go to Alaska or elsewhere to find rich deposits. There are now not less than 300 veins being developed in Jackson County, with, perhaps, 25 mills in operation. With the new impetus in quartz mining, but a few years will elapse before the value of the quartz industry will be proven. Some of the larger mines have already attained a depth exceeding 500 feet, and have been shown to be true fissure veins. The value of the ore in these mines has been almost uniform with the surface. The outlook for Jackson County from this industry is extremely promising. Nye and Wortman, of the Bill Nye mine, have been invited to exhibit Southern Oregon ore at the Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo in 1901. The mine still continues to produce rich ore, but of a much lower grade than the samples placed upon exhibit. Morning Oregonian, Portland, October 20, 1900, page 4 Two arrastras are in operation at the Ashland--Hill, Tucker & Grant owners--near Ashland. Ore from the Bill Nye, on Galls Creek, Medford, took first prize at the Industrial Exposition recently held at Spokane, Wash. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 27, 1900, page 499 The Roberts & Jillson, Henley, has produced $300,000 in last two and a half years. In past four months it has produced $200,000; fifty men employed. The La Flesh & Miner has struck [a] rich pay chute. The Gold Hill Quartz M. Co. has resumed. At the Kubli a lead has been struck running $100 to ton. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 10, 1900, page 525 Along the California-Oregon Line.
The success that has attended the inauguration of copper mining in
northern California is drawing attention to a part of the West that has
been much neglected. In 1851-54 the region around the California-Oregon
line, comprising Shasta, Siskiyou, Del Norte, Trinity and Humboldt
counties in the former, and Jackson, Douglas and Josephine counties in
the latter, was one of the liveliest in the West, and for a few years
poured out a steady stream of placer gold; but like other alluvial
districts became almost deserted when the cream of the diggings was
skimmed, and others as good discovered. But those who remained behind
in these parts fell heir not only to a rich but beautiful land, and are
now receiving their reward. The Siskiyou Mountains, which cover much of
the region, are one of the few uplifts in the West where serpentines
and old slate are prevailing rocks. The formations are everywhere found
to be rich in metals, and particularly in the rarer metals, such as
bismuth, quicksilver, nickel, cobalt, tin, platinum, iridium, osmium
and gold.A great deal of the country is still an unknown wilderness, but it is being attacked by the prospector, and will become in a short time a very active mining region. It has always maintained a considerable gold output from the old diggings, and for a dozen years past hydraulic operations have been increasing very fast. It is a country of deep and narrow river canyons, in which the volume of water is so great that the tailings question seldom if ever causes difficulty. The dredge men are now entering it with fair prospects of success; and, better than all, the quartz miner. Near Hornbrook in Shasta County are croppings of an immense auriferous conglomerate bed, the material from which is now being successfully handled in stamp mills. Near Riddle, in the Umpqua Valley in Douglas County, are very rich deposits of nickel ore, while quicksilver is being mined in Trinity County, and each year there is an increase in the amount of platinum and iridosmine from the hydraulic mines of the Rogue River and Klamath valleys. To the northeast, in the counties of Klamath Lake, Harney and Crook, in Oregon, is a lava-strewn lake region in which borax, soda, nitrates and economic minerals of that class abound, and only await the coming of the railroad to become available. Within the last few weeks, reports have come in of the discovery of quicksilver in the mountains about twelve miles south of Gold Hill, in Jackson County. The mires of this part of the West are located at altitudes under 4,000 feet. The country is densely timbered. The rainfall ranges from 40 to 60 inches per year. The winters are very mild, with but little snowfall, except on the mountaintops. There is a probability that in another year active work will begin on the railroad projects from Boise, Idaho, to the coast, at the mouth of the Klamath. For a distance of several hundred miles on the ocean in this vicinity gold was found in early days and recovered in considerable quantity from the sea shore; and at several favored points operations have been prosecuted in a small way ever since. Perhaps if the beaches of southwestern Oregon and northwestern California were prospected with the same energy and by as many miners as is the case in parts of Alaska, equally good discoveries would be made.--Denver Mining Reporter. Del Norte Record, Crescent City, November 10, 1900, page 2 AN INTERESTING LETTER IN THE OREGONIAN
Gold Hill, November 6.--All the towns of the Rogue River Valley in
Southern Oregon have prospered during the last year, but in proportion
to population, Gold Hill shows the greatest growth. During this time
Ashland has erected as many new buildings as comprise the entire
structural landscape of Gold Hill. But Ashland was already so large
that the new houses were not noticeable. And Grants Pass, within the
last twelve months, has reared half a dozen bricks, any one of which
cost as much as the combined improvements of Gold Hill.By Wilbur Fisk Brock, Concerning the Growth and Improvements. The Center of a Rich Mining Section. Gold Hill does not claim to be a full-grown city. It puts on the airs of a healthy little town, and it lives up to all of its professions. It is supported almost wholly by miners. There is not another mining camp in Oregon where trade is so even and so steady. Characteristic of its leading industry, it is an importer and consumer of raw and manufactured products. For every carload of exports there are three of imports. There is nothing which can be seen from the streets of Gold Hill which shows how the people make their living. The town is situated in the canyon of Rogue River, where the Southern Pacific crosses the stream by that name, and the site is barren of vegetation. Still the stranger sees money circulating freely. In respect to its visible backing, Gold Hill differs from Medford, Jacksonville and Ashland, where horticultural and agricultural wealth is very much in evidence. The epoch of quartz mining has been ushered in in Southern Oregon. This form of the mining business is as scientific and as certain of returns as farming. And towns which build up on it become as permanently prosperous as those which depend entirely upon the products of the soil. The placer mines in this locality, which will not be exhausted for several generations, contribute yearly to the gold output. Money which comes directly or indirectly from the quartz ledges is seen in the stores of Gold Hill every day. Bags of placer gold put in an appearance only during and after the wet season. The product of the placers is to this country what the wheat crop is to Eastern Oregon. The quartz gives the everyday use of coin which is provided by cattle to herders of Central and Southern Oregon. The placer miner, however, differs from the wheat farmer in a matter of habit, which is important to the prosperity of his trading point. When the placer miner has exhausted the year's cleanup he hies himself back to the mountains to dig for more gold. He keeps out of sight and out of hearing until he has again filled his pouches. Then he reappears in town with confidence in his step and hope in his countenance. He inspires everybody about him with the feeling that the country is all right. The stranger who is in the locality catches the infection and goes away advertising the place with more success than a subsidized immigration agent. The average wheat farmer, on the other hand, after disposing of his crop for European gold, complains for several months of hard times. If anyone in his hearing expresses optimistic views he becomes savage in proving that everything is going to ruin. The stranger who hears this tirade against farming goes away suspicious of all real estate values in the agricultural districts. The result is a material and spiritual depression in the purely agricultural community. The hopeful view of affairs, the ambition to dare and to do great things, impulses attendant upon mining enterprises, create an inviting social atmosphere in the towns of Jackson and Josephine counties. Two rich strikes have been made during the last week in quartz mines, each within two miles of Gold Hill. A chute carrying free gold in large quantities has been tapped in the old Braden mine, and another of the same character has been found in the Blackwell Hills Mining Company. The writer visited the Blackwell mine and in 20 minutes picked out of the ledge, crushed in a mortar, and panned out about $3 in coarse gold. The Braden mine is one of the oldest quartz properties in this part of the state. It has yielded thousands in free-milling gold. It was recently purchased by Dr. C. R. Ray for $14,000. The stamp mill at this mine has been run until it is worn out and out of date. The new owner has ordered improved machinery for its modernization. Being advanced in years and desiring lo retire from the activity and and anxiety peculiar to the management of a large property, Dr. Braden let his mine and farm go at a low figure. The transaction is a benefit to this locality, as the purchasers are progressive and have means with which to carry on development. While the mill has been shut down until the new machinery is installed, work in the mine goes ahead just the same. There is now enough rich ore on the dump to keep five stamps busy day and night for two months. The free-milling chute, which was struck this week, shows greater depth than any other part of the mine. Dr. Ray believes that he has found the original fissure through which was shot up the large deposit of quartz and yellow metal which has made this mine famous as a producer. Interested in investments in Southern Oregon with Dr. Ray is his brother, of New York, manufacturer of the Raycycle and promoter of trust corporations. These gentlemen may become an important medium between the undeveloped resources of this country and the idle capital of the Eastern metropolis. Ivan Humason, well known in Portland, is manager of the Blackwell Hills Mining Company. He is very much elated over the discovery in the 45-foot shaft at the end of their 200-foot tunnel. The mine is in such shape now that work can be done on three pay chutes, all of which go hundreds of dollars to the ton. The quartz in these chutes is so rich that the free gold is in sight when a candle is held up to it. The property belonged to the Jackson County Land Association up to a few weeks ago. This corporation owns several thousand acres of land in this part of the state, which it has been accumulating for speculative purposes. Graham, the lessee, began work on the ledge without capital and picked, pounded out and panned out for himself, by the most primitive means, a snug grubstake. In one spot of the pay chute he took $1800 from two cubic feet of quartz. Supposing that he had accumulated capital enough to buy the mine, Graham covered up his finds and opened up negotiations with the agent of the land company for the purchase of the property. He was disappointed to find that the tract covering his finds had been bonded by Portland parties. Humason took in the ledge and 320 acres of adjacent ground and employed Graham as foreman of the mine. Graham went directly to the rich quartz for the new owners, so that they are in pay weeks before they had hoped to be when they bought the mine. There are twenty well-developed pay chutes on the ledge. By surface excavation these are known to have yielded over $50,000, the single firm of Beekman & Reames, of Jacksonville, having bought from the early owners and operators of the mine $40,000 in gold. When the Oro Fino excitement broke out in the '60s this property was abandoned, as were many other good mines in Southern Oregon. The old and primitive arrastra employed in separating the values from the ore still stands at the foot of the ledge, as a monument to early endeavor in quartz mining in this region. The ledge in which the high values occur is narrow, as are all of the quartz veins in this country where free gold is found in quantities. Sometimes it pinches from two feet to four inches in thickness. At the Nye mine, where it is said that $25,000 in ore is blocked out, the miners are picking away at a quartz seam which runs from three to five inches in width. In this section rich pay is encountered at the points of contact between the main ledge or fissure vein and cross stringers. A heavy ledge of bull quartz, which can be traced across the country for several miles, cuts the Blackwell vein at right angles, but the contact fails to produce values such as are found at the intersection of the stringers with the fissure vein. Humason and his associates are opening up another ledge on a 40-foot tract two miles north of Gold Hill. They have on this property a 14-foot ledge of ore assaying from $3.25 to $51 per ton. In doing 100 feet of development they have piled up about 20 tons of milling ore. Fifteen tons of this ore will make one ton of concentrates, a value of $775.13 in gold and $3 in silver. The new five-stamp mill of Cheney & Humason was started up this week. After a continuous run of 72 hours it proves to be one of the best plants for saving values which has come into Southern Oregon. The machinery was all manufactured in Portland and is particularly adapted to treating this kind of ore. The mill has about 2000 tons of custom work in sight. It is a boon to the miners of this region, who heretofore have been isolated from a modern mill plant. A number of prospectors have now gone to work on their ledges hoping to mill enough ore as they go along to defray the expenses of development. As many of the prospects in this locality have paid without careful treatment of the ore, it is to be assumed that there are very few which will fail to give returns with milling and scientific treatment. The following prices are named for custom work: for 10 tons, $5 per ton; for 80 tons, $3 per ton; for 100 tons or more, $2 per ton. For several years Jesse Houck, the flour miller at Gold Hill, has operated a two-stamp quartz mill for the accommodation of prospectors. He put in no concentrator, and consequently there was a loss in low-grade ores, but it has been a great convenience to prospectors within a radius of 15 miles. Both quartz mills are within sight and hearing of Gold Hill, on opposite banks of the Rogue River. Their noise day and night is an inspiration to the little city to promote every mining and manufacturing enterprise. A brickyard, which is employed to its full capacity to supply local demands, is an industry which has been added to Gold Hill within the last few months. The fine new residence of Mrs. Dekum in the north end of town has started a building boom in that direction. Gold Hill has doubled in business and population since last this hand guided a pencil in making note of its advantages and development. Dr. James Braden has given Gold Hill a fine power for manufacturing purposes by constructing a conduit two miles long down the south side of Rogue River. The flume and ditch now carries about 2500 inches of water. It furnishes about 60 horsepower to the Cheney & Humason quartz mill. It is good for 400 horsepower and can be enlarged to supply power for a manufacturing city of 5000 inhabitants. Gold Hill offers the best water power and facilities for manufacturing of any town in Southern Oregon on the Southern Pacific railroad. The berm of the High Line Ditch Company lines the hills for about twelve miles above Gold Hill, and gives some evidence that the great waterway may be built. This irrigating, mining and transportation scheme is entirely practical. When accomplished, it will be the most extensive canal in the Northwest. It should pay better than any other that has ever been built on the Pacific Coast because of the several profitable uses it will serve. Any one of the purposes named is sufficient to justify construction. Gold Hill News, November 17, 1900, page 1 JACKSON COUNTY.
Opp Bros., of St. Louis, Mo., operating the McWilliams & Casey,
on
Jackson Creek, near Jacksonville, intend to put in a 20-stamp mill and
a cyanide or chlorination plant. Fifty men will probably be employed. The Wolverine M. Co. of Montreal, Quebec, have sent twenty-five tons ore from their copper mine, 2 miles south of Jacksonville, to the Selby Smelting & Lead Co. of San Francisco for test. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Beach &
Platter placer mine at Althouse, containing 500 acres, has been bonded
by J. Conant of Redding, Cal. The C.&C. (hydraulic) on upper Jumpoff Joe, Galice, is leased to W. E. Davis and others of Chicago, Ill. Work will be pushed; J. B. Wetherell supt. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 17, 1900, page 538 JACKSON COUNTY.
Ore from the Bill Nye,
in Galls Creek district, Jacksonville, is being crushed at the Humason
mill with good results. A. W. Sturgis of Forest Creek has his mines rigged up ready for a good run. The Champion group is bonded by P. J. Jennings. The intention is to consolidate the Helena No. 2 with this group. The Montreal & Oregon M. Co., operating the Ashland, near Ashland, will add five stamps to their 5-stamp mill, G. E. Ingersoll supt. Thirty men are working in mine and mill. Good ore is found on 500-foot and 600-foot levels. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Columbia mines, at Placer, now have long distance telephone
connection with outside points."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 24, 1900, page 551 JACKSON COUNTY.
Kubli Bros., operating on Galls Creek, near Ashland, have seven men
working. A 60-foot shaft is sunk from 425-foot level, and east and west
drifts are run, showing up good ore. Work will continue through the
winter. W. Bleckert, who has been operating on Galls Creek with ground sluices for thirty-four years, will probably put in a giant. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
W. G. Wright has started his mill near Grants Pass. A. E. Meredith has completed his bridge and pipeline across the Illinois, and will soon start piping. Operations will begin on the Fay, Taylor and Ryel placers, on Powell Creek. The 6x7-foot main tunnel at the Waldo (copper), Waldo, T. W. M. Draper general manager, is in 225 feet. An upraise is made from this level. The new smelter is working satisfactorily. D. H. Lawrence is supt. of latter. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 1, 1900, page 564 B. E. Meredith, supt. Wilson-Meredith hydraulic mine, has completed the suspension bridge for his pipeline over Illinois River. The water supply for the mine comes from the other side of the river, and on account of the rocky channel the pipe could not be sunk to the bottom. The bridge consists of two crucible steel cables, l¾ inches thick and 475 feet long, giving a clear span of 200 feet over the river. The pipe to be carried is 24 inches in diameter, water rushing through under 210 feet gravity pressure. Its total weight is 80,000 pounds. Mr. Meredith will operate two giants, and expects to have a six months' run. Besides the cable for the bridge there is a ¾-inch cable, with trolley, for passengers. F. Colvig has resumed operations on his Rocky Gulch placer mine, near Galice.… The Yellow Horn, Leland, stamp mill will soon start up. Supplies are going in and work will be pushed. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 8, 1900, page 576 Supt. W. D. O'Brien is pushing work on the Old Channel, at Six Mile; three giants are in operation.… C. H. Parks, operating the Golden Wedge, at Galice, reports a 5-foot ledge at a depth of 100 feet; mine was formerly known as the Hutchins-Kramer.… The Rocky Gulch placer has suspended operations temporarily on account of scarcity of water.… Reed & Larrabee of Helena, Mont., are pushing work on their quartz property on Forest Creek, near Galice; a mill may be put in soon. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 22, 1900, page 600 JACKSON COUNTY.
A new mill is going up at Gold Hill. Five additional stamps are going in at the Oregon & Montreal M. Co.'s mill at Ashland. The 10-stamp mill at the Braden, at Jacksonville, is running steadily. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Two veins of ore — one high grade and the other low grade
— are
reported opened up on the Greenback, in Grave Creek district. The Gold
Standard M. Co., capital $4000, is incorporated at Grants Pass."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 5, 1901, page 10 Ore is being taken out at the Copper Stain at Leland. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 12, 1901, page 43 The Old Channel Co. will operate three giants near Jacksonville. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 19, 1901, page 55 SOUTHERN OREGON'S GOLD MINES
ASHLAND, Or., Jan. 21.--(Special Correspondence.)--The old pocket
districts and placer grounds in Southern Oregon are looked upon with
growing favor by experienced miners who have come into the country, as
likely ground in which to develop valuable lode properties. A good type
of such a region is the old Blackwell district, three miles south of
Gold Hill, where in past years many pocket holes have been made and
much money taken out. Here about 40 men are at work, and their
explorations have already disclosed that there are precious metal
deposits there in continuous veins, to which the pockets, or old pocket
holes, are deemed tracers by the few who have theories as to the
genesis of gold pockets and who have studied the peculiar conditions
under which they occur. In this district you can find a miner,
experienced and intelligent, who will tell you if the pocket is likely
close to the vein, or if it is a "throw" from a distance, and that in
the latter case, when you have dug out the "pocket" money, you had
better abandon that particular ground.
Working upon theories founded upon a limited knowledge of mineralogy and geology, of which they make good use, and the experience of years in mining for gold, some of these miners have planned their work to uncover mines here on a rational basis, and the result is some apparently good properties, one of which is likely to prove a good copper mine. The most important discovery is that on the "Soldier Blue," or better known as the Ross claim, one and a quarter miles from Tolo station. Below this mine the gulch was once worked as a placer. A number of holes were sunk on the ledge in the hill above by pocket hunters, and in that sunk by Ross, which was about 50 feet deep, he got out $1300 from seven tons of ore. Deeming it a pocket, Ross did no more thereafter on the claim than the necessary work to hold it, and the property was practically abandoned for four years, when J. J. Houck and G. L. Half bought it for a few hundred dollars. Mr. Half, who has had extensive experience in mining, both for gold and copper, in Colorado and Montana, was interested in the cropping of a ledge perpendicular to that on which was the Ross shaft, which was capped with limonite, and appeared to make a prospect for a copper mine. He therefore went down on the Ross ledge in the old shaft. At a depth of 60 feet he struck the intersecting ledge, which proved to be an eight-foot vein, well defined and carrying copper and iron sulphides heavily, valued at $23 copper and $22 gold per ton. Its strike is 45 degrees east. The copper ore carries much rock which is very hard. The copper ore, being so uniformly diffused through the rock, is regarded as a very encouraging feature by those who are familiar with some of the big copper properties of Montana. The ore also assays about seven ounces of silver per ton. The shaft was sunk close on a contact of granite and slate. At a depth of 78 feet, a drift of 60 feet east has been made to develop the formation. The shaft is being carried down. While the ledge carries good values in gold, these men esteem the prospects for a big copper mine most. One-half mile southeast of the Half property, there is a tract of ground formerly owned by the Jackson County Land Association, which was mined extensively for pockets in past years. It is asserted that pay was found in every one of the old pocket holes remaining. In one of these holes $7000 was obtained, and at this point a tunnel is now being run, which is to be 700 feet long, and which, it is expected, will tap the ledges under the upper old pocket workings on the hill. The tunnel is completed for 200 feet. This is called the Johnson ledge, and the work is being done by J. Humason and some associates, residents of Portland. In one of the upper workings on the hill, Humason sunk down some 10 feet further, reaching a depth of about 60 feet, where he struck a vein eight to 14 inches thick, and eight feet of depth on this and 22 feet long yielded $2000. It is this and other veins the tunnel is expected to tap. This vein has a slate hanging wall and a rock the miners call syenite for a footwall. This syenite is black, fine-grained and a very hard rock. It is heavily impregnated with white iron sulphides. The old Bowden mine is about three-quarters of a mile north of the Ross vein. The Bowden vein, which is in granite, was very small on the surface. In past years it has been worked irregularly, yielding some $5000, but only limited development was made. Its present owners have a 32-inch vein at a depth of 80 feet. There is some good ore in this mine, and it is esteemed one of the promising properties of the district. The area known as the Tolo placers, in this district, has yielded in past years some $50,000, and the gold, which is coarse, is presumed to have come from the pockets of the character which have been mined, and mainly, it is supposed, from a ledge on which Mr. Smith, of the contracting firm of Smith & Hull, has a bond. Mr. Smith has contracted for a 150-foot tunnel on what is known as the porphyry dike, and another force of men will carry down the old shaft on the Fort Lane ledge. This old shaft hole, with a depth of 130 feet, yielded $11,000 in gold, and so the old pocket holes are being carried down to get below the surface disturbances which some miners think wrought a confusion of the veins and made the pockets. This Fort Lane ledge and the dike intersect some 500 feet from where the shaft is being sunk. There are some 60 acres of good placer gravel about Tolo, if water could be had to attack the beds with giants and a sluice for tailings were built to Rogue River, but there is no near prospect of getting the water. A Mr. Mears, a Utah man, has several claims in this district near the half claim and is doing considerable development work. On one ledge, in which the gold is wholly free, the shaft is down 75 feet, yielding some good ore. The other claims are of low-grade ores, but some of the ledges are large. In the Waldo district, James Lyttle has sold his copper claim for $15,000. M. F.
EGGLESTON.
Oregonian,
Portland,
January 24, 1901, page 6Operations at the Sterling, near Jacksonville, are resumed. A cleanup of eighteen days' crushing by the 15-stamp mill, operated by the Victor, Jr., Co.'s (Greenback) mine in Grave Creek district, produced $21,000. About 100 men are employed there. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 26, 1901, page 66 SOUTHERN OREGON.
In the
Ashland mine a full crew is being employed sinking on the main shaft
and drifting on both sides sufficiently to develop the mine and block
out the ore bodies, says the Valley
Record. The shaft will soon attain the 700-foot level.
Some very rich ore was tapped in a drift on the 600-foot level but it
may be said that it did not surpass other strikes made in the lower
levels of this mine within the past six months. There is no notable
change as the shaft has gone down during the past month, the ledge
holding out in good size of seven to eight feet in fine-milling ore
carrying good values. The shipment of the assorted base ores, which are
high-grade, to the smelters continues regularly, one car going out last
week.Byron N. White, accompanied by his family, were on Monday's train returning to Spokane from California. Mr. White and Geo. W. Barron are the principal owners in the Altan Mining Co., which owns the well-known Barron mine seven miles east of Ashland. He reports that they will begin development work on the mines as soon as the weather settles and becomes pleasant.--Valley Record. A rich strike is reported to have been made on the Lucky Hill ledge, on Sardine Creek, says the Oregon Mining Journal. This mine is owned by J. G. Agner, who lately purchased the Lucky Bart mine in the Gold Hill district. Ore from the Dixie Queen mine on Foots Creek, which goes $100 to the ton, owned by Fitzgibbon, of Gold Hill, is being milled at Houck's stamp mill. Journal of the Northwest Mining Association, February 1901, page 150 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Gold Hill M. Co. has resumed operations near Jacksonville. A recent
cleanup at the Jillson, near Hornbrook, weighed nearly ninety pounds
after melting.… The Rogue River M. & Lumber Co., W.
R. Stansell
manager, is working its mines at the head of Foots Creek, near
Jacksonville.… G. L. Haff will put in a steam engine on his
property in
Blackwell district. J. W. Opp is working the Gold Standard, west of Jacksonville.… The C.&C., in Jumpoff Joe district, is being operated by a Chicago company; supt. Davis. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. W. Parker, operating near Leland, will put in an electric
plant.…
The Fortune M. Co., capital $1,500,000, is incorporated at Grants Pass,
to work property near the Greenback, near there.… A tunnel
is being run
on the Big Yank, near Galice.… Placering is going on around
Grants
Pass; prospects good for a continuance of work.… Work is
progressing on
the Yankee Boy, at Myrtle Creek."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 2, 1901, page 77 JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Piping is temporarily
suspended at the Davis (hydraulic), in Jumpoff Joe district, near
Grants Pass, owing to cold weather. JACKSON COUNTY.
The mill at the Ashland, near Ashland, is enlarged. Ten stamps are now
dropping on ore from the Ashland."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 9, 1901, page 87 The Sugar Pine, in Galice Creek district, near Galice, is reported bonded to H. W. Kerchoff and E. W. Rattler. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 16, 1901, page 98 News of the Mines.
Work
on the Yellow Jacket mine, in the Blackwell
district, will soon be resumed.
Ore assaying $12 a ton has been reached on the Blackjack mine on Galice Creek. Charles and Alfred Anderson have sold their Foots Creek quartz mine to Joseph McGee and Mr. Richards, of Portland. Work on the Gold Standard mine, on Galls Creek, has been delayed for a while, owing to the deep snow, which interfered with active operations. A strike of a fine body of ore in the Breeden mine is reported, which is said to be the best yet uncovered on that property. A good-sized crew is being employed on the property. A rich strike has been made on the Lucky Hill ledge, on Sardine Creek. This mine is owned by J. G. Agner, who recently purchased the Lucky Bart mine in the Gold Hill district. On most of the placer mines in the county work is being pushed to a good advantage, with prospects that a great deal of bedrock will be cleaned off. The recent rainfall and melting snow is very helpful to the miners, who have been bothered a great deal by the recent freezes. The shaft in the Ashland mine will soon attain the 700-foot level. Some very rich ore was tapped in a drift on the 600-foot level. A full crew is being employed sinking on the main shaft and drifting on both sides sufficiently to develop the mine and block out the ore bodies. It is reported that the Dixie Queen mine, on which there was some kind of an option, has been sold for a big price. Late developments in this mine have disclosed some exceptionally good rock. The owner is a Mr. Fitzgibbon, who recently came to this county. The Dixie Queen mine is located on Foots Creek. Medford Mail, February 22, 1901, page 3 JACKSON COUNTY.
A deal is under way whereby A. M. Lowry and others of New York may take
over the Keystone and Champion claims on Jackson Creek, near
Jacksonville. Should the deal go through, a 5-stamp mill will be put
in. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Two giants are running constantly at the Wimer & Reames placer
mine, at Waldo."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 23, 1901, page 108 A $100,000 REDUCTION PLANT.
J. W. Opp was up from Jacksonville Tuesday accompanied by four mining
men from the East. Mr. Opp this week purchased an additional 180 acres
of mining ground from C. C. Beekman near Jacksonville, making in all
200 acres, together with 5-stamp quartz mill, water rights, etc., the
price being $25,000 cash. This property adjoins the Gold Standard mine
of McWilliams Bros. and P. S. Casey, which Mr. Opp has under bond and
will purchase at maturity. The latter property has been developed by
some 500 feet of tunnel, some of it costing $10 to $20 per foot by the
hand process. There is a ten-stamp mill on this property. The Beekman
and Huffer mine has also been developed.J. W. Opp Will Have It in Operation on the McWilliams-Casey Mine Near Jacksonville July 1st. Mr. Opp leaves this week for Denver where he will purchase an extensive roller crushing process, concentrators and cyanide plant which he will place on this property. The mine will also be equipped with compressed air machine drills with which to do the development work. The entire plant will cost $100,000 and will be by far the most complete mining outfit in Southern Oregon and one of the best in the state. Besides doing their own work they will crush ore for the general public, purchasing the ore delivered at the mill at an assay value and charging $1.50 per ton for crushing. The roller process will be a large concern in two parts. This first part will be a machine that will crush the coarse ore and run it over five concentrators. The next will crush it fine and run it over four concentrators. A first-class cyanide process plant will then finish the work. It is expected that the plant will be in operation by the first of next July. Valley
Record, Ashland, February 28, 1901, page 3
JACKSON COUNTY.
Operations are in progress on the Dixie Queen, on Foots Creek, near
Gold Hill.… McKee and others of Portland, who recently
bought the
Anderson, near Gold Hill, will begin work immediately; later they will
put in a mill.… Work will be resumed on the Lost Cabin, near
Gold
Hill.… All giants on Foots Creek are running steadily under
full
heads.… There are five stamp mills running steadily within a
radius of
8 miles of Gold Hill, which crush ores from about twenty-five mines in
the same locality.… There are said to be 100 placer claims
in operation
near Gold Hill.… Operations are progressing on the Bill Nye,
near Gold
Hill. A new strike is reported made, the vein being about 3 feet wide
and the pay streak about 10 inches in width along the hanging wall; the
shaft is down 150 feet.… A company is incorporated to work
the
Klondike, on Ash Creek, near Hornbrook, Cal.; a mill will go in
immediately, and operations at the mine will be pushed.…
Hydraulic
operations are resumed at mines on the Klamath River, near Hamburg,
with the exception of the Siskiyou, which recently lost over a mile of
ditch and fluming; supt. Sharpegger expects to resume about March
1st.…
Work on the Opp, near Jacksonville, is progressing favorably.
Preparations are under way to put new machinery in this spring. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Work on the Golconda, on the Applegate River, near Provolt, 12 miles
from Grants Pass, is under way under A. C. Tayler, Pres. Golconda M.
Co. The drift on the 130-foot level is in 120 feet; the vein averages 2
feet in width, ore assaying $12 per ton. The major part of these values
is in sulphurets, with a few dollars to the ton in free
gold.… A recent
cleanup at C. E. Wickstrom's claim, on Pleasant Creek, near Grants
Pass, gave twenty ounces of gold.… The Mt. Fielder (quartz),
near
Woodville, is bonded to Olsen & Parsons of Seattle, Wash., for
$4500; there is a 300-foot tunnel on the property.… The old
Bennett
(quartz), on upper Jumpoff Joe, is now being operated by M. Carter of
Wimer.… Burns & Markham, operating the Burns
& Markham, on
Limpy Creek, near Grants Pass, have sunk a 54-foot shaft and are now
crosscutting at that depth.… It is reported that an offer is
made to
put in a 200-ton smelter at Grants Pass, providing 200 tons of ore per
day are guaranteed by mines near there.… Reports from Gold
Hill state
that a body of $1000 ore is opened up in the Lucky Bart, near
there.…
Work is in progress on the Moon, on Galice Creek, 25 miles from Grants
Pass, owned by C. R. Ray of Gold Hill."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 2, 1901, page 118 JACKSON COUNTY.
Purkeypile Bros. are pushing work on their property, near Gold
Hill.…
The Big Giant, on Sardine Creek, near Gold Hill, is sold to C. R. Ray,
of same place.… A strike is reported made in the Crown
Point, on
Blackwell Hill, same district, operated by Shaffer & Herbert. One hundred and eighty acres of land, a 5-stamp mill, water rights, etc., near Jacksonville are sold to J. W. Opp of Jacksonville for $25,000. Mr. Opp also has an option on the Gold Standard, adjoining, upon which is a 10-stamp mill and a 500-foot tunnel. Mr. Opp will build a $100,000 reduction plant on the Gold Standard and expects to have it in operation by July 1. The plant will include crushing rolls, concentrators and a cyanide department. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Work is in progress on the Bone of Contention, near
Williams… Schrimpf
Bros., operating near Provolt, recently took out $400 worth of gold
from a pocket in their mine.… The Baby (quartz), in Jumpoff
Joe
district, is bonded to Rice, Myers & Smith for one year for
$1500.
Work is in progress, the lower tunnel now being extended to cut the pay
chute at greater depth. The ledge runs from 1 to 3 feet in
width.…
Sharp Bros., owning the Challenge and Midnight (formerly the Kiessling)
mines, on the Applegate River, near Provolt, are driving a 400-foot
tunnel on the Midnight. Operations on the Challenge are temporarily
suspended.… Operations are now being pushed on the Harmon
Green
(placer) at Galice; D. Green, supt."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 9, 1901, page 128 MINING NEWS.
Notices for the location of placer and quartz mines, etc., for sale at the Times office.
Democratic
Times, Jacksonville, March 25, 1901, page 2 Hard copy at SOHS.The American Mining Code stand, and authority on all subjects pertaining to mining, water rights, etc., is kept on hand at the Times office. A considerable quantity of fine ore from the Bill Nye, which is situated in Galls Creek district, is being crushed near Gold Hill, at Houck's custom mill. Frank Mixton, late of Rock Island, Ill., has purchased Shearer Bros.' placer mines in Steamboat district, paying $6000 therefor. This is a valuable property, having connected with it a first-class water right. The latest bonanza to be found in the country adjoining Gold Hill is reported by Hunter & Ray, who bonded the property owned by E. Ray. A few days ago they struck a pay chute 12 inches in width that is reported to be worth $3000 per ton, with every indication of the vein becoming larger. Such discoveries have been made for several weeks in succession, says Bro. Hammersley of the News. A few weeks ago the "Bill Nye" mine astonished the mining world. Then came the rich discovery in the Braden property, on Kanes Creek, owned by Dr. Ray, that assayed $6000 a ton. Next was the strike in the Dixie Queen of Foots Creek district, by Fitzgibbon & Co. A rich body of ore was soon afterward found in the Ross mine on Blackwell Hill by Houck & Haff. Graham & Summers, who were the next lucky discoverers, have on exhibit at Gold Hill a piece of quartz as big as a water bucket, with gold plainly to be seen all over it. From one pan of decomposed quartz Mr. Graham took $800. Last week J. B. Agner struck a vein of ore in the Lucky Hill mine, formerly Lucky Bart, that is quite rich. F. Mixton of Rock Island, Ill., has bought Shearer Bros.' placer mines, Steamboat district, for $6000. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 30, 1901, page 162 The Victor Jr. mine, C. W. Thompson supt., near Leland, is working sixty men. The vein, which varies from 1 inch to 9 feet, is in diorite and is opened by four crosscut tunnels, the lowest of which is down 271 feet on the ledge. From this tunnel a shaft is now down 100 feet. The hoisting plant set in the tunnel is operated by compressed air. The 15-stamp mill is working thirty tons of ore daily. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 6, 1901, page 173 At the Victor, Jr., Mine.
There are several important gold properties in the Grave Creek
district. One of them, the Victor, Jr., formerly known as the
Greenback, is one of the best equipped mines in the Northwest. It is
being worked with a force of 60 men, day and night shifts, and for
20 months the stamps have been pounding out more gold from
this rich
vein than probably issues from any other mill of like capacity on the
coast. The mine is 14 miles up Grave Creek from Leland, and the plant
is situated in a kind of cul de sac on the mountain slope at an
elevation of 2500 feet. A Colorado company, known as the Victor,
Jr..Gold Mining Company, operates this mine. Its principal office is in
Denver. Carey W. Thompson is the superintendent. The vein is a fissure
in diorite, with a strike nearly east and west, and dips about 25
degrees to the north. It varies in width from an inch to nine feet. It
is worked by tunnel levels, the mountainside facilitating this
method. The lowest crosscut tunnel is in 271 feet. There are four
tunnels. A shaft is now being sunk from the lowest tunnel. This is now
down 100 feet. There are about 2500 feet of levels run. There is an
underground hoist on the fifth level, which is 400 feet below the
surface. It is run by compressed air. The superintendent asserts that
they have a three years' supply of ore blocked out, according to
present milling capacity of 30 tons a day. The ore is usually high
grade and free milling. It is milled at the mine. Specimen rock showing
much free gold can be easily had in the mine, and a block from the
500-foot level showing free gold recently went to the Pan-American
Exposition. The mill has 15 stamps, capacity 30 tons per day, and the
plant is first class in every respect. This mine is a money maker, and
was bought by the present owners for $30,000, on the condition that
they would take a lawsuit in hand so as to perfect title to some of the
property.Democratic Times, Jacksonville, April 11, 1901, page 1 The Klondike quartz mine, Grants Pass, has been bought by D. S. Rae of Montana, who will equip and operate the property. The Klondike is claimed to have ore 10 feet wide and milling $12 a ton. Reports from Williams Creek say a rich strike has been made at the Oregon Bonanza, at a depth of 200 feet, giving values of $70 to $80 per ton in gold and 7% to 10% copper. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 13, 1901, page 183 A rich quartz find is reported on Josephine Creek, 3 miles from Kerby. The ledge so far uncovered is between 4 and 6 feet wide and is exposed in the steep banks of Josephine Creek. The whole face of the ledge is stated to be a network of gold seams. Six pounds of the rock pulverized and panned out yielded $56.… J. T. Hagan has put a whim at the shaft on Fort Lane ledge which is now down 110 feet, and proposes sinking 100 feet deeper. The last 55 feet of this shaft is said to have produced $80 a foot at $12 per foot cost for the work. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 20, 1901, page 194 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Sterling Placer, Ashland, is running with a big cleanup in
sight.…
On Foots Creek Stansell & Co. have hydraulicked a large area;
coarse gold and some nuggets are yielded by this mine. This company,
having a timber tract at the mine, propose to put in a sawmill at
Woodville, the nearest railroad town.… The Ashland mine has
a hoisting
and pumping plant on the 250-foot level and a full crew of men is
employed. The base ore is shipped to the smelter. It is reported a
recent shipment to the smelter from the Reader mine, in Ashland Creek
Canyon, returned about $60 gold per ton. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A strike has been made at the Mountain Lion quartz mine, Missouri Flat
district, near Grants Pass. The mine is owned by L. L. Jewell, C. E.
Harmon and G. and J. Bailey.Hoffman & Pool, of Grants Pass, developing the Archer ledge, in Thompson Creek district, near Grants Pass, have taken out of ten tons of ore $600. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 27, 1901, page 205 The Mountain Lion mill, situated in Missouri Flat district, has been started and is crushing ore from the vein recently discovered. W. P. Gilkeson and J. Lewis of Seattle bought J. W. Thomason's quartz claims, near Placer. Men have been put to work on the mine, which so far as developed shows a 2-foot vein of good ore. It is reported that a rich strike has been made in the Roaring Gimlet mine, owned by Houck & Mitchell, at Gold Hill. The property is being worked under a bond by parties who, it is said, have already taken out several thousand dollars. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 4, 1901, page 215 At the Braden mine, Gold Hill, lumber is being delivered for an additional five stamps to be added to the 10-stamp mill, and concentrators have been ordered. Ultimately a 60-ton per day capacity cyanide plant will be put on. C. Ray is manager. The sale of the J. W. Thomason quartz mine, near Placer, to J. Lewis and W. P. Gilkeson of Seattle is announced. They will put men at work to continue development. It is reported that the smelter on the Strong group, near Waldo, is to be started soon, and that 100 men will be employed. All the supplies for the works are on the ground. The owner of this group is T. W. M. Draper of San Francisco. The Granite Hill mine, near Grants Pass, is owned by J. O. Booth and C. L. Mangum. The vein is in granite and the ore free milling. There is considerable development, consisting of 250 feet of tunnel on the ledge, a shaft down 160 feet, and a 5-stamp mill. Operations have been resumed at the Eureka mine at Selma. A. T. Nelson is superintendent. The "Roaring Gimlet" quartz mine is located near Gold Hill and is operated by Sanburn, Sutton & Rease. The ore taken out is said to be full of gold. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 11, 1901, page 225 Houck & Haff have bonded the Bowden ledge at Gold Hill and contemplate immediately putting up a hoist and sinking the main shaft to a greater depth. It is reported that the Copper Stain, at Mount Reuben, is soon to be operated on a larger scale. Supt. J. E. Hutson says that an average of 50 feet per month in the tunnel has been made since February. The Wimer Bros. & Co. mine, near Waldo, is now owned by the Deep Gravel M. Co., of which W. J. and G. W. Wimer are managers. A large amount of development work is reported to have been done on Kubli Bros.' Gold Standard mine, on Galls Creek, during the past few months. There are now about 4000 feet of tunneling and a depth of 300 feet has been reached. J. S. Pool, owner with G. Hoffman of a quartz mine in the Applegate district, has sold his interest to F. Bolt of Gold Hill. H. A. Corliss, Pres. Dry Diggings M. Co., has cleaned up the season's run. A thirty-five-day run yielded $4000, or about $115 per day with one giant. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 25, 1901, page 245 It is reported from the Sterling mine on Forest Creek, Jackson County, Or., that piping was commenced earlier last fall than usual, and has been prosecuted without a stop up to the present time, and will be continued for two months to come. "Pacific Coast News," Sausalito News, June 1, 1901, page 1 JACKSON COUNTY.
Considerable prospecting is being done near Ashland for quicksilver. A
number of prospects too poor in mineral to pay have been found and one
prospect on Little Applegate Creek on which a Montana company is
drifting on a ledge that will pay. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
It is reported that C. R. Ray of Gold Hill has bought the Roaring
Gimlet mine, near that place, for $10,000 cash, after the owners had
taken out about that sum from ten days' work in a pocket."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 8, 1901, page 265 W. H. Dana, of the Copper Stain mine on Mt. Reuben, near Grants Pass, says a number of men are engaged in sinking on the vein in this mine. W. Kramer of Galice Creek took $700 gold from a fifteen days' run with an arrastra in his quartz mine. C. B. Beardsley of Chicago, of the Old Channel M. Co., is at Galice, where the company is engaged in making the final cleanup for the season. The mine this year has been worked on a more extensive scale than ever before. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 15, 1901, page 276 N. B. Meade is engaged in development work in his mine on Jones Creek. A 100-foot tunnel cuts the ledge, showing 5 feet of good ore. Henderson & Scribner's mine, in the Wolf Creek district, has produced $10,000 by primitive methods in a few months. The gold is found in a vein of porphyry and decomposed quartz. The Granite Hill Con. mines, near Grants Pass, have been bonded to J. L. Wiggins of Minneapolis at $75,000. The first payment is due Sept. 1, the remaining payments at intervals of three months. The property consists of placer and quartz workings. The placer grounds are a red gravel, easily worked and rich in gold. The quartz claims are equipped with a 5-stamp mill and other improvements. Development work will be done during the summer. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 22, 1901, page 288 JACKSON COUNTY.
It is stated that the Treasure mine, at Blue River, bonded by J. Downer
to Fisher & Chapman, and rebonded by them to C. H. Park, has
been
bought by the latter. Mr. Park is blocking out ore in the mine, and it
is expected a mill will be built next season. The Uncle Sam M. Co. has let the contract for a 5-stamp quartz mill and saw mill, to be erected immediately near Gold Hill. The Lone Star placer mine on Pleasant Creek, C. E. Wickstrom, Jackson, owner, cleared up for the winter's run $2400. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Granite Hill Con. mines, on Louse Creek, near Grants Pass, have
been bonded to J. L. Wiggings of Minneapolis, for $75,000, by Booth,
Mangun et al. The first payment is due September 1. This is a placer
and quartz mine combined, the placer having been worked for several
years, while the quartz mine has a 5-stamp mill on it. Dr. C. R. Ray, of Gold Hill, has bonded from G. Bolt the Sugar Pine quartz mine in Galice Creek district, and has men at work doing development work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 29, 1901, page 299 JACKSON COUNTY.
R. L. Cooper, of Crescent City, Cal., one of the owners of the Blue
Ledge Co.'s mine on Joe Creek, says in regard to the mine that the
tunnel is in about 168 feet, and they have 300 tons of ore on the dump.
JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. S. Howard has completed the survey of the proposed ditch of the Ray
M., I. & P. Co., at Gold Hill. The ditch will take water from
Rogue
River, 3 miles above Gold Hill, and carry it to an elevation of 58 feet
above that stream at Gold Hill. With this fall it is intended to raise
some of the water 75 feet higher to make it available for working
placer ground. It is proposed to operate an electric plant and develop
4300 H.P. Dr. Ray will be superintendent. The Old Channel M. Co., Gold Hill, has sold its property to J. R. Harvey and C. B. Beardsley, who have been operating it under a bond for about a year. The sale price is stated to be $90,000. Stewart & Banfield, of Grants Pass, have discovered and are opening up near Althouse a quartz vein of great richness. From a shaft 20 feet down on the ledge they have mortared out from $25 to $100 per day in coarse gold. H. Luethy, at Althouse, has sunk a shaft and has a 1-stamp mill grinding out from $30 to $100 daily. A recent cleanup was $2300. A new ledge, rich in free gold, has been discovered at Placer, and is being developed by Browning & Son, who operate a 3-stamp mill in Placer connected with the Yellow Horn mine. The equipment for the Rising Star mine in the Applegate district, near Grants Pass, consisting of five stamps to be added to the battery of ten already in operation, air drills, pumps, concentrators, engines and additional boilers, is being installed. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 13, 1901, page 19 C. R. Ray of Gold Hill has temporarily shut down all work on the Braden mine and several other prospecting enterprises in and about Gold Hill. H. W. Kircheff has bought the Arnett placer on Biggs Creek and will put on a hydraulic plant. The claims have been worked by ground sluicing. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 20, 1901, page 29 The Horseshoe ledge on Foots Creek is owned by Ward, Wiggins & Silsby of Grants Pass. The vein carries gold values running $50 to the ton free milling. A new stamp mill is being put on the mine. The mine of Fitzgibbon & Son on Foots Creek has been bought by Y. T. Blake of San Francisco, who is arranging for its further development. The Copper Stain mine in Mt. Reuben district is owned by J. H. Wetherell & Co. of Grants Pass. The ore has an assay value of $20 to $35 per ton, mostly in sulphurets. The rock, besides gold, carries copper and silver. The Fortune M. Co. has been incorporated, with headquarters at Grants Pass. The capital is $50,000. O. S. Goodnow, J. Ward and J. L. Wiggins are the incorporators. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 27, 1901, page 39 A. Watts, owner of the Watts placer mine, on Williams Creek, near Grants Pass, states that the cleanup for the season was over $1000 for each man employed. The mine has been worked for thirty years. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 3, 1901, page 50 Winningham & Van Gorder of Forest Creek, near Grants Pass, are running a tunnel to tap their ledge 165 feet down and are now in 205 feet. G. Garrett and F. Bachman of Gold Hill have bought the placer claims of Prof. Barnhart on Applegate Creek. G. E. Morse of San Francisco, manager of the Swayne M. Co., while in Jacksonville lately, made arrangements for the early starting of work on the ground which they have bonded of P. F. Swayne of Applegate. D. S. Rae of the Klondike mine, on Louse Creek, near Grants Pass, reports that in sinking from the upper tunnel of the mine a rich chute, from 2 to 4 feet in width, was struck at a depth of 60 feet. A new placer mine is to be operated near Waldo by F. H. Osgood of Seattle, Wash., who has bought a large area of placer ground. Stamps, concentrators, drills and other machinery are being installed at the Golden Wedge mine, on Rogue River, near Grants Pass. This mine was for several years worked with an arrastra. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 10, 1901, pages 59-60 JACKSON COUNTY.
An English company, represented by Wm. Bailey of Palmer Creek, has
bonded a portion of Missouri Flat, near Jacksonville, with the
intention of working it as a big placer proposition. G. L. Davis, J. B. Dent and E. Bebler have incorporated the Rogue River Quicksilver M. Co., to operate quicksilver mines in Jackson County. Its capital stock is $250,000 and place of business Medford. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The old quicksilver mines near Cinnabar, south of Grants Pass, have
been bonded by I. Humason and H. Cowgill, who propose to operate the
mines. At the Mountain Lion, near Grants Pass, another pay streak of very rich rock has been found. The Baby mine, on Jumpoff Joe, is producing ore which goes $50 to the ton. A 2-stamp mill has just been erected on this property. The Exchequer and Rising Sun mines on Applegate River have been equipped with a new hoisting engine. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 17, 1901, page 71 The Fortune M. Co. has been incorporated, capital $50,000, by O. S. Goodnow, J. Ward and J. L. Wiggins. The company is developing a number of quartz properties in Southern Oregon, among them the Horseshoe mine on Foots Creek, near Grants Pass, where a 5-stamp mill is now being constructed. J. R. Harvey of Grants Pass, manager of the Old Channel hydraulic mines, in the Galice Creek district, states that preparations are being made for a big run this coming winter. The mines were recently bought by Eastern people for $90,000. Reports from the Mountain Lion mine, on Applegate River, near Grants Pass, say the ledge--all mill rock--is from 4 to 5 feet wide, and the rich pay streak from 3 to 18 inches. The tunnel is now in about 800 feet. The owners are Jewell, Harmon & Bailey Bros. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 24, 1901, page 82 JACKSON COUNTY.
From the two upper levels of the Dixie Queen mine, near Gold Hill, ore
is being milled that averages $100 to the ton. This rock was not from
the stopes, but was that taken out in opening the tunnels. J.
Fitzgibbon, the owner, is having a third and lower tunnel run to cut
the ledge 400 feet down. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Scribner-Henderson gold mine, on Wolf Creek, near Grants Pass, is
worked by panning entirely. The gold is found in seams and stringers of
decomposed quartz in porphyry at a serpentine contact. The rock,
crushed in a hand mortar, pans from 25 cents to $100 a pan, and in the
nine months of operation a very large sum has been recovered. The rich strike in the Ramsey mine, Mt. Reuben district, near Grants Pass, is said to be proving richer than was at first anticipated. The ledge was tapped by a 60-foot tunnel, and at the point where the tunnel cut the ledge, a 5-foot vein showing free gold through the whole ledge has been opened up. The Ramsey mine was lately bought of J. Ramsey by J. C. Lewis and R. Jones. J. R. Harvey, manager of the A.&B. mine and Old Channel mines, near Grants Pass, is having the mines put in shape for next season's operations. At the first-named mine about thirty men are employed. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 31, 1901, page 93 G. Cottrell, who discovered what was supposed to be a ledge of coal in Section 4, Township 38 S., Range 2 E., three years ago, is doing development work, associated with H. W. Jackson and C. W. Baker of Ashland, and the discovery now proves to be asphaltum, the outcroppings of which have become hard and brittle by oxidation. This deposit is about 400 feet long, 60 feet wide, and dips east between beds of sandstone and shale. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 7, 1901, page 103 JACKSON COUNTY.
Miller & McDonald, who have bonded the Cox & Lyman
ledge,
situated near Gold Hill, have made another rich strike, and a large
amount of gold has already been taken out. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Lucky Cuss mine of the Williams Creek district, near Grants Pass,
has been bonded by McCann & Strickland. The new company
proposes to
work the mine on a larger scale than heretofore."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 14, 1901, page 114 The main shaft on the Ashland ledge, at Ashland, is now down 765 feet. Drifting on both sides of the shaft at the 700-foot level is being done. At this depth the ledge averages about 7 feet in thickness, and is free-milling ore, with values much above the average. Stoping is being done from the 400-foot level down, 'The company contemplates putting in an air plant and introducing machine drills. At present steam is used to operate the mine, the machinery being located in a chamber on the 250-foot level, which is at the junction of the big east tunnel with the main shaft. Thirty men are employed. The company has a mill, provided with four concentrators, for which exceptionally good work is claimed. The supt. reports that since the improvements in the mill were made the tailings average in value only 63 cents per ton. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 21, 1901, page 125 Oregon's First Mining Code.
In 1851 the only mining district known to exist in Oregon was that of
the Josephine district. Miners were flocking in from California on the
south, and from the Willamette Valley and Vancouver on the north. They
were congregating at the one gold-bearing locality known--that of Waldo
and Althouse, in what is now western Josephine County. There were no
existing mining laws in the Oregon Territory code, and accordingly on
the first day of April, 1852, on the bank of Canyon Creek, a tributary
of Rogue River, forty miners assembled beneath a large fir tree and
drafted and adopted the first mining code of the Northwest. The text of
the code as adopted read as follows: Know all men by these presents: That the miners, in council assembled, on this, the first day of April, 1852, do ordain and adopt the following rules and regulations to govern this camp: Resolved, That 50 cubic yards shall constitute a claim in the bed of the creek, extending to high water on each side. Resolved, That 40 feet shall constitute a bank or bar claim on the face extending back to the hill or the mountain. Resolved, That all claims not worked, when workable, alter five days, be forfeited or jumpable. Resolved, That all disputes arising from mining claims shall be settled by arbitration, and the decision shall be final. Attest:
E. J. NORTHCUTT, Chairman.
Mining
and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September
28, 1901, page 132Returns received from the smelter for a shipment of ore made from the Ray mine, near Gold Hill, show assay values $49.30 silver and $7856 gold to the ton. The mine is owned by E. Ray, who took out $4000 three years ago at a depth of about 150 feet. He leased it to G. H. McDonald and J. Miller of Gold Hill, who continued sinking, and at 175 feet found the rich rock of the shipment mentioned. The lessees also hold an option for its purchase at $4500. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 28, 1901, page 137 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Rogue River Q.M. Co. of Medford have five cinnabar claims in
Meadows district. A shaft sunk about 10 feet on what was supposed to be
a "crossing" on the Mayfield claim has developed a very rich "chimney"
of ore, the rock being quite a pure cinnabar. The company claims to
have taken $4000 worth of ore from this 10-foot hole, and has about 2
feet of ore of remarkably high grade to sink on. The Shorty Hope M.&M. Co. of Jacksonville has been incorporated with capital stock $1,000,000, to engage in a general mining and milling business, by H. S. Sanford, D. F. Fox and E. A. Sherwin, all of Ashland. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The sale of the Golden Standard mine, on Galls Creek, by K. K. Kubli,
H. D. Kubli, Mrs. E. J. Kubli of Jacksonville and E. B. Watson of
Portland to E. W. Forbes & Co. of Seattle, Wash., has been made
for
$37,500. The new owners propose to erect a new stamp mill on the
property at once. The Hull & Beck placer mines and a quartz claim on Louse Creek have been sold to J. O. Booth of Grants Pass for $9000. The mine is said to have a well-equipped plant with water for an eight months' run and has been operated since 1888. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 5, 1901, page 147 Davidson Bros. of Jacksonville have sold a quartz claim, situated near the head of Wards Creek, to O'Neill, Meade, Landreth and Shoup of Baker City for $3000. This property was discovered and sold by the Davidsons inside of a month. D. J. S. Pearce & Son of Jacksonville have bonded the Access mine, in Poormans Creek district, to R. Bond for $10,000. This ledge is several feet wide, with ore which assays from $3.75 to $9 in gold per ton. G. Hoffman and F. J. Bolt of Jacksonville have had several tons of ore from their ledge on Tallowbox Mountain worked in an arrastra, obtaining $50 a ton. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 12, 1901, page 157 The McKay mine is situated at an altitude of from 4300 to 5100 feet, in the Siskiyou Mountains, the boundary line of Oregon and California running through it. It was discovered three years ago and is now owned by W. H. Hamilton, S. H. McVey, L. F. Cooper and B. G. Adams of Crescent City, Del Norte County, Cal. It is located at the head of Joe Creek, a tributary of Elliott Creek. During the past summer a large lens of sulphide ore was uncovered at this mine. Morris & Hosler have sold their half interest in the Powell Creek placer mine, near Grants Pass, to I. N. Haley of Philadelphia. Sharpe Bros. retain their interest. The mine will be worked on an extensive scale this season. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 19, 1901, page 167 JACKSON COUNTY.
At the Ashland mine, at Ashland, the double-compartment shaft is down
770 feet and sinking on the ledge continues. The ledge, it is said,
holds its size of 7 to 8 feet in thickness, and there is no diminution
of the ore. Drifting is being done at the 700-foot level, and ore is
being stoped at all the levels. The gold now runs about $14.50 per
ounce, the reduced value being due to the presence of silver. The Rock Bowers' placer mine near Gold Hill has been sold to J. H. Bagley of Marshall County, Iowa. Mr. Bagley has secured options on other placer properties in that vicinity and bought water rights to provide water for continuous work. He will install two hydraulic giants and a complete plant. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Manager St. John of
the Rising Star, near Grants Pass, is arranging to add five stamps to
the mill of his mine. The Gold King ledge, a new proposition, near Grants Pass, has been sold by E. M. Mead to a Mr. Burk of San Francisco for, it is reported, $13,000. The ledge was prospected by an 180-foot tunnel, exposing a 4-foot vein of free-milling ore. Mr. Burk will put in a 10-stamp mill at once. The Sunbeam mine, near Grants Pass, has been bonded to S. R. Burke of Tacoma, Wash., at $11,500 for nine months. The mine has considerable development, there being a shaft 140 feet deep and a tunnel 70 feet long. Work will be begun at once upon the tunnel. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 26, 1901, page 178 JACKSON COUNTY.
Reed & Fletcher, at Meadows district, near Jacksonville, have
sunk
a shaft 112 feet and cut a vein 11 feet in width which runs well in
cinnabar.… The Rogue River Quicksilver M. Co. has men at
work sacking
ore, which is growing richer with depth.… Hammersley
& Chisholm are
steadily working on their claims, as are also Chapman & Co. F. Kauster, who has been working his quartz claims on Foots Creek, near Ashland, is having a crushing made at the custom mill at the latter place. The ore shows coarse gold. J. H. Bagley has bought the Noah Bowers group of eight placer claims on Wards Creek from J. Wimer & Co. W. A. Corthell of Ashland, H. Perkins of Central Point and T. Olsen of Gold Hill are interested with Bagley. The new owners will operate on a more extensive scale. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
W. F. McNeil's mine on the Chetco River, 10 miles from Kerby, is
equipped with a hydraulic plant. The gold obtained is nearly all
coarse, heavy, smooth channel gold, though some rough gold is obtained.
A rich body of ore is reported uncovered at the Baby quartz mine, in Jumpoff Joe district. A 26-inch vein has been cut 80 feet in from the surface. The mine is operated by Meyers, Rice & Smith of Grants Pass. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 2, 1901, page 187 JACKSON COUNTY.
H. A. Corliss has sold his placer mines in Dry Diggings district, near
Gold Hill, to a Chicago company represented by C. W. Ament for, it is
reported, $20,000. Mr. Corliss is superintendent. The Williamsburg M. Co. of Grants Pass has been incorporated, capital $500,000, by F. E. Forbes, T. J. McClung, Robert G. Smith and L. A. Heberlie. J. N. Hayes has rented his Sardine Creek placer mines, near Jacksonville, to Medford people and is developing a quartz ledge, near Gold Hill, 5 feet wide, which 50 feet down assays $24.08 copper and $23.44 gold per ton. Reed & Fletcher of Gold Hill, while developing one of their cinnabar claims in Meadows district, it is said, have cut through a 20-inch vein of good coal. The bed lies at a depth of 112 feet. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
B. F. Walker of Yreka, Cal., superintendent of a hydraulic mine at
Althouse, says he is ready at the mine for the water to start
operations."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 9, 1901, page 197 Hydraulicking in Oregon.
A correspondent of the Mining
and Engineering Review, who
has just returned from an inspection of the mining country in Southern
Oregon, writes that there are scores of hydraulic mines in the southern
portion of Josephine County that have abundant water to run four or
five months each year. The working grounds consist of a loose gray and
red gravel, lying from twenty to seventy-five feet on the bedrock and
rich in coarse gold. The cost of working a mine, after a mine is
equipped in that district, is estimated at 5 cents per cubic yard.
San Francisco Call, November 10, 1901, page 25 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Gold Chloride mine still holds its value in the ore. The depth in
the main tunnel is 50 feet, with 3 feet of milling ore. Mears, Landreth
& Co. of Gold Hill, the owners, have opened up the vein in four
different places and have found it as wide and rich as in the main
tunnel. Eleven tons lately netted $30 per ton. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Lyttle copper mine, near Waldo, has been bought by Capt. Draper,
manager of the Waldo copper mine. The ledge is 22 feet in width and 300
feet of tunneling has been done on the property. The Williamsburg M. Co. has been incorporated, capital $500,000, by F. E. Forbes, T. J. McClum, R. G. Smith and L. A. Heberle of Grants Pass. The Dry Diggings hydraulic mines, near Grants Pass, have been sold by H. A. Corliss to C. W. Ament of Chicago for $25,000. The Lyttle copper mines, near Waldo, have been sold by J. Lyttle to T. W. M. Draper of San Francisco, the owner of the Waldo copper mines and smelter, in the same district. The price paid was $15,000. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 16, 1901, page 209 JACKSON COUNTY.
W. H. Maultby and A. Gilson, who have been prospecting at the head of
Sterling Creek, back of Ashland, have struck an old channel, which
promises to be quite rich. A considerable body of gravel that prospects
well is already in sight. The machinery at the Exchequer mine, in Applegate district, south of Jacksonville, has been moved to the Rising Star mine by G. St. John, the supt. of both properties. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The opening up in the Silver Creek basin of auriferous gravel, by the
running of a tunnel under Silver Creek Falls, is to be undertaken.
About 100 feet of tunnel have been run. When opened, the dump for
tailings is unequaled and mining grounds of great extent. The portion
of the basin to be opened up by the tunnel is owned by Ferren &
Thoss, but is under bond to Mettis & Leigh, Colorado men, who
have
the work in charge. The Big Yank ledge, in the Galice district, near Grants Pass, is being developed by the Big Yank M. Co. of Portland. A 100-foot tunnel has been run in, crosscutting the ledge, and drifts have been run 50 feet each way. The ore is running $25 to $30 per ton. At the lately discovered copper mines on Little Grayback, near Kirby, fifty claims have been taken up. The greater number are being developed. In some of the older claims tunnels have been run to a depth of 50 and 75 feet, or shafts have been put down to this depth. The ledges exposed show widths ranging from 10 to 150 feet, carrying copper values of from 5% to 30%. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 23, 1901, page 223 JACKSON COUNTY.
A body of high-grade ore has been uncovered at a depth of 200 feet in
the Nighthawk mine, near Jacksonville. The pay chute has a width of 12
inches. Eighty tons that milled $75 per ton have been removed from the
strike. The Nighthawk is a new proposition. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Several Foots Creek placer mines have been sold to a Seattle company,
of which N. H. Latimer is the head. The transfer includes the Lance
group of claims at $35,000 and water rights, also the J. W. Short
claims, adjoining, at $4800, and it is stated that the syndicate has
options on several other placer properties in that district. It is said
that this syndicate proposes to buy the entire mining acreage down to
the forks of the creek."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 30, 1901, page 237 JACKSON COUNTY.
The 10-stamp mill of the Ashland mine at Ashland, operated by the
Montreal & Oregon G.M. Co. (Limited), is crushing from
twenty-five
to thirty tons of ore daily with satisfactory returns. Drifting is now
being done on both ways from the shaft on the 800-foot level. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. W. Opp, who is operating the Golden Standard mine in Jackson Creek
district, under bond, has five men getting out ore. The mill is being
operated by McDonald & Meier. A test of 500 tons of ore is
being
made. The Stalker hydraulic mines, situated at Althouse, have been sold by J. K. Stalker to A. Clemens of Philadelphia for $4000, cash down. The Spence-Cass copper mines, near Waldo, have been bonded by R. B. Whiteside of Duluth, Minn., at $100,000, on long time, allowing for the complete development of the property. These mines consist of two groups of claims and are situated on Houck Mountain. The veins are wide and carry values in copper and some gold. Mr. Whiteside is running two tunnels to crosscut the ledges. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 7, 1901, page 251 After a closedown for several months the Ida quartz mine, near Grants Pass, has been started. Two tunnels have been run to the ledge, which is from 12 inches to 4 feet wide. The values are carried in both free gold and sulphurets and range from $12 to $25 per ton. The Gipsy Queen mine at Althouse is a quartz proposition, owned by H. Luethy. The gold comes from a small stringer which has proven very rich. Recently $2300 was taken from a length of the vein of 23 feet, worked 2 to 4 feet deep from the surface. The owners of the Copper Stain mine in the Mount Reuben district, north of Grants Pass, have concluded to install a 10-stamp mill and other machinery. J. A. Connelly of Springfield, O., one of the principal owners, who has just returned from a visit to the mine, reports that a wagon road will be built to take the new machinery in. T. W. M. Draper of San Francisco, owner of the Waldo copper mines, states that as soon as the new roads and other improvements are completed about the mines he will put 200 men to work taking out ore, and the smelter will be started. The Granite Hill group of Louse Creek, north of Grants Pass, has been bought by Booth Bros. & Mangum and W. J. Morphy of Chicago, Ill., and M. A. Lathrop of Brighton, Mass. The price paid was $75,000, part down. The mine has both placer and quartz lodes. The latter are under development, but the placer has been worked for many years past, producing annually from $10,000 to $20,000. The claims are equipped with several miles of ditches and flumes and two giants. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 14, 1901, pages 263-264 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Braden quartz mines, near Gold Hill, which have been closed down,
will resume operations soon, it is reported. Ray Bros. of New York are
the owners and managers of the Braden properties. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
G. W. Johnson of Portland has bonded the Legal Tender mine in the South
Myrtle Creek district, near Grants Pass, and is developing the
property. At the Cass copper mine, near Waldo, recently bonded by R. B. Whiteside of Duluth, Minn., at $100,000, an 8-foot ledge carrying copper values of 15% to 60% is reported to have been struck 200 feet in on the upper tunnel. A large force of men is employed at the mine. A large quartz ledge, carrying values in both free gold and sulphurets, has been discovered in the Dry Diggings district, 5 miles east of Grants Pass, by H. C. Perkins and A. J. Pike. The ledge is exposed where cut across by Rogue River and in the bedrocks of the Dry Diggings hydraulic mines. Assays intended to be of average rock gave $2.50 free gold and $3.10 sulphurets per ton. The ledge is easily accessible for large work, lying in such a position that the rock could be quarried out in quantity. The Dry Diggings hydraulic mines, near Grants Pass, have been sold by H. A. Corliss to C. H. and A. H. Ament of Chicago for $25,000. These placers have been worked for the past thirty-five years. The new owners propose to improve, repair and add to the general equipment of the mine. The widening and deepening of the ditches that bring the water supply has already begun. The Pearl M. Co. of Elk Creek, near Grants Pass, is preparing to run its quartz mill. At the South Myrtle gold quartz mines, near Grants Pass, a new strike of 5½ feet ore of high grade is reported in the Continental claim. G. W. Johnson of Portland has started work on the Oatman & Robinson claims near Grants Pass. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 21, 1901, pages 277-278 JACKSON COUNTY.
J. B. Scott & Co., who have been developing a quartz mine in
Humbug
district, near Jacksonville, for several years past, have let a
contract for running a 500-foot crosscut tunnel to S. T. Sandry. A number of farms and mines on Missouri Flat, near Jacksonville, aggregating about 2000 acres, have been bonded to Chicago, Ill., and London people, who propose to bring water in from Applegate Creek to mine the ground. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Victory M. Co. has sold its mine on Cow Creek, near Grants Pass, to
the Oregon Con. M. Co. for, it is reported, $25,000. Interested in the
new company are T. Carroll of Tacoma, Wash., W. J. Morphy of Chicago,
Ill., G. A. Cole of Missouri and F. Eidomuller, D. Phelps, F. H. Miller
and A. N. Mills of Oregon. The property includes the Victory hydraulic
mine, with a 3½-mile ditch. Three new quartz ledges have been discovered in Josephine County of late. One was in the Coyote Creek district, northern Josephine, where R. Huysink, a miner, has uncovered a 4-foot ledge that gives average assay values of $18 per ton. Two other strikes have been made by W. E. Markham and C. W. Gerboth on Rogue River, 14 miles below Grants Pass. One ledge has a width of 4 feet, carrying average values of $18 per ton, and the other a width of 1 foot, carrying an average value of $20 per ton. A rich ledge has been uncovered on Tip Top Mountain, of the China Creek district, near Grants Pass. Mr. Jennings, of Grants Pass, has opened a 12-foot ledge at a depth of 120 feet in an open cut on the mountainside. Samples of rock gathered from the strike, he claims, show $96 per ton. A sampling of ore from the Mammoth quartz ledge recently discovered in the Dry Diggings district, near Grants Pass, by Pike & Perkins, shows, it is said, from $2.44 to $6.96 per ton, sulphurets and free gold. This gives an average assay value of $4.74 per ton, of which $2.38 is free gold. The ledge is claimed to be from 200 to 250 feet wide. The discoverers have a force of men at work developing. The Osgood hydraulic mines at Waldo, developed by F. H. Osgood of Seattle, have begun operations for the winter, using three giants both night and day. The Angel placer mines, situated in the Upper Galice Creek district, near Grants Pass, have been sold by Jackson & Call to W. Gebhart, of Idaho, and J. H. Rogers, of Michigan. The property is in course of development. At the Baby quartz mine, in the Louse Creek district, near Grants Pass, the mill is said to be crushing rock that is averaging $25 per ton in free gold and sulphurets. A new hydraulic mine has just been started up on Louse Creek, near Grants Pass, by Jefferson Bros. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 28, 1901, page 291 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Pearl M. Co., which is composed of
Central Point
and Jacksonville people, has its mill installed and has commenced
crushing. Elk Creek is a tributary of Rogue River, 45 miles from
Jacksonville, and the quartz deposits which the district contains were
supposed to be barren until someone had assays made of samples of the
ore, when it was found to contain gold in paying quantities. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
In the Illinois River district all of
the hydraulic
mines now have a full pipe head of water and are running night and day.
The Oak Flat hydraulic mines are being completely overhauled and
re-equipped with new piping, new giants, deeper and wider ditches, and
a new plant. The Wilson-Meredith hydraulic mines of the Illinois are
running two 5-inch giants with a 350-foot pressure. A grizzly hydraulic
elevator is operated in these mines to overcome a deficiency of natural
dump."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 4, 1902, page 13 The quartz property recently located by Perkins & Pike In the Dry Diggings district is being found more extended and carrying larger values as it is further developed. Its width first stated at 200 feet has been found much greater. A shaft being sunk now down 10 feet opens ore which assays $9 per ton. A mill test of the lower grade rock gave returns of about $1.50 in gold, besides good values in concentrates. The ore is soft and can be mined and milled cheaply. The Behrman property of the Meadows district, near Jacksonville, comprising 800 acres of cinnabar-bearing claims which has been under bond by English people for several months, it is reported, is to be bought by them for $400,000. They will put in an extensive working plant. At the Mayfield cinnabar mine, in the Meadows district, near Jacksonville, a strike is reported made on the 200-foot level of a body of high-grade cinnabar. The Mayfield is one of the cinnabar claims of the Rogue River Quicksilver M. Co., which is operating in the Meadows. From a small hole 10 feet in depth and 4 feet across in the Mayfield $4000 worth of cinnabar was removed a short time since. The company has put in a complete modern roasting plant and equipment. Besides the claims of the Rogue River Quicksilver M. Co., there are a dozen or more other claims in the district being developed. Shook & Stanley have started sinking on the ledge of the Deerhorn mine, near Jacksonville, from the level of their 90-foot tunnel. The ore carries gold, copper and silver. Much of it is free-milling gold ore, but the best of it is base. The Beaver Creek M. Co., near Jacksonville, is extending the ditch from North Beaver Creek to their old placer ground, 3 miles below. Coleman & Starkey have the contract to construct this ditch at $2 per rod. It is to be 2 feet wide at bottom, 3 feet at the top and 18 inches deep. This illustrates about the average cost of running placer ditches in this region in ground comparatively free of rock. G. F. Fendall has struck some good gravel on his mine on Grouse Creek, about 1 mile above Beaver. Thompson's upper claim and water right on Hungry Creek, near Coles, Cal., had been bought and a mill is to be built. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 11, 1902, page 27 Platinum in a paying quantity has been discovered in the Dry Diggings District, Jackson County, Or. The metal occurs in small grains or flakes. Many placer miners in Southern Oregon have found it in quantity in their sluices, but have thrown it away, being ignorant of its identity and value. Serpentine, the rock source of the platinum, is a predominant formation in Josephine County, more especially in western Josephine. All the streams draining this section are platinum producers. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 18, 1902, page 35 Smith Bros. have sold a half interest in the Baby mine, in the Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass, to F. F. Hannum and W. S. Town. The other owners of the mine are A. L. Meyers and H. G. Rice. A cleanup of thirty ounces has been made from eight days' run with a 2-stamp mill. W. H. Dana, manager of the Copper Stain mine, on Mt. Reuben, near Grants Pass, states development work is being continued, and it is the intention to put on a 10-stamp mill next spring. A wagon road to the mine will be one of the first improvements made. The copper property on Little Pickett Creek, near Grants Pass, owned by H. E. Booth and R. E. Barrickman of Merlin, is being opened by a tunnel. The ledge is about 12 feet wide and carries values in gold as well as copper. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 18, 1902, page 41 Oregon Mines.
Mining in Oregon has
made a substantial permanent advance during the year 1901. The
districts already well established, with Baker City, Sumpter and
Granite as centers, increased their gold yield, and proved such an
extent of new ground that a continuation of the increase of output can
be looked for during the current year. Other districts just as well
known, but from which less was expected, have made even greater
relative advances. Josephine and Jackson counties, with Grants Pass
and Jacksonville as centers of development, have made notable advances
toward the same permanent establishment of the gold mining industry
that the first noted districts have already obtained. In these two
counties, the first in which gold was discovered in Oregon, development
has lagged by reason of the belief that gold values were entirely in
shallow placers which were largely worked out. An increase of placer
gold output during 1901 shows that this last supposition is not well
founded. The notable feature of the late development is the extended
working of the quartz ledges. Many new discoveries have been made, some
of them appearing to be of very considerable magnitude. The little
quartz mining of former years was largely a scratching of the surface
for pockets. In 1901, however, many of these supposed pocket ledges
were given deeper and more extended exploration and have through it
become the beginning of permanent mines. The area of possible gold mining was considerably extended during the year--not so much by entirely new discoveries as by the development of long-known prospects which, unworked, were previously assumed to be valueless. The Blue River section in Lane County, lower Rogue River in Coos County, Malheur County, Union County and in the headwaters of the John Day River have all, from more or less discredited prospects, been proved to be at least possibilities. In some it is only a single mine so far, but that one is surely indicative of more yet undiscovered. All of these localities can be safely counted on as sure to make much more showing of potential value during 1902 than in the year just completed. The discoveries and development of quicksilver deposits made in 1901 indicate a very considerable future for this branch of mining industry. The operations of earlier years with quicksilver mining in Oregon had not been encouraging, and the older discoveries were unworked. The prospects of success with the newer ones is quite certain to cause a reinvestigation of the older ones, the failures of which were due to defective and costly methods of reduction, rather than to the failure of the mines to produce the anticipated quantities of the ore. The presence of large deposits of copper ore in the extreme southwestern and the extreme northeastern corners of the state has long been known. Remoteness from existing transportation facilities had delayed development. In 1901, despite this adverse condition, considerable exploratory and preliminary work was done. The fall in the price of copper will very probably tend to defer development. The copper ores, however, carry considerable gold, which will be an incentive to their exploitation, even with the lowered price. A possible mineral resource has been found during the year in asphaltum, and the discovery is being followed up by exploration for petroleum. Its discovery in Jackson County would assist materially in making the copper deposits available. In this connection there is much justification for investigation and experiment with novel processes for the reduction of the low-grade ores of copper, and the low-grade ores of nickel which exist in such great quantity at Riddle. There is no finality to the adverse conclusions from earlier attempts to beneficiate these ores which should lead to the abandonment of effort. It is within the last six months that the writer read in an Eastern mining paper a most elaborate mathematical and engineering demonstration of the commercial and technical impossibility of making iron from the ore direct by an electric current produced by water power. Within the last few weeks the statement is made that in northern Italy steel is being made direct from the iron ore by an electric current at a cost for the water power employed of $3.10 a ton. With such commercial results obtained under the most adverse conditions there should be no impossibility conceded with such valuable metals as copper and nickel to be recovered. There is no lack of cheap water power in Oregon. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 25, 1902, page 44 JACKSON COUNTY.
A quartz vein, the ore
of which yields from 35 cents to 50 cents per pan in free gold, has
been uncovered in the Dry Diggings district, near Grants Pass, by
Andrews Bros. The discovery was made by the continued sinking of a
shaft beneath a pocket. Instead of ceasing work after the pocket was
worked out, the shaft was continued down and struck a rich ocher seam
which, on being followed, developed into a 6-inch vein of soft
crumbling stuff, with the free gold richly sprinkled through all parts
of it. W. Mayfield, the discoverer of the rich Mayfield cinnabar claim in the Meadow district, has made another rich strike. At a depth of 10 feet on the Hydrargyrum he has uncovered a ledge that has a width of several feet and carries 30% mercury. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Gold Bug mine,
situated on Mt. Reuben, near Glendale, is steadily operating with its
5-stamp mill. About 20 men are employed. The company has put in a
cyanide plant to handle the stamp-mill tailings which carry assay
values of about $15 per ton. A depth of 300 feet has been reached in
the shaft and the ore body has increased in size and richness with the
depth. A new hoist is soon to be added and other improvements in
equipment will be made. The Lucky Queen mine on Jumpoff Joe, near Grants Pass, is now being developed, with C. D. Crane as supt. G. Bolt, owner of the Sugar Pine mine at Galice, is taking out ore in which free gold is visible. The mine is under bond to Dr. Ray of Grants Pass and is being opened by a 600-foot tunnel. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 25, 1902, page 55 JACKSON COUNTY.
J. Broad and T. Reid,
owners of the Oregon Belle in Forest Creek district, near Jacksonville,
are running their mill steadily and crushing between sixty and seventy
tons of ore every month. They report over $1400 worth of bullion, the
result of a three weeks' run. A strike has been made at Ashland in the main shaft in the Ashland mine at Ashland below the 800-foot level. Drifting is being done on the 800-foot level and ore is being stoped from the 600-foot and 700-foot levels. The regular crew of thirty men is employed on this property. A contract has been let by J. K. Reader to drive a 250-foot tunnel on his mine near Ashland, which will open the ledge about 100 feet below the present workings. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A ledge is being
developed in the Foots Creek district by H. A. Reed and C. C. Daniels
which shows a width on the surface of 25 to 50 feet, carrying values of
$4 to $6 per ton in free gold."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 1, 1902, page 68 A meeting of mining men, among whom was C. R. Johnson of Montana, has been held at Merlin, 8 miles north of Grants Pass, to consider the erection of a smelter at Merlin, which is centrally located in the northern Josephine mineral region. Another meeting to further consider this question will be held and a permanent organization is talked of. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 8, 1902, page 82 JACKSON COUNTY.
At the Bowden mine,
near Gold Hill, ore that averages $100 per ton has been uncovered at a
depth of 200 feet in a 3-foot ledge. It is owned by Houck &
Haff. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Riggs & Flamm have
made a rich gold quartz discovery in the Grave Creek district,
uncovering a large ledge, from which tests made show it to carry from
$32 to $90 per ton, mostly free gold. W. Bailey, M.E., manager of the English-Canadian Co., which owns the dredger "Josephine" near Waldo, is arranging to resume operations with it. A new cyanide plant has been installed at the Gold Bug mine, in the Mount Reuben district, to work tailings which run $15 per ton. A new two-cage hoist and additional stamps are also to be installed at the Gold Bug. Development in this mine is proceeding by five levels, the longest being 750 feet, and a depth of 350 feet being reached. The ore body is found in a vein possessing a width of 16 feet and carrying an average value of $30 per ton. The monthly cleanups are said to run from $12,000 to $15,000. A 5-stamp mill and thirty men are employed. The Gold Bug is the property of S. P. Jones of Nevada, S. L. Jones and H. M. Gorham. What has long supposed to have been lead, or some other comparatively worthless metal, and which has been found in quantity in the Myrtle Creek placers, near Grants Pass, and thrown away by the miners, is now found to be native silver, so a report from the locality states. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 15, 1902, page 94 JACKSON COUNTY.
W. H. Jackson, C.
Baker and J. H. Ray of Medford have located twenty cinnabar claims
between Elk and Trail creeks. Where discovery was made the ledge is
said to be 50 feet wide, and its length, as far as the locality has
been prospected, is from a quarter to half a mile. The ledge matter is
very heavy with quicksilver. Men are now at work making excavations and
running a tunnel. The mine is about 27 miles from Medford. The Smith Bros., of Grants Pass, have bought of McDonald & Ray the bond they held on the Hawkeye mine, owned by E. Ray of Gold Hill. Cox & Lyman made a good stake out of it when it was first discovered. E. Ray later took out at different times several thousand dollars; then the sellers of the bond made a small strike in the beginning of the present winter. The shaft is now down 200 feet and the mine is considered better than at any time before. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
H. M. White is
developing the Blackwell quartz mine, recently bought by him in the
Humbug district, near Grants Pass. The quartz carries good values in
free gold. A mill has been bought and will be installed soon. The Crystal Spring M. Co. of Grants Pass has been incorporated by H. A. Reed, C. C. Daniels and B. H. March; capital $20,000. C. R. Paris of Santa Ana, Cal., has recently bought a group of placer claims on Whiskey Creek, below Mt. Reuben, from G. Smith. The mine has a new ditch and a partial hydraulic equipment. B. E. Meredith of the Wilson-Meredith mine on the Illinois, near Kerby, says the mine has been running most of the season with three giants. Considerable gold is being taken out. The Lucky Queen mine on Jumpoff Joe, near Grants Pass, owned by Corliss & Rush, has been sold by Mackay & Crane, who have been developing it, to A. A. Durphy of Spokane, Wash. This mine is an old property, worked many years ago and abandoned. The new owner will equip it with machinery. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 22, 1902, pages 107-108 It is reported that Ament Bros., who recently bought the Corliss mines in Dry Diggings district, near Grants Pass, are preparing a large hydraulic mining project--the building of a dam across Rogue River below their mines, gaining a 20-foot fall, and the installation of a battery of turbine wheels sufficient to furnish 3000 H.P., which it is proposed to use to pump 1200 miner's inches of water through a mile of piping to the mining grounds above. About 200 men will be required to put in the dam, and the whole plant is projected to be ready to be put into operation by the close of the coming summer. The plant will cost $160,000. Ament Bros. own 600 acres of placer mining ground. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 1, 1902, pages 120-121 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Gold Hill M.,
Power & Dev. Co. has been incorporated to operate and develop
mines
in Jackson County and to operate electric light and power plants at
Gold Hill. J. J. Houck, T. J. Kenney, J. Nunan and E. A. Reames are the
incorporators. It is reported that E. K. Anderson has bonded the Golden Fleece mining property, near Ashland, consisting of 200 acres, at $20,000, to W. C. Latham, president and supt. of the Pacific M.&M. Co. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Andrews Placer,
property of W. H. Andrews at Dry Diggings, has been bought by M. C.
Ament for the Golden Drift M. Co. The property has been incorporated
with the greater Dry Diggings property, on which a big pumping plant is
to be installed to provide water for hydraulicking. The Golden Drift M. Co. has been incorporated, capital $1,500,000, to operate a hydraulic mine at Bloody Run, 3 miles south of Grants Pass. The plan provides for 1200 inches of water for the six giants, the water being pumped direct to the giants. M. C. Ament, manager of the Dry Diggings placer mines, is the manager. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 8, 1902, page 136 JACKSON COUNTY.
Drilling machinery is
being installed by the Southern Pacific Co. at its coal mine near
Medford. The drill will be used in testing the coal vein in different
places on Roxy Ann Mountain. A tunnel has been run 120 feet in the
mountain, developing a good quality of coal in a vein too small to
supply a large consumption. The company has bonded a number of tracts
of land and will make a thorough test in order to develop the vein at a
wide point. The coal is claimed to be of excellent quality. T. Sutton and F. Reese have sold their Roaring Gimlet mining properties on Kane Creek, near Gold Hill, to W. Baisley, of Trustee, Indiana, and W. Mendenhall, of Richmond, Indiana, representatives of an Eastern company, for $10,000. This property consists of three claims. The greatest depth of present workings is 90 feet. Messrs. Sutton & Reese bought the properties about one year ago of Messrs. J. J. Houck and J. H. Mitchell for $3000. Since obtaining possession they have mortared and milled about $10,000. It is locally reported that the recent purchaser will have a steam hoist and pump erected in the near future to better facilitate the present mode of operation. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
T. W. Morgan-Draper of
the Waldo S.&M. Co., at Waldo, has let contracts for the No. 1
Lyttle tunnel, which is to be 500 feet long, 6 feet 6 inches high; 4
feet 6 inches wide bottom and 3 feet 6 inches wide at top; and No. 2
Cow Boy tunnel, which is to be 600 feet long, 6 feet 6 inches wide at
bottom and 3 feet 6 inches wide at top. The company will this summer
install a smelting plant of large capacity. W. H. Hamlin has sold eight acres of land on Rogue River, near Grants Pass, to a mining company operating in the Dry Diggings district. The company proposes to dam Rogue River near the point where they have bought this land and with hydraulic rams raise water from the river to the mining ground. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 15, 1902, page 151 JACKSON COUNTY.
W. H. Maultby and A.
Gilson, who are working some new placer mines at Sterlingville, think
they have struck the old boulder pay channel. They have run a drift 180
feet long and found good pay dirt. The gold is coarse, some of the
pieces weighing as high as $4 and $5 each. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
F. D. Russell,
secretary of the Oregon Con. M. Co., operating near Glendale, says his
company is prospecting a piece of placer ground, working with one
giant, and is building a 4-mile flume to bring more water to the
property from Rift Creek. I. Coffman recently took out twenty ounces of gold from a pocket on Dumpy Gulch, in the Forest Creek district, near Grants Pass. A ledge of free-milling quartz running $10 to the ton has been struck in the mine, near Grants Pass. Two engines, a small sawmill, large cables and other machinery have arrived at the Golden Drift mine in Dry Diggings district, near Grants Pass. A dam will be built across Rogue River and six water wheels installed to furnish 3000 H.P. A battery of pumps will furnish water for six giants and an irrigating ditch. A new cyanide plant has been recently installed at the Gold Bug mine in the Mount Reuben district, near Grants Pass, and the tailings of the mill, the savings of several years of its operation, are being worked over, yielding an average of $15 per ton. The Oviatt hydraulic mines on Pickett Creek, near Grants Pass, have been bonded to San Francisco people for sixty days by G. W. Trefren at $35,000. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 22, 1902, page 166 JACKSON COUNTY.
W. B. Dennis, of the
Black Butte quicksilver mine in Lane County, has bonded the Golden
Fleece mine, at Ashland, at $20,000, of E. K. Anderson. In the
sandstone bedrock where a portion of the soft conglomerate has been
hydraulicked off are seams of calcite, associated with cinnabar ore,
which it is proposed to develop to depth. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A rich strike is
reported made at the Granite Hill quartz mine of the Louse Creek
district, near Grants Pass, owned by Booth & Mangum. In the
tunnel
a 3-foot ledge has been uncovered showing free gold. A 5-stamp mill is
kept in operation at the mine."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 29, 1902, page 183 JACKSON COUNTY.
In the Roaring Gimlet
mine, near Gold Hill, has been developed a new pay lead, from which,
with one man panning, $400 a day is being taken out. At the Maybelle mine a large two-story boarding and bunk house has been built and grading is being done for a 30-ton capacity mill. W. P. Chisholm has started the driving of a tunnel to tap the Prosperity lode in the Meadows district, near Jacksonville, to a depth of 250 feet. This vein carries nickel, cobalt, copper and gold. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
In the Granite Hill
quartz mine in the Louse Creek district, near Grants Pass, a vein of
high-grade ore lately struck carries values running as high as $500 to
the ton. The property is equipped with a 5-stamp mill. The Oak Flat hydraulic mines, in the Illinois district, have been bought from Cope, Horn & Cornell by Pool Bros. & Reynolds of Denver, Colo. The mines comprise 1200 acres of hydraulic placer ground lying in the fork of the Illinois River and Briggs Creek, with a hydraulic plant and 20-mile ditch from Soldier Creek. The new owners will add to the equipment and build a new and large ditch to Briggs Creek. H. W. Ogilbe, C.E., of San Francisco, and B. S. Taylor have been surveying several weeks in Applegate Valley, near Grants Pass, looking for a suitable location for a power plant. Their object is to furnish electrical power for a radius of 30 miles, the power to come from the Applegate River. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 5, 1902, page 196 J. E. Conner, owner of the Red Dog hydraulic placer mine on Briggs Creek, near Grants Pass, has got his mine again in operation after repairing damages caused by a slide which carried away a large portion of the long flume. The Golden Drift M. Co. has surveyed for its proposed ditch, which as projected will cover most of the valley adjacent to Grants Pass. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 12, 1902, page 210 Mr. Mendenhall, owner of the Roaring Gimlet mine, 2 miles from Gold Hill, has shipped twenty-five pounds of gold panned out by hand from the rich pocket recently struck in the ledge. Mr. Mendenhall bought the mine in March from Sutton & Reese, paying $10,000 for it. He has already taken out $20,000. Major Andrus, supt. of the Bill Nye mine, 4 miles west of Gold Hill, has made a rich strike in a 50-foot shaft on the ledge. It is nearly all $200 rock The mine has already paid $20,000 in developing it to a depth of 240 feet, and but little of the ore has been stoped out. The Scandia Tunnel Co., of Spokane, Wash., has elected Dr. O. T. Melde president and C. J. Johnston secretary. The company is working on a long crosscut tunnel near Granite. W. Wade is manager. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 19, 1902, page 224 JACKSON COUNTY.
Mr. Mendenhall, owner
of the Roaring Gimlet mine of the Kane Creek district, near Gold Hill,
has made another cleanup at his new property, taking out $3000. The Bill Nye M. Co. has made a strike on their mine on Galls Creek, near Gold Hill. Major Andrus, the supt., has opened up 2 feet of quartz running from $150 to $200 per ton. The new shaft is now down 50 feet and the whole bottom of it is in ore going better than $100 per ton. H. S. Sanford, manager of the Shorty-Hope M. Co., has received orders from the directors at New York to proceed with the development of the property at Ashland and has started work with T. W. Hill as foreman. A 750-foot tunnel is to be driven on the ledge, which will give 110 feet of stoping ground and unwater the mine. There is a 10-stamp mill and other equipment on the property. The Last Chance G.M. Co., of Ashland, has been incorporated, capital $20,000, by O. C. Tiffany, R. P. Neil, H. L. Whited, L. L. Mulit and D. A. Applegate. It is the intention of the company to develop a quartz proposition near Gold Hill. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A 40-H.P. compressor,
three boilers and other mining machinery are being installed at the
Oregon Bonanza mine in the Williams district, near Grants Pass. Mr. St.
John, the manager, has uncovered a considerable body of ore. A 10-stamp mill and other machinery is being installed on the Eureka mine, near Grants Pass. The Eureka, Cal., people who own it have bonded it to the Victory G.M. Co. of Chicago, Ill. This last-named company has sunk the main shaft to a depth of 400 feet, opening several levels and uncovering a ledge of high-grade ore 8 feet wide. The placer and quartz gold yield of Josephine County for 1901 by the leading districts is as follows:
The St. Helens & Galice M. Co. of Portland, with A. B. Cousins as secretary, which owns the Cousins & Adkinson mines at Galice, are negotiating to buy all the placer properties along Galice. The new company proposes to combine the several mines along the creek and work them as a single property and on a large scale by erecting a large double flume in the bed of the creek. In the Copper Stain mine, near Leland, it is stated by supt. Dana that the ledge, where it is tapped with the long tunnel, about 300 feet down, is larger and richer than ever. The company will build 6 or 7 miles of wagon road to get the necessary machinery to the mine. J. C. Lewis' upper mine, near Leland, is being worked night and day with a full force of men. There is 240 feet pressure at the hydraulic giant and a 100-foot bank of gravel, at the bottom of which is a heavy blue gravel lead. The bank carries coarse gold from the surface to the bedrock. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 3, 1902, page 250 The Last Chance G.M.&M. Co. of Ashland has elected R. P. Neil president, D. A. Applegate secretary-treasurer and O. C. Tiffany supt. The company owns the Last Chance gold quartz mine and extension, near Gold Hill. A. M. Williams of Los Angeles, Cal., has bonded the Indian Girl mine, near Ashland, from Booth & Burleson for $20,000, and has had ten men developing the property under I. C. Burleson, foreman. He is installing a 10-stamp mill. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 10, 1902, page 263 PUSHING WORK AT MINES.
Operations That Promise Profit in Southern Oregon.
GOLD
HILL, Or., May. 11.--The mill on the Lucky Bart
group is running day and night on ore from the Doubtful claim. A
30-inch vein of high-grade free-milling ore assaying $45 per ton was
recently struck on this claim, which will bring the Lucky Bart group to
the front again, something over $150,000 having already been milled
from the several ledges on the property.
The Gold Hill Milling, Power & Development Company is working day and night shifts with a drill in their Bowden mine, in Blackwell district. It is down 135 feet in three feet of high-grade ore carrying an ounce of gold per ton and perfectly free. It is the intention to sink the present shaft to a total depth of 750 feet. This mine produced a great deal of gold prior to its purchase by this company, which is composed of local business and professional men, and is being put in shape to rank among the foremost of Oregon's producing mines. C. R. Ray, superintendent and general manager of the Gold Hill Quartz Mining Company, is in San Francisco purchasing mills and hoisting machinery for their Braden mine. He will also get a new mill, as the present 10 stamps are worn out and inadequate. They have an immense quantity of low-grade ore in sight, and are engaged in development work preparing for their new plant. This company is composed of wealthy eastern business men, and they have been investing extensively both in the mineral and timber resources of Southern Oregon. Oregonian, Portland, May 12, 1902, page 3 JACKSON COUNTY.
The mill on the Lucky Bart group at Gold Hill is running on ore from
the Doubtful claim, on which a 30-inch vein of high-grade free milling
ore assaying $45 per ton was recently struck.… The Gold Hill
M., Power & Dev. Co., in their Bowden mine, in Blackwell
district, is down 135 feet in 3 feet of free-milling ore carrying an
ounce of gold per ton. It is the intention to sink to 750 feet. The Gold Hill Quartz M. Co., C. R. Ray, supt., operating the Braden mine near Gold Hill, will install a new mill for the present ten stamps. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Old Channel mines of Galice operate two giants and a ground flow
that is used in washing out Rich Gulch canyon just below the diggings
where operations are being carried on. In this canyon there was an
accumulation of wash gravel and tailings to a depth of 35 feet or more
which had been dammed up. Manager Harvey put in sluices below the
gravel and has washed the whole canyon down to the bedrock, making a
rich cleanup from this gravel. The two giants are working upon a bank
over 200 feet in height, which pays evenly and well from the grass
roots to the bedrock. The red clay capping on top contains flour gold
and this is saved by a system of undercurrents. W. Bohle has sold his placer mine, situated in Grave Creek district, near Grants Pass, to Mr. Wilson of The Dalles for $2000.… A tunnel is being run on the Orme quartz mine in Foots Creek district.… A half interest in the Yokum & Madden quartz mine in Grave Creek district has been bought by J. E. Auten, and considerable work is being done on it.… W. E. Finney has bonded his quartz mine in Steamboat district to H. Kling for the Seattle Cooperative M. Co., who will run a tunnel. Work has been begun on the dam of the Golden Drift M. Co. in Rogue River to furnish water and power for operating the company's placer mines.… The company which has bonded the Eureka mine in Soldier Creek district is putting in two carloads of machinery. G. J. Coles is president of the company.… In the Gopher mine in Jumpoff Joe district, under T. Lacy, supt., considerable development work has been done and a body of fine ore exposed. There is a small mill at the mine.… Capt. Leavenworth and associates of Olympia, Wash., are erecting a 30-ton mill and concentrator on their Maybelle group, a low-grade base ore property. A smelter and complete plant for treating copper ore is being installed on the Sewell copper mines at Waldo, owned by the Mountain Copper Co. They have been opened up to a good depth, exposing a body of high-grade copper ore. Preparations for building the Oregon & Pacific Railroad out of Waldo are resulting in all available copper claims being taken up and old ones more thoroughly worked. The boiler and other machinery for the Eureka mine on Soldier Creek, near Grants Pass, has been taken into the mine. In the Ajax mine at Leland the company has struck rich rock in its new tunnel. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 17, 1902, page 276 The Eureka mine on Briggs Creek, near Grants Pass, has been bonded at $75,000 by the Victory G.M. Co., W. J. Morphy of Chicago, Ill., manager and principal owner. The main shaft is down 400 feet drifting has exposed an 8-foot ledge, average value $15 per ton. The Green & Harmon mine on Galice Creek is working in a high bank now; as the gravel below is rich in coarse gold it pays to run the top stuff off. A smelter and plant for treating copper ore has arrived for the Sowell copper mines of Waldo. These mines were bought some months ago by the Mountain Copper Co., who have developed them, presenting a body of copper ore. Captain Mendenhall, owner of Roaring Gimlet mine, Gold Hill, has twenty pounds of amalgam, the result of three days' work on the vein. This gold was saved by simple panning. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 24, 1902, page 289 JACKSON COUNTY.
E. Briggs has bought the Big Foot mine west of Gold Hill, for $3000. H.
A. Corliss and B. Rush have bonded the Lucky Queen and Blue Rock to C.
D. Crane. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A company has been incorporated by Eureka, Cal., people to develop
gravel ground at Althouse in Josephine County; capital stock $50,000."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 31, 1902, page 302 San Francisco capitalists will utilize the power of Applegate Falls, on Applegate River, western Josephine County. Electric power will be generated to operate stamp mills, mining machinery and factories in Josephine County, as well as a portion of Jackson. Power will also be generated for a line from Grants Pass to Waldo, the copper district of southwestern Josephine County. The ledges on Grave Creek, in the Mt. Reuben district, are being worked extensively. W. H. Brevoort of New York and E. Smith of Los Angeles, stockholders of the Victor Junior mine, in the Grave Creek district, announce that they will add twenty stamps, a number of new concentrators, a cyanide plant and a quantity of other machinery to their mine. The property of the Big Yank M.&M. Co., in the Galice mining district, has been bonded to L. Y. Keady of Portland. At the Greenback mine, Grave Creek, the work proposed consists of a shaft to be sunk 500 feet below the 800-foot level and the erection of a 20-stamp mill, to handle fifty tons a day. The stamps are to be 1000 pounds; an 80-H.P. power compressor will be put in to run six machine drills. The mine will be equipped with electric lights. A cyanide mill will be erected. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 7, 1902, page 314 MINES OF SOUTHERN OREGON; ALSO
ELSEWHERE
Latest Reports from One of Our Chief Industries.
A large quantity of ore is being hauled to mill from the Gold Standard
mine, located a few miles west of Jacksonville. It is of excellent
quality and will doubtless yield well.
J. F. Garrison, who is developing a placer mine situated in Sterlingville district, has run a tunnel 250 feet in length, but bedrock has not been struck as yet. The prospects for good pay are favorable, however. The past season's work in the Foots Creek placer mines has about been cleaned up, with favorable results. Some of the miners have done better than usual. It is reported that H. C. Perkins and D. H. Stovall recently discovered corundum in upper Slate Creek district, a mineral hitherto unknown on the coast. The Hydraulic Mining Co. has disposed of several mining claims located in Jumpoff Joe district, to Mrs. E. A. Smith. The consideration named is $12,500. W. H. Ramsey and W. L. Ingram recently made a fine copper strike in Slate Creek district. H. C. Perkins, who has visited it, says it is on the same line with the Preston Peak and Waldo mines. Whiteside Bros. of Minneapolis, who recently bonded the Spence and Cass copper properties, situated in southern Josephine County, have a force engaged in developing them. Geo. Hoffman and Fred Bolt of Thompson Creek, who are working an excellent quartz mine in Tallow Box district, recently cleaned up several hundred dollars. A 10-stamp Hammond mill has been installed at the Eureka mine, Soldier Creek district, which has been bonded by the Oregon & California Fields, Ltd. R. Van Brunt, who purchased the Ock placer mines, Happy Camp district, Calif., expects to clean up nearly $100,000 this season. The Williamsburg Mining Co., of which Robt. G. Smith is president, is developing the Bone of Contention mine, situated in Williams Creek district, Josephine County, with excellent prospects. They have sunk a shaft 140 feet deep. The ore sent to the Charleston Fair by the Granite Hill Mining Co., in which C. L. Mangum and J. O. Booth are interested, was awarded a bronze medal. Democratic Times, Jacksonville, June 12, 1902, page 4 Stewart & Banfield at Bolan Creek report another strike on their quartz property. C. L. Mangum, supt. Granite Hill mines, Louse Creek district, says he has resumed operations. Specimens from the Granite Hill mines received the bronze medal award at the Charleston exposition. Grants Pass reports a rich copper strike in the upper Chetco district, in the southern part of the county, extending across the line into Del Norte County, Cal. Much of the rock carries copper values of 30%. The ore was taken from the claims of J. S. Crawford of Denver and associates. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 14, 1902, page 329
Yellow Jacket Mine
Los Angeles men are getting to be proverbially acute in reaching out
the good things to be found, especially in mining ventures. One of the
recent enterprises of this kind is the Oregon Yellow Jacket Mining and
Milling Company, a very promising gold proposition near Gold Hill,
Oregon, of which the officers are S. W. McClendon, president; T. P.
Jordan, vice president; L. F. Jordan, general manager, and I. B.
Hamilton, secretary. The directors are the above-named gentlemen and
the Hon. F. C. Austin of the Indemnity Title and Trust Co. of this
city, two of the directors being from Los Angeles and one from Anaheim.
The business office of the company is located in this city.The property consists of one full quartz claim, the "Yellow Jacket," and two nearly full-sized claims adjoining. The "Roll, Jordan, Roll," and the "Roaring Gimlet," No. 2, all in Jackson County, Oregon, two miles from Gold Hill and one-half mile from Rogue River. The mines are gold properties solely, free milling, and the ore on the face of the drift assays at $36 to the ton, according to the prospectus of the company, and at no place does it show on the 1000 feet of ore chute uncovered values of less than $5 to $18 a ton, and is at no place less than one foot in width. The company is incorporated for $1,000,000 under the laws of Arizona. Los Angeles Herald, June 15, 1902, page 12 W. King has bought the Taylor Bros. mine on Hungry Creek for $5000, and will put on a 5-stamp mill. The Oregon Yellow Jacket M.&M. Co. is organized under the laws of Arizona to work a gold property 2 miles from Gold Hill, ½ mile from Rogue River. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 21, 1902, page 341 A Boom Town's Fate.
Near Grants Pass the Champion M. Co., Williams district, will put in a
five-ton air compressor and other machinery and improvements at the
Rising Star mine. The company will run a tunnel in the mountain 3000
feet to tap the famous Tip-Top ledge.
Miners are a queer crowd of nomadic creatures, and their migrations are
as sudden and as little premeditated as are the movings of the Arabs of
the desert. Last year they were all rushing to the Baker City district,
being lured there by the glowing finds, announced from day to day, by
the Baker City papers, acting under the inspiration of promoter Letson
Balliet,
who is now on his way to the penitentiary for overdoing the "promoting"
business. And now these same miners are all rushing to Grants Pass in
response to fabulous finds that are reported in column's length in
issues of the Oregonian
and the Telegram and
in the Grants Pass papers, said to be prepared by a Kansas boomer, who
is doing the "promoting" act in that section this year. As a result of
the work of the Portland and Grants Pass papers, the latter town is
said to be in the midst of a big mining boom, and such is the rush,
both coming and going, that it is said that the town's population
changes once in each six weeks.
Baker City is having a dull season this year owing to the "unavoidable" absence of their promoter, and Grants Pass will share the fate that comes to all boom mining towns, and about next year the most conspicuous thing that a stranger is quite certain to observe in that place will be the number of "For Rent" signs that will be displayed along its streets. There is considerable mineral wealth in Josephine County, and the mines adjacent to Grants Pass will for years to come give to that place a healthy growth. But such booms as the town is said to be having this year--for such is the rush that men walk the streets many a night, being unable to secure a bed--do a town more harm than good. The less that a town has to do with boomers and booms the more certain and solid will be its growth. Medford Mail, July 4, 1902, page 5 "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 5, 1902, page 14 Cinnabar Mine and Other Property.
J. H. Ray, the well-known mining man, of this city, left Wednesday,
accompanied by H. W. Jackson, for Beaver Creek, where they go to locate
a cinnabar mine, which they have prospected and have found to be quite
rich. Mr. Ray is the pioneer in the quicksilver mines in this section,
having opened up several very fine mining properties, and he thinks
this new ledge is quite as rich as any that he has heretofore worked.
Tuesday Mr. Ray had with him one of his partners, John Griffin, who had
come up from Smith River to consult with Mr. Ray in regard to a new
mine that they have just opened on that stream. This mine promised to
be a very rich placer mine, and they brought water to it to work it as
such, but when the surface dirt was piped off a dike 400 feet in width
was laid bare that was very rich in gold. The dike is a very friable
porphyry, interspersed with but small pieces of quartz, which enables
the rock to be readily worked with a Huntington
roller. It is the intention of Mr. Ray's company to install a
roller and begin the work of taking out the gold.
Medford Mail, July 18, 1902, page 3 The Golden Drift M. Co. is damming Rogue River 3 miles above Grants Pass. The dam is built one-third of the distance across the river. Many Josephine prospectors and miners are turning their attention towards platinum. The Welsbach Co of Philadelphia has men in the placer fields of the Illinois River looking for that metal. They have patented machinery of their own design and hope to secure enough to partly supply the needs of their company. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 19, 1902, page 40 The Mountain View Copper Co. has incorporated at Kerby, W. J. McNamara, W. E. Olmstead, J. L. Lowell. Ramsey & Ingram, two miners of Grants Pass, say they have discovered a nickel ledge, Butcherknife Creek, western Josephine County, with a width of 100 feet and exposed for 200 feet up either wall of Butcherknife Creek, at the point where that stream cuts through it. Serpentine is the predominating formation. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 26, 1902, page 54 SOUTHERN PACIFIC FINDS A COAL MINE
What looks to be a most important find has been made by the Southern
Pacific Company where they are prospecting in the Asbestos section in
the northern part of Jackson County in Southern Oregon, where a
six-foot ledge of good steam coal was found. The work has been
prosecuted with considerable vigor, and a force of seventeen men under
the direction of the company's experts, E. T. Dumble and J. Owens. Six
steam drills have been at work and two tunnels driven on the ground in
which the company has been operating. The company is reported as being
greatly encouraged by this find and their experts have great faith in
the existence of large coal deposits in the locality. The discovery
promises to create no little stir, and prospecting will be
energetically pushed from now on.The Sun, Colusa, California, July 31, 1902, page 4 Operations at the Oregon Bonanza, Williams Creek, have been suspended. Supt. Rogers is in San Francisco to consult with the company. Machinery at the Granite Hill mines, Louse Creek district, is in operation. The properties are being developed. The quartz is giving returns of $26 per ton. The Red Jacket mine is opened to a depth of 300 feet. The Granite Hill M. Co. owns 500 acres of mineral land; 240 acres of this is placer land. The company operates a large hydraulic mine. The company expects to put in an extensive plant and work the group of mines as one big quartz property. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 2, 1902, page 66 The Hammersley or Daisy, Jumpoff Joe Creek, is out of litigation. It belongs to W. H. Emerson. The Hammersley mine will now be operated. C. R. Ray of Gold Hill will dam Rogue River and build a ditch for mining, milling and other purposes. He has let a contract at Grants Pass for 140 M. feet lumber for the flume. It will require 500 men for a year. The yield of placer gold from the 150 hydraulic mines, Josephine district, for this season, is reported 40% greater this year than in any past season, due to the heavy rains. Nearly all of the hydraulic mines increased their equipment last summer. At the Victor Junior mine, Grave Creek, twenty stamps are to be added, a new hoist, engines, boilers, drills and a cyanide plant put in. Platinum discoveries have been made in the Meredith placers of the Illinois district. The platinum of the Illinois is found with the black sand deposits on the serpentine bedrock. The Eureka mine of Soldier Creek has installed a 10-stamp mill. The Golden Drift M. Co., which own and operate the Dry Diggings hydraulic mines, are building a power dam across Rogue River, 3 miles above Grants Pass. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 9, 1902, page 80 At the Sterling placer mine two giants are operated; twenty-five men have been employed but hydraulicking will probably be suspended next week for the cleanup. A strip of conglomerate about 20 feet wide next to the bedrock, parallel with the old channel and near the center, requires blasting before the monitors are turned on it. After a cannonade of dynamite cartridges on this cement bed, the streams of water do the remainder of the work effectively. Robert Bond, near Jacksonville, has developed by tunnel levels ground favoring that kind of exploration. A 5-stamp mill is in operation on the property. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 16, 1902, page 96 S. Penrose, secretary Waldo S.&M. Co., is visiting the mines of the company at Waldo, where men are developing the properties and erecting buildings. The company projects the erection of a new smelter at Waldo. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 23, 1902, page 109 The Golden Drift M. Co. expects to have its dam near Grants Pass completed this season. Rogue River at the point where the dam is constructed is 240 feet wide, average depth 6½ feet. The entire length of the dam will be 650 feet. At the bottom the dam is 100 feet wide. A 60-foot apron will be laid upstream, giving a 160-foot surface on the bottom, strengthened by two rows of piling tipped with steel to permit of them being driven into the cement bed of the river. The timbers used are 12x12 inches. The height of the dam is 20 feet and the race is 90 feet wide, 25 feet deep. The bays will admit ten water wheels, giving 8000 H.P. There will be one pump lifting a 24-inch stream and delivering 22,000 gallons of water per minute. This pump weighs 43,000 pounds. Four other pumps will be installed at first, capable of lifting 9000 gallons each against an 800-foot head. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 30, 1902, page 122 At the mines of the Waldo Smelting & Mining Co. a new town has sprung up called Takilma. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 13, 1902, page 152 Southern Oregon Mining Notes.
Reports
come of a number of important gold discoveries
being made on Mule Creek and in the lower Rogue River country. This
section is highly mineralized and has never been prospected to any
extent. A better field in this respect is not offered the prospector
anywhere. The river bars and banks are being washed down and cradled
through rockers or over sluices in the old-fashioned way. While this is
a primeval method of doing things, it is about as far along as most of
that section has got, and those who are in there and at work are making
money. A post office has been established at the Greenback mine, and
will be known as Greenback. The new mill being built at this mine will
be ready for work in about six weeks. The Sumpter Miner, September 17, 1902, page 9 JACKSON COUNTY.
L. B. Chase is developing the Palmer mine at Jacksonville. Superintendent Morris of the Fish Lake Ditch Co., Jacksonville, says he can give employment to a number of men at $2 a day. A tunnel is to be driven at the Simmons & Cameron hydraulic mines, Waldo, to give way for a sluice and give access to a placer bed that cannot be reached in any any other way. The tunnel will be 1250 feet in length, through solid rock. The managers of the Simmons & Cameron placers is putting in a hydraulic elevator and a new and larger pipeline on the Illinois River. The Gold Bug, Mt. Reuben district, is having its equipment doubled by the addition of new boilers, hoists, compressors, engines and pumps. The Gold Bug is opened by tunnel and shaft 500 feet. Ore values run $18 per ton in free gold and concentrates. The latter are treated by the cyanide plant. The tailings are cribbed up and run through the cyanide plant. S. Cole is superintendent. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The suit of E. McCann against the Althouse M. Co. resulted in no
damages for plaintiff. The suit was to restrain defendant in the
operation of a placer mine, and from damaging McCann by flowing water
over his land and depositing mining debris and slickens. Judge
Bellinger of the Portland U.S. Circuit Court held that plaintiff is not
entitled to such relief, and the complaint was dismissed. The water
used in the operation of the mine is taken from Althouse Creek by a
tunnel through a divide that separates the waters of that creek from
Democrat Creek. McCann owns 425 acres of land, which he values at
$10,000, and he complained that the water from the mines is filling up
the channels of Democrat Creek and the water is spread over his land,
rendering it boggy and unfit for cultivation. Judge Bellinger reviewed
the evidence at considerable length regarding the fact that witnesses
for McCann testified that fifteen acres were covered with debris;
others said ten acres. On the other hand, twelve witnesses--farmers,
miners and others--testified that there is no debris on the land in
quantity to injure it, and thirteen other witnesses testify to the same
thing. Before starting the mine, the superintendent offered to levee
all the low places on McCann's land, and offered to pay $50 per acre
for the land, and both of these offers were refused, and also an offer
to repair a ditch running through the land. The preponderance of
evidence, the court held, is against the claim of injury and damage,
and the refusal of McCann to permit the defendant to build a levee
along the ditch and improve it and keep it in repair, the court said,
was unreasonable. The Snelling-Alfred quartz mine, Galice Creek district, has been bought of C. Bradbury by men who will drive a long tunnel to tap the ledge at greater depth. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 20, 1902, page 169 The Almeda M. Co., Galice district, have four quartz claims and fifty acres of gravel lands. They have let a contract for running a long tunnel to C. B. Mattison. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 27, 1902, page 181 The High Line Ditch, which has its terminus 440 feet above the depot at Gold Hill, is assured. The Ray enterprises have 130 men on the payroll. In the building of the Ray Dam men discovered nuggets of various sizes. The gravel panned $2. Rogue River was once known as Gold River. The Bowden group of mines are sold to the Yellow Jacket M.&M. Co. F. Jordan is superintendent. The first payments of $30,000 have already been completed and the final payment of $10,000 takes place today. The property consists of four claims and the vein averages 3 feet. It has been developed to a depth of 150 feet. The company have a 5-stamp quartz mill. Twenty men are employed and $5000 will be spent in boiler, hoists and air compressors. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 11, 1902, page 212 Oregon proposes this winter to establish a state mining bureau. It is a good idea. Every mining commonwealth should have such a state department. Every dollar so spent would be the means of inducing inquiry and development. This is an age of advertising, and no matter how good the wares of the merchant or how valuable the mineral resources of a state, both need proper publicity among buyers. Washington, Idaho, California, Colorado and Montana find it profitable to maintain such an institution, and Oregon could well profit by their example. That state is the possessor of great mineral wealth. Rightly run, an Oregon State Mining Bureau could induce investment, disseminate accurate information and be of great aid in a variety of ways to Oregon mining men. The Oregon Legislature could well appropriate, say, $25,000 annually for the maintenance of a state mining bureau. Its good effects would be manifest and would be immediately noticeable. It is indirectly as much of an advantage to the farmer or lumberman or stock raiser or merchant as it is to the miner to have such an institution. Mining is the great basic industry of the nation. The miner is a consumer of all products, a customer of all manufactures, and a competitor of none. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 18, 1902, page 216 The Simmons & Cameron mine, Waldo, has been worked fifty years and has enough ground in sight to keep the giants busy for years to come. A 1200-foot tunnel is being run to allow the passage of a waterway and make possible the working of ground that could not be reached in any other way. B. E. Meredith, manager and owner of the Meredith placers, Waldo, has returned from Chicago and will work the properties for the fourth season. It is in these placers that a Philadelphia company has been mining for platinum the past summer and has had good success. It is there, also, that the metal, Josephineite, is found in quantity. One feature is a 1200-foot tunnel driven through solid rock, being necessary to let the main flume through to the working grounds of the mine. The Old Channel mines, Galice, will begin work whenever water is afforded. Three giants will be operated. The placer bank has a length of 1300 feet, and a height where it is being piped of 230 feet. Such a bank as this can only be worked from a distance of 400 feet, requiring a pressure of 500 feet in the giants. This carries values all the way from the grass roots to the bedrock, carrying fine gold in the clay capping and coarse gold in the lower strata. Manager W. H. Hampton, of the Columbia placers of the Grave Creek district, is in readiness for work. He will operate two and three giants in the diggings this year. Three other giants are required to operate the elevator for removing the waste. Arc lights are suspended above the diggings for night work. The banks are a gray and red gravel, carrying values in fine and coarse gold.. They occupy the bed of an ancient channel. J. C. Whipp has located the Josephine County caves under the placer mining laws to mine. It will require 6 miles of wagon road before stone can be hauled out. He has located and entered 1320 acres, which cover all the caves and land adjacent. W. H. Brevoort of New York is at Greenback. He is the owner of the Greenback mines and mill and has arranged for ten new stamps with a battery of twenty, to be supplemented with a filter press of German invention to treat the slimes. The workings have attained a depth of 900 feet. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 18, 1902, page 228 Sixteen miles [sic] east of Grants Pass C. R. Ray has 150 men building a dam across Rogue River. T. W. Draper, manager Oregon & Pacific Railway Construction Co., says that within thirteen months Grants Pass and Crescent City, Cal., will be connected by rail, to give an outlet for the product of the copper mines of the Waldo S.&M. Co. The same people are connected with the O.P.R.C. Co. At Takilma the Waldo S.&M. Co. have men developing the properties. The new railroad will cross the road at Grants Pass. It will run across the Illinois Valley of western Josephine, touching at Selma, Kerby and Waldo, cross the state line and follow Upper Smith River, in Del Norte County, Cal., almost to Crescent City. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 25, 1902, page 243 The Simmons-Cameron, Wimer, Meredith and Osgood are the principal hydraulic placer mines of the Waldo district. The managers of all of these properties are preparing for the coming winter's work. The managers of the Simmons-Cameron are driving a 1200-foot tunnel through a mountain to new diggings. They will put in a hydraulic elevator to elevate the waste and tailings, as the slope of the gulch in which the new diggings lie is not sufficient to allow dumping grounds for the giants. Three or four giants will be operated at each of these mines. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 1, 1902, page 258 At the Eureka mine on Soldier Creek manager de Varilla has the 10-stamp mill in operation. Superintendent Thompson, at the Greenback mine, on Grave Creek, is putting in a new 20-stamp mill. The old mill, Greenback mountain, will be reduced to five stamps during the winter and will be used as a custom mill only. Grants Pass figures that the output of placer and quartz gold from the mines of Southern Oregon for 1902 will be 45% greater than it was last year. The total output last season of the mines of Josephine County was $1,054,200. This year it is expected to be $3,000,000. Six-horse teams are hauling machinery for the new 20-stamp mill of the Greenback mine on Grave Creek. The Greenback produces from $23,000 to $30,000 monthly. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 8, 1902, page 274 SMELTER AT WALDO
Colonel
T. W. Draper, manager of the mines of the Waldo Smelting & Mining
Company, at Waldo, announces that his company has decided to put in a
100-ton smelter at once at its copper mines in the Waldo district. The
smelter is to be erected at Takilma, the new town that has sprung up
near the mines, and on the line of the proposed Oregon & Pacific
Railroad.Col. Draper's Co. to Put in 100-Ton Plant. A smelter at Waldo will be of great benefit to the vast mineral district of that section, as, aside from treating the ores of the Waldo Smelting & Mining Company's mines, it would also do a general custom business. A number of good mines of that section would be able to do their smelting at home and with much less expense than heretofore, as they have been obliged to haul their ores to the railroad and ship to California. Many mine owners who could afford to ship their ores will be able to operate their properties by having a smelter at home. With the building of the smelter, the traffic over the stage road from Grants Pass to Waldo will be much greater than it is at present, and hence the necessity of having a better road. For this purpose the county has appropriated $1000 for the improvement of the road, and the Board of Trade of Grants Pass and the citizens in general are aiding liberally toward its betterment. Under present conditions, it is well nigh impassable during the wet weather of the winter months. A bridge is also to be built across the Illinois River at Waldo for the convenience of the miners and farmers of this district, but more especially for the copper and gold miners who will have refractory ores to haul to the smelter. Valley Record, Ashland, November 13, 1902, page 1 JACKSON COUNTY.
In Wolf Creek district ditches are being enlarged, new flumes built and
preparation made for the operation of the hydraulic mines this winter.
Scribner & Henderson have in a new arrastra that will break
eighteen tons of rock a day. The Wolf Creek M.&D. Co. has men
at
work on their quartz and placer properties. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Supt. Ryan is
developing the Harth quartz property, near Woodville. A tunnel will tap
the vein at a depth of 200 feet. The Sowell copper mines of Althouse district have closed down temporarily. Six tons of smelted copper matte are shipped to San Francisco. The new group of copper mines at Althouse, in the Grayback Mountain, located last year by Babcock & Kitterman, are under development. T. W. Draper, manager Waldo S.&M. Co. at Waldo, says his company will put in a 100-ton smelter at Takilma, a new town that has sprung up near the mines and on the line of the proposed Oregon & Pacific railroad. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 15, 1902, page 288 JACKSON COUNTY.
Near Gold Hill, superintendent Jackson is developing the Bowden and
Yellow Jacket, getting ready for new drills and hoisting works. Superintendent Phelps, at the Anderson mine on Foots Creek, has a vein 2 feet wide at a depth of 135 feet which goes $25 to the ton. Superintendent A. Orme has men putting the Ray mine in condition for a new 20-stamp mill. Superintendent Mendenhall is putting in a gasoline engine at the Roaring Gimlet mine. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Harmon-Green placer on Galice Creek has begun piping. The ground to
be worked this winter consists of bars along the east bank of Galice
Creek 1 mile below the forks. The gold is coarse and of high quality. The Wolf Creek M.&D. Co. has a large force at work on its quartz and placer properties. Besides four claims this corporation has 180 acres of valuable placer ground and water rights on Wolf Creek. New ditches are being dug and flumes built, and three ledges are being faced off preparatory to driving a main working tunnel. The Golden Drift M. Co. is building a power dam across Rogue River, 3 miles above Grants Pass, and putting in immense gates and digging out the race and bays for twelve turbine wheels. The dam is built across the river; all that remains to finish its construction is to build it up the required height, giving a 20-foot fall to the water. The twelve turbines will develop 5000 H.P. The power house will contain two sets of pumps, one of which will force the volume of water to the giants in the placer diggings of the company, and the other will lift the water to three irrigating ditches. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 22, 1902, page 301 A Big Mining Deal.
One of the largest mining deals which has occurred in Southern Oregon
for many years was closed in this city last Saturday, whereby a
corporation of California and Eastern capitalists, among them being F.
T. Griffiths and I. B. Hamilton, of Los Angeles, has acquired title to
the famous Bowden mine and the Braden mill and water right in the
Blackwell mining district, near Gold Hill.S. W. McClendon, J. J. Houck and L. F. Jordan, of Gold Hill, were the promoters of the sale, and the original owners of the mine were George C. McDonough and J. F. Davis. New and elaborate machinery for working the mine has been ordered, and the new owners propose to demonstrate the feasibility of deep mining in Southern Oregon. The Yellow Jacket mine, owned by S. W. McClendon and which adjoins the mine sold, will be worked in connection. The parties interested in the transaction have been very reticent concerning the consideration given, and the purchase price is variously stated, running from $20,000 to $150,000, and is very likely somewhere between those figures. It has always been our opinion that valuable quartz mines would be found in Southern Oregon, whenever the capital necessary to sink to the required depth should become interested. Compared with mines in other countries, those of Southern Oregon are mere "surface diggings," and the presence or absence of gold at greater depths has never been demonstrated here. Therefore, we hope that the company which has hold of the Bowden property now will be successful in their undertaking, and near the place where the fabulously rich Gold Hill pocket was taken out, the first quartz mining ever done in Jackson County will open a new era of mining in this section and demonstrate the fact that the gold is in the mountains of Southern Oregon, if you but go deep enough to find it. Medford Mail, November 28, 1902, page 2 Placer mines have water sufficient to start. All expect to get in a longer season of work and get out more gold this season than they have done for many years. A 4-stamp mill goes in the Kramer quartz mine, Mount Reuben district. The Rogue River M., M. and D. Co. has incorporated at Grants Pass, J. P. Brennan, L. Brennan and C. Berry. Los Angeles and Redlands, Cal., men have bought the Dowden gold mine and Braden mill, near Medford, for $100,000. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 29, 1902, page 318 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Homestake mine, near Woodville, has been bonded to Eastern men for
$8000. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The placers of the Waldo district have resumed. The Simmons mine has
enlarged its plant. These mines get water from the Illinois River,
which heads on the north slope of the Siskiyous. In Grave Creek
district the giants have been turned on. Several of these placers have
had extensive repairs and more pay dirt will be moved this season than
ever before. Grants Pass says the recently equipped Eureka mine of the Soldier Creek district has ore giving $15 per ton free on the plates, sulphurets $10 per ton. A 10-stamp mill is on the property. A wagon road is to be built from the main county road and a telephone line to connect with the Co. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 6, 1902, page 332 JACKSON COUNTY MINES.
EARLY RAINS START THE PLACERS TO WORK WHILE GENERAL ACTIVITY IN QUARTZ PREVAILS.
Frank Ketchum, who purchased the Batchelder property on Sardine Creek,
has put a new line of pipe into the diggings and is driving "mountains
to the sea."
J. J. Houck's custom quartz mill at Gold Hill has been running steadily since September, only being shut down long enough to clean up and make repairs around the mill. James Smith, who purchased the Vroman property on Sardine Creek, intends to "knock as much gravel as the next one" this year and already has quite a slice of bedrock uncovered. "Uncle Bob" Cook, who has mined on Foots Creek for the past forty years, has taken advantage of the early run of water and will have more ground moved before Christmas than is usually off by cleaning-up time. H. L. White, of Ashland, who owns the placer claims at the forks of Sardine Creek, has two men at work with his giant. A new ditch is being used on this property which gives a pressure of 285 feet through an 11-inch pipe. Ex-Senator E. B. Dufur has had men at work on his deep race all fall and managed to get it in first-class shape before the heavy rains. His giant is now running night and day. This mine is another of Foots Creek's good producers. George Lance and Lee Cook are blasting the bank in Gold Gulch diggings on Foots Creek and piping the gravel night and day. When the water failed last spring the boys were piping ground that averaged $1.25 per yard. Summer prospecting proved the bank to be an extensive back channel, and portions of it averaged $1.60 per yard. This property will make a big cleanup in the spring. The Black Gold Channel placer mine on Foots Creek, under the management of A. E. Ruble, who has the property leased, is being worked with two giants. That is the only mine in that locality using a Ruble elevator. Six men are employed in the diggings this year, and from the amount of bedrock uncovered so far the spring cleanup will be far ahead of the average, which runs into the thousands. Edward Simons and William Brass, who made a good run from the Purkeypile mine on Galls Creek, have purchased the Thiel mine inside the townsite of Gold Hill, and the first of the week began extracting ore. This ledge was found several years ago by A. Thiel in his side yard. Mr. Thiel conducts a bakery on his premises, and at odd times worked on the ledge. With the help of his son, he sank thirty-five feet and milled several tons of ore, from which he secured handsome returns. It is at that depth that Simons and Brass began work. As they are both practical miners it is likely a full-fledged mine will soon be running behind the high board fence in the town of Gold Hill. Dr. Braden, of Gold Hill, was in the city Tuesday to meet the representatives of the Bowden-Yellow Jacket mines and to complete the transfer of the quartz mill and water right he owns on the east bank of Rogue River, opposite Gold Hill. The new company, which secured control of the Bowden-Yellow Jacket, have been after this mill and water power ever since they secured the quartz property, and by the deal consummated Tuesday will be able to crush their ore as rapidly as the five stamps will do the work. The water power is one of the best along Rogue River. The water is conveyed through a three-foot ditch for two miles and has a fall of eighteen feet into the river. The mill is the latest improved one, thousand-pound stamps, five in number, with concentrator. Should the ore bodies now being developed in the two mines increase in size, as the present showing indicates, the mill will be increased to ten stamps and another concentrator added. It is the intention of the company to sink on both the properties, and new machinery is now on the way. W. J. Stanley, of Ashland, was in the city Tuesday. Speaking of the mining outlook in Southern Oregon, [he] said: "I look for great development in quartz properties during the coming year, not only from the fact that local men are taking considerable active interest in old properties but also from the fact of so many strangers being in the field and yet keeping their actions quiet. For instance, Senator Clark has five men right here in Jackson County who are making regular reports, yet nothing is ever heard of them locally. To my knowledge there will be several properties opened up by spring that have been lying idle for several years." Mr. Stanley has been interested in the Homestake mine at Woodville and recently bonded the property to Spokane parties. The bond has been taken up, a company incorporated, and machinery ordered. Active work will begin the first of the year if the machinery can be delivered by that time. The plant will consist of steam hoist, drills, air compressor and, upon future development, a complete mining plant. The main ledge, which dips at about 60º, has been opened for a distance of 350 feet, carrying values [of] $10 per ton free milling and concentrates worth $200 per ton or a straight assay of $213 per ton. The new company intends to have a "producer" in this property. Dr. C. R. Ray's great work in damming Rogue River for power purposes has not retarded his efforts in developing the mines in Southern Oregon. The doctor has investments from the Mount Reuben district to the head of Elk Creek in Jackson County, and at various points intervening. About two years ago he purchased the Braden mine and mill from Dr. Jas. Braden on Kanes Creek, and since that time has had men at work opening the property in new places. During the past few months work on this particular mine has gone steadily ahead under the supervision of ex-Sheriff Alex Orme, who is superintendent of all of Dr. Ray's mines. This week Mr. Orme reports to Dr. Ray that there was enough high-grade ore blocked out in the Braden mine to pay for all the other mines he owned. That this statement is undoubtedly correct is evidenced from the fact that a new forty-stamp mill has been ordered to replace the old ten-stamp mill now on the property and the further fact that a right-of-way has been cleared across the mountains from the mill to the dam at Tolo for transmission of power to the mine. In addition to that a number of men, in charge of Charles Meirs, are at work on a new tunnel to tap the old Hicks ledge on Foots Creek, at a depth of 350 feet. That is a property Dr. Ray purchased from H. J. Hobbs, H. L. White and John Noe about three years ago. Considerable money has been taken from this property. On Galls Creek, William Blackert is doing assessment work with a crew upon several of Dr. Ray's properties. Up in the Elk Creek district work has been suspended for the winter with sufficient development to warrant going ahead in the spring. Medford Mail, December 12, 1902, page 1 The Greenback G.M. Co. is putting up a 20-stamp mill and an electric light plant at Greenback, 10 miles from Leland. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 13, 1902, page 346 JACKSON COUNTY MINES.
EARLY RAINS START THE PLACERS TO WORK WHILE GENERAL ACTIVITY IN QUARTZ PREVAILS.
H. L. White, of Ashland, will have men at work on his quartz properties
near Rock Creek this week.
The cold weather of the latter part of the week caused a lightness of water in many of the placer claims, and only those having good and first water rights were able to run full time. Marion Lance, who is working the old Lance placers on the right-hand fork of Foots Creek, has everything in first-class condition for the winter's run. He will have a crew of four men to assist him. Frank Shaffer, who has some good quartz properties "on the granite" in the Blackwell district, has been going over the work done during the summer and is negotiating with Portland parties who desire to purchase. A. M. Cowgill, of Gold Hill, is prospecting near Cinnabar in the interest of himself and Ivan Humason of Medford. Mr. Cowgill found some very good prospects in that locality last fall and went in again three weeks ago with supplies enough for all winter. Duffield & Burns are working their placer on Galls Creek with the full pressure from the high ditch they constructed a year ago. Mr. Duffield will devote all of his time to the mine this winter, having turned his ranch over to his son Charles. The old Hay diggings on Rogue River are being worked this winter with the addition of rock cars which are used in connection with a derrick. This mine has always been a good producer, and with the new methods in vogue will no doubt have an increased output. Simons & Brass retimbered the Thiel mine inside the townsite of Gold Hill this week and sunk about eight feet. They are saying very little about their values, but the indications are that the ore has proven to be of sufficient high grade to meet all expectations. Willis Cramer, the flour mill owner of Myrtle Creek, is working the Tin Pan mine on Galls Creek with three men. This property has been more or less "coyoted," but under Mr. Cramer's management will be systematically developed. Considerable money has been taken from this property in the past. H. A. Meyer and Nelson Hebert have been doing considerable work on the extension to the Cheney-Humason property in Blackwell district and have struck an extensive ledge carrying good values throughout. Mr. Meyer is at present in Portland on business connected with the property and expects to have a full crew at work as soon as he returns. McClure & Ward are drifting on their Water Gulch ledge, which is improving with every foot of development. Mr. McClure has been very successful in his operations in that locality, having milled some of the best rock ever extracted in that vicinity. He considers the property they are working one of the best in the district. Work on the Big Foot mine in Colvig Gulch opposite Rock Point has been suspended during the settlement of negotiations for a sale. Portland parties are after the property. The lead in this mine is small, but the values are high as was shown by the rock milled by Simons, Wolfe & Foster, who recently sold the mine to J. R. Briggs for $1,000. The sale of the Gold Chloride mine on Wards Creek is still in abeyance, owing to matters connected with other property. The Portland company holding the bond has been granted an extension of time, and it is believed the price will be paid in a short time, as over $7,000 has been expended thus far by the holders of the bond. Elisha Ray, who struck a rich chute of ore on his Water Gulch property near Gold Hill three years go and from which he extracted about $4500, has been cleaning out part of the old work and timbering. He has run into what he considers the original lead, which had been lost, and from the prospects he has been getting is under the impression that he has a true fissure, which he always contended was there. He is planning to put machinery on the property in the spring, but in the meantime will work along by the present methods. I. L. Hamilton has purchased a one-third interest in the Monumental quartz mine from Baker & Jackson and will take an active part in the development of the property The mine is situated on Shelly Creek in California and has a ledge forty-two feet wide at the surface. It is a free gold proposition, carrying fair values. Considerable work has been done on the property in the way of a seven-hundred-foot tunnel and about one hundred and fifty feet of shaft. Work has been suspended for the winter owing to snow but will be resumed in the spring. Medford Mail, December 19, 1902, page 1 JACKSON COUNTY.
A cyanide plant is being built at the Dewey mine, near Gazelle. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Baby quartz mine,
in Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass, has been bonded to C. C.
Higgins of Salt Lake City, Utah. N. E. Smith, owning the St. Helena placer mines at Waldo, says the parties having a bond on the property have stopped work for the winter because of snow and a slide, which carried away part of the ditch. The gravel is hydraulicked, the water being brought in 5½ miles by ditch and flume. The 10-stamp mill at the White Swan mine is running on ore from the third level. A station pump is being set up on the third level. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 20, 1902, page 361 JACKSON COUNTY.
J. W. Opp has atarted his quartz mill on the Golden Standard mine near
Jacksonville. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Homestake property
in Evans Creek district, 9 miles from Grants Pass, is reported bonded
to Eastern men for $8000."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 27, 1902, pages 374-375 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Western Star M. Co., operating near Medford, is running a tunnel on
the ledge and has cut a body of quartz that carries high values in
gold. Six men are working on the Whale tunnel. The number will be
increased and a crosscut tunnel begun 200 feet below the workings. The
ledge is 12 feet wide where the pay rock is found. Dr. Damourette is
the president of the company. The Record says work is being done on the placers of Coleman Creek, near Ashland. D. B. Reames has resumed work on his ground. J. Layton, owner of the Layton placer mine in the Applegate country, has leased his water privileges for the season to Watson & Durham of Portland. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Greenback mine of the Grave Creek district, near Leland, has its
20-stamp mill in operation. A 15-stamp mill was reduced to five stamps,
which will be used for sampling. The new mill was built farther down
Greenback Mountain. The crew has been increased, drills added, a hoist
put in, larger engines and boilers installed and electric lighting and
cyanide plants added. The mine is opened to a depth of 800 feet. A 4-stamp mill is being set up at the Fremer and Palmer mine on Mount Reuben, near Grants Pass. The Gold Bug mine, on Mount Reuben, has closed for repairs. The New York & Western M. Co. has bought the Oregon Belle mine, near Grants Pass, for $30,000. The Oregon Belle, in depth, shows a body of ore carrying free gold and sulphurets. A Huntington mill on the mine has been operated by former owners. The new owners will develop the property. They will put in a large mill as soon as they have the mine sufficiently opened. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 3, 1903, page 14 JACKSON COUNTY.
J. W. Coffman has sold 240 acres of placer ground on Forest Creek, near
Ashland, to E. A. Spaulding et al. of Tacoma for $10,000. The Hicks quartz mine on Blackwell Hill, near Medford, is reported sold to C. A. Greigson of Gold Hill. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. Shaska and P. Robinson have bonded their property in Owl Hollow,
east of Grants Pass, for $40,000 to Colorado men represented by T. J.
Pearce of Gold Hill. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 10, 1903, page 50 A 25-foot vein of coal is reported on Dutcher Creek, 12 miles from Grants Pass. The Granite Hill mines of Louse Creek district, 8 miles north of Grants Pass, have been bought by the American Gold Fields Co. of Chicago. The deal comprises 800 acres of mineral land, both quartz and placer, together with a 5-stamp mill, concentrator and other equipment. The placer mines are equipped with hydraulic plant, with 7 miles of ditches and flumes, hundreds of feet of pipe and two giants. There are over 600 acres of placer ground in the Granite Hill diggings. W. J. Morphy is manager of the company. The Granite Hill mines have been worked for two years past by C. L. Mangum. The new owners, under the direction of their consulting engineer, W. Devarila, will develop the Granite Hill mines and expend $75,000 in opening and equipping them. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 17, 1903, page 46 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Maybelle mine of the White Cross M. Co., near Gold Hill, was sold
by the sheriff last week to C. Wetherell on a judgment. W. Nash has sold part of his mining ground in Grave Creek district to J. D. Heard, C. Strang, W. S. Jones and F. King, who will cut a ditch and begin development. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Gold Mining King group of claims, on Josephine Creek, in western
Josephine, has been bonded by M. Marks of Seattle, Wash., for $10,000;
he will put up a mill."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 24, 1903, page 62 J. O. Jillson will resume operations at the Jillson & Roberts mine next week. It is reported the La Flesh mine has been bonded to Portland parties. The Bowden M. Co. is reported to have bought the Humason mill and water right, near Gold Hill. The quartz mines south of Myrtle Creek, near Jacksonville, are shipping ore. A 13-ton lot from the Little Chieftain mine returned $700 net. The Continental, adjoining, was sold last week by G. W. Crews to W. B. Stewart for $20,000. Superintendent A. T. Lungren of the Cook & Green copper mine, in the Siskiyou Mountains, near the state line, owned by Cooper, Hamilton & Co., says the ore shows 5% copper and $6 gold per ton. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 31, 1903, page 78 SOUTHERN OREGON
Mining:
Journal of the Northwest Mining Association, February
1903, page 41
J. K. Clark,
brother of Senator Clark the copper king, who recently purchased the
old Booth & Dysert placer mines on Jumpoff Joe, has
practically
made a new placer property out of the old mines, so extensive have been
the improvements that the mines have undergone under his direction. The
placers are now known as the Clark hydraulic mines, and they are abuzz
night and day, with the new equipment in full operation. Mr. Clark had
new and longer ditches built, the old flumes repaired, new piping was
laid and greater pressure secured. Two No. 3 giants are operated under
a pressure of 400 feet. With this gigantic power the streams are hurled
from the giants' nozzles with a force that nothing can withstand. When
the streams are turned aside into the surrounding trees, the great
pines are shorn of their limbs by the cutting avalanche of water as
they would be by a tornado, says the Oregon
Mining Journal.
At night the diggings of the mines are brightly illuminated by many arc lights, electric, supplied by the mine's new plant. These mines have hundreds of acres of rich placer ground, and will add a great quantity of gold to the state's output of the yellow metal during the years that are to come. The Oregon Gold Fields Placer Company, owning a large tract just above this property, will be operating on an extensive scale this year. Their ground is thoroughly proven, is rich and easily worked, the ditches are in good condition and good pressure is had. JACKSON COUNTY.
N. Herbert, operating a quartz property near Gold Hill, in Water Gulch
district, has opened up a chute of free gold ore, 18 inches wide. Hillis Bros. are operating their hydraulic mine in Pleasant Creek district. The Opp mines, 1 mile from Jacksonville, have been sold to Eastern men. with W. de Warlia as manager, for $150,000. A 40-stamp mill is to be installed as soon as the mines are opened up. The Rogue River Valley Railroad will run a branch from Jacksonville to the mine. It is reported that the Bowden mine, near Gold Hill, will resume. S. McClendon and L. F. Jordan, controlling the mine, have bought the Braden stamp mill and equipment on Rogue River, opposite Gold Hill, for $10,000. N. Herbert, who recently bonded the E. Ray mine, near Gold Hill, sank 50 feet in the old shaft and reports a 19-foot vein, 2 feet of which is rich in gold and tellurides. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
In the northwestern part of the county the St. Helens & Galice
M.
Co. are working on Dutch Boys Bar, near Galice, gravel that prospects
50 cents to the pan, says superintendent A. B. Cousin. This company
owns and is operating, by hydraulic, 300 acres of placer ground, on the
upper part of Galice Creek on both forks."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 14, 1903, page 110 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Opp quartz mine (the Beekman & Huffer mine), near
Jacksonville,
has been sold for $150,000 to a Boston company. A. U. Mills of Tacoma,
Wash., is president. A 20-stamp mill will be built. There are 2000 feet
of tunnel and shaft work done. D. S. Sanford of the Shorty Hope M.&M. Co. says work will be resumed on the Shorty Hope quartz mine, near Ashland. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Scribner-Henderson mine, near Wolf Creek, has been sold to the
Mountainview Copper Co., of which W. E. Olmstead is manager, and which
owns copper interests in the Waldo district. The Scribner-Henderson
ores are free milling and development will begin next week and a
complete plant and mill will be installed."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 28, 1903, page 142 The Pease hydraulic mine on Upper Grave Creek, near Grants Pass, has installed an additional giant. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 7, 1903, page 158 W. E. Olmstead, manager of the Mountain View Copper Co., that recently bought the Scribner-Henderson mines near Wolf Creek, says he will install a 30-stamp mill. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 14, 1903, page 174 The Oro Fino quartz mine, in Jumpoff Joe district, near Merlin, is to be opened up this spring and a mill installed in the summer, says manager Chase, of Portland. The Oro Fino has two veins, parallel and 40 feet apart, and a tunnel, 600 feet in length taps one at a depth of 125 feet from the surface. A crosscut from this will be run to cut the parallel vein which was the one worked at the surface. The Golden Drift M. Co. has moved its sawmill near the dam being built by it across the Rogue River, at the Dry Diggings, near Grants Pass. The dam will be finished next month, after which machinery will be installed in time for the beginning of the fall season. This winter the company has had two giants at work in the diggings, using water from Jones Creek. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 21, 1903, page 189 Manager H. Wood, of the company which has taken up the claims showing jade recently found on Althouse and Indian creeks, near Althouse, says development work will begin next week. At the Hall group of mines on Grave Creek, owned by J. & G. Hall of Grants Pass, development has uncovered a body of black oxide of manganese in quartz which carries values in gold. While piping at the lower end of their placer diggings on Galice Creek, near Grants Pass, the St. Helens & Galice Co. recently struck an unexpected channel that is yielding pay. This channel is found to extend for several hundred feet along the creek and to carry values through its whole extent. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 28, 1903, page 205 JACKSON COUNTY.
The United States M.&M. Co. has been incorporated by E. A. L.
Smith, F. J. Catterlin and J. R. James, to operate a group of mines in
Water Gulch, Sams Creek district, 2½ miles from Gold Hill. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Gold Bug mine, on Mount Reuben, near Grants Pass, has been
temporarily closed down, due to an impending change of management. The
mine is opened to a depth of 600 feet and shows high-grade ore. The Copper Stain mine, on Mount Reuben, owned by Dana Bros., will have a stamp mill and other machinery. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 18, 1903, page 254 JACKSON COUNTY.
(Special Correspondence)--Ward & Co., the purchasers of the
copper
mine on the Illinois River, are sending via Jacksonville supplies and
men for opening up the mine. Jacksonville,
April 20.
It ia locally reported the Elliott Creek copper mines in the Siskiyou
Mountains, near the state line, southwest of Ashland, have been sold to
P. Clarke of Spokane, Wash., for $210,000, of which $65,000 has been
paid down. Development work will begin next week. A daily stage line
has been put on between Jacksonville and the mines. The Joe Creek copper mines, 25 miles from Jacksonville, have been sold to P. Clark of Butte, Mont., for $210,000. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Superintendent J. T. Logan of the Simmons-Cameron placer mine, near
Waldo, says they have had a profitable run this season. The hydraulic
elevator has permitted of handling a large amount of gravel at less
cost than in previous seasons. At the Kramer-Palmer mine of Mt. Reuben, near Grants Pass, a 4-stamp mill has been put in. The ledge being opened up shows 5 feet wide, carrying values in free gold. S. Bowden of Spokane, Wash., has taken over the Free and Easy quartz mine, near Grants Pass. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 25, 1903, page 271 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Eureka quartz mine, on Steamboat Creek, one of the larger
tributaries of the upper Applegate River, near Jacksonville, is being
worked by G. S. & J. M. Bristow, A. Wakefield, W. H. Mowat, J.
L.
Penton and A. Ahlstrom of Ashland, owners. The vein is showing a width
of 18 inches and assays $100. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. G. Hayden is working his quartz mine on Galice Creek, near Placer,
and handling the ore in an arrastra, water power being used. The vein
has an average width of 20 inches and runs $20 per ton. The ore carries
some sulphurets. Superintendent C. D. Crane has seven men at work at the Lucky Queen mine, Jumpoff Joe district, near Merlin, being operated under a bond held by W. F. Harrington of Ashland. A tunnel has been run to connect with a winze of the old workings. Another tunnel is being run which will tap the ledge at a depth of 70 feet. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 9, 1903, page 309 The Kramer-Palmer quartz mill on Mt. Reuben, near Grants Pass, is in operation. The mill is of four stamps, run by water power, and the ore free-milling. An impounding dam has been constructed to catch the tailings. The mine is on the Rogue River side of Mt. Reuben, near the mouth of Whiskey Creek. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 16, 1903, page 324 JACKSON COUNTY.
A 5-stamp mill and other machinery have been installed at the Bowden
quartz mine, near Gold Hill, by the Bowden G.M. Co. of Los Angeles,
Cal. They have run a number of tunnels and shafts and exposed a
workable ore body. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The smelter at the Sowell copper mine, near Waldo, will be blown in
next week. These mines are owned by the Mountain View Copper Co. The
ledges have been opened to depth and carry values in gold with the
copper. The question of transportation is expected to be settled this
summer by building in of the Oregon & Pacific Railroad, which
line
will pass through the center of Waldo district. The Waldo S.&M.
Co.
are preparing to open up their mines next month."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 23, 1903, page 341 W. T. Cope is developing the quartz mine of Schrimpf Bros. on Maple Gulch on the Applegate River, near Provolt, under bond. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 30, 1903, page 357 JACKSON COUNTY.
Superintendent J. P. Harvey of the Blue Ledge C. Co. of Upper
Applegate, on Joe Creek, near Jacksonville, says a diamond drill outfit
is being set up to prospect their ground. The Blue Ledge Co. has
fifteen men at work on two tunnels they are driving at the main ledge. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A strike of copper ore is reported on Collier Creek, in Lower Illinois
River district, near Grants Pass, by F. Reed of Roseburg, et al. Some
of the ore shows native copper. The find was made in the Collier Creek
country, 18 miles south of Rogue River and west of the Illinois River,
of which Collier Creek is a tributary. Sixteen claims were located."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 6, 1903, page 373 Death of James Sterling.
PORTLAND, Or., June 14.--James Sterling, a pioneer of Jackson County
and probably the best-known prospector and miner of the type of the '49
days in Southern Oregon and Northern California, died at Yreka on
Friday, aged 76 years. San Francisco Call, June 15, 1903, page 2 NEW MINING CAMP.
Probably no mining country in the Northwest is commanding more
attention at the present time than the Blue Ledge district just south
of the Oregon-California boundary line.Extensive Development in Blue Ledge Camp, Near California Line. The Clark camp, where most of the development work is being done, is reached by a somewhat arduous trip. The main line of the Southern Pacific is left at Medford, Or., and the branch line followed five miles to its terminus at Jacksonville, where a 30-mile stage ride is added to the trip. Van B. DeLashmutt came in from the new district Thursday night and gives a very encouraging report of the camp's future prospects. The property that is attracting the most attention is a group of 14 claims known as the Blue Ledge mine, and bonded tor $240,000 by "Patsy" Clark and Major Kingsbury, of Spokane, two of the best-known mining promoters in the Northwest. Placer mining has been done throughout the Blue Ledge district for the past 45 years, but quartz mining was an entirely new feature up to a few months ago. The property is owned by William Hamilton, William F. Malone, George M. Keller, M. Wenger, B. C. Adams, Samuel H. McVey and L. F. Cooper, all of Del Norte County, Cal. These men partially developed the property last fall in search of gold, but striking base ore in their tunnel, decided the property to be valueless. Several other old miners were interested in the property up to that time and forfeited their interests for paltry sums. Reddy & Beisel, the Spokane brokers, got possession of the property and through them it was bonded to Clark and Kingsbury for $250,000, of which $10,000 was paid in cash. Another payment of $50,000 is to be made on October 1, and the balance on October 1, 1904. Three months' work has developed the prospect into a mine that is already upon a paying basis. The first work done was a 150-foot tunnel, run on the ledge, the last 100 feet of which was in paying ore. The tunnel was extended 50 feet and the ledge crossed 50 feet, the entire crosscut being in solid ore. Work is now being confined to drilling with diamond drills, and while the results are kept secret, as nearly as can be ascertained, the ore is averaging 5 percent copper, $5 in gold and some silver. A smelter will be built in the near future and the work of blocking out the ore will commence. James P. Harvey is superintendent of the mine: David O'Neill, foreman, and Billy Cleary has charge of the pack train operated between Clark and Jacksonville. Many other promising properties are being developed, among them a claim bought by Charles Sweeney a short time ago for $5000. Pete Larson, the well-known Montana mining promoter and millionaire, is also developing a claim. Forest & Wakefield, of Spokane, have several men driving a tunnel on one of their properties, R. K. Neill, Finch & Campbell's mining expert, was looking over the camp a short time ago, and it is believed that he has secured options on several properties. Van B. DeLashmutt has an interest in a group of five claims within a few hundred feet of the Blue Ledge mine. The camp is full of old miners who regard it as a most promising district. Among the miners in the camp are William Painter, locator of the American Eagle, at Dixie, Idaho; Joe Morris, locator of the War Eagle, Le Roi and Center Star mines; Oley Jeldness, Henry Callahan, L. Roy Slater, the Spokane broker; Reddy & Beisel, of Spokane; Jack Fitzgerald, Emmet Thompson, Mike Sweeney and "Cosegardy'' Jones, the locator of the Rico mine, in the Slocan country. A town site has been laid out and named Clark, after "Patsy" Clark. The settlement is near the Joe Bar, which is at the three forks of Elliott, Joe and Applegate creeks. Oregonian, Portland, June 20, 1903, page 16 JACKSON COUNTY.
J. A. Whitman and J. D. Heard of Ashland have begun operations on a
group of placer claims on Steve's Fork of Steamboat Lake, near
Steamboat, comprising 880 acres of mining ground. They have twenty men
at work and expect to be piping by July 15th. The water supply is
sufficient to run the year round, except a few weeks in the winter when
the water may freeze in the ditch. Later a 3-mile ditch will be built
to cover their whole area. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
At the Gopher quartz mine, in Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass,
men are at work crosscutting the ledge and taking out ore. The Gopher
has a small stamp mill."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 20, 1903, page 402 The Almeda M. Co. report developments progressing on their gold-copper mine, near Galice. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 4, 1903, page 13 At the Greenback mine, on Grave Creek, at Greenback, superintendent C. W. Thompson says work is progressing. The machinery for the 100-ton cyanide plant is in place and ten more stamps are being added to the mill, making a total of forty stamps. The ledges of the Greenback mine lie in Browning Mountain and three drifts have been cut through the hill. The old mill, with its ten stamps, sits on one side of the mountain and the new mill, with thirty stamps, is 450 feet lower and on the opposite aide of the mountain. The cyanide plant is near the 30-stamp mill. The new equipment is below the ninth level of the mine. The mine is electric lighted throughout and there are 7500 feet of tunnels, drifts and upraises, says the Ashland Record. The Golconda quartz mine, near Provolt, under development by D. J. Lawton et al., has a double shift at work, drifting on a 6-foot vein at a depth of 200 feet. The ore carries free gold and sulphurets. At the Lucky Cuss mine, near Murphy, owned by Schrimpf Bros., superintendent W. T. Cope reports work going ahead. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 18, 1903, page 44 Carr & Terry, of Galice, have bought the Bradford placer on Silver Creek and will develop it, putting in hydraulic equipment. This ground is on a bench 150 feet above the creek bed. Todd Creek, a tributary of Silver Creek, furnishes a water right. The ground has been worked to some extent by hand. Ingram & Ramsey are continuing development work on their copper group in Slate Creek district, near Grants Pass. Assays show values of 10% copper. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 25, 1903, page 58 W. H. Hampton is constructing a tubular hydraulic elevator at Deep Gravel placer. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 1, 1903, page 73 JACKSON COUNTY.
The Jacksonville Times
says during the past year a total of 350 mining claims were located in
Jackson County. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
Work is progressing at the Granite Hill mines, near Grants Pass, and
the 10-stamp mill is expected to be in operation early in September.
Development work has been carried on steadily. Improvements in the
equipment of the Granite Hill placers are also in contemplation, among
them a hydraulic elevator on the lower part of the ground."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 8, 1903, page 91 Placer
Mining in Southern Oregon.
Placer mining in Southern Oregon several years ago passed the romantic
stage, and has resolved itself to a conservative industry, and the many
large hydraulic mines that are now robbing the old channels and
auriferous hills in the Southern Oregon placer fields of their gold are
conducted on business methods. The numerous auriferous deposits in the
many streams, the mild winters, and the absence of restricting mining
laws, make Southern Oregon an ideal mining region. Beds of ancient
channels are found along the rivers and streams. It is in the gravel of
these ancient channels that the hydraulic mines are located. The dirt,
the gravel and the decomposed matter of these old channels are all
auriferous in depth from 8 to 200 feet. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. It requires capital, skill and much labor to properly equip a Southern Oregon hydraulic mine. After the diggings have been successfully tested by thorough prospecting, the next important problem is the water supply. (See illustration, front page.) From the headwaters of the nearest stream the water is conveyed around steep mountainsides in ditches that require in places as much work to construct as would a railroad. Long flumes, trestled high, lead the water across deep canyons and gulches, and in many instances long tunnels are driven through mountains. After 10, 20 or 30 winding miles the water is brought to the reservoir on a hilltop several hundred feet above the diggings. The steel pipes lead down to the diggings from the reservoir and, forking, branch off in smaller pipes to the several giants. As the amount of mining done is dependent upon the water supply--other things being equal--that miner who has the best supply for the longest season is the most fortunate. This fact, and the recognition of it, has brought about many important improvements in the matter of hydraulic mining equipment in Southern Oregon in recent years. Placer miners are enlarging their ditches, building bigger and better reservoirs, and doing all possible to keep up a "pipe head" as late in the summer as possible. Formerly a large number--in fact, nearly all--of the placers were obliged to close down early in March or April. Now many of the larger ones operate their giants night and day till June and July, and a few during the day throughout the summer. One mining company, operating on Galice Creek, is now at work building two storage reservoirs at the head of their ditch, that the giants may be supplied a steady and constant flow all summer. As the amount of placer ground which a majority of the mines possess is very large, the question of getting the greatest returns for the labor and capital invested resolves itself to the matter of keeping the giants turned on the gravel banks continually. Closely allied with this is the saving of the gold after the gravel is disintegrated, and sluices are so constructed that with a system of undercurrents not only the coarse gold is caught, but also the flour gold, only a very small percentage of the dust-like particles escaping. Hungarian riffles, block riffles, crossbar riffles, pole riffles and the ordinary bedrock riffles are employed in the sluices to catch the gold. The natural rock riffle in the bedrock race proves to be one of the best for catching gold, and it is here that nearly all of the nuggets and much of the finer gold are found. The sluice boxes are arranged at the end of the bedrock race. Specially prepared crossbar riffles, made of steel, fit in the bottom of the sluices, and are the most used by the hydraulic miners of this section. Farther on, down toward the dump, the last opportunity of catching the gold is utilized by block and pole riffles. The undercurrents are placed alongside the sluice boxes and so arranged that the water, black sand and finer particles are drawn off and spread out over a broad riffle table, where the sand and fine gold particles settle. For night work the larger mines have a score or more of arc lights suspended over the diggings. These are run by the mine's electric light plant. Others use locomotive headlights, stationed conveniently about the grounds. After the first expense of buying and equipping the mine, it costs at the most favorably situated mines from 1½ to 5 cents a yard to hydraulic in Southern Oregon. The gravel generally pays from 6 to 20 cents a yard. The average is between 8 and 12 cents. Giants pay from $75 to $100 a day each. All placer ground in this section is what the miner calls "spotted"--the values are not regularly distributed. All, however, are possessed of the same characteristics. On the bottom, next the bedrock, are the boulders, the nuggets and coarse gold. Above this is the finer gravel and dirt, lying in strata of blue and gray. Still above this is the capping of red clay, which carries values in flour gold. "Cleanup," as the miners term it, usually comes at the end of the season, when there is no longer sufficient water to supply the giants with a full pipe head. The bedrock race is first swept clean and every particle of the precious metal gathered up. The riffles are then lifted from the sluices, thoroughly rinsed and laid aside. With a small stream of water flowing through, the mass of gold and dirt on the sluice floor is swept gently to and fro with a brush broom. The dirt and refuse are carried away by water and flow off over the dump, revealing the black sand and the gold particles in the bottom. The gold is held as an amalgam by the quicksilver that is sprinkled frequently into the sluices during the process of mining. The coarser pieces are first gathered up and the remaining mass swept into piles, scooped up and put into strong bags or glass jars. This done, the gold is ready for the refinery and mint. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 15, 1903, pages 100-101 It is intended to place a 40-stamp mill on the Benton mine, on Whiskey Creek, in the Mt. Reuben district near Grants Pass this fall, says the Courier. There is plenty of water power for the operation of mill and electric plant. The Gold King mine, on Josephine Creek near Grants Pass, has been bought by a company composed of A. J. Roe, D. T. and J. A. Evans, of Fort Worth, Tex., and M. Marks, of Grants Pass, who is superintendent. The new owners will put on a complete equipment of mining machinery, with stamp mill, pumping plant, etc. Men will be started to work on the main shaft. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 15, 1903, page 106 The St. Helens & Galice M. Co., operating on Galice Creek, near Grants Pass, report making preparations for completion of the reservoir at the head of the high ditch; enlarging of all ditches and flumes, putting in an additional hydraulic plant and derrick and a general increase in the facilities for operating at Galice Creek, including the cutting and hauling of 25,000 feet of lumber for the next season's work; also deepening the bedrock cuts, says the Courier. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 22, 1903, page 122 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
I. D. Davidson of Portland, treasurer of the Gold Hill &
Bohemia M.
Co., near Bohemia, says work will be started September 1 on their Wall
Street group. Later a mill will be erected. The ore is copper, gold and
silver. The Oregon Securities Co. has bought the Broadway group of mines, adjoining the Champion basin, near Bohemia. This gives the company a continuous strip of 3 miles of ground. L. Y. Keady, C. H. Thompson, A. W. Goddard, J. B. Glover and J. H. McNicholas of Portland are interested. Improvements and increased developments are under way. There are forty men at work on a 30-stamp mill (the combining of the three 10-stamp mills that have been on different parts of the property). These mills have been idle for some time owing to the scarcity of water, but, combined, will be operated by electricity, generated by water power. A gravity double-track tramway will convey the ore to the mill. Air drills will be used in development, and a tunnel 1400 feet long will be driven. Three saw mills are running steadily on the company's property, says the Portland Telegram. It is reported M. O. Warner of Eugene and J. D. Heard of Medford are arranging to build a smelter at Bohemia, work to begin next month. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
J. M. Marks of Seattle, Wash., has a bond on the Gold Mining King group
of claims and will build a mill thereon. He will also put in a pumping
plant and other machinery. Two carloads of hydraulic pipe for the Simmons-Cameron placer of Waldo are on the ground, says manager J. T. Logan. The pipe is in three sizes, 24, 20 and 18 inches in diameter. Last season's work gave satisfactory results with the hydraulic elevator in operation This year he intends to raise the gravel to height of 34 feet. The Galice Greek H.M. Co., on Galice Creek, near Grants Pass, has men at work digging ditches and building the flume, as well as operating the sawmill and building a reservoir. The sawmill is cutting 5000 feet of lumber from fir and pine timber. This lumber could not be bought on the outside for less than $30 per 1000 feet, but the company operating its own mill cuts it for $7, says manager A. B. Cousin. A rock-filled dam 22 feet high has been built at the head of the main ditch. Besides the flume, which will carry the gravel, there will be five giants at work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, August 29, 1903, pages 139-140 Men have been put to work at the Riverside mine, near Bohemia. Work will hereafter be done by the day, instead of by contract. Another tunnel has been started on the vein, which will be used as a working tunnel for the entire group. "Douglas County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 5, 1903, page 158 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
The North Fairview M. Co., W. Faber, of Albany, president, report
striking a body of ore carrying values in free gold. On the Maine, one
of the 14 claims owned by the company near Bohemia, a ledge 4 feet wide
has been opened. H. Leigh is manager. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
A strike is reported made last week at the Granite Hill mines of Louse
Creek district, near Grants Pass, owned and being developed by the
American G. Fields Co., of Chicago, Ill., W. J. Morphy, manager. In
running a drift on the 125-foot level to connect the bottom of the
vertical shaft with the drift an 11-foot vein has been opened, carrying
values in free gold and sulphurets. The boiler and other machinery has
been set up, and the air compressor and drills will be at work this
week. The shaft will be continued down to 600 feet. The 5-stamp mill is
crushing rock from the stope on the 135-foot level. A 10-stamp mill of
1000-pound stamps is going up. The Eureka mine, on Soldier Creek, near Grants Pass, has reverted to its former owner and A. F. Nelson is manager, and will increase development work. The mine is equipped with a 10-stamp mill. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 12, 1903, page 175 BELIEVE THAT AN EVIL INFLUENCE IS AT WORK
Redding, Sept. 14.--Four men have mysteriously disappeared from the
head of Grave Creek, Jackson County, Oregon, within the past year, and
the periodical disappearance is causing no little alarm and anxiety
among the residents of that locality, who are coming to believe that
there is some evil influence at work. The latest disappearance is that
of James L. Dickenson, who has been missing since April 27, when he was
last seen alive by his partner, Henry Zimmerman. Dickenson disappeared
from the identical spot that Harmon Snyder was seen last June and from
where an old man named Kirk disappeared a year ago. Dickenson and his
partner had visited Placer a few days before his disappearance and he
remained there while Zimmerman returned alone to the mine, which they
had leased. Two or three days later he appeared at the mine and spoke
to his partner, who was busy at the cabin. The latter soon after came
outside and Dickenson was nowhere to be seen. From that day to this no
trace of him has been found. He was 58 years old, of medium height and
weighed 160 pounds.The Sun, Colusa, California, September 14, 1903, page 2 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
Gold- and
copper-bearing ore is reported found on Section Creek, 1 mile southwest
of Glendale, by C. Stuerhoff. JACKSON COUNTY.
The Gold Hill dam across the Rogue River, near Gold Hill, built to
conserve the water for power purposes, has exposed a gravel bar
carrying placer gold in the bed of the stream which is believed when
worked will more than repay the cost of building the barrier which
caused its discovery, says the Telegram.
A. Orme, foreman of dam construction, panned out $100 in two and
one-half hours, and the Condor Power Co., to whom the dam belongs, are
making preparations to work the property. The bed of Rogue River
adjacent to the dam Is being thoroughly prospected. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The St. Helens M. Co and the Galice Hydraulic M. Co., on Galice Creek,
near Grants Pass, have been consolidated as the Galice Con. M. Co.,
which has been incorporated at Portland by A. B. Cousin, E. E. Cable,
H. Wiedler, G. B. Hengen, G. W. Kirkley, G. E. Waggoner and W. P. Wagy.
A. B. Cousin of Portland is manager. The placer ground bought in the
consolidation contains 600 acres, and well covered with timber. Water
power of sufficient capacity to furnish electricity for their purposes
is nearby. The work thus far done is 10 miles of ditches, 11 miles of
pipelines, derricks, sawmill, blacksmith shop and other buildings. The
improvements to be added will be an 8-foot flume, which will be capable
of running six giants and will have taps along its entire distance,
where connections can be made. Manager Cousin has twenty-five men at
work."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 19, 1903, page 193 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
Manager J. F. Hard says he is preparing to build a sawmill of 7000 feet
daily capacity on the Vesuvius claim, near Bohemia, to cut lumber for
use on Hard's mining properties in Bohemia district. The flume and dam of the Oregon Securities Co., near Bohemia, are completed and the power house under way. The Champion Tunnel is going ahead, but all the work done thus far has been by hand. Coal is being hauled to the mine and the compressors will start next week. It is expected to have the mine and mill running to full capacity by Nov. 1st. Work is progressing on the Vesuvius and Oregon-Colorado mines. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Dowell mines, on Mount Baldy, 3 miles east of Grants Pass, have
been bought by the Comstock G.M. Co. of Danville, Ill. The Dowell mines
consist of three quartz claims, the Golden Eagle, Mountain Eagle and
Gray Eagle, and are partially developed. At one time a mill was
operated on the claims. The Gold King mine, on Josephine Creek, near Grants Pass, has been bought by the Gold King M. Co., comprised of Texas men who have held it under bond. M. Marks of Seattle, Wash., is superintendent. The shaft that is being sunk shows a vein 6 feet wide and carrying average values of $16 a ton in gold. C. L. Mangum is developing a group of fourteen copper claims near Waldo. The claims are between the Cowboy and Waldo mines of the Waldo S.&M. Co. The ledges are from 4 to 25 feet in width. The Champlin M. Co., composed of Montana and Chicago, Ill., men, who will dredge Foots Creek, a few miles south of Grants Pass, report preliminary work under way. Shipments of lumber are arriving, both for the construction of the dredger and for the dam that is being built across the creek near its junction with Rogue River. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, September 26, 1903, page 209 Hydraulic
Mining in Southern Oregon.
The little county of Josephine alone, in Southern Oregon, contains
nearly 100 hydraulic placer mines--placers they are that are busy from
three to nine months in the year. Probably there is no other section of
like area the world over that can claim such an acreage of placer
ground. The story of the origin of this big placer field is an
interesting one, notwithstanding the fact of its being geological in
tone. A long time ago, before this part of old earth was torn upside
down and made over again, there flowed northward from what is now
Siskiyou County, Cal., a great river. This mighty stream was from
½
mile to 1 mile in width, and its ancient bed can be traced today from
the Oregon-California line northward through the Waldo, Illinois,
Galice, Grave and Cow Creek districts, disappearing entirely near
Glendale, where the mountains of Cow Creek Canyon have buried it from
view. The formation of new mountains, rivers and streams have uncovered
portions of the ancient stream's bed; at others they have buried it
deep beneath towering crags and mountain peaks. But it is the
auriferous filling, the conglomerate mass of gravel, clay and
decomposed matter of this ancient river that makes the diggings of the
placer mines of Southern Oregon today. Streams and rivers cutting
across this old channel have scattered the gold for miles and formed
the smaller later channels along these waterways and gulches. A number
of the largest of the Southern Oregon placer mines are located directly
on this ancient channel, among them being the Old Channel and Galice
Creek hydraulic mines of Galice Creek; the Deep Gravel, Simmons, Osgood
and Wilson-Meredith of Waldo district, and the Columbia, Lewis and
others of Grave Creek district. On the rocks and boulders of these
diggings are found imprinted the forms of fishes and strange creatures
that inhabited the waters of the ancient rivers in the long ago. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. How this old channel came to be filled from rim to rim, heaped up in many places with an auriferous filling, is something the writer cannot explain; as a matter of fact, the practical miner gives but little time to a study of it, but uses his "thinker" to the all-important matter of securing better and more economical methods of getting and saving the gold. The banks in this old channel lie from 10 to 230 feet deep on the bedrock. The greatest bank throughout its whole extent is that being worked by the Old Channel Mining Co. in the Galice district. This gravel bank has a height of 235 feet, and is being operated upon at the present time by a battery of two giants, working under a gravity pressure of 500 feet. To be safe, the piper is obliged to play his giant on this bank from a distance of 450 feet. The great streams gnaw at the foot of the towering pile, and the gravel falls off in slabs of 10,000 tons. The dirt of this old channel yields easily to the giants, and there is a comparative absence of big boulders. All of the ground in this old channel carries gold. First, there is the coarse gold found with the boulders and the lower stratum next the bedrock. Above this is the stratum known as "pipe clay" by the placer miners; and still above this is the capping of red clay, carrying its values in fine or flour gold, a large percent of which is saved by a system of undercurrents. This is a steel screen arrangement in the bottom of sluices through which the black sand and finer particles are drawn off and spread out over a broad riffle table. This enables the miner to catch both the flour gold and the platinum, which in late years has been found to be a very valuable part of the black sand of these diggings, but which in years past was thrown away as valueless. In recent years there has been a general combination of minor or smaller placer holdings in Southern Oregon into large properties under control of one management. It is found better for all concerned to combine the water rights and facilities, as one claim of twenty acres does not in many instances make sufficient territory to warrant the expenditure of a great sum in the construction of large ditches and of a length necessary to tap the main watercourse far enough up to give an elevation of 100 feet above the ground to be worked; and a pressure of less than 175 feet is not of high efficiency in working placer ground by hydraulicking. There are streams in Southern Oregon on which placer bars and channels are located that have sufficient fall to allow a pressure of 275 feet with 1 mile of ditch by running the ditch with a grade of 1 inch to the rod; but these favorable conditions seldom prevail, and to get such a fall a ditch from 5 to 20 miles in length is necessary. There are a number of ditches in Southern Oregon of from 20 to 35 miles in length, constructed at great cost around the steep and rocky mountainsides, flumed across gulches and tunneled through solid rock. It is this feature of placer mining in Southern Oregon that the miner must first consider, for it is the big feature of the business. Where will I get my water supply; how many miles of ditch will it require to bring it to my ground; how much will it cost, and how much pressure will I have when I get it there? Ditches here have cost all the way from $2000 to $60,000; but, once built, they are there to stay, as slides and breaks do not figure so materially in the running expense of a ditch in this country. Another feature that figures prominently in the business of placer mining in Southern Oregon, as in all other placer regions, is that of dumping grounds for the tailings. Fortunately, there are no laws in Oregon that prevent the miner from dumping his tailings into Rogue River or any of its tributaries, and it is on these that all of the placer mines are located. It only remains for him to have plenty of fall from the end of his sluices to the river, stream or gulch below. The greater part of this old channel in question lies far up on the mountaintops, or at sufficient elevation to allow the miner ample dump for mountains of tailings and refuse. At the Old Channel mines there is a sheer fall of nearly 500 feet from the end of the sluice to the bottom of the canyon below. Yet there is much rich ground lying along gulches and streams that has not sufficient slope to carry away the tailings. For a long time this ground lay untouched. Then the "grizzly" and the "hydraulic elevator" were introduced and the way was easy. By these machines the tailings, boulders and refuse are lifted to a height of 35 and 40 feet, thus giving dump enough to last for a number of years without the elevator being moved. Taken all in all, placer mining in Southern Oregon is a very conservative business--much more so, in fact, than quartz mining generally in this or any other country, for the reason that the placer miner has all of the elements of his business in sight, and he can compute beforehand just what it will cost to equip his property, how much it will require to operate it and how much he will realize, as the ground to be worked can be thoroughly tested and prospected before a shovel of dirt is moved for mining purposes. Mines here clean up from $2000 to $100,000 annually, depending upon the richness and amount of ground worked. It costs from 2 to 5 cents per yard to work the ground--ground that produces from 8 to 20 cents per yard, leaving a good margin of profit. Gravel that averages 20 cents per yard will pay the miner his money back in two years with interest; if the ground pays 30 cents, it is considered a bonanza. The average ground of the Southern Oregon old channels runs from 6 to 8 cents a yard. Ground of this worth, where there is a water supply of 2000 inches for eight months in the year and good dumping grounds, forms the elements for the making of a paying placer mine--and it can be truthfully stated that there is much of this ground in the old channel placer fields of the Southern Oregon districts. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 3, 1903, page 216 See photos accompanying this article. J. F. Reddy, of Spokane, Judge Prim of Jackson County, and Thos. Kenny and George Neuber of Jacksonville have been in Crescent City during the week attending to business in connection with the sale of the Blue Ledge mine. "Del Norte Items," Blue Lake Advocate, Blue Lake, California, October 3, 1903, page 5 The New York & Western M. Co. of Grants Pass has bought a number of quartz properties in Southern Oregon, and has made final payment on the Oregon Belle mine, bonded last winter for $30,000. The Oregon Belle mine is on Forest Creek. It is intended to open it up farther and put in more machinery. The ledges carry free gold and sulphides. A Colorado company, under manager J. P. Murphy, is preparing to work the Queen of Bronze copper mine near Waldo. The same parties are interested in the mines of the Waldo S.&M. Co. A steam hoist is being set up at the Queen of Bronze, and will sink the main shaft to depth of 600 feet. The ledges of this mine are from 4 to 11 feet wide, carrying 12% copper, with gold. The Queen of Bronze is near the mines of the Waldo S.&M. Co. Development work will be increased on the Wolf Creek group, near Grants Pass, starting this month. It is expected water will be plentiful for working the placer properties in connection with the quartz ledge that cuts through the ledge, says M. B. Bozarth of Portland, secretary of the company. There is sufficient water for five to seven months in the year to work the placer, but it is intended to work the quartz ledge by tunnel. A 700-foot tunnel will be run. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 3, 1903, page 226 LOTS OF GOLD IN ROGUE RIVER.
Much has been said and written regarding the amount of gold which lies
hidden beneath and in the gravel of Rogue River, at a point below the
Ray dam, but no person has until now been able to arrive at the amount
therein contained. Enough work has been performed in panning this
gravel to give the promoters of the dam project the assurance that
there is enough of the yellow metal there to more than pay for the
construction of the dam. When it is stated, authoritatively, that the
dam will cost when completed fully $200,000, an idea can be gained as
to the amount of gold in the river bed at that point.This covers only a distance of about 600 feet of the river, and up to the present time only a few men have been engaged in mining the gold, and these by the slow process of hand panning, but some pans of the gravel have produced $25 in gold. This amount to the single pan, however, is an exception rather than a rule. When the dam is completed and more attention can be given to the mining, sluice boxes, gravel and rock elevators and a complete mining outfit will be put in operation and it is then that the yellow metal is expected to show itself. So rich it is expected the river bed will be found that plans are now being made with the object of extending the canal further down the river, thus diverting the water from the river channel and enabling the mining of the river bed for a greater distance than is now possible. Dr. Ray and his company own the land on both sides of the river from the dam to Gold Hill, a distance of fully four miles, and it is expected that the river will be mined for all this distance. Another feature in connection with the extension of the canal is that should it be proven by actual test that not enough power can be secured at a point where the machinery is now being put in, the water can be used again for power purposes at other points lower down n the canal--thus giving the company an almost unlimited power supply. Medford Mail, October 9, 1903, page 1 DOUGLAS COUNTY.
Operations are being resumed on the Gold Bug mine, on Mount Reuben,
southwest of Glendale, says superintendent W. S. Haskins. Additional
machinery has been put in, the lower levels cleaned out and retimbered.
The mill will also resume. The Stocks and Harlow group, near Bohemia, is in operation again. Miners are at work blocking out ore for the winter's run. D. F. Letsinger, interested with N. F. Wyatt in five claims on the ridge near Cottage Grove, reports development progressing, and 1000 feet of tunnel have been driven. The Golden Rule claim shows width of ledge 18 feet. Ledge on Rambler No. 2 gave surface assay of $6. The Puzzle claim is the one on which the main tunnel is being driven, and this is in 170 feet, and will tap Rambler No. 2 ledge at depth of 150 feet. A mill site has been located, with abundance of water and wood. JACKSON COUNTY.
F. Kalb of Amsterdam, N.Y., and treasurer of the New York &
Western
M. Co., reports making final payment on the Oregon Belle mine on Forest
Creek, 7 miles west of Jacksonville, which his company bought for
$30,000. W. C. Kitto is superintendent. It is intended this winter to
put in a quartz mill, the power to be electrical. JOSEPHINE COUNTY.
The Waratah Minerals Co., a department of the Welabach Gas Fitting Co.
of Philadelphia, Pa., is preparing to put in a platinum mining plant at
the Old Channel mines on Galice Creek, near Grants Pass, says J. R.
Harvey, manager of the Old Channel mines. W. F. Smith, manager of the
Waratah Minerals Co., has begun putting in the machinery. These placers
will hereafter be operated under lease by J. R. Harvey, and will be
known as "The Royal Group Mines." Platinum occurs in these placers both
free and with rhodium, osmium, iridium and palladium. The saving of the
platinum concentrates does not interfere with the gold mining
operations. The sands and concentrates are drawn from the sluice boxes
through a ½-inch grizzly, then spread out over a broad
riffle table to
catch the flour gold, and later drawn through a ½-inch
screen and
spread over cocoa mat riffles, where the concentrates settle and are
gathered up. This system of undercurrents and riffles is so arranged
that a part of them can be cleaned every day during the mining season.
The concentrates are finally milled and run over a concentrating table,
and they are valued at $160 a ton in gold and platinum, says the Telegram."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 10, 1903, page 243 Douglas County.
The Star mine, near Bohemia, owned by G. B. Hengen et al. of New York,
will build a 10-stamp mill this fall. Work to the extent of 900 feet of
tunnel has been done on the ore. The group consists of fourteen full
claims. The power line will be extended from the Oregon Securities Co.,
and electricity will be used to operate the Star mine and mill. The
Oregon Securities Co.'s mill at Bohemia will begin dropping its thirty
stamps Nov. 1, says superintendent Mathews. F. J. Hard of Bohemia has closed a deal in which be becomes owner of the Stocks & Harlow mining property in Bohemia district. The Stocks & Harlow mine is on the west slope of Fairview mountain and joins the Vesuvius, which Hard owns. Josephine County.
The Mountain View C. Co. mines (the Sowell mines), in Waldo district,
are reported sold to the Vulcan C. Co. of San Francisco, Cal., for
$24,000. The Dutch Johnnie hydraulic placer mine, on Rogue River, below Grants Pass, which has been in litigation for several years, has been settled, and W. H. Flannagan has control. He will operate it this winter. Men are at work getting the piping and flumes in shape. The banks are 60 feet in depth, and there is said to be water enough to keep the giants running nine months in the year. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 17, 1903, page 261 Undercurrents
for Saving Flour Gold and
Platinum Sands.
Since the discovery that the old channel placer diggings of Northern
California and Southern Oregon contained much fine or flour gold, and
the more recent discovery that they also contained platinum
concentrates and sands in considerable abundance, much attention has
been paid by the miners to the matter of methods for saving these
values. A system of undercurrents attached to the sluice boxes has been
found by many to be the best method for saving flour gold and black
sand. The best system that the writer has found in his rounds of the
Southern Oregon placers is that in use at the Royal Group hydraulic
mines of Galice district. Manager J. R. Harvey of these placers has
given much of his time to this work alone, with the result of having a
system of undercurrents that practically saves all of the flour gold
and platinum concentrates. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. The accompanying photograph shows a part of an undercurrent as attached to the sluice box. The sluice box itself is supplied with a full complement of riffles, there being first a long bedrock race cut across the diggings which catches all of the nuggets and coarse gold; then the sluice boxes are reached with, first, a system of standard steel riffles, followed by block riffles, all of which can be easily lifted and rinsed, leaving a smooth floor to clean from at cleanup. The undercurrents set near the end of the sluice boxes. About one-half of the flow of water is drawn down through a ½-inch grizzly in the bottom of the sluice. The dropping of this water through the grizzly creates a suction and carries down with it all of the black sand and flour gold that would have otherwise went on over the dump with the waste water and boulders. The water drawn off is first spread out over a broad riffle table, as shown on the left in the photo. This table is about 10 feet wide and 13 feet in length. Here the coarser particles and much of the flour gold settles. This flour gold and the platinum sand acts very much like coffee grounds when stirred--they will not settle so long as they are disturbed. For this reason they are easily drawn off, and the problem then resolves itself into the question of how to settle them. After the sands pass over this first undercurrent they are carried further and dropped into a hopper and run through a steel screen with ⅛-inch openings. Everything larger than ⅛ inch in diameter passes over this screen and is lost, but these are usually only small pebbles, as the gold particles of that size are caught long before, and the platinum particles are all smaller in size. Everything that runs through this screen is spread out over a riffle of cocoa matting. This riffle table is arranged in divisions so that each strip of matting can be lifted up and cleaned when covered with sands, the water being turned on the other divisions. The sands that are caught on the cocoa matting riffles are worth from $140 to $170 a ton, the values being about equally divided between platinum and gold. The sands that are found on the "old channel belt" of Southern Oregon and Northern California, recently described by the writer in the Mining and Scientific Press, are not what are commonly known as "black sands." They are a black sand in one sense, but they are more than that--they not only carry platinum and gold in the free state, but in combination also. They are largely refractory and contain all of the metals of the platinum group. W. F. Smith, a representative of the Welsbach company of Philadelphia, has been experimenting and working in the placer diggings of the old channel placer belt of Northern California and Southern Oregon for over two years past. He has found that platinum concentrates and flour gold occur in quantity all the way from Happy Camp, Cal., to Rogue River, Southern Oregon. His company put in undercurrents in the Waldo placer mines of southern Josephine County last year and saved several tons of platinum sands. The company, or a department of it, known as the Waratah Minerals Co., is now installing a plant at the Royal Group mines on Galice. This plant will be equipped with a mill and concentrating tables for treating the sands after they are taken from the undercurrents. The manager of the Royal Group mines estimates that his undercurrents pay the running expense of his mine, leaving the gold a clear "pickup." They do not interfere with the regular process of gold mining. The same results could be obtained at a number of placer mines in Northern California and Southern Oregon, where undercurrents are not now in use. Platinum concentrates have much the appearance of coarse gunpowder. They are not black, but are a dark steel gray. Their metallic luster is easily discerned with a close examination. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 24, 1903, page 267 Douglas County.
The 30-stamp mill of
the Oregon Securities Co., near Bohemia, is about completed and will
begin dropping stamps next week. Jackson County.
The New York & Western Mines Co. is preparing to increase
development work at the Oregon Belle mine, in Forest Creek district, 7
miles southwest of Jacksonville. Manager Gunnell, of Grants Pass, says
they will put in a steam hoist, compressor and other machinery, and it
is proposed to build a mill in the spring. A tunnel has been started
and will be driven in 200 feet below the old workings.Josephine County.
The New York & Western M. Co. is preparing to increase
development
work at the Oregon Belle mine in Forest Creek district, near Grants
Pass. Manager Gunnell says they are putting in a steam hoist,
compressor and other machinery. By next spring they expect the property
will be ready for a mill. A tunnel has been started and will be driven
in 200 feet below the old workings. The double-compartment shaft being sunk in the Granite Hill mines on Granite Hill, near Grants Pass, by the American Gold Fields Co., has cut an 11-foot ledge, and 5 feet of the hanging wall carries average values of $50 a ton. The remainder of the foot wall averages $11 a ton. Free gold and galena are shown. This shaft will be sunk to depth of 600 or 700 feet and the ledge crosscut at every 100-foot level. The 5-stamp mill is kept at work on ore of the upper stopes. A 10-stamp mill is being built. A boiler, hoists, compressors and air drills have been put in at the Granite Hill mines, says superintendent Wickersham. A sawmill is operated by the company in the heavy fir timber of its claims. There are also several hundred acres of placer ground on the Granite Hill properties, equipped with a hydraulic plant, which will be operated this winter. The dam which the Golden Drift M. Co. is building across Rogue River, near Grants Pass, is about completed, says the Jacksonville Times. It is built to its required height across the stream and men are filling in the cribs. The machinery will not be put in till spring. There are fifty men employed in construction of the dam and operating the sawmill. This dam will be capable of supplying 10,000 H.P., part of which will be used in operating the pumps that will supply the giants in Dry Diggings placers with water. The Golden Drift Co. owns 1000 acres of placer ground in Dry Diggings that will be piped off when the dam is completed and the pumps and giants put in. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, October 31, 1903, page 294 A
Montejus and Filter Press for Cyanidation.
In recent years there has been quite an innovation in methods of
extracting gold from pulverized base ores or tailings. This innovation
has largely been in the nature of filter presses, as a valuable and
additional agent in the treatment of pulp and slimes by the cyanide or
other processes of extraction. At the Greenback mine, Southern Oregon,
superintendent C. W. Thompson has placed in commission a cyanide plant
that goes one step farther than any other process used in the mines of
this part of the West. This is a montejus
and filter press. Through the
agency of this plant Mr. Thompson is able to save at least 95% of the
assay values of the ore. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. The montejus and filter press were manufactured in Germany and set up at the Greenback mine at a considerable cost, but it is proving a good investment. The filter press feature of the plant is but little unlike other filter presses that have been introduced in the mines of America, Australia and New Zealand, but as far as the writer is informed no other mine in America has yet introduced the montejus. This latter machine, in its single piece, weighed five tons, and resembles a huge boiler. It was set on end and buried in the ground till but a small part of its upper portion remains above the floor of the mill. (See illustration front page). The route of the tailings, after leaving the concentrators, is first to the sump tanks, thence to the montejus, whence they are forced to the filter press. The large pipe shown in the illustration, running from the top of the montejus to the right, connects with the sump or slime tanks, and another running out of the tank higher up connects with sand tanks. The arrangement for filling and discharging is automatic, being operated by compressed air. In the cyanide plant of the Greenback mine there are three sand tanks and four slime tanks. The tailings are conveyed from the concentrators, being first separated from the slimes, to the sand tanks. Each sand tank has a capacity of 150 tons, and are so arranged that while one is filling one of the other two are being discharged. The montejus and filter press treat not only the tailings sands, but the slimes also, and each are conveyed by gravity to the montejus, entering it near the top through a large valve. When the montejus is full this valve closes, and the method of emptying it and forcing the pulp to the press is by compressed air supplied by the air compressors in the stamp mill. The air enters through one of two valves, one that has a pipe leading nearly to the bottom of the montejus, and the other only into the top. The pipe leading to the bottom is for agitation, such being necessary at times when the pulp cakes, or becomes too solidly packed. The air under pressure forces the contents of the montejus out through a large pipe that also leads nearly to the bottom of the tank, and through this pipe the tailings and slimes are forced to the filter press, under a pressure of from a few pounds up to eighty pounds per square inch. The filter press is made up of a series of filter frames, set side by side, and each cored internally with slots, with perforated steel plates between them. Each of these frames sit and revolve on a common axis or shaft, and each are provided with convenient handles or handholds, making it an easy matter to manipulate them. The corings of each filter frame snugly coincide, thus allowing a common passage for the flushing fluid, for charging the chambers, and for the compressed air. At one end of the frame is arranged a ratchet and wheel lever, with a powerful fulcrum by which a man can easily apply the pressure necessary to operate the press. The method of treating the wash fluids after they have passed through the tailings cakes in the filter frames is identical to that followed in any cyanide plant. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 7, 1903, page 306 Douglas County.
At Golden Slipper group, near Bohemia, president W. W. Oglesby reports
work progressing. The group consists of nine full claims on east side
of Grouse Mountain, running down to and across Horse Heaven Creek. The
main tunnel on the Sampson claim is in on the ledge 150 feet, showing a
body of concentrating ore. Tunnel No. 2, at 100 feet lower, is in 80
feet on the vein. At upper end of this claim a shaft has been sunk 12
feet on the ledge, which is 4½ feet wide, and shows a body
of ore,
carrying percentage of copper. The Dewey tunnel, at the lower end of
the group, is in 200 feet on a parallel ledge. The group is well
timbered and watered and has a mill site. At the Levens Ledge mine, at Riddle, 2000 feet of tunneling has been done, which shows ledges of gold-bearing quartz, 8 to 12 feet wide. T. T. Burkhart, of Portland, part owner, says they propose to build a 10-stamp mill. The company is composed mainly of Portland men. Josephine County.
C. J. Howard has men at work extending the survey of the Gold Hill High
Line Ditch. Under the old survey the ditch was 80 miles in length, but
the new survey will nearly double it. It was formerly intended to carry
the water of the ditch across Elk and Trail creeks by a pipe line. It
has been decided this would not be practical, and instead the ditch
will be carried around the head of the two streams mentioned. At the
head of Elk and Trail creeks there are bodies of pine and fir timber,
and the ditch will make this available for milling and lumbering
purposes. The water will also be used by the mines around Gold Hill. The American G. Fields Co., of Chicago, Ill., which owns the Granite Hill mines on Louse Creek, near Grants Pass, has added to its holdings the Ida and Golden Terry mines, which claims adjoin the Granite Hill. This gives the company 1000 acres of mineral lands on Louse Creek. The Ida and Golden Terry mines will be developed in connection with the Granite Hill properties. The Ida is equipped with a small mill. Both mines are at a higher altitude than the Granite Hill, and the ore will be conveyed by a gravity tramway. J. F. Wickham, J. H. Fisk, P. S. Bates and J. H. Weber of Portland, owners of the Almeda mine, near Grants Pass, propose building a 100-ton reduction plant. The Almeda mine contains a body of ore carrying copper, gold and silver. Power will be supplied by utilizing water of the Rogue River. Men are at work blocking out ore. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 7, 1903, pages 310-311 Douglas County.
G. H. Scott, A. Mute, L. Dobbin and O. Mercer, having leased coal
properties 3 miles from Roseburg, on the Southern Pacific railway, have
incorporated the Fernie Coal M. Co., with H. Smith as superintendent.
The lease was for twenty-five years. The coal is a lignite, and there
are said to be several seams, varying in width from 3 to 7 feet. A
steam pump is being put in to unwater the prospect holes. The Southern
Pacific will put in a 3-mile spur. Jackson County.
Besse & Co. of Seattle, Wash., are putting in a 2-stamp quartz
mill
on the Pilgrim mine for prospecting a group of eight claims they have
under bond known as the South Extension of the Pittsburg on Wagner
Creek, near Ashland. Josephine County.
The May Queen, Double Standard and Silver Standard quartz claims on
Mount Baldy, near Grants Pass, have been bought by the May Queen M. Co.
of Albany, N.Y., and development work is under way. The ledge on the
May Queen is 5 feet in width, carrying values in free gold and
sulphurets. There is a 2-foot chute in this ledge from which quartz has
been shipped to the smelter, giving returns of $26 a ton. A. A. Cameron
of Grants Pass is superintendent."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 14, 1903, page 328 Josephine County.
Considerable work is being done on Foots Creek, near Grants Pass, by
Champlin & Co. They are building a dredger, by which the gravel
bed
of Foots Creek and much of the lower benches and bars will be worked.
The company is building a dam across the creek near the river
to raise
the water of the stream for the required depth for dredging. Machinery
for the dredger is on the ground. The Champlin Co. has bought 1200
acres of placer ground. Dredging will also be done this season on the
Illinois and other Southern Oregon streams. The Yellow Jacket mine, of Foots Creek district, near Grants Pass, has been bought by G. A. Dyson of Eugene for Orme, Shaffer, Mears & McIntyre. Dyson will continue development of the Yellow Jacket. The Eureka mine of Soldier Creek district, near Grants Pass, has reverted to its former owner, A. F. Nelson, who is arranging to increase development work. The Eureka is equipped with a 10-stamp mill, steam hoists, air compressor and other machinery. The ledge has a width of 6 feet and carries values in sulphurets and free gold of $15 a ton. It is opened to a depth of 150 feet. The Monumental quartz mine, near Waldo, has been bonded by the Waldo S.&M. Co. and will be developed. The Monumental is a base proposition, the quartz carrying arsenical pyrites. The ledge of the Monumental is said to be 50 feet in width. It is being developed by an inclined shaft, from which drifts and crosscuts are run on the vein. The ore will require a concentrator. Jackson County.
The Bill Nye M. Co., operating on Galls Creek, 3 miles south of Gold
Hill, will increase work the coming season. They have a 5-stamp mill
and hoist on the ground, which will be placed in position, says
superintendent D. R. Andrus. The company has an 80-foot shaft, besides
tunnel and drift work. The ore is free milling."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 21, 1903, page 344 DISCOVERY OF STERLING MINE.
In view of the increasing output of the Sterling mine, and its wide
notoriety through exhibitions of large quantities of its dust in the
show windows of Portland, it will be of interest to many people here
and to miners generally on the coast to learn how, when and by whom the
Sterling camp was first discovered.By W. J. Plymale. In the winter of 1854, Aaron Davis and James Sterling were working together on Jackson Creek. They were good miners and worked their claim to the best known advantage at that time, but the yield was not satisfactory. They also owned a ranch a short distance south of Phoenix. Early in the spring they left their claim on Jackson Creek and went out to the ranch to put in a crop. They remained there longer than they expected, and when they returned their claim had been jumped. They had stayed away beyond the limit allowed by the local laws, and forfeited their right to the claim. They left Jackson Creek and crossed over to the Applegate to prospect. They worked several days and finding nothing satisfactory they returned to the ranch by way of Sterling Creek. When they arrived about where the old town of Sterling used to be, they stopped to rest and take lunch. While there Mr. Sterling said: "This looks like pay dirt--I believe I will prospect a little." He took a pan of dirt from the roots of an upturned tree, and washing it out, got about a dollar. Further prospecting gave like results and showed the place to be rich. The Indians were considered dangerous to small parties in the mountains at that time, and as they were unarmed and immediately on the Indian trail that led from the valley to Applegate, they thought it unsafe to remain there long, and went back to the ranch. On the day following, which was the last day of May '54, in company with George Rockfellow, J. P. Buens and John Bonum, they returned to the place of discovery to give it a more thorough prospecting with the intent, if satisfactory, to locate claims. They prospected Friday and Saturday and washed out $48, one nugget weighing 12. When they left for home, it was agreed among them that they would not make known the discovery until after their return on the following Tuesday, when they would all go back with sufficient supplies to remain for a while and more fully prospect the place and select their claims. On their return home, they stopped at the Coleman ranch, where a lot of men were helping to raise a heavy log house. The conduct and suggestive remarks of some of the party aroused the curiosity of the house raisers, and this taken in connection with the fact that the clothes of the party were soiled with red mining dirt led the more observant to jump at the conclusion that a new discovery had been made. Members of the party were plied with all sorts of questions touching their late whereabouts, and every effort was made to wring from them their secret, or get them to explain the soiled condition of their clothes. All stood firm and refused to divulge anything but one, Ab. Giddings, a jolly, good fellow, whose genial disposition made him a social diplomat, and who was accustomed to win his point by tact or strategy, got around Aaron Davis and through a system of badgering and urgent appeals, wormed the secret out of him, and he and Giddings went over Sunday morning and staked off their claims. On Monday Sterling went to Jacksonville to buy supplies. Elated over the discovery, he imbibed too freely and got full. His exuberance unbridled his tongue, and he gave the whole thing away. The news sped like electricity, and caused a general stampede from Jacksonville and surrounding camps, and when Sterling sobered up and reached the scene of his discovery, he was astounded to find an army of men on the ground and the camp staked out for miles up and down the creek. Through the bad faith of Davis and his own intemperate folly, Sterling got no claim at all. From the date of its discovery, in '54, to 1859, the whole creek for four miles or more literally swarmed with men. When the lighter placers were worked out, the restless element, ever ready to move at a moment's notice, swept over to the new discovery at Williams Creek, reported to be fabulously rich. It was, however, found to be very "spotted" and too uncertain for the average miner to waste his time and labor on, and when the northern excitement broke out, the transients all went north and left this camp almost deserted. Many, however, continued to work at Sterling, and the output for many years was very large, but when the ordinary method of sluicing would no longer pay, small holders sold out for what they could get and left the place. These small holdings were bought up from time to time by Hon. Theo. Cameron and U. S. Hayden until they finally owned something like three miles of the best part of the creek. They were induced to buy it through a knowledge of the fact that there was an old bedrock channel running the length of the creek, so deep that it could not be worked by the methods then in use, and this channel, save for a little drifting here and there, was left practically untouched, and this of course was the richest ground in the camp. This great bedrock wash can only be explained upon the theory that Rogue River Valley was once a lake, and that the excess of water flowing into it from Rogue River and other streams was discharged through Sterling Creek. The spurs of the Siskiyou running down to Sterling Creek are very high, and this passage was no doubt blocked by the sliding in of a high peak when the excess cut its way through the mountains at Gold Hill and finally flowed into its old channel below Grants Pass. There seems to be no other rational way of accounting for the immense bedrock channel, from 50 to 200 feet deep, running the length of the creek. In support of this theory, there is every indication that Applegate was once a very large stream, whereas now it is small, except during winter freshets. When Cameron and Hayden had been in possession of the mine for twelve or fifteen years, they sold out to the late D. P. Thompson, Burrell and others in Portland. This company brought in a ditch from Little Applegate, 28 miles long, with a capacity of 2500 inches, and installed the latest and most approved hydraulic machinery. The cost of the mine and plant when ready for operation was about $100,000. The equipment was by far the best and most complete in Southern Oregon at that time, and there is none better in the district today. The mine is a marvel of richness, indeed a very harvest to its owners, and is still the greatest producer in the county. There is yet a large amount of ground to be piped off, and what the future will show for this valuable mine can only be conjectured. There have been more than four millions taken out of Sterling Creek, and it is today one of the largest gold-producing placer camps in Jackson County. Medford Mail, November 27, 1903, page 1 Douglas County.
A. E. Carlson et al. last week bonded the Rowley copper group at Riddle
for $50,000, says the Rogue
River Courier. Work has been resumed.Josephine County.
The
Capital City G.M. Co. of Sacramento, Cal., has made final payment, on
the Baby mine, in Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass, which it has
had under bond. C. C. Higgins is superintendent. The ore carries free
gold. The mine is being developed by a tunnel, tapping the ore body at
depth, drifts being run on the vein. The offices of the Golden Drift M. Co. have been changed from Chicago, Ill., to Grants Pass, near which are located the mines of the company. Manager M. C. Ament says work is progressing on the dam being built on Rogue River. There are fifty men employed and they are filling up the 12-foot cribs with rock and earth, which is hauled on cars and dumped directly into the pits by a system of cables operated by a gasoline engine. The oars are filled by a steam shovel. The dam has a width of 120 feet on the river bed and 16 feet on top, while the length of the dam is 700 feet. There will be four 18-inch, five-step compound centrifugal pumps, each of which will deliver 9000 gallons of water per minute, which will raise the water from the reservoir, says the Rogue River Courier. This will supply water for six pipes equipped with 2⅝-inch nozzles. Power will be generated by sixteen 46-inch turbines working under a 20-foot head, and developing approximately 5000 H.P. Generators will be installed and electric power transmitted. Colorado parties have bought the Queen of Bronze copper mine, on Illinois River, near Waldo, and they are increasing development work under superintendent A. Murphy. A vertical shaft will be sunk for 500 feet. The Gold King M. Co., which is developing the Gold King mine, on Josephine Creek, near Grants Pass, has bought the adjoining placer claims of Bour & Day. These claims are accompanied by water rights, which will be used in supplying power for developing and working the Gold King mine. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, November 28, 1903, page 360 THE STURGIS MINE.
BY W. J. PLYMALE
Mr. A. W. Sturgis, the Forest Creek miner, was in Jacksonville a few
days since, and much interesting information was gleaned from him
concerning the mine and its future prospects. The mine has been
entirely refitted with the latest and most approved ball-bearing
giants, a large amount of new pipe added, the flumes, ditches and
reservoirs repaired and improved, and the mine in all respects better
equipped than ever before to make a continuous and successful season's
run. Last year's output was the largest since Mr. Sturgis owned the
mine, and he says the yield will largely increase from year to year as
he works up, and that fifty years will only show a good, working face
on the property. There are 1400 acres in all, with a depth varying from
twelve to fifty feet, and the greater proportion of this vast area is
the very best of mining ground. In a hundred years from now, under
continuous operation with the present machinery, the claim will be
worth many times what it is today. This creek is located in the heart
of the mining district of Jackson County. It was discovered late in the
fall of 1852, by John McDonnell and a small party, and strange to say,
with all the excitements consequent upon discoveries which followed one
another in quick succession up to about 1860, Mr. McDonnell never
deserted his claim, and is today working on the discovery claim located
nearly fifty-two years ago. From the date of the discovery till about
1865 the creek was a beehive of men, and during that time the amount of
gold taken out can only be vaguely conjectured. The sum would no doubt
considerably exceed five million dollars. It was perhaps the richest
camp in Southern Oregon for the area worked over.
When the whites had skimmed the cream of the camp, the Chinese took possession of it for many years, and worked it all over again. From appearances, there was a cloudburst on the hills north of the creek sometime in the past, which cut through the old channel and carried down a large amount of gold, and the Chinese in reworking the creek widened the area worked over by the whites and came across the deposit made by the cloudburst, and took out $40,000 from a small space. The late John Cantrall brought the money into town in a wagon. From the forks of the creek down for some distance below where it intersects Poor Man's Creek, about four miles, the bed of the stream has been worked out on an average of about 150 yards wide. The original formation on the south side appears to be intact. The mountains are rugged and precipitous, and are covered with large pine and fir timber, and there are no indications that this formation has ever been moved by slides or other causes. The north side, on the contrary, is one continuous slide from Poor Man's Creek to the forks. Here the hills are low and retreating, and covered mainly with brush and stunted white oaks. The slide from this side covered up the old channel and formed a new one about 150 yards from the old. It is this new or later channel caused by the slide that has been so extensively worked. The old channel had not been suspected, so far as the writer knows, until it was thought out and discovered by Mr. Sturgis. It should be said of Mr. Sturgis that he is not simply a plodding miner dependent upon luck and staying qualities, but a close, practical and philosophic reasoner, with an intelligent and comprehensive grasp of the general geological and mineral conditions of the coast. He had studied carefully the formation of Forest Creek, noted the great slide that had taken place sometime in the remote past, and finally reached the conclusion that there was a back channel which had been covered up by the slide, and that it must be as rich as the modern channel from which so much money had been taken. With this conclusion, he bought a claim on the creek for a small amount, and with the courage of his convictions, run out a cut and found the channel he suspected. He then began to buy up claims and equip the mine with hydraulic apparatus. He had previously met with serious financial reverses and was entirely without funds; yet, with that indomitable courage born of the certainty that his discovery was a valuable one, he surmounted all difficulties, bought up the entire creek to the forks, and today is a rich man and owner of one of the largest and most valuable mining properties in Southern Oregon. It should be mentioned that there is something remarkable about the boulders in this old channel. When first taken out they are hard and solid, but when exposed to the air for a short time they slack and crumble like lime. No explanation of this peculiarity has ever been given, and so far as the writer knows, this is the only channel in Southern Oregon where boulders crumble and dissolve on exposure to the atmosphere. With the extended improvements, new pipe, and new ball-bearing giants, Mr. Sturgis thinks he will break all former records in the output during the coming year. Medford Mail, December
4, 1903, page 1
Josephine County.
B. Hurst is developing his quicksilver ledge on South Umpqua, near Wolf
Creek.The Wolf Creek M. & Dev. Co., at Wolf Creek, is running full blast and operating two giants, says R. C. Shipley, superintendent. The Ramsey & Ingram copper claims, on Slate Creek, near Grants Pass, have been bonded by S. Bowden for $25,000. Bowden will put men to work and develop the claims during the winter. The ledge carries values in copper and gold. The vein shows a width of 100 feet on the surface. The claims are within 2 miles of the surveyed route of the proposed railroad from Grants Pass to the coast. A. B. Cousin, manager of the Galice Con. M. Co. ol Portland, says their hydraulic properties on Galice Creek are expected to be ready to begin piping this month. There is now an abundance of water in Galice, and the supply will not diminish till late next summer. The dams and reservoirs built during the summer at the head of the Galice Con. ditches on both forks of the creek are conserving the water. Jackson County.
The Shorty-Hope M.&M. Co., near Ashland, is increasing
development
work. The miners last week cut an ore chute on the 335-foot tunnel
drift carrying values in gold."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 5, 1903, page 378 Quartz Veins and Mines
of Southern Oregon.
It has long been taken for granted, by a few at least, that the
stratigraphical formation of Southern Oregon is identical to that of
Northern California. Notwithstanding the similarity of the two
sections, there has been a vast difference in the development and
progress of the two. The imaginary line, known as the state line, was
sufficient to keep the enterprising mining men on the California side
for a number of years; and while the camps and mines of Northern
California were flourishing, Southern Oregon was making little or no
progress in the matter of the development of its quartz mines. Southern
Oregon is the pioneer mining section of Oregon, yet it has been the
slowest in development. This condition of affairs was due entirely to
lack of enterprise, lack of capital, lack of men who possessed an
ambition to go deeper than their shovel handle's length! Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. It required a half century for one question to be solved to the satisfaction of moneyed mining men; this was the question of the continuity of the ledges of Southern Oregon. It was not until the past two years that this question was satisfactorily answered, and even yet there are some who are skeptical and who have but little faith in the permanence of Southern Oregon's veins. The vein matter of Southern Oregon ledges varies but little throughout a wide extent of territory. Nearly all of the veins of the district run north and south--that is to say, those ledges and lodes which can be traced for any considerable distance. In the western part of the district, and running along the western border of Josephine County, is the base mineral belt, the predominating values being in gold and copper. This belt, popularly known as the "copper belt" of Southern Oregon, is really confined to one mammoth ledge, known as the "Yank." It is from 75 to 250 feet in width, and can be traced from the Oregon-California line north for a distance of 40 miles or more. In those districts where it is exposed, notably Waldo, Slate Creek and Galice Creek, mines are being opened up upon it. A number of these are well developed, and will be ready to begin operations next summer. The vein matter of the Yank ledge is mainly a bluish quartz colored by copper, this metal being present in the form of copper pyrites. The Yank is a contact vein with a hanging wall of slate, and syenite on the foot. In those tunnels that have been driven into it there is a thick coating of the soluble salts of copper. In the Waldo district there are eight or nine well-developed mines on this belt. The values of these run higher in copper than farther north, assay returns showing from 11% to 60% copper and from $2.50 to $10 a ton in gold. Farther north, on Galice Creek, where the big ledge is cut by Rogue River, and where several mines are being opened up, the quartz shows from $6 to $30 a ton in gold and copper. As the ore will require smelting, and occurs in large quantity, some of these mines will probably become great producers when worked on a scale commensurate with their size. The vein matter of the gold-bearing ledges of the Southern Oregon district may be described as a hard, white and compact quartz, carrying metallic sulphides to a greater or less extent, and free gold, with some silver. The metallic sulphides consist of pyrite, copper pyrites, arsenical iron and galena. The last-named mineral has been found to be a "good sign" in Southern Oregon quartz veins, its presence being considered indicative of good values and continuity of vein. The average value of the veins may be considered as indicated by those of one mine. (See illustration, front page.) The Greenback, Grave Creek district, is a fair representative. It is operating forty stamps and a 100-ton cyanide plant, and opened to a depth of 1000 feet, and is a typical Southern Oregon mine. Its values, it is stated, have averaged $16 a ton in free gold and concentrates since the mine first began operation. Its ledges are from 2½ to 5 feet in width, with a dip of from 60° to 70°. The country rock here is diorite. There are other good mines in the Southern Oregon district--mines that are operating mills of five to fifteen stamps--that possess similar ledges, but which lie in granite, slate or other formations. Much "specimen rock" is produced by the mines of Southern Oregon. This is due to the bunches of rich free-milling ore that are found at all depths, and more especially at cross sections of smaller veins with the main ledges. This is the "pocket" characteristic of the district, and it is not lost even in the largest mines. On the 800-foot and 900-foot levels of the Greenback masses of quartz have been shot down that were "peppered" with large and small fragments of gold. Flakes of the metal as large as a man's palm have been uncovered on the deep levels of this property. Nearly all of this free gold is found in hard, snow-white quartz. But the ledges and veins of the Southern Oregon district are more than "specimen rock" producers. They are permanent, as is proved by the success of those who have energetically developed properties. The characteristics and general formation of the country makes the deep development of mines in Southern Oregon expensive, but the results have proven satisfactory. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 12, 1903, pages 391-392 E. Wood of Spokane, Wash., superintendent of the Crystal Con. M. Co., says work is under way on their stamp mill being built near Bohemia. There are thirty men at work. "Douglas County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 12, 1903, page 396 The Sturgis Mine Sold.
A. W. Sturgis, who has put in the better part of his life in developing
his hydraulic mining property in Forest Creek district, last week sold
the property to W. E. Olmstead, representing S. A. Vance, a mining
millionaire. The price paid is said to have been in the neighborhood of
$30,000.
The Sturgis is one of the best-known mines in Southern Oregon, and the price Mr. Sturgis received for it represents only a part of the past earnings of the property, and conservative miners estimate that more money lies buried in the earth than has ever been taken out. There are 1200 acres of patented mining ground, and with the present plant, it would take one half a century to work it out. For twenty years or more A. W. Sturgis has been hammering away on this mine, starting with one claim and buying up others as he could, adding machinery as needed. It took many years of hard work before the property was placed on a paying basis, but now it is strictly up to date in its equipment, and has yielded its owner such a competence that he can pass his remaining years in the comforting assurance that never more will he be compelled to take up the pick and shovel to gain a livelihood, although it is safe to say that the habits of many years will be hard to overcome, and that there will be occasions when he will long for the days when he swung the rocker on the banks of Forest Creek. Medford Mail, December 18, 1903, page 1 Conserving
Water for Hydraulic Mining.
An excellent method for conserving water for hydraulic mining has
recently been adopted by some of the larger Southern Oregon placer
mines. Those properties that derive their water directly from the main
streams usually are afforded an ample supply by the natural flow during
the winter months, but are required to close down during the summer on
account of the streams getting to such a low stage as not to afford a
full pipehead. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall. The building of reservoir dams has solved the problem, not only of a summer supply, but also ensures a steady and constant flow in the ditches. Sudden freshets and alternate dry spells and low water, which formerly resulted in overflowing ditches, caves and slides, are held in check by these reservoir dams. By their aid the flow of water is kept constant and regular. These reservoirs are different from those formerly in use by hydraulic mines, and still in use extensively, in that they are built at the head of the ditches instead of the mouth. They are not built to turn the water into the ditches, but are located ½ mile or more above the head of the ditch, and on the creek itself. When the summer months arrive and instead of closing down the giants entirely, the dams are closed during the night and the reservoir allowed to fill. Eight or ten acres of water accumulates above the dam--enough to supply two or more giants all the following day. In this way operations can be carried the whole year through, which is a big item to the enterprising placer miner, who fully recognizes the value of utilizing every moment, for the greater the time the giants can be kept at work on the gravel banks the greater will be the cleanup. The dam [of the Consolidated Mines Co.] shown in the illustration on the front page is made of a double tier of pine logs. These were cut the right length, peeled and cribbed, and the cribs filled in with boulders and gravel, the whole being set firmly into either bank. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 19, 1903, page 402 Douglas County.
The Red Bean mine, in southern Douglas County, bonded last spring to T.
B. Scott of Chicago, Ill., has reverted to its former owners, Riggs,
Flamm & Evans of Grants Pass. A cash payment of $5000 was made
and
200 feet of tunneling done.
J. Blazier of Portland has bought several hundred acres covering a
placer gravel channel along Elliott Creek, in upper Applegate district,
near Applegate, and is preparing to work by hydraulicking. Jackson County. The Cement mine, on the divide between the right and left forks of Jackson Creek, near Jacksonville, has been leased by J. Fielder and L. Lyttle. The lessees are operating a No. I giant from a 6-inch pipe that receives water from the Joe Black ditch fed from Cantrall Gulch. The ground has to be blasted loose before using the water.… Piping started last week at the Antonio mine on Forest Creek, says superintendent R. McGill. A No. 1 giant is used, working under a pressure of 210 feet. This mine is in an old channel of Forest Creek and there is a 15-foot bank to cut off to get at the gravel. Josephine County.
F. H. Osgood of Seattle, Wash., has bonded the Hammersley mine near
Grants Pass and will increase development. He is also operating the
Osgood placers on Illinois River. The Hammersley mine has been idle for
several years. The Comstock M.&M. Co., under management of J. M. Layman, is making shipments of ore from mines near Grants Pass. The ledges run 3 feet in width with assay values of $20. The Galice Con. M. Co. last week began operations in working their placer grounds on Galice Creek, near Grants Pass, and will have three hydraulic mines in operation on Galice Creek. The consolidated company is in control of nearly all the former placer mines on Galice Creek, making available placer diggings covering 600 acres. The building of reservoir dams at the head of the two forks of Galice Creek, the widening and extending of ditches, and the laying of 1000 feet additional of piping enables the Galice Con. Co. to have three giants at work, and is in position to mine twelve hours per day, even during the summer months, says the Telegram. The company has ground and water to operate ten separate hydraulic mines. There is ground on both the upper and lower creek that has not been prospected, as it has been too high to be reached by the available water; but now high-line ditches reach every part. Ground is being moved that prospects 25 cents a yard. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 19, 1903, page 411 Douglas County.
The Oregon Securities Co. is finishing its 30-stamp mill and 500-H.P.
electric plant at Bohemia. The wagon road up Champion canyon and the
pole line have been fully repaired in places, where damaged by the
storm last month, and the tramway and snow sheds from the mill up the
mountain to the mouth of the tunnel and over the saddles are nearing
completion. Jackson County.
The Bill Nye mine, on Galls Creek, ¾ of a mile from the
Golden Standard
mine, near Jacksonville, under manager Andrews of Medford, has nearly
completed a 5-stamp mill and expects to begin milling ore by Feb. 1st.
Machinery has been put in of capacity to sink a 500-foot shaft; also
drill and compressor. The Purkeypile mine, also on Galls Creek, has
been bonded, and eight men under foreman W. S. Clark are driving a
tunnel. The ore from this mine has been hauled to Gold Hill heretofore,
by way of Foots Creek, but a 5-stamp mill will he put in at the mine. Josephine County.
The Sturgis hydraulic placer mines of Forest Creek district, near
Grants Pass, have been bought by S. A. Vance of Los Angeles, Cal., and
$25,000 paid down. Vance will enlarge the plant and shape it for work
on a more extensive scale. The property consists of 1400 acres. There
are three ditches and water rights, affording a long run each season.
He is having the Sturgis overhauled and re-equipped under
superintendence of W. R. Olmstead. Two giants will be operated. An
electric lighting plant and telephone system will be put in and a
hydraulic elevator set up to handle the tailings."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, December 26, 1903, page 429 A New Industry.
Champlin & Co. have a crew of 50 men putting the finishing
touches
on their big dredger on Foots Creek. It will be ready for launching in
a few days, after which the remainder of the machinery will be
installed. Champlin & Co. have two large dredgers in
operation
near Bannock, Mont. E. L. Champlin and R. H. Christian, the two leading
men in the enterprise, are experienced people in the business. Back of
their Montana dredgers has a capacity of over 2000 yards a day, one
being operated by steam and the other by electricity.The Foots Creek dredger will be operated by steam, and will be built on pretty much the same plan as the machines at work near Bannock. It is 112 feet in length and 36 feet in width. It will have two 12-ton boilers, and two large engines. The elevator will be equipped with 40 buckets, of eight cubic feet capacity each, having a digging ability of 80-foot depth. The ground, however, will not require a greater depth than 50 feet. The placer and dredging ground acquired by Champlin & Co., at a cost of $35,000, covers some 700 acres, lying along Foots Creek. The ground was thoroughly prospected by the company before building the dredger was begun, and the promoters of the enterprise are confident of its worth. They find the main pay channel to be 1000 feet in width, with good values throughout. In order to make the whole available the company has built a dam across the creek and basin, near its mouth, and this will hold the water to such depth as to enable the dredger to be easily floated from one point to anther. Champlin & Co. estimate that it has ground in plenty to keep its dredger at work continually for the next 12 years, and possibly a longer period. Democratic Times, Jacksonville, January 13, 1904, page 1 The Golden Drift M. Co., operating on Rogue River, 3 miles above Grants Pass, has completed the main structures of its power dam across the Rogue, and has suspended work for the winter. The cribs have been all filled in with stone and barred over to resist the winter freshets. In the spring the turbines and pumps will be placed. At the start 5000 H.P. will be generated. During this winter the company is operating its dry diggings placers, water being derived from the hydraulic ditches tapping Jones Creek. This stream is small, and through the aid of a reservoir water for six hours' run each day is secured for the giants. Burton & White have bought seven placer claims on Reuben Creek near Mount Reuben, near Grants Pass. They will put in machinery--a boiler, engines, derricks and cables and hydraulic giants.… The Oregon M. Co., composed of Seattle, Wash., men, is doing development work on Wagner Creek. The company is putting in a 5-stamp mill. It owns fifty acres of mineral land on Wagner Creek, with water rights. The claims are the Pittsburg, Little Pittsburg, Riverside, Ruth, Double Jack and Pilgrim. The mill is expected to be in operation this week.… Imbler & Isaac are developing and have equipped an hydraulic placer mine on Chetco River, south of Kerby. Water is derived from Chetco River. The diggings are said to carry coarse gold and platinum and are not deep, running but 6 and 8 feet. J. B. Crawford, with Eastern men, operating mines near Grants Pass, says he will build a smelter at Grants Pass which will handle custom ores in addition to their own. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 16, 1904, page 50 Douglas County.
A. D. Le Roy, manager of the Le Roy mine, at Bohemia, says work
continues and development done is encouraging. The body of ore in the
lower tunnel shows 48 feet wide and is of concentrating grade. On
tunnel No. 3 they have opened a body of free-milling ore 9 feet wide,
with a chute carrying sulphides. It is intended to build a concentrator
this season. Josephine County.
W. J. Morphy of Chicago, Ill., manager of the American Gold Fields Co.,
owner of the Granite Hill mines, near Grants Pass, says machinery is on
the ground for mill and power plant. The compressor will be ready for
operation by February 1."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, January 23, 1904, page 69 A FORTY-STAMP MILL.
"Oregon,"
Mining:
Journal of the Northwest Mining Association, February
1904, page 55
The
40-stamp mill for the Lucky Boy mine, Blue River district, Southern
Oregon, is nearing completion, according to late reports. When finished
this will be the third 40-stamp equipment had by Oregon mines. The
Bonanza mine, of this district, has 40 stamps, that being five more
than is had by the North Pole. The Greenback mine, in Southern Oregon,
has 40 stamps in two mills, 30 in one and 10 in the other. The Lucky
Boy mill is to be quite modern in every respect, said L. Zimmerman,
president of the company, while speaking recently of the work the
company is doing.
Jackson County.
J. W. Opp is taking out ore from the upper ledge of his mine on Jackson
Creek, near Ashland, and has started his quartz mill in operation. After four months' work the landslide at the Shorty-Hope mine workings, near Ashland, has been overcome, and the property will be further opened up. They will let contract for 350 feet of drifting on the Golden Spike claim of the company.… It is reported the Montreal & Oregon G.M. Co., which owns the Ashland mine, west of Ashland, is preparing to resume operations. Josephine County.
The Galice Con. M. Co., near Grants Pass, is operating several giants
on Galice Creek this winter. One of them is working near mouth of
creek. This ground was idle for several years on account of lack of
water to work it properly. D. Green, foreman, says next season it is
expected the company will open the creek at the mouth and sluice out
entire contents of creek bed. In Grave Creek district, near Grants Pass, the Vulcan mine has been equipped with machinery and is crushing rock. A 10-stamp mill has been built. The Vulcan is on Browning Mountain and near the Greenback mine. The Wolf Creek M. & Dev. Co. is carrying on operations in both placer and quartz properties on Wolf Creek near Grants Pass. The creek bed is being worked for distance of 6 miles of its course. On the ledge which is under development men are running a tunnel which follows the vein, having width of 7 feet. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 6, 1904, page 103 Curry County.
Portland reports say a strike has been made in the mountains of the
Sixes region, on Sixes River, Curry County. A gravel bed or channel has
been uncovered by the Sixes M. Co. that is giving returns of $1 a pan.
The bank has a depth of 20 feet to bedrock. In the early days the Sixes
River channels were worked to some extent with shovel, rocker and
sluice, but the banks were too deep and closely cemented to be worked
by hand. During the past season the Sixes M. Co. has put in hydraulic
equipment. Jackson County.
Milling superintendent Orme, for the Condor Water & Power Co.,
will
next month begin work of installing a 20-stamp mill at the Braden mine,
near Ashland, to be operated by electric power from the Gold Ray
station. The power line will be 4 miles in length. Electric power will
be used to operate the drills, hoisting and other machinery about the
mine. Bodies of ore are blocked out.… Work is going on at
Whitman &
Heard's Oro Grande M. Co.'s placers on Carberry fork of the Applegate.
The plant is being increased to three giants. The Missouri M. Co., in
which Smith & Warner are interested, is also operating a placer
on
Carberry with a No. 2 giant. The dredger of Champlin & Co., on Foots Creek, near Gold Hill, has been launched and is receiving its machinery. A boiler, weighing nine tons and of 120 H.P., is being set up. All of the other machinery for the dredger is on the ground. Champlin & Co. have two dredgers at work near Bannock, Mont.… The work of overhauling and placing new machinery has been completed at the Sturgis hydraulic mines on Forest Creek. Among the improvements are a derrick for handling the boulders, and a complete electric lighting plant. Josephine County.
Spokane, Wash., men have bought the Lucky Queen mine, Jumpoff Joe
district, near Grants Pass. C. D. Crane is superintendent and has
restarted development. For several years the Lucky Queen, which at one
time was equipped with a mill and plant, has been idle. The workings
are being cleared and retimbered and new tracks will be laid, etc. Development work is progressing on the copper mines of southern Josephine County, aside from that under direction of the Waldo S.&M. Co. at Waldo. Among these is the Queen of Bronze on the Illinois River. It is owned by Colorado men. A shaft was sunk 110 feet and a drift is being run on the ledge from this level. C. J. Murphy is superintendent.… Farther south, on Shelly Creek, is the Monumental mine, being developed under bond by T. W. Draper and California men. Fifteen men are at work. Values are carried in copper, gold and silver. The ore is said to be a concentrating and cyaniding proposition.… Little work is being done at the mines of the Waldo S.&M. Co. They are well developed and ready to begin output as soon as the smelter is built. A hydraulic mine is being developed in Humbug district, on Applegate River, south of Grants Pass, by White, Christian & Benson. A reservoir has been built and a No. 2 giant set. It will be operated under 150-foot head. Piping began last week. The Williamsburg M. Co., of Portland, has resumed development work at its Williamsburg mines on Williams Creek, says the Ashland Tidings. The mines are equipped with an 8-stamp mill. The tubular elevator for the Deep Gravel hydraulic mines at Waldo has been set and is at work, says manager W. J. Wimer. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 13, 1904, pages 120-121 Jackson County.
The Omaha G.M. Co. is developing a quartz property near Gold Hill, on
Foots Creek, under superintendence of C. C. Clark. Two tunnels have
been driven on the ledge--one to depth of 270 feet and the other 235
feet. The ledge is 3 feet in width and gives average assay values of
$12 in gold. Josephine County.
The Eureka mine, on Soldier Creek, near Grants Pass, is being operated
by its former owners of Eureka, Cal., under management of A. F. Nelson.
A 10-stamp mill is operated. The Conner hydraulic placer on Briggs Creek, near the mouth of Red Dog Creek, near Grants Pass, is being operated by Brinegar & Smith. They are working in the channel uncovered by Conner. The monthly output at the Greenback mine is reported at $40,000. The property is on Grave Creek, near Grants Pass, and has been producing for three years. W. H. Brevort of New York is president and C. W. Thompson is manager at the mine. The manager reports arrangements completed for heavier production this year than last. The mill has forty stamps. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 20, 1904, page 139 Jackson County.
At the Shorty-Hope mines, west of Ashland, the Golden Spike drift is in
440 feet. Since Feb. 1 it has been driven under contract. It will
continue to the Shorty-Hope shaft, which will be sunk to connect. It is
proposed to enlarge this shaft.
Men have been put to work on the Mountain Lion mine, near Applegate.
The ledge averages 2 feet in width and is opened on seven levels. It
assays $15 per ton. This year the north end of the vein will be opened.
The mine is equipped with a reduction plant using cyanide and
amalgamation. The mine is owned by the Mountain Lion M. Co.…
Burner
& Gilkins have leased Caris Creek, on Missouri Flat, in lower
Applegate section, and will begin placer mining operations next month.
Josephine County.Development work on the Ingram-Ramsey copper mine, in Slate Creek district, will be resumed. It is under bond to S. Bowden. A shaft will be sunk on the ledge to depth of 150 feet. The mine is 17 miles southeast of Grants Pass and near the Kerby road. The Bone of Contention mine, Williams district, south of Grants Pass, has been sold to Johnson, Catterlin & Co. of Portland. The Bone of Contention is equipped with an 8-stamp mill and other machinery for development and operation. The new management proposes to complete a crosscut tunnel to tap the main ore body at a depth of 350 feet. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, February 27, 1904, pages 154-155 F. H. Osgood, the Seattle mining and railroad man who recently purchased the old Hammersley mine, of Jumpoff Joe district, is meeting with good success in clearing out the old mine and getting it in shape for business. If Mr. Osgood meets with the same good fortune in this that he has in other Southern Oregon mining ventures, it may be readily surmised that the Hammersley, so long abandoned, will eventually become one of the big producers of this mineral zone. Two big pumps, discharging 8,000 gallons of water an hour, are fast lowering the flood that has inundated the tunnels, drifts and stopes for several years. The timberings are found to be in good condition, so that when the water is cleared all will be in readiness for mining. The Hammersley produced many tons of rich ore in its time, and closed down merely on account of an entanglement of its owners. The mine is equipped with a good hoist, five-stamp mill and concentrator, all in excellent condition. There are three boilers. The ledge of the Hammersley is from one to three feet in width, and the values are practically all free milling. The vein lies at the same angle, and on the same zone, as the Greenback, three miles farther north. Dennis H. Stovall, "Osgood Buys the Old Hammersley," Salt Lake Mining Review, February 29, 1904, page 14 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
A few days ago a representative of Mineral Wealth went
out to the Granite Hill mine, a property that is receiving a greater
amount of attention at this time than any other quartz mine in the
Southern Oregon mineral zone. It requires but a brief inspection to
satisfy one that the Granite Hill is a property of great promise. It is
located but eight miles from Grants Pass, and directly on the same
mineral belt which supplies the famous Greenback and the fast-growing
Vulcan, Baby, Oro Fino, Gopher, Hammersley, Dick and other properties,
all of which are being intelligently developed, and a number of which
are operating mills. The Vulcan recently installed a triple-discharge
mill, equivalent to a 5-stamp battery. The Gopher is operating a
5-stamp mill and is grinding out good ore, and the Hammersley is being
overhauled and cleaned out by F. H. Osgood of Seattle and its 5-stamp
mill will be set to work in a few weeks. The Vulcan, aside from
treating its own ore, likewise treats that of the Yellow Horn mine,
adjoining. Taking these things into consideration it can be seen at a
glance that the environment of the Granite Hill is the best. The
property consists of 1,000 acres of mineral and timber lands, located
on the three forks of Louse Creek. In this vast tract there are scores
of quartz ledges, the best developed of which is the Granite Hill
proper; then comes the Red Jacket, the Ida, Golden Terry, Jumbo,
Bedrock, Independence, Coronation and others. There are over 60 acres
of rich placer ground, equipped with a good hydraulic plant, and over
the whole is a magnificent forest of timber. The Granite Hill mines are
the property of the American Gold Fields Company of Chicago, of which
W. J. Morphy, of that city, is manager. L. Y. Wickersham, an
enterprising young mining man, and an old collegemate of the Mineral Wealth,
by the way, is superintendent. Under the management of the American
Gold Fields Company, and the superintendence of Mr. Wickersham, the
Granite Hill mines have undergone a change in the past year that it is
not the good fortune of many properties to enjoy. From a mere prospect
it has been converted into a big and modernly equipped mine. A fortune
has been expended for machinery--machinery of the best, machinery that
will last; and that is not being placed for a year, or for a few years,
but for a decade, for the enormity of the ore body in the score of
Granite Hill ledges justifies such an expenditure. Ten 1,000-pound
stamps are now being placed in the new mill building, and ten more will
be added by the early summer. From 50 to 60 men are employed
continually at the Granite Hill, and development work, which consists
largely in driving down the vertical shaft on the Granite Hill claim,
is kept up night and day, and is proceeding as fast as three air drills
can do the work. In this regard it might be mentioned that the company
is putting in one of the largest compressors ever brought to the Coast,
and the hoist now at work is not excelled by that of any other Oregon
mine. The Granite Hill ledges, by which is meant the veins of the
several claims, range from two to eight feet in width, and the values
are carried in free gold and sulphurets throughout all of them. The
mill is built just below the collar of the main shaft of the Granite
Hill claim and is so located that ore from the Red Jacket, Coronation,
Independence, Bedrock, Jumbo and the other claims can be conveyed by
gravity tram directly to the ore bins.DENNIS H. STOVALL. The Bagley Improvement Company has been working quietly for some time on its extensive mining and irrigating enterprise on Wards Creek, near Grants Pass, and but little has been known outside of this immediate district of the big work this company has under way. The company has purchased 1,000 acres of placer, timber and farm lands along Wards Creek, and is now constructing a series of large reservoirs and building ditches and flumes for the conveyance of water over this tract, to be used for both irrigating and mining purposes. There are 150 acres of placer ground in the tract owned by the Bagley company, consisting of an old high channel, and carrying good values in coarse gold. The depth of the ground is from eight to ten feet. The Galice Consolidated Company made the third partial cleanup for the season at its Galice placers this week. Over $2,500 was taken from one box and is a part of what has been uncovered by one giant. Three giants are operated by the company. The heavy rains have been of great benefit to all the Galice placers this year as the floods have carried away and cleaned out the accumulated debris of years. Thein Bros. of Seattle are meeting with success in the development and operation of the Golden Wedge mine of Galice, purchased by them a few months ago. The Gold Bug mine, of Mount Reuben, the property of Senator Jones of Nevada, has been thoroughly overhauled and shaped for larger work. A test run of several tons of ore is being made at the Scribner & Henderson mine of Coyote. If returns are favorable a much larger plant will be put in. The new 5-stamp mill and equipment is at work at the Bill Nye mine of the Gold Hill district. The Champlin & Company dredger on Foots Creek will begin operations this month. This dredger is one of the largest ever built. It required nine cars to transport the machinery, which was mostly constructed in Chicago, and 19 carloads of lumber. It will have a reach of 50 feet and a capacity of 3,000 yards a day. The machinery for a time will be operated by steam, but this may later be replaced by electric power. This will be the second inland dredge in Southern Oregon, and marks the commencement of what will someday be a prominent branch of the mining industry of the district. This district is noteworthy for nothing if not for the expanding valleys that mark the outlet of almost every stream. These streams were worked toward their mouths until the grade became too little. Most of them were rich and there is every reason to believe that these stream bottoms would prove highly remunerative for dredging. Within ten years there will probably be dozens of these machines at work on various points of Applegate, Illinois and Rogue rivers and tributaries. The Sugar Pine mine on Galice Creek is undergoing some development at the hands of its new owner, Mr. W. I. Dowell. A fault fissure is followed into the mountain by an 800-foot tunnel, and while there are long stretches where the filling matter has narrowed to the merest seam, there is not a single cessation. This property has produced from $25,000 to $30,000 and gives good promise of getting back on the producing list again shortly. The Oscar Creek mines, owned separately by C. G. Carson and Jewell & Moore, are under bond to Foster & Gunnell. They comprise local wash, and while inclined to be compact and perhaps somewhat cemented, yet are known to carry very high grade pay. Oscar Creek is a tributary of Applegate and empties into that stream eight or ten miles from Grants Pass. Two other tributaries of the Applegate that contain very good values and that will be good producers someday are Rocky and Caris creeks that together drain that extended circular shaped area known as Missouri Flat. There are various old channels that are known to exist on this flat that carry as big values as the more famous Farris Gulch and Williams Creek placers that lie on the opposite side of the Applegate. The present difficulty is the lack of water, or rather the equipment to supply the water, for water in the Applegate is abundant the year around. A good little prospect on the Thompson Creek tributary of Applegate is that of White, Armstrong & Thornton. A quartet comprising Messrs. Cleland, Clute, Phelps and Thurston had a lease on it till the close of the year. A 50-foot winze on the vein with a 50-foot drift either way shows up a high-grade small ledge, and the owners will open it up themselves the coming season. Sharp Bros., Holman and Moore now control the whole of Powells Creek branch of Williams Creek on the Applegate, and now have it equipped with a model hydraulic plant. The Alice mine on Kanes Creek will get started this month. This plant consists of a stamp mill and a 15- to 20-ton daily capacity cyanide plant. The ore is not what would be termed free milling, yet yields readily to cyanide treatment. The Millionaire mine in the Kanes Creek district is taking out some high-grade rock. Mineral Wealth, Redding, March 15, 1904, page 4 J. M. Depew reports having struck the Boulder ledge (or "Old Spot," from the spotted appearance of the ore), with O. P. Templeton and A. G. Arnold. Shafts have been sunk, open cuts made and tunneling done. The ledge is on the east side of Mount Baldy, 4 miles from Grants Pass. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 5, 1904, page 171 F. H. Osgood of Seattle, Wash., who bought the Hammersley mine in Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass, reports work progressing in clearing out the mine. Two pumps, discharging 8000 gallons of water an hour, are lowering the water in the tunnels, drifts and stopes of the Hammersley. The timbering is said to be found in good condition. The mine is equipped with a hoist, 5-stamp mill and concentrator. There are three boilers. The ledge of the Hammersley is 1 to 3 feet in width and the values are free-milling. The Copper Eagle M. Co. is clearing a site preparing to build a 50-ton smelting and matting plant at the Copper Eagle mine of Galice Creek district, near Grants Pass. There are four claims (eighty acres) in the Copper Eagle group, and the ledge has an average width of 4 feet, carrying values in copper and gold, with some silver. Some 300 feet of tunnel have been driven and one tunnel, in 200 feet, will tap the main ledge at depth of 250 feet. The property is being developed and equipped under the management of J. C. Mattison of Galice. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 12, 1904, page 187 IS PROVING A BONANZA
MINE YIELDING THIRTY THOUSAND DOLLARS MONTHLY. Output of the Greenback Property Is Keeping Two Mills and a Cyanide Plant Busy.
Grants Pass,
Ore., March 16.--Through Eben Smith of Denver, who is a prominent
stockholder in the Greenback Gold Mining Company, it is learned that
the Greenback mine of Grave Creek, near here, is proving a veritable
bonanza. From a desultory pocket proposition, operated by a blind horse
and an old-time arrastra, the Greenback has been developed by Denver
mining men into the richest mine of the Webfoot State. It is now paying
dividends of $30,000 a month. It produces $60,000 monthly, and the
average expenses are about $30,000, leaving $30,000 clear profit for
the stockholders. The stock is held by a few men, among them Eben Smith
of Denver, William Brevoort of New York and a few others.
Two mills are operated at the Greenback, one of ten and the other of thirty stamps, aside from a 100-ton cyanide plant. A crew of 120 men is employed, and some 250 people are supported in the town of Greenback by the Greenback mine. There is ore enough blocked out at the mine to keep the present battery busy for fifteen years and more, and enough on down in the lower levels to keep the mills busy for twice that time. The owners of the Greenback have been very reticent about giving out any information concerning the mine, and it was not until recently that the true condition of the property was known. El Paso Daily Times, March 17, 1904, page 4 Douglas County.
E. Jenks, owner of the Arrastra and Baltimore groups of mines near
Bohemia, says there has been considerable work going on in the district
this winter, notably on the Vesuvius group, the Crystal Con., Bohemia
group and North Fairview group. The Crystal Con. Co. has been working
all winter and has its 5-stamp mill ready to run. The Oregon Securities
Co. operations have been shut down since January, but it expects to
resume development work this month. The company's Musick mine is
blocked with ore, which cannot be put in the dump on account of the
snow, it has a 30-stamp mill ready to run and room for twenty stamps
more, which will be added in the spring.… The North Fairview
Co., which
has its office in Eugene, has also been working. The Bohemia Co. has
continued to drive. It has from 1200 to 1500 feet of tunnel on its
group. Superintendent Jenks says, besides the extra twenty stamps to be
added to the Oregon Securities mill, preparations are being made for a
mill on the Vesuvius and Oregon-Colorado mines during the coming
summer.… Trains on the railroad from Cottage Grove to the
mines are
making one trip a day regularly (except Sunday). The last bridge has
been completed and the road will be built farther on into the
mines.…
Besides the companies mentioned, there are a number of individual
claims which have been worked by their owners. Corvallis men have organized the Twin Rocks G.M.&M. Co. to operate in Bohemia district. The directors are L. and W. B. Hartley, Wallace Hartley, S. R. May and G. B. Spitler. The property of the company consists of nine claims with free-gold prospects. Jackson County.
M. P. Ward of Portland, part owner of the Millionaire mine, near Gold
Hill, says he is increasing the number of men at work. It is the
intention of Ward and associates to carry on work and build a plant
this season. The property is free-milling and a stamp mill will be put
up."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 19, 1904, page 203 It is reported that native silver, associated with bismuth, has been found by prospectors near Grants Pass. The Takilma Smelting Co. is preparing to build a 100-ton smelter on the Darkis place below the Waldo and Queen of Bronze mines, near Waldo, and is expected to be in operation by July 1. The smelter is to treat ores of the Waldo and Takilma mines. A. I. Goodell is manager, and C. L. Tutt of Colorado Springs, Colo., is president. S. Chase et al., of Portland, are developing the Oro Fino mine of Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass. He proposes to put in a cyanide plant this spring. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, March 26, 1904, page 220 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
There seems little doubt now but that the long-awaited Waldo smelter
will be built at the Waldo copper mines this summer. An assurance in
this regard is the recent incorporation under the laws of Colorado of
the Takilma Smelting Company. The sole purpose of this company is to
erect and operate a private and custom smelter at Waldo. According to
the contract made with H. C. Holthoff, the builder of the new plant, it
will be placed aboard the cars at Cudahy, Wis., by May 1st, and will be
in operation by July. While many of the people interested in the
Takilma Smelting Company are likewise interested in the Waldo Smelting
and Mining Company and the United States Reduction and Refining
Company, each of Colorado, the first-named company is an entirely
separate organization. Charles F. Butt, president of the United States
Reduction and Refining Company, and general manager of the Waldo
Smelting and Mining Company, is also manager of the Takilma Smelting
Company, and his presence at the head of the new organization assures
it success in any enterprise it may undertake. The new smelter will be
of 100 tons capacity, and will be built at Takilma on the Darkis Tract,
and near the Waldo and Queen of Bronze--the best developed mines of the
Waldo Smelting and Mining Company. It will be of the standard blast
furnace type. With its completion, the immediate operation of a score
of copper mines in Josephine County, Oregon and Del Norte County, Cal.,
will be assured.DENNIS H. STOVALL. S. Chase, who with other Portland men is developing the Oro Fino mine, of Jumpoff Joe district, is meeting with such good success that he and his partners have decided to install a cyanide plant this spring, and arrangements to that effect have already been made. The Oro Fino was practically an abandoned mine when Mr. Chase took hold of its title over a year ago. Like other Southern Oregon properties it needed the management of men with the means and the enterprise to open it up; men who were not merely satisfied with gophering the surface for pocket values. By intelligent and persistent work the lost ledge was located, and an immense body of high-grade ore blocked out. The rock is pretty much of the same character as that of the famous Greenback, a few miles farther north. Quartz, giving test returns of $2,000 a ton, is being taken from a ledge on the Upper Applegate, which was discovered and is being developed by Jack and James McNulty of Jacksonville. The ledge has been traced 480 feet on the surface, and is opened by a shaft to a depth of 45 feet, at which depth the ledge is over 4 feet wide. One sample of one and a half ounces that was burned out in a frying pan yielded 30 cents in gold, and a specimen of sulphide weighing one-half pound gave 75 cents when mortared. The owners of this very promising proposition will sink the shaft down 75 feet and then drive in a tunnel to meet it. A big real estate deal recently consummated in Josephine County will, with its ultimate accomplishment, bring about good results for the mining interests of Galice, Jumpoff Joe and Louse Creek districts. A. B. Cousin, manager of the Galice Consolidated Mines Company, purchased for the Merlin Townsite Company 250 acres in and about the town of Merlin, on the Southern Pacific, nine miles north of Grants Pass. Just what Mr. Cousin's plans are cannot be learned as yet, but from the vigorous way with which he has advanced the mining interests of this particular section, it is a foregone conclusion that much more will be done in the future. There are probably more undeveloped mining and timbering enterprises or prospects adjacent to Merlin than in any other part of Southern Oregon. It will be one of the purposes of the new company to develop these, and as it has a strong financial backing of Eastern capital, there is no doubt but what the plans of the enterprise will be successfully carried out. Southern Oregon is having an unusually good year for its placer mines. January saw the miners disappointed with the season's outlook. March found them happy in the height of one of the best placer seasons the country has ever seen. The smelter properties have been relieved of the necessity of using reservoir heads, and the larger mines are assured a long run. Oldtimers declare that this year stands unprecedented for so fine a season at so late a time in the year. A mine that will make a record this year is the Old Sturgis, on Forest Creek of the Applegate, six miles west of Jacksonville, since December last the property of the S. A. Vance Company of Los Angeles. The new management found time to equip the mine with new pipe and giant, when the season seriously set in. For the first time in its history the mine has been operating night and day, and the season's result will be the clearance of upward of two acres--more than twice as much as in any previous year. The ground represents an old back channel of Forest Creek. The old channel consists of 12 or 14 feet of solid gravel, covered with an equal depth of finer material, and carries about $10,000 per acre. There is one placer mine that has not yet started--the Jack Layton mine--also on the Applegate, and whose valuable water rights include thirty-three miles of ditches from Williams Creek. Mr. Layton prefers to let the ditches go unused rather than risk the damages that might result from slideouts caused by the water in the winter season. The mine, however, operates until late in the fall, and, ranks with the best producers of Southern Oregon. The new dredger built by Champlin & Co., on Foots Creek, started successfully on the 18th of March. Aside from the few stops that are always occasioned on the outset with so complicated and massive machinery, there has been nothing to mar operations. The dredger was christened the Abbie J. Champlin. It is one of the largest ever built, having a theoretical capacity of 5000 cubic yards per day. It marks the advent of an important branch of mining in Jackson and Josephine counties. Foots Creek, besides being the scene of the Champlin dredger, is also the scene of nine hydraulic plants in operation at the present time. The dredger controls the creek from the mouth to the forks, or a distance of four miles. Up the right fork Lance Brothers own and operate a good mine, as do also Hosmer, Landers and Anderson. On the Middle Fork the Old Black Gold Channel Company own a good property--the consolidation of a number of smaller interests--and the Cook and Morris properties will each make a good cleanup this season. A piece of ground that will early attract attention of dredging men is that of the Upper Kanes Creek district, near Gold Hill, that is today included in the McDougal, Miner and Birdseye ranches. Mineral Wealth, Redding, April 1, 1904, page 3 An Oregon Gold Dredge.
Herewith is illustrated
the Abbie J. Champlin
gold dredge of the bucket
chain type recently furnished by the Allis-Chalmers Co., Chicago, to
Champlin & Co., of Gold Hill, Oregon. It is described by the builders as being operated by steam, with 8 cubic feet buckets of the alternate type, built heavy to work hard-packed and cemented gravel with a large percentage of heavy boulders, and designed to dig a depth of 45 feet below the water line, and a depth from the surface to bedrock of 55 to 60 feet. The bucket chain they claim to be a new design, patented, and manufactured solely by them. With the multiple lug connection they assert that it overcomes the trouble of bending or breaking pins, breaking the back of the bucket or of pulling out of the eye connection, and enables the use of a much smaller pin. A chain of these buckets was furnished to the Centerville Dredging Co., of Centerville, Idaho, with satisfactory result. The grizzly is of the well-known revolving type, of ample length and diameter, and which has been found to give desirable results with minimum cost of repairs. The grizzly is made with a removable lining so that all that is necessary is to replace the inner lining, which is made in two pieces. A direct-connected centrifugal pump is used with spray pipes running through the screens to clean the material thoroughly. The gravel pump is of special patent, controlled by the Allis-Chalmers Co., lined with steel throughout, the pump taking the material passing through the perforations of the screen and elevating same to the sluice box. In the double lift dredge where this pump is used the claim is made that it thoroughly churns the material and puts it in good shape for working to advantage in the sluice box. The winches for handling ladder and spuds are in one nest operated by an independent double cylinder engine, and for the swinging lines two standard double cylinder, single drum hoisting engines are used. A complete electric lighting plant of ample capacity is also furnished. The Allis-Chalmers Co. furnishes all the iron work necessary for the complete dredge, also erection drawings, together with detail drawings of the hull, lumber bill and bolt list, to enable customer to build the hull, and properly erect the machinery. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 2, 1904, page 230 Click on the link for an photo of the dredge. C. E. Woodrow has bonded the Ada mine, on Foots Creek, near Grants Pass, which will be developed and later equipped with a mill and power plant. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 2, 1904, page 236 Douglas County.
C. C. Matthews, superintendent of the Oregon Securities Co. at Bohemia,
says he is putting in additional machinery. The 30-stamp mill is
expected to be ready for operation this month. A body of ore has been opened in the Riverside group, near Bohemia, in the lower tunnel. The breast of the drift shows ore 7 feet wide. This tunnel is in 340 feet, and they have been drifting in the ore body for 200 feet. It is under the management of F. J. Hard. Jackson County.
The Golden Standard mine of Gold Hill district, owned by Kubli Bros. of
Jacksonville, and which has been closed down, is being overhauled and
made ready to resume operations. Josephine County.
The Ada quartz mine of Foots Creek district, near Grants Pass, has been
bonded by manager Woodrow of the New York General Electric Co., and
will put men to work next week, says the Telegram.
He will continue development of the Ada and shape it for a stamp mill
and plant. The mine is opened by tunnel and shaft to depth of 200 feet.
A tunnel has been started on a deeper level and has been driven 80
feet. This tunnel will be completed. The ledge is 3 feet in width. The Bagley Improvement Co. is doing work on Wards Creek, east of Grants Pass, building reservoirs and constructing ditches, and will provide water in quantity for both placer mining and irrigation. The company's holdings cover an area of 1000 acres along Wards Creek of both farm lands and placer ground. The gravel is said to lay from 8 to 10 feet in depth, and carries average values of 20 cents a yard. The Van Dorn & Hedrick hydraulic placer mine, on Rogue River, below Grants Pass, is being overhauled. Larger ditches are being built and heavier piping laid. The Golden Eagle mine at Provolt is in full operation and they are running a tunnel 150 feet to tap the ledge in the shaft, 60 feet in depth. The ledge in the shaft is 3 feet in width. The company which has this mine bonded is superintended by J. Whitehead of Gold Hill.… The Sharp Bros. placer mine in Powell Creek is worked steadily by pipe and rock hoists.… A bond is being negotiated for on the Little Pocket quartz mine across the river, 1 mile from Provolt, owned by E. Hannum and A. Cook. It is idle at present.… On Missouri Flat the Gilkins M. Co. is placer mining on the Caris farm. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 9, 1904, page 252 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
A
large mining deal, and one that may be of great importance to the
mining industry of Southern Oregon, was the sale this past week of the
Allen mine on Rogue River in the Galice district. The price is said to
be in cash and it is stated that the bulk of it was large or the
equivalent. The deal was made by Portland parties, who sold the mine to
Mr. Chas. D'Autremont and associates of Denver. Mr. D'Autremont is a
mining man of Duluth and is well known throughout the Middle West. He
is one of the stockholders in the Calumet & Hecla, and also of
the
Bisbee mine, in Arizona. The company taking the Allen mine over was but
recently incorporated under the laws of Arizona and is known as the
Oregon Homestake Mining & Reduction Company. There are 140
acres in
the Allen property, all patented ground. The new owners expect to at
once begin the development of the mine, and will prepare the property
for operation on an extensive scale. The ore body is on the Big Yank
ledge, and just across the Rogue from the Almeda mine of the Almeda
Mining Company. It is a smelting ore and a smelter will have to be
built to treat it. It is the purpose of the new company to work in
conjunction with the Almeda company, both in the development and
operation of their properties. It is stated that they will build a
power dam across the Rogue River, giving 12,000 available horsepower.
They will also build a new wagon road through the mountains from the
Almeda mine to Leland, giving a new outlet for the district and making
it but nine miles to the nearest railroad point instead of fourteen.DENNIS H. STOVALL. Work has begun on the building of a 100-ton smelter by the Takilma Smelting Company at Takilma, in the Waldo copper district. Albert Goodell, who was until recently in charge of a smelter in British Columbia, is superintending the preliminary work and will have charge of the plant when it starts up. Teams will be put on the road in the near future, hauling out material and machinery from Grants Pass to Takilma. Messrs. Penrose, Tutt and McNeil, who are at the head of the Takilma Smelting Company, are Colorado mining men, and have made a success of other enterprises. They are are at the head of the United States Refining & Reduction Company, which operates several smelters in the state of Colorado, and they are also at the head of the Utah Copper Company. A good deposit of asbestos has been discovered on Starveout Creek, in the Cow Canon district, by Curtis Bros. The deposit has been under development for some time, and of late samples of the mineral have been tested and proved of good quality. For a number of years it has been known that asbestos existed in Southern Oregon, but this is the first instance that would indicate the occurrence of the mineral in commercial quantities. Manager A. B. Cousin of the Galice Consolidated Mines in the Galice district is preparing to install a hydraulic elevator on their property. About 1,000 feet of new piping will be laid. This will make available a large acreage of ground on the lower creek that is at present unavailable. The Monumental mine on Shelly Creek has been purchased by the Waldo Smelting & Mining Company, which has been developing it under bond for some time. Col. T. W. Draper of San Francisco has charge of the property. Col. J. S. Crawford of Philadelphia has returned to this city after an absence of several months, and has resumed the management of the Cleopatra group of copper mines in Del Norte County, California. Colonel Crawford will push the development of this property, and is concentrating his efforts on the opening up of the Sidney and Ohio claims. George Bowers of Gold Hill is meeting with success in the development of his cinnabar claims in the Meadows district. It is opened to a depth or 300 feet, exposing a 45-foot body of ore. Mineral Wealth, Redding, April 15, 1904, page 3 Douglas County.
The Oregon Securities Co. at Bohemia reports increase of work
projected, both in mine and for the railroad. The tunnel will be
completed by Aug. 1. It is in 300 feet into Champion Mountain, through
which it will be run to make connection with the Musick mine, allowing
the ore to be hauled by electric tramway from that producer to the mill
built in Champion Basin. Running this tunnel will cost $12,000 to
$15,000, says G. B. Hengen of New York, president of the company, but
by so doing they will crosscut two veins of ore already known as
producers. The first one is the Excelsior, which will be cut at
distance of 150 feet from present face, and the second, the Champion,
will be reached at distance of 350 feet from face. The tunnel when
completed will be 1500 feet long, and will be large enough for a
railway train to pass through. When the Champion ledge is cut it is
intended to follow that vein the entire distance through the mountain,
securing ore for milling. As soon as the tunnel is completed ore can be
obtained from the Musick mine, but until that time they will use ore
from the Champion mine. Three air compressors, with drills, are in
operation. As soon as the snow clears they will get the road in shape
from the Musick mine, the rails being already on the ground. The
electric plant is completed. Connections for electricity have been
installed. The railroad will be completed by May 1 to the warehouse,
where the electric plant is built. It is then intended to put in an
electric car line from there to the mill. The distance is 5 miles.Josephine County.
The Allen mine, a gold-copper property, on Rogue River, 3½
miles south
of Galice Creek, is reported sold to C. d'Autremont of Duluth, Minn.,
for $750,000."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 16, 1904, page 275 It is reported that the Millionaire mine has been sold for $40,000. The property is 25 miles from Grants Pass. M. P. Ward will begin work at once and buy the necessary machinery, pumps and hoists. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 23, 1904, page 290 Jackson County.
M. P. Ward, manager of the Millionaire mine, near Gold Hill, has begun
preparations for putting in pumps, hoists and other machinery for
development of the property. Josephine County.
A. B. Cousin, of Portland, manager of the Galice Con. mines, at Galice
Creek, near Grants Pass, has started the ditch to Rogue River to work
the property recently bought by the company from P. B. Wickham.C. J. Allen, F. B. Roberts, et al., owners of the Allen mine, near Grants Pass, propose to dam the Rogue River, near the mine, to develop 12,000 H.P. Power drills and other equipment will also go in. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, April 30, 1904, page 305 GRIST OF NEWSY NOTES FROM GRANTS PASS.
Grants Pass, Ore., April 22.--A five-stamp mill and plant is soon to be
placed at the Homestake mine, on Foots Creek. A crew of eight men is
now at work at the Homestake under the superintendence of J. R.
Cunningham.Special Correspondence. Colonel H. C. Woodrow, of San Francisco, has been here for several days getting a crew together to begin the development of the Ada mine, on Foots Creek, recently bonded by him for San Francisco men, from Harth & Ryan. Samuel Bowden, of Spokane, has set a crew of men to work in the development of his copper claims on Slate Creek, and will push this work with all speed during the summer. The big ledge is making a good showing with the development work thus far done. F. H. Osgood, the Seattle railroad and mining man, has been here for several days past superintending the work of clearing out and preparing the old Hammersley mine, of Jump-Off Joe district, for business. Mr. Osgood has the Hammersley cleared of water and is now retimbering such of the tunnels and drifts as need it, and getting the mill and plant ready for work. Joseph Kreis, president of the National Mining Company, has been here looking over the holdings of the company in Del Norte County, California. The headquarters of this company are at Tacoma. The copper mines of the National are located in and about Sangermine, Del Norte County, and embrace some 700 acres of mineral ground. The properties are under development and are making a good showing. The Review representative is informed by Frank Roberts, one of the interested parties, that the Allen mine, on Rogue River, of the Galice district, has been purchased by Duluth mining men, headed by Charles d'Autremont, for a consideration of $750,000. This is the biggest mining deal ever made in Oregon. The Allen properties embrace 140 acres of patented ground. The mine is located on the famous Big Yank ledge, and the values are base, carried in copper, and are smelting. The company taking the Allen over is known as the Oregon Homestake Mining and Reduction Company. Development work is to begin at once. Among the features planned by the new enterprise is the damming of Rogue River for power purposes, the building of a smelter and the construction of a wagon road across the mountains to Leland, making it but nine miles from the mine to the railroad, instead of 14, as at present. Mr. J. F. Reddy, of Spokane, was in Grants Pass a few days ago on his way to Crescent City, and while here stated that the famous Blue Ledge mine, of the upper Applegate district, of which he is manager, has again changed hands. It has been purchased by eastern parties for a consideration of $250,000. Mr. Reddy gave out nothing more regarding the sale further than to say the purchasers of the Blue Ledge had made a thorough inspection of the property and were well satisfied with it. Development work is to begin at once. This will instill new life and vigor into the Blue Ledge camp and district, as there has been a sort of falling off in the excitement caused by that section a year ago, when the Blue Ledge was under development by Patsy Clarke. The new dredger of Champlin & Co., launched some time ago on Foots Creek, is now in operation, and is proving itself well adapted to the task of dredging Southern Oregon channel. The dredge has given little or no trouble from the start and the forty buckets now reach bedrock on their circuit a depth of over thirty feet. Nearly all of the dredging grounds owned by this company on Foots Creek prospects 25 cents a yard. The channel is several hundred feet in width and from twenty to forty feet in depth. The dredger is floated by backwater from a dam thrown across the lower end of the creek. The machine is 112 feet in length and similar to the two machines operated by Champlin & Co., near Bannock, Montana. The complete cyanide plant, formerly in use at the Parnell mine, near Kalama, Washington, has been purchased for S. Chase, owner and manager of the Oro Fino mine, on Jump-Off Joe district, near Grants Pass. The plant will be placed aboard the cars at Kalama at once and shipped south for installation at the Oro Fino. It was originally a $10,000 plant, but was purchased by Mr. Chase's representative by auction and at a bargain. The plant is of fifty tons capacity, being a four-tank standard, and is equipped with Sturdevant rock crusher and centrifugal rolls. Power will be supplied by steam, the engines and boilers being a part of the plant. The Oro Fino has been under development by Mr. Chase for over a year past and during that time has made an excellent showing. The ore body is large, the values being mainly base, and running from $5 to $10 a ton, making it a good cyaniding proposition. DENNIS H. STOVALL.
The Mining Review, Salt Lake City, April 30, 1904, page 23SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
Dr.
J. F. Reddy has arrived here and gone over to Crescent City to have a
conference with the other owners of the Blue Ledge mine of the upper
Applegate district, regarding its disposal. While here Dr. Reddy
confirmed the report from Spokane to the effect that the Blue Ledge has
been sold to eastern parties for a consideration of $250,000. The
eastern men have made a thorough investigation of the Blue Ledge and
are entirely satisfied with it. Dr. Reddy and his associates have been
working diligently in the development of their big property. Other
properties adjoining the Blue Ledge have likewise been under
development. The new owners of the big copper mine will at once begin
its development and will thus install new life and vigor into the camp.DENNIS H. STOVALL. The big dredger of Champlin & Co., on Foots Creek, is now in operation, and it is proving all that was expected of it. The machinery in its every part, from stem to stern of the big craft, is performing its work perfectly, and thus far has given little or no trouble. The 40 big buckets of the dredger have cut to a depth of 10 feet and and are now dipping bedrock at this depth. The buckets, if necessary, can dip to a depth of 60 feet. The dredger is 112 feet in length, and is supplied with a 120-horsepower boiler and two engines. It is floated in the backwater made by a dam across lower Foots Creek. The ground here prospected from 20 to 30 cents a yard. The machine is of about 2,000 yards daily capacity, and is built after the same plan as the two machines operated by Champlin & Co. near Bannock, Montana. W. P. Cope, manager of the Yank Group copper mines on Rogue River, of the Galice district, has sold his property to eastern parties for a consideration of $25,000. The Yank is located on the Big Yank ledge and adjoins the Allen mine, recently purchased by Chas. D’Autremont and other mining men of Duluth. Milo Ward, manager of the Millionaire mine, has set a crew to work in the development of this property of the Gold Hill district. The Millionaire was recently purchased by Indianapolis men. A new pump, hoist, engine and boiler will be placed in the near future to facilitate development. Work has been resumed at the Homestake mine of the Foots Creek district. The management announces that it will install a five-stamp mill and plant before the close of the summer. F. H. Osgood, the Seattle railroad and mining man, has the old Hammersley mine, which he is holding under bond, about cleared of water, and is now re-timbering some of the tunnels and drifts and getting the mill and concentrator, boiler and engines ready for work. Samuel Bowden, the Spokane miner, is making good progress in the development of his Slate Creek copper claims. The big ledge is making a fine showing with development. In the running of a tunnel following the ledge of the Moon & Jackson mine of Galice, a pocket was uncovered by a blast this past week, and over $100 in gold fragments thrown out by the shot. John Ross, Jr., the welt-known mining man and engineer of Sutter Creek, Cal., has been here making an inspection and examination of the Granite Hill mines of the Louse Creek district, for the American Gold Fields Company. The complete cyanide plant, formerly in use at the Barnell mine, near Kalama, Washington, has been purchased by S. Chase for the Oro Fino mine of the Jumpoff Joe district, near Grants Pass, and will be shipped down and installed at this property in the near future. The plant is of 50 tons capacity. It is a four-tank standard, and is equipped with a Sturdevant rock crusher and centrifugal rolls. Power will be supplied by steam, the engine and boilers being a part of the plant from the Barnell mine. This will be one of the largest cyanide plants in operation in the Southern Oregon district. The Oro Fino has been brought from a prospect to a mine within the past year by the persistent and intelligent work of Mr. Chase. The ore body is a large one, carrying values from $5 to $10 a ton, and is a good cyaniding proposition. There is enough ore in sight and on the dump to keep the new plant busy from the beginning. Mineral Wealth, Redding, May 1, 1904, page 3 F. Jordan, of Cottage Grove, operating on Thompson Creek, is associated with W. Jordan, of Merlin, and R. Thompson, of Grants Pass. The mine is 1½ mile from Applegate and shows a vein of ore from 8 to 18 inches across, which has been traced for 400 feet and carries values. There are 200 feet of tunnel besides other improvements, and it is the intention of the owners to equip the mine with machinery and develop it during the summer. "Jackson County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 7, 1904, page 322 In Southern Oregon a dredger is nearing completion upon Foots Creek, a tributary of the Rogue between Grants Pass and Gold Hill, the Champion Dredging Co. of Chicago being the owners. About 1200 acres of dredging ground has been made available in the Foots Creek basin by the building of a dam near its confluence with Rogue River. The hull of the dredger is 112 feet long, 37 feet wide and 8 feet deep. When loaded with its 175,000 pounds of machinery it will draw 4 feet of water. In its construction 225,000 feet of lumber was used. The elevated material first passes into a revolving screen, by which the heavier wash is carried over the side, the finer being raised to sluices above, which are so arranged that they can be directed to any point from a right angle on either side to dead astern. The length of these sluices is 100 feet, giving a large area of dump. The dredging elevator is 81 feet long and has forty-two buckets of 8 cubic feet capacity each. A steam plant develops 150 H.P. The daily capacity is stated to be from 2500 to 3000 cubic yards. Cost of the plant is 160,000. It is expected that the dredger will begin operations within a short time. "Dredging Operations in Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 14, 1904, pages 328-329 Douglas County.
The Oregon Pacific M. Co. has been incorporated by J. E. Hardman, B. T.
Underwood, E. F. Gray, G. G. Graham, G. and J. W. Cox, J. F. Miller and
W. M. George, with principal place of business Cottage Grove. The
company owns several claims in Bohemia district, which will be
developed. Josephine County.
F. L. Morris, H. C. Berry, H. C. Pickett et al. of Oroville, Cal., who
have two dredgers in operation there, are preparing to test a body of
dredging ground in the Althouse district, near junction of Althouse and
Sucker creeks. The seven-ton prospecting and boring machine formerly
used by the Champion Dredger Co. has been bought. They propose to take
up 3000 acres of ground, nearly all of which will be available for
dredging. The mill of the Granite Hill mines, near Grants Pass, has begun operations. It is a 10-stamp battery. The mortars have been placed on cement foundations, made by the filling of deep pits, filled and packed with gravel and granite. Superintendent L. Y. Wickersham of the Granite Hill properties has fifty men at work. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 14, 1904, page 337 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
The
placer harvest has begun in Southern Oregon. During the past two weeks
over 100 pounds of virgin metal have been brought into Grants Pass from
the surrounding placers.DENNIS H. STOVALL. Twenty pounds of gold have been brought in from the placers of the Golden Drift Company. This represents half the cleanup of these diggings for the season. The Galice Consolidated Mining Company has installed its new tubular elevator at its diggings on Galice Creek. This machine will make available a large area of good ground occupying the lower benches and bars. The company will have water for two and three giants during the entire summer. The main shaft of the Greenback mine is now down 1,100 feet. To a representative of Mineral Wealth Superintendent Thompson stated a few days ago that it was his opinion the old Greenback ledge would be found strong and wide and rich at the 2,000-foot level as it is now found at a depth of 1,100 feet. There are over two miles of tunnels, drifts and shafts in the Greenback. Four Frue vanners, a six-drill compressor, 60-horsepower engine, dynamo and other machinery recently received by the American Gold Fields Company have been installed by them at their Granite Hill mines. The underground workings, mill, mess house, and all of the buildings on this property are now lighted by electricity. Development is proceeding with the best speed, and under the supervision of L. Y. Wickersham. The old Lucky Queen mine of the Jumpoff Joe district, which was at its height some 10 or 15 years ago, is being reopened. For a long time the Lucky Queen was idle, following the pinching out of the surface values, which were the original feeders for the property's prosperity. Now it is being opened on more progressive lines. C. D. Crane, formerly of Siskiyou County, Cal., has charge of the development work, which is proceeding by two long tunnels, and by which the values of the deep levels will be reached. Already good paying edges have been uncovered, and many tons of fine ore have been piled on the dump. Also a quantity has been sacked for shipment. A large consignment of machinery has arrived by way of Crescent City, for the Monumental mines, Shelly Creek, which are located near the Grants Pass-Crescent City stage line. The Monumental mines were purchased last year by the Waldo Smelting and Mining Company, and have been under development since that time by this company. Col. T. W. M. Draper of San Francisco is manager of the mines. The properties have been well opened. The ledge is a wide one and carries its values in copper and gold. The company conservatively estimates that it has close to 1,000,000 tons of ore in sight in the Monumental. A crew of 100 men will be employed after the machinery is installed and operations are commenced. A dipperful of gold nuggets was taken in four hours' time from a rich bunch or pocket uncovered in the old Rocky Gulch placers on Rogue River, near Galice, a few days ago. These mines have had an exceptionally good run this season, and have moved a large acreage of rich ground on the lower bars, near the Rogue. At this point the channel was covered by several feet of gravel, and was beyond the reach of the rocker and shovel of the early-day miners, who worked off all similar ground along the river where conditions allowed. The big dredger of Champlin & Co., on Foots Creek, the launching of which was noted in a recent issue of Mineral Wealth, is meeting with marvelous success; in truth, such success that it promises to revolutionize the placer mining business in Southern Oregon. It is opening the eyes of mining men and showing the wonderful possibilities offered by the Rogue, Applegate, Illinois and many other streams of this country for dredging. The very first week the Foots Creek machine was operated it produced over $4,000. It has done better since that time, as it is now being operated night and day with clock-like routine. It is cutting to a depth of 40 feet, and the 40 big buckets dig up something like 2500 cubic yds. of gravel per day. Each bucket has a capacity of eight cubic feet. The managers and operators of this dredger, who are experienced men at the dredging business, having two other machines at work in Montana, believe they will be able to wash off an acre a month from this time on. The ground now being worked runs about 15 cents a cubic yard, but will soon be digging a channel that will give returns of 25 cents a yard. The big machine is a model of its kind. The whole is mounted upon a well-constructed boat 112 feet in length, and is provided with an immense boiler, engines and dynamo. The Golden Drift Mining Company has ceased piping for the season. The company has washed off some two acres of ground, and is now busy cleaning up. From $200 to $1,000 are being taken each day from the races. The sluices have not yet been reached. A California company, or at least a company of California mining men, is prospecting a large area of ground on upper Althouse for the purpose of ascertaining its worth for dredging purposes. If results are satisfactory a dredger will be put up next year. The men behind the project are operating two dredgers near Oroville. The Takilma Smelting Company has a crew of 50 men at work, under Albert Goodell, grading and excavating for the few 100-ton smelter at Takilma. All will be made ready to install the machinery as fast as it arrives. An attempt is being made to secure special rates over the Southern Pacific for the hauling of matte and coke, and if this can be done the matte will be brought out by wagon and shipped from Grants Pass by rail. Otherwise it will be conveyed to Crescent City and shipped by water.. The new ten-stamp mill of the Granite Hill mines will be ready for its maiden run in a few days. While the present battery is of but ten stamps, the mill house and general equipment is such as to accommodate a battery of 30 or 40 stamps. There is ore enough in sight and on the dump to keep the mill busy from the beginning. W. P. Cope has sold the Yank group of mines in the Galice district to Seattle parties. The new owners have assumed charge of the mines and will begin their development at once. The Yank group embraces over 500 acres of mineral lands and comprise both quartz and placer diggings. The placers are equipped with a good hydraulic plant. The quartz ledges are well developed and carry their values in wide copper veins. This is the season of pocket hunting in Southern Oregon, that fascinating feature of the gold-getting business that had its origin away back fifty years ago and more, and which will continue to be a feature as long as there are pockets to hunt, and pocket hunters to hunt them, which will probably be a long time. A few days ago H. E. Booth, a pocket hunter, whose haunts are limited to the pine ranges of the Pickett Creek country, uncovered a treasure from which he removed over $1,200. Unlike many of the men of his profession, Mr. Booth is of the opinion that this proposition is permanent, and will set to work to give it a thorough development. Mineral Wealth, Redding, May 15, 1904, page 3 Women Miners of Southern Oregon.
Southern Oregon has two genuine women miners--women who are real
"pardners" of men in the gold-getting business. One of them is Mrs.
Wisenbacher of the Forest Queen mine, and the other is Mrs. M. E.
Moore, who is a full partner of her husband in the operation of the
Judson hydraulic placers on Pickett Creek. Mrs. Wisenbacher was
formerly an actress, and was known as Adalene Cotton on the stage. She
was one of the stunning "Sadie Girls" with the popular Anna Held
company, so it goes without saying that she is handsome. A visitor to
the Forest Queen mine will find this lady busily engaged about the
diggings, operating a giant, retorting gold from a late cleanup, or
even "bucking" boulders. And she will tell you with a smile that placer
mining is every bit as fascinating work as the life behind the
footlights. She enjoys the real freedom of the mountains, and the ozone
of the pines. She is in love with Southern Oregon and with gold
digging. She would have been one of the "La Mode" girls in Anna Held's
company this year had not her father persuaded her to quit the stage
and live a life of greater ease in the pine woods of Southern Oregon;
and "Miss Adalene Cotlon" does not regret the change.Mrs. Moore has been a "pardner" of her husband in the mining business for nearly 20 years. She has followed him through the mining districts of Montana, Colorado, California, Arizona and Oregon. She has traveled many hundred miles on pack pony and burro, through the snows of winter and over the hot sands and burning granite hills of summer. Every day now she can be found at her post, beside a big giant in the Judson mine, directing the shaft of white that is hurled by the monster against the auriferous gravel bank. She is an expert piper. But few of the oldtimers at the profession are better than she. Here's long life and much good luck to the women miners of the Southern Oregon mountains! Mineral Wealth, Redding, May 15, 1904, page 4 A company is being formed by H. Perkins et al. to operate on Mt. Reuben Creek, near Leland. A saw mill is being built on the creek. Hoisting works will be put up to handle the boulders. The miners report having done well this winter, as they have had a long run and more ground washed than before. On Jumpoff Joe Creek, superintendent Crane of the Lucky Queen is running two tunnels--one over 100 feet. He has struck paying ledges in both tunnels. Rich rock is sacked up to send away for milling. The property is under bond. It is expected a mill will be built. Across the creek is the Dick mine. The owners have run a tunnel 200 feet. The Golden Drift M. Co., of Grants Pass, shipped last week six bars, weighing twenty pounds in the aggregate, representing one-half of the annual cleanup for these mines for the season, says the Telegram. But one giant was operated and this one but for thirty-five days. The six bars are valued at $5000, and aside from these manager Ament says he has picked up a number of nuggets and larger pieces. All the gold from the Dry Diggings, which is the field covered by the placers of the Golden Drift Co., is said to run over 900 fine. Nearly all the sluices and the boxes are yet to be cleaned up. The Golden Drift Co. will put men to work next week completing the power dam across the Rogue River below the Dry Diggings, and to place the heavy machinery--pumps, turbines and power plant equipment--next season. Three giants will be operated. In Galice district, near Grants Pass, among the hydraulic properties that are working is the Royal Group, formerly the Old Channel. These placers are under management of J. R. Harvey. Two 6-inch giants, under a gravity pressure of 500 feet, are operated, and this battery will have ample water till late in June. The Galice Con. Co. is preparing to make available for pipe and giant all the territory recently added to its holdings at the mouth of Galice Creek. The main ditch is being extended, and with the 1000 feet of new piping that will be laid, all of the ground at lower end of the creek and out on Rogue River Bar will be in reach of the giants. A tubular elevator will also be put in, says manager A. B. Cousin. The battery of three giants is in steady operation.… T. K. Anderson is operating the Harmon & Green hydraulic mines under lease this season. Two giants are operated and the water supply is expected to hold out till July 1st.… The Rocky Gulch placers are operated this season by Lewis & Jewell. The main body of the gravel of this group lies along Rogue River. "Josephine County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 21, 1904, page 354 The
Small Sawmill in Mine Development.
The small sawmill is gaining an important place in the development of
placer and quartz mines. Well it should, as it is proving a great money
and labor saver. Many of the quartz and placer mines of Oregon and
California own their own mills, especially in those districts where
there is an abundance of timber. Properties that are located in remote
districts cannot purchase and haul in lumber for less than $30 a
thousand. The small sawmill can cut it for less than $6 a thousand. Written for the Mining and Scientific Press by Dennis H. Stovall, B.S. The mill shown in the accompanying illustration is installed at a hydraulic mine, and "can be loaded on a pack pony," as the old sawyer expresses it, yet it cuts from 5000 to 7000 feet of lumber a day. Power is supplied by a Pelton wheel, and the water is derived from the pipeline feeding the giants. It requires but three or four men to operate the mill, and about that number in the timber, felling trees and sawing logs. A mill of this kind can be torn up and made ready for transportation in a short time, and can be readily set up again. Quartz mines are also making use of the small sawmill for sawing mine timbers, lagging and lumber, and the placer miners use them for cutting lumber for flumes. Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 28, 1904, page 364 Foreman Garvin reports the Golden Spike tunnel of the Shorty-Hope M.&M. Co., near Ashland, is in 520 feet and the vein is carrying good ore. The management have ordered 400 feet of 8-inch galvanized steel pipe to run from the face of the drift back to the upraise to remove gases caused by the explosives. The dam at the ditch intake, injured by the high waters of Wagner Creek, is being repaired. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, May 28, 1904, page 371 Douglas County.
F. P. Hogan and C. H. Fisher, of Spokane, Wash., have a year's option
for $30,000 on a group of eleven claims on West Fork Creek, in Douglas
County. It is a sulphide ore carrying gold. There is little snow left on the ground in Bohemia mining district, says A. Johnson, president of the Hiawatha M. Co., and the Grizzly group in Champion Canyon, near Bohemia. He reports the Crystal Con., North Fairview, Vesuvius, Oregon-Colorado, Riverside and other properties in Bohemia district have kept up continuous development during the winter and have increased ore bodies. The Oregon Securities Co. is resuming work throughout its holdings. The power plant is working successfully transmitting electric energy over 6 miles of pole line to the air compressor plant at the 30-stamp mill at head of Champion basin. It is operating two drills in the tunnel being driven through the saddle of Grouse Mountain, to make connection with the Musick mine. The Oregon & Southeastern Railway Co. has men at the end of its track laying rails on the section of grade completed last fall. Josephine County.
For $45,000 the Kirkland placer mines have been sold to McNicholas
Bros. of Portland. The land is near Leland. J. H. McNicholas will have
charge of the operations. A flume will be built and giants set
up. F. P. Hogan of Spokane, Wash., reports he has, with other Spokane men, taken bonds on two groups of claims, and expects to start work this month. A sixty-day option for $40,000 has been secured by Hogan and J. M. Allen on a group of seven or eight claims on Rogue River, about 20 miles south of Glendale. It is a free-milling gold property. The Waldo S.&R. Co. at Waldo reports work on the smelter well under way and when completed will have a capacity of 100 tons daily. Besides treating the ore of its own mine custom work will he done. The company has bodies of ore blocked out in the mine and has men increasing the ore reserves. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 11, 1904, page 403 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
The
past two weeks have been lively ones in the Southern Oregon gold
fields. There have been many things to talk about, discuss and compute.
Chief of all, so far as excitement and comment is concerned, is the
discovery of a mammoth pocket on upper Sucker Creek by David Briggs and
two sons, near their farm. The pocket was stumbled on by accident by
one of the boys while out hunting. There has already been some $15,000
taken out from the glory hole, and the discovery recalls the famous
Fowler pocket, found many years ago in practically the same district,
and from which some $440,000 in gold was removed. The discovery is a
phenomenal one. It was nothing less than the finding of a buried
treasure, a heap of pure gold bunched in a pile and a little dirt
thrown over it. Only a shallow cut has thus far been made, but enough
work has been dong to convince Briggs and his boys that they have more
than a pocket. Mr. Briggs, who is a miner of many years experience,
declares they have a well-defined ledge and that the vein, some twelve
inches in width, leads down from the bottom of theDENNIS H. STOVALL. pocket. The discovery has caused a general stampede to the district, and nearly a score of claims have been staked about the pocket. Seven or eight claims were staked before the news of the discovery was made public. The district is a difficult one to enter owing to the heavy timber and dense undergrowth. The route to the district leads from Grants Pass by wagon road as far as Holland. The strike itself is very near the state line; in truth, there is a question as to whether it is in Oregon or California. Another matter of interest, to both Southern Oregon and California, has been the final closing of the deal that has been hanging fire for some time, involving the sale of the Blue Lead mine of the upper Applegate. Dr. J. F. Reddy and associates now announce positively that the deal has been made and that the famous copper mine is in the hands of the Bradshaw Mining Company, of New York. At the head of this company is John R. Allen, a millionaire mine owner and an extensive Arizona copper operator. Mr. Allen is a man who does things. He will have a crew at work on the Blue Lead by the first or middle of July. Aside from the actual development of the big ledge a better wagon road, connecting the mines with the main Southern Oregon highway, will be built. At an early date, also, the company will superintend the surveying of a railroad line into the district. And as soon as the ore body warrants a smelter will be built. A company of Cripple Creek and Denver mining men have just closed a deal whereby they take possession, under $50,000 bond, of the Gold Standard group of gold and copper claims of Pickett Creek district, near Grants Pass. The Gold Standard Group embraces eight full claims--the McKinley, St. Joe, Della M., Henry, Mae E., Hobson, Tom S. and Native Daughters. On some of the claims considerable development work has been done with excellent results. Henry Booth, owner of the Gold Standard, a few months ago took over $900 in free gold from a rich bunch on the main ledge of one of the claims. The Gold Standard is a property that warrants development and operation on a large scale, and it will be the purpose of the owners to bring this about. Very rich ore has been encountered in the Mountain Lion mine, of Missouri Flat district. This mine is now being developed under bond by Colonel J. S. Crawford and associates, of Philadelphia and Duluth. They will give the property the attention it has long needed, and intend to have things in shape for the operation for the five-stamp mill before many months. The Rand Mining Company, which recently bonded the Yank group of claims, on Rogue River, in Galice district, has placed a crew and begun development. The work taken up is that of driving a long tunnel several hundred feet below the old workings and near the river. This tunnel will have a length of 1300 feet and will tap the ore body at the same depth. Ore carrying values of $220 a ton has been struck at the 110-foot depth of the Red Bean mine, of Starveout district. The Red Bean is the property of Riggs & Flamm of Grants Pass, and has been under development by them for several months past. The main shaft of. the Greenback mine is now down 100 feet, and the ledge at this depth shows up as strong and wide and rich as ever. Ten machine drills are operated, and 100 men are employed. Two mills, one of 10 and the other of 30 stamps, together with a 100-ton cyanide plant, are operated. Four concentrators, a 60-horsepower engine, six drill compressors, dynamo and other machinery has been received lately and placed in the mill house of the Granite Hill mines of Louse Creek district. Mineral Wealth, Redding, June 15, 1904, page 3 Made a Rich Strike.
Probably one of the richest mining strikes made in Southern Oregon for
a number of years was the one accidentally made on Monday, June 6,
1904, on Sucker Creek, by Roy Briggs. The story of the find, as given
by W. E. Gilmore, is here told: Briggs was out hunting and after a hard
half day's hunt for game, of which he found none, he sat down to eat
his lunch, tired and discouraged, but as he ate he saw protruding from
the hillside a small piece of quartz. There was gold in that quartz and
so plentiful was it that Briggs went wild, as it were, and, forgetful
of the fact that he was tired and hungry, he began kicking about for
more pieces of quartz. His efforts were crowned with success, and in a
very short time he had discovered a vein of ore which was fabulously
rich in gold. From this vein he took one large chunk of quartz,
weighing about forty pounds, and a goodly number of smaller pieces of
float rock were gathered. These he put in a sack and started for his
home, but after going some distance he remembered that he had neglected
to mark the place. He laid down his sack of quartz and gun and returned
to the vein and properly marked its location, and upon returning to
where he thought he had deposited his sack, he failed to find it. He
then went wild a second time, but after a couple of hours' hunting he
found the lost articles and started for home again. Upon reaching home
he began the work of "mortaring out" the gold, and from the forty-pound
chunk he took an even $700.The young man took into his confidence James Howard, formerly of Medford, and a son of C. J. Howard, and they went back to the discovery and made a more thorough examination. They found a twenty-foot ledge of rock that assayed $20 to the ton and a pay chute from six to eight inches in width, the value of which is difficult to estimate, but it is the vein from which the $700 chunk was taken and from which $500 was taken afterwards. This discovery is on unsurveyed government land, and it is told that many people living thereabouts have filed mining claims. An instance in connection with this find which is related is that there was so much gold and so little quartz in one small chunk that Jim Howard, with a hammer, pounded it into a square chunk, in fact could have molded it into any desired shape. Medford Mail, June 17, 1904, page 1 Jackson County.
At the Shorty-Hope mines, near Ashland, it is reported the night and
day shifts are still drifting on the Golden Spike ledge and are in 508
feet. The vein has widened. The 401 feet of 8-inch galvanized iron pipe
has been put in place; extending from the raise to the face of the
drift, this pipe ventilates the tunnel and removes the gases after
shooting. The officers of the company are considering putting
in air
compressor, receivers, drills, hoists, pumps, etc., the compressor to
be run by water power. Josephine County.
Machinery for the Takilma smelter at Takilma is on the ground. Shipment
included an 80-H.P. boiler, a Connersville blower with direct
connection with 60-H.P. engine, and engine and dynamo with a 20-H.P.
engine for the sampler. Smelting will be started about July 1st. Other
machinery is arriving, says superintendent A. I. Goodell. The Granite Hill mines, near Grants Pass, are being developed and equipped by the American G.F. Co., of Chicago, Ill., of which W. J. Morphy is manager and L. Y. Wickersham superintendent. In the mill, a six-drill compressor, a 65-H.P. engine, an electric dynamo, with separate engine and a 120-H.P. boiler, are at work. Ten 1000-pound stamps and four Frue vanners are being set up and will be put in operation next week. Superintendent Wickersham says they propose putting in ten more stamps by the close of summer. The main shaft is being sunk by machine drills on three eight-hour shifts. Other drills are at work in the drifts on the two levels and a body of ore is being uncovered. Free gold, pyrite and galena are showing. About 500 men are on the payroll of the Granite Hill, and this list will be increased. For $15,000 the Golden Wedge mine has been sold to Wilmington, Del., men. The property has a 2-stamp mill. The values are in gold. It is intended to put in a larger plant and operate the property. The mine is near Galice Creek. A. B. Cousin of the Galice Con. Co., near Grants Pass, is interested. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 18, 1904, pages 419-420 Jackson County.
A deal has been closed at Gold Hill, whereby the Gold Hill Dev. Co.,
consisting of Milwaukee, Wis., men, has bought the J. J. Houck water
and power privileges to conduct mining, manufacturing, etc. H.
Schaeffer is manager for the Wisconsin men. It is intended to build a
100-ton smelter that will consume all its fumes and gases. The fuel
will come from the company's coal mine in the Meadows district, and all
power will be electrical. The smelter will be near the Rogue River
mills, on opposite side of river. The company proposes to furnish
electrical power for other purposes. The water power will be 8000 H. P.
It will be necessary to build a canal 2100 feet long, 50 feet wide, and
8 feet deep, carrying 210,000 cubic feet of water per minute, with
26-foot constant head, says the Courier.
The company has bought mining ground near Gold Hill that it will
develop. Josephine County.
The Comstock G.M.&M. Co. is preparing to increase development
work
this year. The company has developed quartz mines at Mount Baldy, near
Grants Pass, and also a number of claims on Canyon Creek, near Kerby.
J. M. Layman, manager of the company, will superintend operations. For $50,000, the Gold Standard group of gold and copper claims of H. E. Booth, of Pickett Creek district, have been sold to Cripple Creek, Colo., and Chicago, Ill., men. They will begin development this week. The Gold Standard group embraces eight full claims in one tract, on Pickett Creek and Rogue River, 12 miles below Grants Pass. Development work, in tunnels and drifts, has been done and a body of ore uncovered. Free gold is carried in the quartz, and in some of the veins copper predominates. The several adjoining claims will be operated conjunctively. W. Gilmore of Medford, operating mines at Grayback Mountain, 20 miles east of Waldo, reports a gold strike of high-grade ore. There is said to be a streak 10 inches wide in a vein traced for 2000 feet. The strike is near the California line and on the divide between the Illinois and Klamath rivers, where placer beds were found in early days. W. P. Cope, former owner of the Yank group of copper and gold claims of the Galice district, has taken charge of the Lucky Cuss group of claims of the Murphy district, near Grants Pass, and will superintend development for the Gold Point M.&M. Co. He is driving a deep tunnel. The Gold King mine, of Josephine Creek, near Grants Pass, is being developed by W. Roe et al. of Fort Worth, Tex. Development work is being done under direction of M. Marks. The Mountain Lion mine, near Grants Pass, has been taken up by J. S. Crawford et al. of Duluth and Minneapolis, Minn. The Mountain Lion has been under development for several years. S. Bowden, with Spokane and other Washington men, has taken up a copper property near Kerby, on the Illinois River, and is developing it. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, June 25, 1904, page 436 SOUTHERN OREGON MINES.
Every
day finds an increased interest manifest in the Floradora of Upper
Thompson Creek, up in the Siskiyous. All eyes are turned that way, and
there are probably 100 or more men scattered throughout the vast
district of Upper Sucker Creek, Josephine County. Miners continue to
arrive and are outfitting and departing daily for the new field. Thus
far nothing that will compare with the famous first discovery--from
which a fortune has been taken in a few weeks time--has been found, but
every day the conviction is strengthened that this one, at least, is
permanent and will become a great mine. Probably the next best find
made in the district is that of Beers & Pinell, about one mile
from
the original find. These men have uncovered a ledge one foot wide from
which they have taken ore that assays up in the thousands a ton. A
ledge carrying big values in tellurides has also been found in the
district, and a score of rich placer claims have been located. If these
claims were supplied with water during the summer months they could be
worked with great profit.DENNIS H. STOVALL. A 20-day option for $100,000 has been given by David Briggs and sons on their Discovery claim, and adjoining holdings. The bond is held by Portland people, and an attempt is being made to turn the property over to Eastern men. Several men, representing Eastern capital, are now giving the claims an inspection, and it is not unlikely that a deal will be made in the near future. An important mining deal has been closed here in the transfer to Eastern men of the Oscar Creek hydraulic mines, located on Applegate River ten miles south of Grants Pass. The sale was made through Foster & Gunnell of Grants Pass, and the initial payment has been made through Foster & Gunnell's Eastern associate. The Oscar Creek hydraulic mines are among the richest and best placer properties in Southern Oregon. They comprise over 226 acres of mineral ground, 108 of which are patented, and the remainder held by right of location. The diggings are creekbed bars, beach and rim channel, averaging $1 a cubic yard in value. Much of the ground, however, gives returns of over $5 a yard. The mines have been operated for a number of years and have actually produced, even by the desultory method by which they have been worked, over $37,000. The ground washed off has produced over $20,000 an acre. The placers are equipped with two No. 1 giants, and several thousand feet of flume and piping, and three miles of ditch. The new owners will increase the length and width of the ditch, add to the water supply, and install better equipment. They will shape the mines to produce from $20,000 to $25,000 each season. The first real samples of quartz have been brought down from Upper Thompson Creek from the claim of Briggs & Sons. All previously sent down was pure gold. These chunks of quartz are thickly studded with gold. The ore is from the hanging and foot walls of the ledge, and is from a shallow depth on the vein. There is no longer any doubt as to the discovery being a rich pay chute on a contact vein--a vein between granite and porphyry. It is not a pocket, and really has no resemblance to a pocket, save in its remarkable richness. The compressor, hoist, boiler and engines formerly used at the Granite Hill claim, of the Granite Hill properties, are being moved across the gulch and set up at the Red Jacket mine, which is also the property of American Gold Fields Company. The old mill is replaced at the Granite Hill by a ten-stamp battery, with four Frue vanners, and is as good an equipment as can be found on an Oregon property. The new mill will begin operations this week. The Red Jacket claim is nearly as well developed as the Granite Hill. It has several well-defined ledges of from two to six feet wide, carrying good values. It is the intention of the American Gold Fields Company to operate the Red Jacket separately, but in conjunction with the Granite Hill. As development proceeds the two will be united. Superintendent Wickersham and his crew are working diligently in their herculean task of developing and equipping the Granite Hill. Things are just beginning to shape themselves to a condition whereby the future of the properties can be comprehended. A carload of ore from the Red Bean mine, shipped to the Tacoma smelter, gave returns of more than $100 a ton. This mine is located on Starveout Creek. It is the property of Riggs & Flamm of Grants Pass, and the results from the carload shipped come as a very happy surprise. Mineral Wealth, Redding, July 1, 1904, page 3 Douglas County.
The Oregon Securities Co., which owns properties at Bohemia, will begin
operating its 30-stamp mill next week. Ore has been blocked out in the
Musick mine, one of a group of seven which it owns. The company is
driving a tunnel through the mountain from the Champion basin to the
Musick mine, a distance of 2000 feet, and progress is being made at the
rate of 10 feet a day, with the use of air drills. S. Bowden has bought the and Lily May group of gold claims, near Kerby, and has placed men to work to develop them. The ledge is 40 feet in width, of quartz, carrying values from wall to wall of from $2.60 to $4.60 a ton. Bowden is driving two tunnels 600 feet apart, each of which will tap the main ore body at a depth of 400 feet. The mountain is steep and thus depth is made fast, and a good mill site is afforded, as all ore can be moved out by gravity, says the Telegram. There is an abundance of timber on the claims and a good water right, ample to supply power for six months each season without assistance of steam. After opening up the property Bowden will put in a cyanide plant. Jackson County.
Concentrates are being shipped to the smelter from the Opp mine, says
the Jacksonville Sentinel.
Work is being increased by J. W. Opp, the owner, and the mill is run
steadily. The property consists of 400 acres of land, 1½
mile west of
Jacksonville, on which are several ledges. E. T. Staples has bonded the McKinley group of mines on Wagner Creek for $20,000. The claims are an extension of the Ashland mine, near Jacksonville. Staples has started sinking an incline shaft. Josephine County.
A. C. Hoofer, of Portland, manager of the Mount Pitt Hydraulic
&
Q.M. Co., operating on Jumpoff Joe Creek, near Grants Pass, says the
crosscut tunnel has cut a 10-foot ledge at depth of 75 feet. The ledge
carries gold values from wall to wall. Several hundred acres are
embraced in the Mount Pitt Co.'s holdings. Aside from the quartz claims
being developed, there is an area of placer ground, in Bummer's Gulch.
The country is well timbered, and watered. The Rand M. Co., composed of Washington men, who have bought the Yank group of gold and copper claims of the Galice district, on Rogue River, near Grants Pass, for $60,000, have placed a crew and begun development work for the summer. The workings of the mine consist of 700 feet of well-timbered tunnels and drifts on the mountain above Rogue River. The new owners have begun driving a tunnel several hundred feet below the old workings and nearer the level of the river. A raise will connect the two levels. There is a site for a smelter, plenty of water and timber. At a depth of 100 feet a body of ore carrying values in gold is reported opened by Riggs & Flamm in the Red Bean mine, of Starveout Creek, near Grants Pass. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 2, 1904, page 14 March 27, 1903 Oregonian MINING NEAR GOLD HILL Considerable Activity Shown on Old and new Properties.
GOLD
HILL, Or., July 10.--(Special.)--The
Condor Power & Mining Company is placing a new steel wagon
bridge across Rogue River just below the Ray dam at Gold Ray. L. T. Pockman, representing San Francisco capital, has bought the Hawkeye American mining claim in the Willow Springs mining district, and has moved a complete mining outfit out to camp with a small force to commence active development on the property. In near vicinity to this property Robert Allison and associates have taken a lease and bond on the Schumpf mine and are cleaning out and retimbering the old tunnel, from which the owners a few years ago took out several thousand dollars in free-milling ore. The Lucky Bart mine, on Sardine Creek, has been leased to J. W. Hay and partners, who are now doing considerable development work. J. M. Patrick has taken a year's lease on the Braden mine, two miles east of town, and is working quite a force of men on same. While repairing and fitting up the ten-stamp mill now on the property he has leased the Bowden mill at Gold Hill, though which he will run some 200 or 300 tons of Braden ore. This mine has produced large quantities of pay ore on the past, and as Dr. Ray has been steadily exploring and blocking out ore in this property for the past five years it now has immense ore reserves in sight, sufficient to keep the present ten-stamp mill running a number of years. The large ore bodies in this mine, in places from 15 to 20 feet in width, are found and opened to a depth of between 400 and 500 feet, thus adding another case to refute the old and well-established theory that there are nothing but "pocket mines" in Southern Oregon. Messrs. Simons and Hawley are prospecting E. E. Miner's placer ground on Karnes Creek with a view of demonstrating its adaptability for dredging purposes, and are meeting with very flattering results. Oregonian, Portland, July 11, 1904, page 4 Jackson County.
H. Schaeffer, superintendent of the Gold Hill Dev. Co. at Gold Hill,
says work will be resumed and 200 men employed on the new electric
power and smelting plants. Josephine County.
The Oscar Creek hydraulic mines have been bought by Foster &
Gunnell of Grants Pass for Eastern men and initial payment made. The
Oscar Creek hydraulic mines are on Applegate River, 10 miles from
Grants Pass. They comprise 226 acres of mineral ground, 108 of which
are patented. The diggings are of creek bed bars, bench and rim
channel. The placers are equipped with two No. 1 giants and several
thousand feet of flume and piping and 3 miles of ditch. The new owners
will increase the length and width of the ditch, add to the water
supply and increase equipment."Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 16, 1904, page 46 Jackson County.
Men are at work getting out timber for a complete rebuilding of the
Shorty Hope mine shaft, near Ashland, from the surface down to the
Golden Spike level. This will be a two-compartment shaft. A station
will be made at the intersection of the Shorty Hope crosscut and
necessary machinery placed at this point for sinking several hundred
feet on the ledge, which is nearly vertical. It is intended that the
shaft repairs will be completed and sunk to the Golden Spike level
before the tunnel reaches the intersection.Josephine County.
W. C. Slade, who has a placer mine on Johnson gulch, a tributary of
Sucker Creek, near California Bar, near Grants Pass, reports he has
also located a 4-foot ledge of gold-bearing quartz on his placer
claims. He has found indications of quicksilver ore deposits. A find
has been made on Sucker Creek, near California Bar, by J. Burnett. He
has two ledges running parallel. Grants Pass reports say a 5-stamp mill and equipment, formerly used at the Granite Hill mines, are being moved across the gulch to the Red Jacket claim of the Granite Hill Co. The mill is replaced at the Granite Hill by a 10-stamp battery, with four Frue vanners. The new mill has begun operations. The Red Jacket claim has several ledges of from 2 to 6 feet width, carrying values. It is intention of the American G.F. Co. to operate the Red Jacket separately, but later in conjunction with the Granite Hill. As development proceeds, the two will be united, says superintendent Wickersham. "Oregon," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 23, 1904, page 62 J. H. Pearsons, secretary of the Oregon Securities Co., operating at Bohemia, says the tunnel which is being driven through the Champion to the Musick mine has reached a depth of 525 feet. A large amount of high-grade ore has been blocked out from the Musick mine, and by Aug. 1 the company's 30-stamp mill will begin grinding ore. The tunneling operations are being carried on through a ledge 45 feet in width. "Douglas County," Mining and Scientific Press, San Francisco, July 30, 1904, page 79 SOUTHERN OREGON MAGNIFICENT
RESOURCES
This issue of Mineral Wealth is
devoted, in the main, to that district referred to, in a general way,
as Southern Oregon. While Oregon has never attracted the attention of
the mining world as a distinctively mineral state, nevertheless, the
Eastern Oregon district, as well as the region known as
Blue River and
Bohemia, and also the district covered by this issue are today of
unquestioned mineral importance, and when compared with like areas of
mining territory elsewhere the state does not suffer by comparison.The Southern Oregon district, comprising Jackson, Josephine, and also parts of Curry counties, is, in fact. but a continuation of the Northern California mineral region, the state line passing over what promises to become some of the most important mineral deposits of the Pacific Coast. Geological conditions are not determined by artificial geographical boundaries, yet it is unquestionably true that comparatively few mining men are well enough posted on the situation to associate Southern Oregon with the mines of Northern California--the latter now by far the most prolific region of the Golden State. The location of a good mine, or a good mining district, should make no difference, save as it relates to the question of accessibility. Even though the name of Oregon is not associated with big mines as is that of California, Nevada and the various other Rocky Mountain and Coast mineral states, this fact should not mitigate against the state, but should rather create a desire to determine its proper rank in the list of metal-producing commonwealths. Happily, this attitude is now coming to prevail, and the regions named are rapidly winning a position as important mining territory. The larger mines are being put in operation, and the state of Oregon will soon take a place with her sister states as a state where the mining industry is of truly great importance. Judicious publicity is what the mining industry of the state of Oregon needs, and this issue of Mineral Wealth will, we believe, be of vast benefit to the industry in general and Southern Oregon in particular--the character and distribution of the publication assures this desideratum. Mining, as a business, is unlike other callings--particularly the mining of gold. There is no competition in this industry, the mint coins all the gold which may be offered by the miner, and there is no fluctuation from $20.67 an ounce, its coinage value. There is, moreover, a self-acceleration in gold mining that is found nowhere else. No place is the old saying more true that "Nothing succeeds like success." A miner welcomes a neighbor; the advent of a new operator in a district adds ultimately to the sum total of knowledge of the district. Geological conditions are better understood, metallurgical problems more easily solved and the cost of operation and production correspondingly lessened. Among broad and liberal operators this is looked upon as a most important and valuable means of contribution to the common knowledge of the district which in turn is used to the mutual benefit and advantage of all. To every established community in a mining region, the development and operation of a new mine is equivalent to the installation of a factory employing a similar number of people--in fact, it is of more importance, as the wage paid is, as a rule, larger, and the product of the mine is more lasting than the product of the average factory, with its benefits therefore more widely distributed. The statement that everyone residing in a mining region is interested in the welfare and progress of the mining industry is, therefore, not far fetched, and where the product consists of money metals this is doubly true. It behooves every individual to encourage the development of this great industry, and encourage also every agency organized to promote its welfare. Mining has evolved from the purely speculative, and is now recognized by the first financiers of the world as one of the most profitable fields for safe investment. The value of the minerals annually produced in the United States exceeds $1,300,000,000. The United States census shows it to be the most profitable industry of the country, producing more value per capita than do even the manufactures. This is the industry to which the chief value of Southern Oregon attaches, and the importance of that district is rapidly extending and making itself felt in the mining world. Mining regions have not always been favored by nature as Southern Oregon. The presence of mineral alone is not usually the only requisite to make the industry profitable. The surrounding conditions must be somewhat congenial otherwise, and in this respect Southern Oregon has no superior anywhere. Timber, water, climatic conditions and favorable opportunities for transportation facilities--all these are available to the operator. Within easy reach of the mines are produced cereals and fruits to feed an empire. In short, few regions are blessed with so magnificent a foundation for lasting prosperity as Southern Oregon. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, page 6 Grave Creek and Tributaries
Across the divide, but in the same ridge as the Greenback, are the
Vulcan and Yellow Horn group, which comprise excellent prospects, with
ore similar to and quite as rich as that of the Greenback.VULCAN AND YELLOW HORN. Both carry tellurium. Their location is indicated on the map. The Vulcan is owned by F. Clements and the Yellow Horn and St. Elmo by Brown and Wise. The former recently erected a four-stamp mill. A claim owned by P. O. Scharingson adjoins these properties on the west and is undergoing some little development. The work so far has been in the nature of prospect work, but there is a good chance for a mine. THE MORNING STAR MINE.
One-fourth mile southeast of the town of Placer and a mile and a half
directly south of the Greenback is a property owned by C. F. Howe, and
well known as the Morning Star. It was originally discovered by J. C.
Dysert, but was bought in 1892 by Mr. Howe and C. W. Tremain, which
same year saw the erection of a Tremain two-stamp mill.The ledge is traceable for some little distance, and the principal development work consists of a shaft which reaches a depth of about 100 feet. The mine is so situated as to render operations by sinking the only feasible method. Drifts each way from the shaft bottom show a three- or four-foot ledge of ore quite well sulphuretted. The quartz lies enclosed in walls of diorite and is said to run from $5 to $15 per ton. A mile southwest of Placer is the well-known Hall group of claims, from which a number of thousand dollars have been taken out by pocket mining. The best work in this particular vicinity just now is being done on adjoining claims by J. H. Mills and Bennett & Mackin. Both have prospects that are looking up all right. The Little Dandy, owned by J. G. Hayden, is a good prospect a mile west on the same lead, and has the best arrastra in Southern Oregon. PLACER.
The post office and town of Placer is situated at the junction of Tom
East Creek and Grave Creek. The town comprises a store, hotel, school
house and a few private homes. It commands especially the upper Grave
Creek country and is the principal station between Leland and
Greenback. It is located eight miles east of Leland.The hotel conducted by Mrs. P. O. Scharingson enjoys a good patronage from the miners locally, and also from the traveling men and mining men. Mrs. Scharingson is an experienced hotel woman and knows how to look after the welfare of her guests. The store, which is owned by E. H. Wise & Co., is only a year or two old, but it has already made its convenience felt among the miners, prospectors and farmers who appreciate the opportunity of seeing what they buy, as against sending their orders off. Mr. Wise, the young man in charge, is showing his good faith by doing his share in the development of the district. He is interested with Mr. Brown in the St. Elmo and Yellow Horn claims, spoken of elsewhere. BLALOCK BROTHERS PLACER.
It should be known that Grave Creek, with its numerous small
tributaries from its source to its mouth, comprises one of
Southern
Oregon's leading placer streams. The greater number of mines comprise
immense bodies of low-grade gravel and are confined, mostly, to the
high bench or back channels along the main stream from the mouth of Tom
East Gulch down. The J. C. Lewis, the Goff, the Van Brunt (at present
under three years' lease to H. Miller), the Whitehead-Moore, the
Vindicator, the Archer, the McNeer Flat and the Harris Flat are the
principal ones from that point to the mouth, and with but one exception
are in constant operation and good producers. These mines, although all
on back channels, and probably breakovers of one and the same channel,
differ in respect to their values. Some are extremely low grade, but
are, nevertheless, good properties, because of the ease with which the
gravel can be moved; others are richer, while the Columbia, on the Tom
East Creek, and spoken of elsewhere in this issue, is the largest
producing placer mine in the county.For the first eight miles up Grave Creek, above the mouth of Tom East Creek, the grade of the stream is quite abrupt and the values are coarse and close to the bedrock. The stream here opens out into a comparatively flat area, permeated with a network of ancient channels. This basin or meadow is unquestionably the repository of untold placer gold, yet it is not worked completely with success by ordinary hydraulic methods, because of the slight grade and great depth of gravel. The back channels higher up, however, are being worked, vary readily and with good results. The principal operators here are George and John Blalock. They own 340 acres of the ground covering the higher channels. along with those of Slate, Baker, Rooth and Harris creeks, which streams also furnish them excellent water rights. The knowledge of the existence of the extensive placers on the head of this creek is not at all recent, locations having been made on this ground and the ground having been worked twenty-five years ago. Two men, John Rooth and Riley Hannum, owned two claims, which have since come into the hands of Blalock Brothers. Rooth and Hannum had equipped with a small giant and took out good pay. The gravel, however, is very compact, and Messrs. Blalock, realizing that the most profitable way in which the ground could be worked would be by the installation of heavier machinery, accordingly constructed some six miles of ditch and put on the ground 2,500 feet of eleven- to thirty-inch steel pipe and two larger giants. With this equipment and the giants operating under a 200-foot pressure, a large amount of gravel is moved each year, and in this manner the mine is made to pay very handsomely. The mine was last fall leased to other parties, but at present Blalock Brothers are operating it, with Geo. Blalock in charge. This property is not only valuable for its placer gold product, but also for its timber. Southern Oregon in general has gained considerable recognition for its timber of late, and Evans Creek, which is just across the divide from Grave Creek, has, in particular, become noted for its abundance of timber and the facilities for manufacturing and marketing. There are four or five operating sawmills on this stream and their product is eagerly sought. Grave Creek can boast of this same abundance and quality of timber. It, however, lacks as yet the facilities for marketing, because of the district's lack of good roads. THE AUTEN HOLDINGS.
Adjoining these valuable quartz claims on the south and west is the
property that will someday be valuable, and we refer to the holdings of
J. B. Auten, indicated on the map. The ground comprises most of what
was known as the old Browning Homestead, and besides covering valuable
agricultural and water rights, it almost beyond doubt contains the
continuation of the Yellow Horn, St. Elmo and Vulcan quartz ledges, as
can be seen by a study of the map.LELAND.
The town of Leland, twenty miles north of Grants Pass, on the railroad,
is the railroad shipping point for the Greenback mine, ten miles
distant, as well as a distributing point for both the upper and lower
Grave Creek country, a good portion of Wolf and Coyote creeks and the
Mt. Reuben district. It is now proposed to tap the Galice Creek
district also. At least, the Almeda Mining Company is seriously
planning the construction of a road from their mine on the Rogue to tap
the Southern Pacific railway at or near Leland, and the town of Leland
has already evinced a willingness to lend materially to any such
enterprise.It is only natural that Leland should occupy quite an Important place as a station and distributing point, and the fact is that it stands second to Grants Pass in Josephine County. Its relative prominence in the future will depend upon the encouragement and enterprise of its people and its business men are wise enough to know that it is largely "up to them." THE J. C. LEWIS PLACER MINE.
Mr. J. C. Lewis is operating two placer mines of importance on Grave
Creek, near Leland, one of which he is the owner, and the other, known
as the Goff mine, manager. The J. C. Lewis mine is covered by a
fourteen-mile ditch, the first water right of Wolf Creek, but which,
however, at present only supplies a pressure of eighty-five feet. The
deposit, which is largely of so-called old blue gravel, is sixty-five
feet deep. Its removal is augmented by drifting into the bank and
discharging blasts of powder with an electric battery. Two No. 4
monitors have a special use in helping the gravel through the flumes.The upper or Goff mine is a continuation of the lower channel of the Lewis. A sixteen-mile extension of the Columbia Mining Co.'s lower ditch gives an abundance of water under a 240-foot head. The immense bank, 100 feet in height, is being worked with two large giants and the values are caught in a long bedrock race and flume. WILSON MERCANTILE COMPANY.
Mr. Homer L. Wilson, the head and principal of the firm, is an
experienced and popular merchant. This has been his calling
for years,
or long before he left Indian Territory for this coast seven years ago.
He at that time bought a one-half interest in the business today owned
by T. J. Mackin, but selling out of that business, started for himself,
constructing in 1901 a big new store building on his own ground, a
building 100 by 25 feet. It is enough to say that he maintains a
well-equipped general merchandising store, pays especial attention to
the needs of the miners, for whose trade he makes a special bid,
carrying, for instance, a complete stock of powder, fuse and caps.STORE OF T. J. MACKIN.
The merchandising business of T. J. Mackin dates from 1894, when George
Turner established the pioneer store of the town, and with a small
stock of $400 or $500. He shortly afterward took in a partner, Mr. C.
Burnett, who succeeded to sole ownership th: following year. In 1899 D.
L. Browning, E. F. Hannum's partner in the Greenback discovery, bought
the store, but within a year sold it to Robt. G. Virtue and H. L.
Wilson. Virtue & Mackin succeeded to this ownership, and in
January, 1904 Mr. Mackin in turn became the sole owner.In these ten years the stock has grown from the small original five-hundred-dollar stock of Turner to one of that many thousands owned by Mr. Mackin. The trade of the Mackin store permeates every district above mentioned, Mt. Reuben, Grave Creek, above and below, Wolf Creek and Jumpoff Joe. The stock that occupies Mr. Mackin's shelves is a diversified stock, but one that, after all, looks to the special needs of both placer and quartz miners. Mr. Mackin has spent a number of years in this vicinity, and there is no one better posted than he on the needs of his mining and farming customers. He holds himself out as being especially able to properly outfit the prospector. His stock in general comprises dry goods, groceries, boots and shoes, hardware, tinware and such other commodities as will today be found in a well-stocked store in any mining camp. The Leland post office is located in Mr. Mackin's store building, with Mr. H. C. Ball as postmaster. Leland is the mail distributing point for Grave, Placer and Greenback, for which points there is a daily stage (except Sundays), leaving at 9 a.m. Mr. Mackin is a man whose interests extend further than the walls of his store. He is himself interested in mining, owning with Mr. A. J. Bennett the westerly extension of the well-known Hall prospect on Grave Creek, near Placer. He also owns considerable other property. He has a farm on Grave Creek, two miles above Leland, and is the largest individual property owner in the town of Leland. He is public spirited and is lending every encouragement and support to the proposed wagon roads to both Galice and Mt. Reuben. HARRIS FLAT MINE.
This mine, of which A. M. Gray is manager, comprises 160 acres of
located placer land, covering back channel ground of lower Grave Creek,
and is a property of more than ordinary interest.The ground was located by the early-day miners, and was worked by them in the ordinary way--one process of operation succeeding another. This early-day mining was, fortunately, done at a place that could not have been more admirably chosen had the old-time miners known that the ground would later be opened and equipped for the hydraulic process. Two embarrassing features in placer mining are, first, poor dumping facilities, and, second, poor water rights. The Harris Flat mine need never be embarrassed from these causes. At the present point of operations, which is also the lowest point so far reached in the mine, a natural gulch affords an excellent outlet for the tailings. A tailrace 360 feet long, and including four stretches of flume, with bedrock race and drops between that aggregate sixty feet, has a final fall of 360 feet into Grave Creek. The water right, which could be very much improved artificially, is a good one by nature, and as at present utilized, gives a pressure of 170 feet. The ground is easily worked. One inch of water will remove two cubic yards of gravel every twenty-four hours, under the present head. The bank is very high. as is shown in the picture, and seems to represent three separate channels. The first channel encountered was thought to represent the bottom, but when the opposite side was reached the rim was found to be much worn and the bedrock was suddenly found to be dipping away. Further work developed a new channel so much deeper than the first that the bedrock could not be "bottomed" with the then race. A new race had to be cut. These same conditions were repeated the past season in still another channel, which will necessitate a still deeper race. The values have improved with each succeeding channel, so that the required additional outlay will be gladly met. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 8-10 THE GREENBACK MINE
The Greenback mine of Grave Creek is the largest producer of Southern
Oregon, and with probably one exception, the North Pole of Sumpter, is
the most extensively developed mine in the state of Oregon, the
underground workings aggregating upwards of two miles. The
story of its
discovery, development and growth is full of interest and one that no
miner in this new district should fail to familiarize himself with.Largest Producer of Southern Oregon The history of the Greenback dates from only seven years ago--from May 16, 1897, to be exact. On that day D. L. Browning and E. F. Hannum, two young men who were at that time living near the present town of Placer, crossed over the divide between Browning Gulch and Tom East Creek, and began prospecting for a pocket. They took their first shovel of dirt from the upper bank of the Columbia Hydraulic Company's ditch, and were fortunate in getting a big trace in the first pan. In two hours they had followed it 250 feet. They lunched impatiently that day, and resuming their search, followed the trace for twenty-five or thirty feet more when at four o'clock they were rewarded by the discovery of a seam. From this seam they took out upwards of $300 in the next several days. This was a fair pocket. The seam was made up of disintegrated quartz particles, and was found to run diagonally into what appeared to be a stronger vein. It seemed to join the vein from the lower side, but was probably nothing more nor less than a breakover of the rich ledge, which in its gravitation had conveniently arranged itself into what is often called a "feeder of the main vein." The fact is that the discovery point was so near the main vein that the finding of the latter was a matter of natural consequence. Specimen ore of the richest kind was removed, and early in July the discoverers had an arrastra ready for operation. The vein was found to run almost east and west with a considerable dip toward the north, or with the surface. The pay chute was found to pitch westerly, and during the following twelve months the owners took out an average of about $2,000 per month--this from a property that had become to be spoken of as Browning and Hannum's rich "pocket ledge" on Grave Creek. The vein was opened by four levels, but the lowest was only 175 feet deep. All in all, the prospect presented such an excellent showing that it was bonded in August, 1898, by F. T. Sutherland, of Los Angeles, for $60,000. About this time it was discovered that the vein at its eastern and richer end was cut off by serpentine. At about the same time a neighboring locator had set up a contentious claim to the ground, so that the mine was finally bought by Sutherland and his associates for half the bonded figure. Tom East Creek, like Browning Gulch, is a northern tributary of Grave Creek. It is on this creek and immediately below the Greenback that is situated the Columbia mine, one of the largest of the state's hydraulic producers. It is not inappropriate at this point to call attention to the noteworthy quartz developments just now taking place up the numerous rich placer streams throughout Northern California and Southern Oregon. The surprise is that the possibilities of these fields have gone unexploited for so long. The explanation is in the fact that placer miners, after the days of the long tom and sluice in this country, preferred to go to other placer fields rather than take up with the new, and, to them untried, field of quartz mining. With the going of these placer miners went a world of valuable information which, were it only available at present, would prove invaluable in the search for pay quartz. It is enough in this connection to add that the gold of the Columbia gravel mine and Greenback quartz mine are identical in character. The purchase of the Greenback, on the part of Mr. Sutherland, was in behalf of Mr. W. H. Brevoort, of New York, and Moffatt & Smith, of Denver. The corporation bears the name of the Greenback Gold Mining and Milling Company, and the control of stock is in Mr. Brevoort. The story of the development of the mine reads with interest. The year following its purchase a ten-stamp mill was built. Ten more stamps were started dropping February, 1903, and the June following twenty more, making a total of forty stamps. Last year also was added a new cyanide plant of 100 tons daily capacity. A hydraulic filter press, or montejus was also added, and is being experimented with on the slimes. Wilfley concentrators are used with great satisfaction. The camp that has sprung up about the Greenback is typical of the modern or up-to-date quartz mine, and numbers a community of 300 to 400 people. A selective influence has been exercised in the choice of employees, and the social and intellectual standard of the camp is correspondingly high. The mine itself, both in its underground works and on the surface, is operated along lines at once scientific, practical and businesslike. That is one reason of its success. Southern Oregon may well congratulate itself that this prospect fell into such efficient hands. No little of the credit belongs properly to Superintendent C. W. Thompson. As evidence of its good management, the mine is electric lighted, the drilling is by machinery; a hundred thousand tons of pay ore and more are blocked out in the stopes--a quantity sufficient for nearly four years' steady milling--and sinking from the 900-foot or mill level is being vigorously pushed with the help of first-class hoist and pumping machinery, the latter being operated by an ingeniously economical method, namely, by power developed from water brought to the pump underground from the upper mill level, 300 feet vertically above. The water is thence conveyed to the tunnel mouth and into the mill, where it undergoes a further use as battery water. As to the mine itself, its most remarkable feature is its long pay chute. Values continue uniform and comparatively high for a distance of 700 feet. This remarkable length is developed on both the upper and lower mill levels, the fifth and ninth, respectively. Up till the time the new mill started the ore averaged $16 per ton. Since then less pains are taken in sorting, and the average returns per ton have probably dropped one-third or thereabouts. The last ground above the old mill level has just been stoped out this winter, and henceforward that mill of ten stamps will be discontinued. The vein is a true fault fissure with the evidences of its fissure character very marked. The quartz itself is seldom found in well-defined ledge form, but, on the contrary, is badly mixed with filling, giving to the ore a mottled or "pudding stone" character which occurs throughout the mine. The pay matter lies mostly in the form of lens-shaped masses, usually on the hanging wall, and frequently overlapping one another. The distance between walls will ordinarily range from five to ten feet. The hanging wall is the better defined, yet the lenticular ore bodies, because of their feather edges, would often be mistaken for "feeders" but for the extreme watchfulness that is exercised to guard against being sidetracked. The geology of the mine presents an interesting problem. The ledge itself has an east and west strike and in a formation of diorite or diabase. A mass of serpentine rests against the diorite near the eastern end of the vein forming a north and south contact. The ledge, however, is cut off before the serpentine is reached by an almost vertical fault, also north and south. The fault, to be exact, extends a little east of south and west of north, with a slight dip to the northeast. It is the theory of the owners--and the theory is borne out by development to date, as well as by a study of the geology of the country round about--that the slip downward has been on the hanging wall side in which event the easterly continuation of the rich chute in the upper Greenback workings will be easily picked up by drifting along the line of the fault unless the slip has been too great. That the slip has not been very great seems to be indicated by the development of the ninth level. Here the tunnel was driven easterly far enough beyond the fault to show that the serpentine had receded to a point considerably easterly from where it had been encountered between the eighth and ninth levels. Mr. Thompson is so sure that they have reached a depth below the serpentine that he intends drifting from the eleventh level in an attempt to pick up the lost chute. This effort will be watched with interest by mining men. Drifting on the vein from the eleventh hundred-foot point of the winze is already being prosecuted in both directions. At the tenth hundred-foot point a station has just been completed to facilitate pumping and hoisting. The lowest point in the mine is already fifty or seventy-five feet below the bed of Tom East Gulch. Besides the Greenback proper there are seven veins in various stages of development on the group comprising the property. None, however, has been very extensively opened up. Of these the Irish Girl is the most promising. It lies south of the Greenback 150 feet, and is parallel to it. The walls are from three to six feet apart, and the values lie principally in small stringers of high-grade ore, carrying value, occasionally, in combination with tellurium. A promising vein shortly north of the main Greenback is just now receiving some active attention. It is showing up well and the company puts considerable faith in it. A noteworthy feature of the Greenback ore has been its tendency to show great richness in spots, while at the same time carrying regular values throughout its long pay chute. The gold continues free, handsome specimens are found in the lowest levels. The 200-foot winze sunk from the mill level gives a total depth on the vein of 1,100 feet, yet the proportion of gold saved on the plates at this lowest point is as large as ever. In other words. the ore is distinctively a quartz ore, the sulphurets rarely constituting more than one percent of the total. The Greenback in the true sense is pioneering the quartz mining industry in Southern Oregon. It is a property which, although hardly started on its career, yet would be a credit to any of the older established mining camps. It stands among that rare class of quartz mines that have paid from the grass roots down, and its output to date--approximately $750,000--entitles it to rank with the first-class mines of the country. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 10-11 WOLF CREEK MINES.
A formation very favorable to the existence of gold-bearing quartz
ledges in both Southern Oregon and Northern California is one that on
the surface shows up in the form of a soft red or yellow rock. It is a
formation for which the average prospector naturally has quite a
failing, and one which, for want of a better name, he conveniently
calls "porphyry." In reality it is nothing more or less than the
weathered or oxidizedSCRIBNER-HENDERSON. capping of one or another of the various formations of diorite or diabase, with which the country abounds. Occasionally, the diorite appears in a narrower width than at other times and is spoken of as a porphyry "dike." Some of these diorite belts are literally seamed with small gold-bearing quartz veins. It is not unlikely that there will be found among these bodies of diorite some whose weathered surfaces will prove sufficiently high grade to warrant some method of reduction. As a matter of fact, it is today not an infrequent thing to find their surface sluiced or hydraulicked for its gold-bearing contents. The gold gathers in rich seams after having been freed from the quartz by the oxidizing processes, and it is from these seams that some of the greatest pocket finds have been taken. The richness and frequency of these pocket seams might furnish a pretty accurate criterion as to what the unoxidized diorite beneath is capable of producing, save for the fact that in addition to the weathered portion of the formation which today contains this gold we must allow for the formation previously worn away, all of which has left behind at least a part of the yellow metal it once contained intact. The richest of these diorite bodies personally visited and inspected by a Mineral Wealth representative is the Scribner and Henderson ground at the head of Wolf Creek, now under option to Mr. J. C. Dysert. The two prospectors who gave it its name traced up a number of seams, and are said to have hand mortared and washed out $35,000. The whole surface yields a heavy trace of gold. A large number of seams have been opened up at various places on the property, and many others will, no doubt, be uncovered from time to time. Mr. Dysert took charge of the property last summer and constructed a well-built double tub arrastra, and since that time has operated the same profitably and to very good advantage in every way. The porphyry of the Scribner and Henderson mine is about a quarter of a mile wide, extends northeasterly and southwesterly, and lies between a formation of serpentine and slate, the serpentine lying on the southeast. The porphyry or oxidized part of the diorite is from twenty to forty feet deep apparently and will average quite well in free gold considering the amount of tonnage in sight. A good grade of sulphuret also is saved in the arrastra. The mine will be operated by surface stoping on exactly the same lines as the now-famous King Solomon porphyry dike that has produced so phenomenally in the past half dozen years, on the south fork of Salmon River, Siskiyou County, California. On the Scribner and Henderson property a tunnel 180 feet long has been run to cut a ledge that parallels the serpentine near the point of contact. The tunnel is not yet quite complete, but offers a most excellent opportunity to sample the diorite for its average value. The showing made by this tunnel and the various openings on the surface are surely such as to invite investigation, especially in view of the equally good showing made by the Sluter mine a mile northeast or on a continuation of the same formation. A large iron dike, averaging, perhaps, twenty feet wide, lies along the serpentine-porphyry contact, and a gold-bearing quartz ledge a foot or fifteen inches in width lies just north or immediately below. This ledge has been thoroughly opened up at a point easterly of the Scribner and Henderson holdings, and shows up to very good advantage. A good chute of ore is laid bare. The property is indicated on the map and is owned by J. B. and E. F. Hannum. SLUTER MINE.
This property, owned by H. D. Sluter, presents a duplication of the
conditions of the Scribner and Henderson mine. The surface showing is
the same, the diorite has the same width, namely one-fourth mile; the
serpentine still continues as the "hanging wall," and the slate
formation to the northwest might be designated as the "foot wall." Even
the iron dike and the Hannum quartz ledge both still hug the
serpentine. The quartz ledge has yielded some fine specimens. A
thirty-five-dollar piece was taken from the very summit of the Wolf
Creek divide.The Sluter placer mines, which compose part of the Sluter holdings, lie on Sailor's Gulch, which is a northern tributary of Wolf Creek. During the eight years he has mined this gulch, Mr. Sluter has piped away some 750 feet of the ancient channel formation that formerly lined this stream. The gold is heavy. Nuggets have been found weighing from $20.00 to $50.00. Mr. Sluter has realized an average of $10.00 for every foot length of the stream bed and has done this in spite of the fact that he was compelled to leave unworked a good bit of the lower ground because of a poor dump. These placer mines were unquestionably fed by the gold from the porphyry or decomposed diorite of these upper Wolf Creek properties, for, no gold is found above the serpentine-diorite contact. Mr. Sluter has found the same rich seams that are found on the Scribner and Henderson property. From one of them he took out over $4,000 in less than three months. Mr. Sluter a year ago last winter turned his giant upon a small area of the decomposed diorite, and while he was unable to save much of the gold because of the obstinacy of the porphyry in disintegrating, yet the experiment was of value in showing up quite a surface of the formation, and the seams that enter into its composition, and it furnished him, as it were, a cross-section of the geology. The Sluter holdings of 100 acres of the porphyry formation and the Scribner and Henderson holdings of 120 acres are separated, as indicated on the map, by a similar property owned by Brown, Cabel & Co. WOLF CREEK MINING AND DEVELOPMENT
CO.
The Wolf Creek Mining and Development Co. owns 160 acres of placer
ground and four quartz claims on Wolf Creek and Hole-in-the-Ground
Creek in the Wolf Creek mining district, Josephine County, Oregon.This is an ideal district. The region is heavily timbered and contains an abundance of water. This company owns excellent water rights. Arrangements are now being made to extend one of the ditches to the lower portion of the placer. It will cost only a comparatively small amount to build this ditch and when it is completed the company will have sufficient water to operate two large giants the greater portion of the year, and will have sufficient gravel ahead of them to keep the giants at work for fully twenty years on good ground without the further expenditure of another cent for the building of ditches, etc. The channels are sixty to one hundred feet wide, with a depth of four to six feet, and contain values of from twenty-five cents to seventy-five cents per cubic yard, and, in some places, yields as much as $2.00 per yard. The gold is mostly of a coarse nature, and many large nuggets have been found. Messrs. Wilson and Rickard, who are working the claim adjoining this property on Hole-in-the-Ground Creek, picked up a $17.00 nugget a few weeks ago. Pieces of the value of $2.00 to $10.00 are very frequently washed out in these old channels. A $1,220.00 nugget and another of $700.00 was picked up years ago by the oldtimers. There are portions of ancient channels on this company's placer ground that have never been touched, even with pick and shovel. Some of the more accessible parts were worked in early days and they yielded big money with the old-time sluices. With the modern hydraulic equipment that the Wolf Creek company will have installed for the coming season, every inch of this ground will be washed and handsome returns should be the result. The company also owns several good quartz claims.They are located on the head of Hole-in-the-Ground Creek, a tributary of Wolf Creek, about a mile above the placer property. There is an abundance of water and timber for mining purposes. These claims are located on the rich mineral belt running through that section of the country and are not more than five miles from the Greenback. It is conceded by mining men who are familiar with that section that the lead on which these claims are located has been the feeder for all the rich placer ground below it. Sufficient development work has been done on the quartz to demonstrate its value, and the tunnel now being driven is in ledge matter fifteen feet in width and the footwall has not yet been encountered. Both the quartz and placer ground are easily accessible. The county road runs through a portion of the placer and within a short distance of the quartz. The company is now selling a small block of the treasury stock for the purpose of equipping and developing the property as outlined above. M. B. Bozarth, 251 Alder Street, Portland, Or., is the secretary and manager of the Wolf Creek Mining and Development Company. The other officers are prominent professional and business men of Portland, Astoria and Salem. A DRIFT MINE.
Besides the placer properties of the Wolf Creek Company and
H. D.
Sluter, Lehman Brothers control 1,100 acres or so, which they are
working by drifting. J. C. Rickert has a claim adjoining. The present
channel was worked years ago. The present owners located it for the
same purpose thirteen or fourteen years ago, but after a year or two
they ran into a formation of gravel projecting into the present channel
from the north side, and on a brief investigation satisfied themselves
that the ground was rich and commenced drifting. This was a
surprise to
the old miners, who never suspected a back channel. The gold is quite
coarse, pieces as large as twenty dollars and more being found. A drift
mine needs no recommendation as to its hydraulic character and it
really would not require a great outlay to transform the Lehman
property into a hydraulic mine.Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 12-13 THE RUBLE MINE AND GRIZZLY.
This mine is situated on Coyote Creek, which flows into Wolf Creek at
the station of that name on the Southern Pacific railroad, thirty miles
north of Grants Pass. Coyote Creek was one of the best streams of the
country in the early days.THE RUBLE MINE. The Ruble mine, owned by Ruble & Sons, comprises a consolidation of a number of former smaller properties, and is known to be a mine of good value. The one detractive feature has been the lack of natural dump, since the grade of the stream is very small. Then the water, too, is scarce for the ordinary methods of hydraulic mining and the material is quite heavy, there being many good-sized boulders. During six years of the mine's operation the present owners took out a total of $65,000. The property includes much virgin ground, and represents an ideal opportunity for a still further consolidation on the part of larger capital, this larger organization to provide for larger water rights and more extensive equipment in other ways. Mineral Wealth is in a position to state that these holdings could be secured on a reasonable basis. That they represent one of the best openings in Southern Oregon for a big hydraulic mine is a statement whose truth will become readily apparent on even a casual investigation. THE RUBLE GRIZZLY.
The slight grade and the limited water supply of the Ruble mine
involved a serious problem in that mine's operation. The owners were
driven to various experiments to meet the difficulties and since the
large boulders rendered hydraulic elevating out of the question, it
almost looked as though much good ground was destined to remain
unworked. After some experimenting, the Rubles finally hit upon a
process ofelevating, all their own. They constructed an apparatus consisting essentially of a grizzly and undercurrent over which the gravel is forced by means of ordinary hydraulic giants and the results have been very satisfactory. It was by this means that they were enabled to remove the above amount of money in the time named as stated, and from ground which, under other circumstances, would have been worked at a very great cost, if worked at all. The process of operating is simple enough. The material is forced over the grizzly, as shown in the picture. Boulders, stumps, roots and logs alike find a common dumping place beyond the "stacker." The finer material is screened from the rest in transit through the appliance and is sluiced off through an elevated sluiceway on the opposite side of the grizzly. It is in these sluices that the gold is saved. The Ruble elevator is a device whose merit has been fully proven, which is amply attested by the eighteen or twenty grizzlies which are in use in the various districts of Southern Oregon. Mineral Wealth's representative found them giving good satisfaction wherever they were being used. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, page 13 JUMPOFF JOE CREEK MINES
Mineral
Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 14-16ORO FINO MINE.
Mineral Wealth
is glad for the opportunity of giving the public some notion of this
promising young property, situated, as it is, in the heart of a
promising district. We are glad, moreover, to point out so instructive
an instance of what cautious, painstaking work will do toward the
development of an embryo mine.
The Oro Fino, like nearly all other Southern Oregon ledges, was free milling on the surface. The values, on the other hand, occur finely disseminated throughout the quartz instead of being concentrated in specimen-like quantities, so that at the present depth free gold is rarely ever seen, even in rock of the highest quality. The Oro Fino was discovered at a point about forty feet north of what is today being shown to be the main vein. The present workings show this discovery to have been only a branch of the main vein, although it produced from $18,000 to $20,000. Since Mr. S. Chase took hold of the property a year ago he has demonstrated beyond a doubt the separate entity of these two veins. In fact, what has been shown is this, that the Oro Fino proper is only one of three or four veins, all of which, as they descend, approach a distinct and separate vein--joining it from its northerly or footwall side. This main vein, previous to Mr. Chase's ownership, had been struck by a 140-foot crosscut tunnel, and followed with a drift for a distance of 333 feet. It was noticed that there was some little difference between the character of quartz at this place and the quartz above, but the cause for this difference remained for Mr. Chase to disclose. From the 333-foot point on the drift, a crosscut to the right or north was run to connect with a shaft from the old workings above, the object being to get air. This shaft, as subsequent development has shown, went down on another one of the feeders. Work on the main drift was resumed, and at a point sixteen feet beyond the 333-foot point a seventy-one-foot winze was sunk. At the bottom of this winze a strong ledge of good average ore, six feet wide, was disclosed, but in the drift things did not show quite so encouragingly. The ledge had given way to a bare seam and a displacement of waste matter. Attention was transferred to the tributary vein just mentioned, or on which the old shaft had been sunk. This vein was followed southwesterly on an angle that would have brought it to the main vein in a distance of 100 feet or so, but it in turn narrowed to a small width and was given up at a point ninety-four feet from the shaft. This was in 1902 and represented the last work done on this level in the mine until taken hold of by Mr. Chase and associates. After a study of the situation Mr. Chase decided to crosscut southerly for the vein. He believed that the vein could be found in place, and his hypothesis proved correct, for at the end of only nineteen feet of crosscutting the expected happened, for the vein was encountered. Since that time the development of the Oro Fino has been a simple, persistent, steady, unfolding process, with the result that today it stands as one of the country's best prospects. After intersecting the vein, a drift was pushed westward fifty-five feet, every foot of which was on good ore--in fact, some of it very high grade. A winze was sunk sixty-five feet in depth, every foot on good ore, showing a fine two-foot vein of unmixed high-grade quartz. The drift itself has been continued westward for sixty feet, the whole length of which and the face of which are both on a fine-looking ledge of good ore. The hanging wall is well defined, while the footwall is becoming more so as it gets down beyond the zone of feeders or branch veins. A fifty-ton daily capacity cyanide plant is at present being installed. A Boston crusher and Sturtevant rolls will be used to reduce the ore. Development at the Oro Fino will be watched with keen interest. BABY AND GOPHER.
These properties, which form with the Cosmopolitan a compact group, as
indicated on the map, are both prospects with interesting records to
their credit, as well as promising assurances for their future. They
have the good fortune of being in the hands of good companies. Both
happen to be California companies. The Baby is being developed by the
Capitol City Mining Company, of Sacramento, C. C. Higgins as manager at
the mines. The Gopher, with headquarters at San Francisco, is
represented at the mine by T. E. Lacy.Both properties are equipped with two-stamp mills. Both have yielded considerable from high-grade rock, especially the Baby. The work of both at the present time is in the nature of prospecting. At the Gopher there is being run a long crosscut tunnel to tap a mammoth ledge of quartz ore in the hope of striking a pay chute. This tunnel is now in over 700 feet. The ledge where exposed on the surface is low grade. THE HAMMERSLEY MINE.
This noted prospect, after a turbulent career of twelve years, is today
under bond to the Willis & Osgood Company of Seattle, who,
after
unwatering it, are today doing the first systematic development the
mine has seen since its early days. The mine is so situated in a
depression of the mountaintop as to make sinking and hoisting the mode
of operation. It is on the divide between Jacques Creek and Brass Nail
Gulch, on the upper Jumpoff Joe, and as indicated on the map. It has
produced $75,000 to $100,000, and is esteemed as a prospect of
excellent promise.LUCKY QUEEN.
This property, whose situation is given on the map, is owned by
Corliss, Rush & Son, but at present under bond to G. Trapschuh
and
associates of Spokane. It is thirty-five years old, being among the
first quartz locations in the country. Twice has it witnessed the
construction and removal of a five-stamp mill, and large quantities of
high grade rock have paid for expensive mining, hauling and shipping.
The tunneling and shafting will aggregate 2,000 feet.The new company has done considerable development during its ownership of the past year, and has commenced the construction of quite a long tramway and ten-stamp mill. Mr. C. D. Crane is manager. THE COSMOPOLITAN.
The Cosmopolitan group of mines, formerly known as the Little Dick
group, is situated on Bear Mountain with such mines as the Baby and
Gopher on its southern extremity, and the Lucky Queen mine just across
Jumpoff Joe Creek on the north. It stands distinctly in a class by
itself. In respect to the character of its ore it differs widely from
that of the mines just mentioned, and as regards size, it is not
equaled in the district.It consists of three quartz claims and eighty acres of railroad land, and was purchased by the present owners, A. G. Minter of Seattle and August Fetsch of Grants Pass last fall. They bought the ground from Jacob Meier, who likewise secured it by purchase three years ago from J. C. Dysert. The work, prior to the sale, was very much along the line of surface stoping. The oxidized ore near the surface was quarried out and the finer material was screened and conveyed to the bottom of the mountain, for a distance of 800 feet, by washing it through a V-shaped flume. The ore was treated with a twin-tub arrastra, built by Mr. Dysert, and by this method would give a gross return of over $4.00 per ton. When Mr. Minter assumed control he set about to open the property more extensively. He ran a crosscut of 150 feet west and tapped the vein at a depth of 100 feet, touching the footwall first. The length of this crosscut was through diorite, at first soft and easy of removal, but as depth was gained the rock became more and more hard, and when the ledge was struck the diorite had almost the hardness of flint. The course of the vein is northwest and southeast and dips southwest or into the hill. The crosscut was continued in the ore for twenty feet and the other wall has not yet been reached. The ore is a peculiar mixture of quartz and diorite, with also a great deal of lime. The values at this depth are mostly in the sulphurets and the method of treatment will no doubt be by cyanide. A one-and-one-half-mile ditch, tapping one fork of Jumpoff Joe Creek, brings water to the ground below, and affords an excellent opportunity for a reduction plant. There is an abundance of timber on the ground for mining and building purposes. JUMPOFF JOE HYDRAULIC
MINE.
Seven miles up Jumpoff Joe Creek from Merlin, on the tributary known as
Jacques Creek, is a consolidation of mining ground controlled by
Dysert, Keyes and Booth. It comprises 758 acres, of which 548 acres is
deeded ground. The nucleus of this area consists of about 500 acres
consolidated by J. C. Dysert in 1895 out of four separately owned
properties. The first year of the Dysert ownership, Mr. Dysert
constructed a three-quarter-mile ditch from Jacques Creek and, fitting
up with pipe and giant, mined the property in this way for the first
time. The present channel of that tributary of the Jumpoff
Joe had been
pretty well worked, at least, below its confluence with Horse Creek,
and in order to tap the old back channel it was necessary to cut a
bedrock race 600 feet long. The gravel was eighteen or twenty feet deep
and ran from fifteen to twenty cents per cubic yard. It was seen that
the plant was inadequate for the amount of ground to be worked away,
and accordingly, in 1898, Mr. Dysert commenced the construction of a
large ditch tapping Jumpoff Joe Creek, to be about five miles long and
having a capacity of 2,000 inches. Two miles had been completed when a
company of four San Franciscans formed a partnership, bonded the
property and completed the ditch in six months, employing at one time
as many as 150 men. But the ditch was finished too late for much of a
season, and six months more saw the partnership divided in some matters
of policy, with the result that the possession and ownership was
allowed to revert to Mr. Dysert.Early in 1903 the property was bonded to Jos. Clark, of Los Angeles, brother of Senator Clark, of Montana, who made a cash payment of $5,000 and fitted the mine up with additional pipe, giant, electric lights, etc., bringing the equipment up to four giants. Jos. Clark died during the summer and his personal representatives failed to close the bond. Besides several thousand feet of pipe, there are all told about twelve miles of ditches, including a bywash ditch of 800 inches capacity, also out of Jumpoff Joe Creek. The mine is opened up at two places. At the lower point or near the mouth of the creek there is little grade, it having been necessary to cut a 1,300-foot race, flumed for most of the distance with four-foot flume. But the giants here can be worked under a 400-foot pressure. As you go up the creek the grade increases rapidly until at the upper mine the dumping difficulties become merely nominal, the freshets of the creek acting as a flusher for the tailings. The pressure of piping, however, is less than half of what it is at the lower mine. The lower mine offers ideal conditions for hydraulic elevating. The J. O. Booth claims of eighty acres and the farm of H. M. Gorham lie below the property on the Jumpoff Joe and are supposed to comprise equally good ground. The property during the past season was under lease to Wallace and Hasty. SOUTHERN OREGON MINING AND
DEVELOPMENT COMPANY.
The Southern Oregon Mining and Development Company of Portland are now
operating one of the richest placer mines in the Southern Oregon field,
and it is a property that has an established record for its high values
in gold.This ground was first located in 1862 by Henry Wines, an erratic Prussian, but who was the pioneer miner of this district. The property, as it stands today, consists of a strip of land one and three-quarters miles in length on Jumpoff Joe and Bummer creeks, and the pay gravel for this entire distance is from 100 to 600 feet in width. The bank ranges from four to fifteen feet in depth. These conditions have been determined after careful prospecting. It is an economical mine for operation. The water supply is good and the dumping facilities are ample. It is a mine that can be worked as heavily as its owners may choose and obviously has years of operation before it. The present owners purchased the mine from C. D. Sexton, who has operated it every season for the past nine years, and whose cleanups have always been more than satisfactory. The gold is coarse and heavy, averaging $18.50 per ounce. Mr. Sexton has kept a number of souvenir pieces ranging from $2.00 to $180.00. This property had been in the eyes of old-time residents here for years. Wines was a very eccentric man; some charged him with being a hard old customer; others found him a generous, kindhearted old chap. No prospector who had "gone broke" and showed up at Wines' cabin was ever refused a welcome or a helping hand for a fresh start. Wines was known to have considerable gold always in his possession, mostly in large nuggets; his smaller gold he would sell to get his supplies. About ten years ago he had two men in his employ. It is claimed by these men that he finally grew sullen and that they feared that their lives were in danger at his hands. They watched him, and one evening, it was claimed by them, he attempted to take their lives. They, however, were quicker than he, and he was killed instead. These men were tried for murder and acquitted, but many of the residents and miners in the camp still think that the old man was murdered for his money. It is conjectured that his gold is still left where he hid it and will some day be unearthed. The present owners of the property have been operating this season on merely a prospective scale. It is their intention to equip it thoroughly for next season's run, and from past experience they are justified in expecting a big cleanup for the coming year. THE MT. PITT COMPANY.
A mining deal of no little importance was recently consummated in which
a part of the former holdings of Cook & Howland became the
property
of the Mt. Pitt Hydraulic and Quartz Mining Company, composed mainly of
Portland men. The company is incorporated under the laws of the state
of Oregon, and is capitalized for $50,000, with headquarters at
Portland, Oregon, 226 Failing Building. The directory is represented by
E. House, president; D. L. McCloud, secretary and treasurer,
and A. C.
Hoofer, one of the original discoverers of the St. Helens field,
Washington, as superintendent and manager.This promising property comprises 125 acres of valuable placer ground on Bummer Gulch, tributary of Jumpoff Joe Creek, Josephine County, and two quartz claims immediately on the line between Jackson and Josephine, and in close proximity to the placer. The present equipment of the placer is rather meager, but it is the policy of the present management, after some preliminary prospecting, to install an equipment adequate to handle the great deposits of rich gravel. A ditch of one mile will supply abundance of water from the gulch under a pressure of from 175 to 200 feet. The nature of the gravel is old channel deposit, and if indications count for anything, the owners are justified in their sanguine attitude toward their present holdings. The channel is no doubt a continuation of that of the Southern Oregon Mining and Development Company, and also the Cook & Howland. It is located less than two miles from the latter well-known property and adjoins the former. Former owners who were content to operate this ground in an unsystematic and haphazard manner obtained results that were far from being unfavorable, the upper end of the ground paying $7.00 per day with a rocker. The values are of a very coarse nature (one piece having been found on the lower end of the property that weighed $110.00) and are scattered throughout the bank, which is from ten to fifteen feet in depth. Just across the line in Jackson County the company owns two quartz claims, located on the same vein, and of these the company is, and has a right to be, very hopeful. The vein has been traced for a great distance on the surface and by pan prospects the most flattering results have been obtained. The ledge has been opened and discloses a vein five feet in width, gives returns by assays of $30.00 per ton in free gold, and will soon be tapped by a crosscut tunnel, now almost complete. About the middle of June or several weeks after our representative visited this mine, the Mt. Pitt Company struck their ledge. They struck a big body of high-grade ore. Part of the rock was exceedingly rich, and for the whole ledge, or for a width of ten feet, will pay well to mill. They have gained from 50 to 60 feet of back with a 90-foot crosscut. BRASS NAIL GULCH.
On this gulch, above the property of the Southern Oregon Mining and
Development Company, are properties owned by Hillis & Collins,
Thompson & Schroter and Bennett. For several months in the year
there is a good head of water from Brass Nail Gulch itself, and some
very heavy gold is found--one piece weighed $245.00.J. W. Robinson, now of Crook County, is said to have taken out $25,000 to $30,000 in his six years of ownership. THE GRANITE HILL MINE.
A
scene of great activity is the Granite Hill mine, on Louse Creek, the
property of the American Gold Fields Company. The mine was purchased by
this company about two and one-half years ago and has in that time
undergone almost phenomenal development. Modern equipment has
superseded the primitive methods in vogue; development work has been
constant and systematic; and all in all, the property bids fair to
become one of the state's best.Its history up to the time of its purchase by the present owners was not entirely unlike that of its contemporaries. The development was desultory at best and there were frequent changes of ownership. It finally in 1899 came into the hands of Mr. C. L. Mangum, who, at once setting about to inaugurate a systematic line of policy, interested with him such men as A. J. Hechtman, H. Fleishhacker and F. H. Buck, of California, and R. A. Booth, of Oregon. J. O. Booth subsequently obtained an interest. The holdings of the American Gold Fields Company cover more than 700 acres of area, and the placers on this ground were worked in the early days by the comparatively ineffective methods employed by the early gold seekers. After the richest had been worked by pick and pan, the ground was successively worked by the long tom, by ground-sluicing and by drifting. These various methods were each in turn employed with great success for a considerable time. The mine, however, failed to see any improvement in modes of working until twelve or fifteen years ago. This was no doubt due to the fact that it could be so successfully worked by the simpler methods. So that it was in the early nineties before a hydraulic equipment was added. This progressive step is to be accredited to M. F. Hull, W. S. Beck and Pelton Brothers, who at that time owned the ground on the south fork of Louse Creek, or what is known as the "Upper Diggins." C. N. Matthews and W. T. Turnham owned the ground at the junction of the three forks and they still continue to work it by drifting and ground sluicing. The gold in the placer of the south fork is local wash and was unquestionably deposited by erosion from the gold-bearing veins of the surrounding mountains. This was, however, not universally conceded by the placer miners working on the stream, till what is called the Bed Rock vein was exposed, by washing away the auriferous gravel which obscured it. The eyes of the miners were thus opened to a new field of mining and they constructed an arrastra, by which means they took out $8,000 from the Bed Rock vein. This gave an impetus to a new industry, and the possibility that Louse Creek would become a quartz mining camp led other placer miners to discontinue their calling and search for pay quartz. Other veins of promise were accordingly discovered and more arrastras were built, so that when Mr. Mangum secured the ground in 1899 and effected its consolidation, there were three arrastras and one small stamp mill on the ground that has later all been acquired by the American Gold Fields Company. Running east and west through the property is an ancient blue gravel channel 150 feet wide and from 40 to 50 feet deep, and this represents the nucleus of the company's placer ground. This is now covered by eight miles of ditches, representing the first and entire water right of the three forks of Louse Creek, and the necessary pipe and giant equipment. Four of the numerous veins on the holdings of the present company were discovered and partly developed when Mr. Mangum secured the ground; two more were discovered on the patented lands of the company and one on public land, which was accordingly located. There are seven distinct veins on the property in various stages of development. The veins, which are evidently true fissures, occur in two formations, viz., granite and diorite. The contact passes through the center of the property and has an east and west strike which is parallel to the strike of the Granite Hill vein. The strike of the High Tariff and Red Jacket veins, on the other hand, is nearly north and south. However, all other veins thus far developed on the property run east and west. Again on the northeast and lying smoothly against the granite is a dike of highly mineralized diorite, these three formations being in close proximity and their lines of contact parallel. During the time of Mr. Mangum's management the property was more thoroughly and consistently opened up than it had ever been before. A latest improved Wilfley concentrator was added to the equipment, which at that time was a small 5-stamp mill, run by steam. Underground work was pushed forward, and all in all, Mr. Mangum and associates expended some $12,000 in developing, and by the legitimate disposition of this amount the property presented such a creditable showing that it was purchased by W. J. Morphy, of Chicago, for the American Gold Fields Company, of which he is manager, about two and one-half years ago. Walter de Varila, who was superintending operations for the company at that time, commenced sinking the shaft on the Granite Hill vein. An engine and small hoist were installed and this work was vigorously prosecuted. Later L. B. Wickersham succeeded Mr. de Varila, and he has continued to work out the policy of the company. The shaft was a vertical, double compartment, five by six feet in the hoisting compartment, and five by two and one-fourth feet in the manway, and this shaft was down 107 feet when Mr. Wickersham took charge. A change was thought necessary in the construction of this shaft and was brought about by Mr. Wickersham by putting the spreader in the center of the shaft, thus making two equal compartments and giving sufficient room for the pump and air line in the manway.and ample room for the cage in the other compartment. The shaft was continued for fifty feet further before the ledge was struck, and here was encountered a chute of ore which was heavy in galena, and free gold in close proximity to the galena. A mill run of 100 tons at this point gave returns of $9.00 on the plates. On the 207-foot level a station was cut in the shaft and drifts run both east and west on the vein, aggregating about 400 feet, in which the ledge showed as strongly as it did in the upper or 107-foot level. In the west drift a chute of galena ore has been struck, of the same character as that encountered in the shaft in the sinking. The values are pleasingly high grade, and the ledge is from three to seven feet in width, with the pay ore mostly on the hanging wall. It is the policy of the company to carry the drifts steadily forward, raising on the chute to the level above, thus ensuring good air and ventilation. At a depth of 230 feet in the shaft a subterranean watercourse was struck, occasioned by a flat slip crossing the formation which allowed considerable water to come into the shaft. To overcome the difficulty of sinking against this influx of water, a number 9 Smith-Vaile pump was installed and a crosscut driven twenty feet north from the shaft and having the same width. At the end of this solid ground was struck, and a sump, capable of holding 10,000 gallons of water, was cut. The station was well timbered and electric lighted; then the big pump was swung from the shaft into the pump station. In this way, practically all the water entering at this point and from above is caught up and pumped to the surface, thus keeping the water away from the shaft and obviating the necessity of having to pump this influx from the lower levels. A small Worthington pump is hung in the shaft to take up any water that may accumulate in the bottom. This work has solved the water problem and enables sinking to be carried on vigorously. The shaft is now going down rapidly and its continuation will be carried on in conjunction with the driving of levels and connecting with raises, it being the intention of the company to carry this shaft down at least 600 feet at once, developing each level from the shaft as it is reached. The company has installed a hoisting plant, which is one of the finest in the state. It is of the double drum, twin engine type, and capable of carrying the shaft down 2,000 feet. The drums are six feet in diameter and the whole plant is set on piers of solid concrete ten feet in thickness. An inch steel cable is used hoisting over a forty-foot head frame and carrying a cage which can be converted into a "double decker," handling timber, men and loaded ore cars carrying 1,600 pounds of ore. The new mill has just been started. It is a model structure and deserves more than casual description. The stamps are of the well known Allis-Chalmers make. The ore cars wheel into the top of the mill from the collar of the shaft and dump into bins of 200 tons capacity. A drop of seventy feet is afforded from the bin to the concentrating floor and an excellent grade has been provided for an automatic run of ore from the time it leaves the shaft till it is impounded in the tailings. The stamps, as has been stated, are of the Allis-Chalmer type, provided with hanging feeders. A crusher of eighty tons capacity is stationed at the top of the lower ore bin. Six-foot Frue vanners are used, there being four in the mill at present. The mill is spacious and well lighted, being provided with electric lights. A 100-horsepower boiler supplies power for the plant, which will be augmented by one 75 horsepower, which is now being installed. A six-drill Ingersoll-Sergeant air compressor has been set up in the power house adjoining the mill delivering air through a three-inch line to the shaft and levels. With such an equipment, as regards hoisting, air compressor capacity and a complete solution of the water problem, the Granite Hill is in excellent shape to ensure a rapid development. The Red Jacket claim deserves more than a passing notice. It has been opened up by a tunnel driven over 250 feet in length, crosscutting three well-defined veins, with a rich pay chute of eighteen inches to two feet in thickness. Two of these veins, parallel, are only eight feet apart and dip toward each other and undoubtedly will unite soon and form a large body of high-grade ore. A winze being sunk on the vein discloses a fine body of high-grade ore, and the boiler, hoist and compressor formerly used on the Granite Hill mine are now being installed with a view to extensive development work. The owners of the property believe that the Red Jacket will prove to be one of the richest mines in Southern Oregon and propose to open it up on a scale commensurate with its merit. A sawmill in connection, with a capacity of 6,000 feet of lumber per day, is located 200 yards from the mill. All the lumber for the buildings and mine has been sawed out at this place. The company's holdings in the vicinity have an abundance of timber of the celebrated Douglas fir variety, which in its qualities of strength, toughness and elasticity is unexcelled. This settles definitely and favorably the problem of mining timbers at the Granite Hill for all time. The camp has an excellent mess house, and it is the intention of the company to erect a number of small bunk houses on the north fork of Louse Creek, each to accommodate four or five men. These will replace the ones now being used. The superintendent's office and the assay office and laboratory are situated about 100 feet from the new mill. All in all, the Granite Hill mine represents at the present moment the most interesting quartz development in Southern Oregon. The Greenback is too well established to excite any unusual interest, and the Benton, Opp and Braden are still all unequipped. The creditable showing at the Granite Hill is due to the efficient management the mine has had at the hands of Manager W. J. Morphy and Superintendent L. B. Wickersham. FOREST QUEEN MINE.
On Louse Creek, and adjoining the holdings of the American Gold Fields
Company on the west, is the conveniently located and fitly named Forest
Queen mine.Last October this property passed into the hands of J. B. Pipes, a practical miner who has extensive holdings in lead and silver mines near Wardner, Idaho. Mr. Pipes purchased the interests of two of the former owners and has the remaining interest under bond and lease. This property, while at one time a great producer, is just at present undergoing exploration for the purpose of determining the location of the pay streak, which was completely lost while under the management of owners previous to Mr. Pipes' purchase. This property, comprising 213 acres of patented land, covers both the present and ancient channels of Louse Creek for a distance of two miles or more. A two-mile ditch from Louse Creek supplies the ground with 2,500 inches of water. Two 800-foot pipe lines giving a pressure of 225 feet and with two number two giants and one number five, with sufficient water for a long season's run, go to make up a very complete equipment. The question of dump on this property was a very perplexing one, and was given solution by the installation of one of Ruble Bros.' patented elevators or grizzlies. The values were originally found in the old channel deposit, and this channel has been the objective of most of the work on the ground. GALICE DISTRICT.
This mine is in some respects the most notable hydraulic property in
Oregon. It comprises the deepest banks and probably contains greater
quantities of gold-bearing gravel than any other operating mine on the
Pacific Coast.THE OLD CHANNEL PLACER MINE. It is owned by a corporation known as the Old Channel Mining Co., which company is in reality a close corporation consisting of a trio of Chicago men who came into possession of it about four years ago. The ground in places is two thousand feet wide, and the banks frequently two hundred feet high. The mine is worked under unusually favorable conditions. The banks being high, the effectiveness of the water is great, and since this whole deposit occupies a plateau of bedrock a thousand feet above the Rogue River, the ordinarily important question of disposition of tailings is for this mine a problem quite simple. A twelve-mile ditch delivers 5,000 inches of water from an excellent water source, namely, the west fork of Galice Creek, to a reservoir affording a 510-foot head at the present point of operation. The situation, in a word, is most admirable for cheap operation, and the fact is that the ground is handled at a cost not to exceed two cents per cubic yard, which is a record that even the famous North Bloomfield mine of Nevada County, Cal., never equaled in its best days. The features that contribute to this cheapness are the vastness of the deposits, and the excellent advantages in water supply and dump facilities. This mine has produced as much as $50,000 to $75,000 a year, and is known to still embrace much ground of the same character. It is composed mostly, however, of lower grade gravel, the removal of which is rendered profitable only by virtue of the exceptionally excellent conditions. Four thousand to five thousand cubic yards can be removed daily when the mine is in full operation, and the season extends over a period of seven to eight months. The gold from the Old Channel mine is, as a rule, coarse and high grade. Running along in the middle of the deposit, or in what might be called the main channel, it will average $19.33 per ounce, while outside of this channel the value drops, for some reason or another, to about $18.25. There is another feature, however, that is quite as interesting as this high grade value of the gold. The gravel has been found to contain the various metals of the platinum group, and to such an extent that in the season of 1902-3 the mine was equipped with patent platinum-saving apparatus. Enough platinum was saved the first year to more than pay for all equipment and operating expenses for that season. The mine the past year has been under lease to one of the partners, Mr. J. R. Harvey, of Chicago. The first half of the season was spent in cutting a long and deep tailrace with an outlet on the Rocky Gulch side. Much of this race was cut through solid bedrock but represents an excellent investment, for it will facilitate the mine's operation for all time. Work on the Rich Gulch side was not prosecuted the past season, but during the ensuing year work will be resumed in earnest, and it will be worth the time of anyone to visit the Old Channel mine and witness no less than four great streams of water playing through nozzles from four to six inches in diameter and under a pressure of 500 feet against the giant banks of this monstrous mine. FRIDAY.
Almost adjoining the Golden Wedge on the north is a property owned by
Ed. Friday, and consisting of a single claim. Enough work has been done
to show a permanent-appearing lead and it is not unlikely that the
future will disclose it to be the northern continuation of the Golden
Wedge ledge. Mr. Friday will do considerable work on this prospect
during the ensuing year.BYBEE GULCH.
The mouth of Bybee Gulch has always been an interesting point of
geologic and mining speculation, both as regards quartz and placer.
Today Jas. Savage and Sons control this area with five quartz location
claims. There are several seams. They are about in a line with the
Golden Wedge and in the same formation, although a mile or two away.
The main ledge or the McKinley is traced across the Rogue River. Some
quartz has been mined on both sides of the river and there have been
five arrastras at one time or another within a radius of one-half mile
of this point. The Bradberry prospect, which has produced several
thousand dollars, is not more than a mile or so away. (See map for
location.)THE GOLDEN WEDGE.
This is a prospect that has always excited more than ordinary interest.
It has been more of a puzzle than anything else. It was discovered
twelve or fifteen years ago with the quartz lying, in great part, flat
on top of the ground, forming an uncovered or exposed blanket ledge of
a very high grade rock. Later, and at a point two or three hundred feet
further south, on the course of the main vein the ledge was found
dipping into the ground. The ore, however, was found to continue as
rich as ever, so that all told about $40,000 has already been accounted
for from a mine whose surface can literally and truly be described as
being as yet practically unscratched. Most of this amount was milled
from above the adit level of the present workings. Everything above
this level, or to a depth of eighty feet below the apex of the ledge,
has been stoped. Last year a winze from this level twenty feet deep had
been sunk by Mr. Willis Kramer, the Myrtle Creek flour mill man. At
this time the trio of Thein Brothers and Saurbrey came into a part
interest in the mine as well as possession. They extended this
twenty-foot winze to a depth of sixty feet, and then drifted fifteen
feet each way on the ledge from the bottom. At this point the fall
rains so thoroughly saturated the gulch in which the mine is situated
that work was brought to an end by excess of water in the winze.The property is equipped with a two-stamp mill, manufactured by the Ashland Foundry and machine shop, and by Jacobs' concentrator. Both machines are run by water power, which is amply supplied, at least for the winter, by Bailey Gulch, at two of whose forks the mine is situated. Some four or five hundred tons of tailings have been impounded below the mill, and these tailings will average from $5 to $15 per ton in values. The formation at the Golden Wedge mine is apparently a variety of diorite, with evidences here and there of a schistose structure. There is little doubt of the true fault fissure character of the vein, which is evidenced by the lenticular manner of its occurrence and the firm, smooth walls. It runs to six or seven feet in width, is of a grayish cast of quartz, and carries values in galena and probably occasionally tellurium. The Golden Wedge is easily one of the banner prospects of Southern Oregon. GREEN BROTHERS.
A mile and a half south of the Golden Wedge is a new and promising
prospect owned by Green Brothers. The Oriole nearby, owned by Mattison
and Mitchell, is on the same lead, and has some very pretty rock
exposed.THE SUGAR PINE QUARTZ MINE.
The Sugar Pine quartz ledge on the right fork of Galice was one of the
first discovered of Southern Oregon, having been located in 1860 by two
miners, Draper and Cassidy, who organized a partnership and built an
arrastra in the following year, although little further was done. The
prospect lay idle until the spring of 1872, when Green Bros. located it
and built a new arrastra, the only kind of milling plant the property
has ever had. They ran a drift on the ledge and stoped out about
$5,000. The following year they ran a lower drift, stoping from that
level about $10,000 in the year. A third drift also yielded $10,000
from its stopes. This represented practically the last milling the
property has seen (1882). A lower level had been driven on the vein for
a distance of 600 feet.The vein exposed is small, frequently narrowing to the barest seam, but has never been lost. In 1882 the property was acquired by Bolt & Kubli. The Kubli interest some ten years ago was sold to Frank Knight. Recently the whole property was acquired by W. I. Dowell at sheriff's sale. The tunnel was continued to a point over 700 feet in, but has come into a change of formation, pronounced by some to be a form of serpentine, which seems to have cut off the continuity of the seam. This fact, however, is making no difference with the present owner, Mr. Dowell, who expects to either sink or upraise at one or two of the more promising points in the tunnel. The strike is north and south, with a slight dip to the west, and the formation is diorite. The concentrates are high grade, three tons, the only concentrates ever saved, yielded about $4,100. BULL PINE AND BLACK JACK.
A seam that is exposed for a length of sixty feet and which may grow
into quite a ledge on very little additional development work is the
Bull Pine, across Galice Creek from the Sugar Pine and less than a
quarter of a mile away. The seam is exposed for the sixty feet by an
open cut and tunnel of that length. The rock is a fine-grained quartz
and every bit of it gives a flattering prospect from the pan. The
situation in respect to timber, water and power is hard to excel, and
the location is about three miles from the post office of Galice. It
was located November 19th, 1900, by Reeves, Williams and Merrill, but
is owned today by J. W. Reeves and the Williams estate.----
On Quartz Creek, the main tributary of the right fork of Galice, Robert
Jackson. working also for his partners, Moon and Cary, is working a
property that has several points of peculiarity. The gold is found in
bunches, finely embedded in quartz that itself is firmly frozen to the
seam walls, and occurs in a schistose structure laminated with silica.
Four thousand dollars was removed in a small bunch four years ago and
taken out by means of a hand mortar, and six or eight hundred dollars
again this spring by Mr. Jackson.The Galice Consolidated Mines
Galice Creek district is a district by itself, and Galice Creek proper
deserves almost to be classed alone as a producer of placer gold. It
empties into the Rogue River at a point twenty miles or so below Grants
Pass and fourteen miles west of Merlin, to which later point on the
Southern Pacific Railroad this whole section is tributary in a
commercial way.Galice Creek cuts for the most part through a slate formation. By examination of the map of Galice Creek it will be seen that the stream follows approximately the direction of the Big Yank contact but on a line further east. This means that for four or five miles of its length from where it empties into Rogue River it keeps to the east of the diorite or mineralized formation of Galice district, so that the creek itself has been fed its values from other sources. Those sources are not very far to seek. Independently of what it may have gained by erosion from its headwaters, the far-famed richness of Galice Creek is unquestionably due to the contributions of an ancient high channel that parallels it to the left at a superior elevation of 1,000 feet and that lies between Galice Creek and the Big Yank contact. This ancient channel, which is elsewhere described under the caption of "Old Channel Mines," represents a big deposit of gravel, large alike in each of its three cubical dimensions. Crossing this great body of gravel at almost right angles are the north fork of Galice, Blanchard Gulch, Applegate Gulch and China Gulch. Each of these flows from the west, and besides furnishing a means for the conveyance of the gold and gravel of the old channel to Galice Creek, the North Fork and Blanchard gulches have cut deep gorges through the slate bedrock below. These tributary streams and gulches were themselves exceedingly rich and paid well for working and reworking both before and after the old channel company had used them for artificial tail races for their truly immense quantities of tailings. The history of Galice Creek, if properly assembled, would make interesting reading. There is no means of getting any very definite idea of the output of Galice, but the total would probably not fall far short of $10,000,000. Considering the length of the stream this amount seems almost fabulous, yet it is probably approximately correct, and it accounts for the great name that Galice Creek will always hold in the annals of Southern Oregon placer history. After the whites and Chinese had skimmed the cream, which was previous to twenty years ago, it was, of course, thought that the remnants would not pay. There were those, however, who thought differently, and there were those, too, who were willing to sacrifice time and money in finding out. It is today practically universally conceded by those at all familiar with the conditions, that there are unworked spots of Galice Creek that must be very rich, and that will pay handsomely, moreover, for extraction by the use of the latest devised machinery. The Galice Consolidated Mining Company has added a Campbell hydraulic elevator, and there is little doubt that this process will prove eminently successful. The operations of this company are full of interest and show what can be done in the way of equipping a property when taken hold of by push and enterprise. The formation of this company probably dates back to six or seven years ago, when Mr. A. B. Cousin, a young man who had spent five years of his life on the creek and who had made a careful study of its possibilities, interested with him Mr. J. L. Atkinson, a pioneer and capitalist of Portland. It was the plan to put on ditches and pipe, and work off the remaining spots on the creek that could be worked with profit, and perhaps in the end also rework the bed of the stream. About two miles of the creek lying above the confluence of the forks was acquired and an equipment added. About this time Mr. Atkinson died, so that Mr. Cousin was compelled to organize a company to carry out his plans, which he succeeded in doing in 1901. His principal coworkers were Mrs. Atkinson and Wagy Brothers. The company was organized under the name of the St. Helens and Galice. The equipment of the mine was completed and the season of 1902 and 1903 proved a very profitable one. Mr. Cousin in the meantime had seen a good opportunity of organizing another company and thereby acquiring practically complete control of the creek from the mouth to its forks, which opportunity he embraced so that between this latter company, the Galice Hydraulic and the former, the St. Helens and Galice, Mr. Cousin acquired a control over five miles of the stream, or practically the entire stream, excepting the Green-Harmon (now the Anderson & Williamson) mine below the forks and the Call & Lewis claim above. It was in 1902 that the Galice Hydraulic Company was formed. and with Dr. E. Cable, G. E. Waggoner and A. B. Cousin as principal stockholders. Last fall the two companies, under the influence of Mr. Cousin, were merged into one, and under the name of the Galice Consolidated Mining Company. The equipment today includes ten or twelve miles of ditches, a thousand feet or so of pipe, three giants, two derricks, and now a Campbell hydraulic elevator. The water privileges for a large part of the year are simply not to be excelled. The four-mile ditch, today carrying 2.000 inches of water to a point near the mouth of the creek or where the elevator has just been set, furnishes ample water and ample pressure. The season, however, can be lengthened by the extension of the ditch from the north fork to the south fork, and this will be done this summer. A second elevator will then be installed, since the company in its recent purchase of Gamblers' Bar and the site of the present town of Galice has added a hundred acres of good ground, constituting excellent elevating ground. The company now owns some 700 acres, has a sawmill, good buildings and is in a position to commence to realize on its investment. OTHER GALICE CREEK CLAIMS.
One of the best portions of Galice Creek is that which is embraced in
the ground usually known as the old Harmon-Green property, but which is
today owned by two Oakland, California, men, under the partnership name
of Anderson & Williams. With good ground, good water right and
good
equipment otherwise, they are bound to get good results under the
efficient management of the resident partner, Mr. Anderson.The Call and Lewis claim just above the forks is owned by S. F. Call and H. L. Lewis and represents quite a strip of virgin ground. They have a small water right from Town Gulch. A three and one-half mile ditch from the left fork of Galice Creek would furnish adequate water and head and will probably be dug. Above the Lewis and Call claim is a claim owned by William Gebhardt and known to contain some good gold-bearing gravel. Like many other good gravel mines, Mr. Gebhardt's mine lacks the best water facilities, and it is consequently worked on a very limited scale. COLD SPRINGS COPPER MINE.
The Cold Springs copper mine comprises a group of five claims owned by
J. W. Reeves and the Martin A. Williams estate. Three of the claims
were located by these two men six years ago, and soon after, Mr. Reeves
located two more. The first three claims located cover, for their total
length, what seems to be a continuous lead of copper. The higher grade
of pay ore in this lode is a streak from one to six and one-half feet
wide. Eight tunnels have been run, the shortest being sixteen feet and
the longest 240 feet. A twenty-five-foot shaft and a few open cuts also
pertain to the development work, which in tunnels and shafts will
aggregate 734 feet.The elevation of the property is about 2,500 feet and is ideal for tunneling from the very start. It is situated about three miles from the wagon road and five miles from the store and post office of Galice. Five assays made from the croppings averaged very good indeed. Twenty assays taken over 3,400 feet of its length, and on the streak of high grade ore five feet wide, are claimed to have averaged $6 in gold, eight percent copper and two ounces silver. These assays were practically from the surface, since none were obtained from a depth of over fifty-one feet. The last work done was to drive a crosscut. This crosscut in 225 feet will tap the ledge at a depth of 175 feet; at present it is in 180 feet. There are two veins on the property and on these two veins three pay chutes have been discovered. The vein that has been given the most attention is in a formation of hornblende and schist. The mountains in which these veins occur are very highly mineralized and show considerable gossan. The strike of the vein is southwest and northeast and the dip is to the east. The property is in the control of Mr. Reeves. The estate of M. A. Williams owns one-half interest in three of the claims, but Mr. Reeves is the administrator for that estate. W. M. CROW PROPERTY.
A promising piece of entirely new and undeveloped gravel ground is that
which, unknown to the general public, has constituted the most valuable
portion of what has ordinarily been known as the Crow ranch, situated
on the Rogue River, at the mouth of Jumpoff Joe Creek. There is one man
who has not been unaware of the mineral character of the ground, and
that is the owner, Mr. Wm. M. Crow. It was not his purpose, however, to
draw attention to the fact until certain neighboring ground was
acquired, which acquisition was made in the spring of 1903. This
purchase gave him a total acreage of 275 acres, more than one-third of
which area is made up of gravel deposit, as indicated on the
accompanying map.There is one other man who happens to know a good bit about this property, and that is N. S. Yokum, of Grants Pass. Mr. Yokum, in the years gone by, was a resident of these parts, and at one time undertook some little prospecting or development work on the gravel. A surface cut thirty or forty feet long, and four or six feet deep, made just in front of the Crow residence, as indicated on the map, paid wages for its excavation. An eighteen-foot shaft on the rise east of Hog Creek showed gold to exist everywhere in the gravel, and, to use Mr. Yokum's own words, gave a "rattling good prospect" near the bedrock. On the west bank of Hog Creek and just overlooking the creek he took out $2.75 in a half day's pick and shoveling. An uprooted tree on another part of the ground tore up gravel containing a good prospect. A well near the eastern portion of Mr. Crow's ground showed gold throughout the gravel. Investigation will probably show the bed of gravel to average thirty feet deep, and Mr. Crow places its value very conservatively at ten cents per cubic yard. The property represents one of the very few spots of virgin ground remaining for placer mining, and the conditions in every way are ideal. Eight miles of ditches from Hog Creek and Quartz Creek, respectively, will furnish 1,500 inches of water for five to six months, and can be built for about $6,000, according to Mr. Crow's estimate. A pressure of 250 would be developed. The bedrock is apparently level, although at one place the gravel deposits spread out to about one-fourth of a mile in width. The old channel lies about 100 feet above the present Rogue River. At another place on the property a bank fully sixty feet in height is exposed, but this is very obviously a different channel, possibly a part of the channel opened up at the Stratton mine several miles below. The Crow ranch has heretofore been known only as a farm, garden and orchard, practically every acre of it being subject to cultivation. Mr. Crow, however, is not one of that type to undervalue the mineral characteristics of the ground, and it was for the purpose of consolidating his property into a placer mine that he purchased the Simpkins ranch last spring. Of course, the major portion of these combined properties will never interfere with the excellent garden ground at the mouth of Hog Creek, the twelve acres of fine orchard and eighty-odd acres of unsurpassed alfalfa land that the two places include. LOST FLAT.
This is another prospect that, like the Golden Wedge, had its richness
promiscuously spilled about over the surface. It was discovered about
1887 by two prospectors named Thorndyke and Hathaway, and was the first
prospect in the Galice Creek country to receive attention after the
Sugar Pine, from which property it is about four miles away, in a
southerly direction. as indicated on the map. W. M. Crow and another
got a half interest for developing the property, and later Crow and
Thorndyke became the sole owners. A little money was crushed out by
means of an arrastra. J. C. Taylor bought out the Thorndyke interest
and Taylor and Crow shipped eight carloads, realizing $80 per ton in
gross returns.The quartz, however, has never been found in place. The ledge was shattered by a slide, fault or eruption, but some systematic work the past year on the part of Smith Brothers, of Grants Pass, who succeeded to the Taylor interest and who have the Crow interest under bond, promises to result shortly in some interesting disclosures. THE COPPER EAGLE.
This property, owned by a group of Eastern Oregon mining men and
others, under the corporation name of the Copper Eagle Mining Company,
and managed locally by J. C. Mattison, is situated at the head of Rocky
Gulch, and shows some of the best copper ore in Southern Oregon, assays
running as high as thirty-five to forty percent. The ore, however, as
far as developed, is confined to a comparatively small ledge, from
three to six feet wide, and is of quartz.A Mammoth Prospect.
THE PROPERTY OF THE ALMEDA MINING COMPANY.
What promises to become one of the greatest mines not of the state of
Oregon, but the whole West, is being developed in the Galice Creek
district, on that is known as the Big Yank lode. At a point about three
miles below the mouth of Galice Creek the Rogue River cuts through a
formation that in a casual way has interested the passerby miner and
prospector for years, and it has also interested mining capital; but
out of it all little has ever come until three or four years ago. At
that time Mr. John F. Wickham, who had become interested in lode mining
in the Galice Creek district, began to take a close interest in the Big
Yank croppings. With Mr. O. M. Crouch and R. C. Kinney, he purchased
two claims commencing at the Rogue River and extending northeast. The
Almeda Mining Company was subsequently organized with Mr. Crouch as
president and Mr. Wickham as manager, and development since that time
has been steadily prosecuted, with the result of a most excellent
showing at the present time.
The ore body is exposed by two tunnels--one 185 feet long, the other 370 feet long--not to mention the immense outcroppings that can be followed by the eye for a distance of nearly half a mile. When visiting the mine Mineral Wealth's representative went to the pains of taking five samples, representative of the ore in the two tunnels, and got good gold and silver returns, in fact, very good returns considering the magnitude of the ore body as exposed and the amount of development work done. The lowest assay was $2.12 in gold per ton, and .09 ounces silver; the highest assay was $6.80 in gold and .24 ounces in silver. The average was $4.25 in gold and .16 ounces in silver. In both tunnels the values increased as the tunnels gained depth. The largest assay in each case came from points furthest in. From the upper or longer tunnel which crosses the ore body diagonally from left to right and a distance of several hundred feet vertically above the other tunnel; the sample furthest in gave a return of $5.20 in gold and .19 ounces in silver. It is on copper values, however, that the Almeda people are placing their greatest hopes, notwithstanding that as a gold and silver producer alone the mine would have few rivals. The expectations of the company in this respect are based on the well-known fact that the weathering processes of nature ordinarily leach out the copper values and cause them to descend into lower portions of the mine, constituting what geologists term the process of secondary enrichment. The present owners express themselves as highly pleased with the copper shown up by the present limited surface development. Samples taken by them and covering a period of two years gave an average assay of 2.66 percent copper, according to P. Baumel, the Portland assayer. The copper appears in the form of malachite, azurite and chalcocite. Besides the gold and silver (and in the recent workings considerable lead in the form of galena) there is a great abundance of iron in the form of pyrites. In fact, it is this latter, just as soon as the surface crust of oxidized ore or gossan is broken through--which in some parts of the croppings is a matter of inches instead of feet--that gives the Big Yank lode at this point its very apparent mineral character. The ore forms on a contact of slate and diorite. This contact, so far as determined, stands perpendicularly at the scene of the Almeda's operation. It extends northeasterly and southwesterly. There are two claims, the Bonanza and the Monte Cristo, embracing 3,000 feet of the lode, commencing at the Rogue River and running northerly. The red or oxidized capping shows for a width of 125 feet. The mammoth outcroppings can be traced on the surface for a distance of 2,500 feet and to a vertical height above the river of 1,000 feet. This elephantine prospect, although still in its early stages, has had a career that would make interesting reading if the facts were all available. The following interesting excerpt is from a report on the property by Mr. J. H. Fisk, a mining engineer and metallurgical expert of Portland: "The Great Yank ledge has a history running back for the past forty years or more, with which most of the Southern Oregon miners are quite familiar. It has been located and abandoned, and relocated many times, and many attempts have been made to develop and work it without success, on account of its immense size. Hundreds of assays have been made from it time and again. I, myself, have made, I presume, a hundred assays from it, always running a dollar or two per ton--some declaring it to be pay ore, others not; but the real fact is that these determinations have always been made from the hard, flinty capping which covers these two claims, or the ore body for eighty or one hundred feet." Mr. Fisk then proceeds to state that the true character of the mine stood unrevealed until the present owners took the property vigorously in hand and penetrated through the hard capping which to others had remained the fatal bar, but which to Mr. Wickham and associates became the "open sesame" to the mine's hidden stores. The work done has been done to good advantage, and there is already a large body of ore developed. In fact, the showing is so satisfactory that the company has decided upon the erection of a smelter. The furnace will be of a new type, put out by the Improved Mineral Smelter Company, of Portland. Preliminary to the construction of the smelting plant, however, a wagon road will be built. Surveys have already been started. The road will pass northerly over a low divide between the Rogue River and Grave Creek and connect with the Southern Pacific railroad three miles north of Leland. The total distance between the two points will be eleven (11) miles, but about two miles of the present Grave Creek road will be utilized. This will leave nine (9) miles of new road to be built. Access to the mine at present is by way of the Galice Creek road from Merlin, a distance of about eighteen (18) miles. By using this latter road only one mile of new road would be necessary, unless the company should elect to keep on the right side of Rogue River the entire way. The juncture with the Galice road would then be at a point above Massie's ferry, and about four miles of new road would be required. This, however, would shorten the distance to the railroad (Merlin) to sixteen (16) miles and also obviate ferrying at two points. The Almeda Company is fortunate in having at its head honest and efficient men. Besides the men already mentioned, the directorate consists of: Mr. R. C. Kinney, secretary and treasurer; Dr. Emmett Drake of Portland and Mr. G. H. Howland of Medford, Ore. Mr. Wickham, the manager, has the honor of being president of the Oregon State Miners' Association. VAN DORN & HEDRICK MINES.
On the Rogue River, immediately opposite the Crow mining and
agricultural holdings, lies a piece of L-shaped high bench gravel
mining ground that in the past year or two has been developed by its
owners of the above name. Today sluice cuts, shafts and other openings
expose a big body of good-paying gravel at numerous places, making it
possible and easy to get a fairly accurate idea of the ground's true
extent and value. About 10,000 cubic yards that have been piped away in
the course of this development has produced $2,800 and is about
representative of what the rest of the ground will do.The great handicap so far has been in the lack of water. A ditch has been started from Zigzag Gulch one and one-half miles distant which for a season of three months or so will furnish an effective head of 200 feet, and the mine will no doubt then become a fine payer. MERLIN.
The leading merchant of Merlin is Mr. J. W. Mitchell, who recognizes
the central location of his town, and in accordance therewith keeps a
stock that serves the varied needs alike of farmers, miners, fruitmen,
timbermen and stockmen. He has maintained his store here for sixteen
years and therefore is entitled to the name and consideration of the
pioneer merchant.The hotel in Merlin is conducted by Mr. H. A. Jordan. Mr. Jordan's connection with the town in this capacity dates from three or four years ago. Previously and since he interested himself in the country's chief industry. With Riley, Thompson and others he is interested in a promising prospect on the Quartz Creek branch of Thompson Creek on the Applegate, and they are at present doing some active development. CORLISS AND DEAN.
The Corliss and Dean placer comprises 200 acres (forty acres patented).
The main water right is from Ash Creek, but a one-mile ditch from Green
Creek and a one and one-half-mile ditch from La Mar Creek also cover
the property, which is this year under lease.MT.
REUBEN DISTRICT
The Gold Bug mine. of Mount Reuben district is classed with the three
or four largest producers of Southern Oregon. The reader will find it
indicated on the map of the Mount Reuben district, and it was this
property that occasioned the construction of the twenty-mile wagon road
from Glendale. While only from 500 to 600 feet deep, yet it is numbered
as the third deepest mine in the state, save in the Eastern Oregon
district, and from its short pay chute, averaging only 125 feet in
length, the phenomenal sum of $425,000 was removed in this depth.THE GOLD BUG. Senator John P. Jones, of Nevada, and associates are the owners, but it is at present optioned to a group of Portland and Eastern Oregon mining men, including Angus McQueen, Albert Tabor and others. THE BENTON'S WONDERFUL SHOWING.
There are two men operating in the Mount Reuben district whose faith in
her quartz prospects has never waned and who have backed their faith by
spending more money than any other two individuals. It so
happened that
these two men became interested together in the prospect known as the
Benton. In several months they have opened up a property that outranks
all its neighbors, and in the short space of a year's time ranks with
the best four quartz mines in Southern Oregon. The showing is almost
phenomenal. A 1,300-foot tunnel has been driven, every foot on the
vein, and every foot of the vein is paying ore. This, with the showing
at the Greenback, Braden and Opp mines, refutes forever the imputation
that the pay chutes of this country will be found to be short. When
these properties all get to going full blast, with thirty or
forty
stamps each, the quartz mining industry of Southern Oregon will be
placed well on its feet.The Benton is the property of J. C. Lewis and R. A. Jones. It is at present entirely under bond to Lewis, with Jones as superintendent and manager. THE ELWILDA GROUP.
This group, comprising eight claims near the mouth of Whiskey Creek in
the Mount Reuben district. is owned by Willis Kramer, the flour mill
owner of Myrtle Creek, and Grant Palmer, the discoverer, and who has
charge of operations at the mine at the present time. The prospect
dates from only three years ago, and while the work done is yet
unextensive, still it is of such a character as to present a very
flattering prospect at the present time. The ore is very high grade and
is shown up at several different points on the property. The two main
openings, while three-eighths of a mile apart, appear, nevertheless, to
be on the same vein and the showing in each is indeed gratifying. The
values occur largely in combination with tellurium, so that they have
been hard to save in milling. A Parker rotary four-stamp mill was
installed, but has not proven satisfactory. The situation for a
reduction plant is ideal. A flume from Whiskey Creek and less than a
mile and a half long has a vertical elevation above Rogue River of over
300 feet. The formation is diorite; there are seven distinct veins so
far discovered on the group, including one quite rich in copper, and
the claims from left to right and downward, as given on the
accompanying map of Mount Reuben district, are as follows: Oakley, Blue
Ledge, Elwilda, Willis Kramer, Riverside, Madrone, Golden Queen, Grant
Palmer and Manzanita.THE HELLER GROUP.
Separated from the Gold Bug mine by the Benton group, and, in fact,
properly forming the continuation of that group, is the Heller group of
five claims, owned by the Mount Reuben Mining Company. The company also
has two placer claims along the bed of Whiskey Creek. Most of the work
so far done is on what is known as the Heller claim. There are two
tunnels, one starting from a level a little above the creek bed and
following northward on the vein for 125 feet, and the other thirty feet
or so above and sixty-five feet in. The vein is a true contact lead
lying between walls that have been called diabase and syenite. These
walls will vary from three to six feet apart. About one-third of the
ledge filling will compose solid ore, the ore consisting of heavily
sulphuretted quartz. The assays are very satisfactory.THE COPPER STAIN.
This property is owned by C. D. Burnett, of Leland, and Jas. A.
Connelly and Mesdames S. L. Dana and R. D. Lawrence, of Springfield,
Ill. It was found fourteen or fifteen years ago, but the only work of
any consequence done upon it was done by J. B. Wetherell until
purchased from him by the present parties four years ago.The present owners continued an incline shaft from the sixty-foot point to a depth of 300 feet, and drifted on the ledge from the bottom of this shaft for 300 feet, most of this distance being southwesterly, which already practically blocks out a mine. The ledge is well defined, the ore is free milling and high grade and there are several thousand tons of it on the dump. AJAX.
This prospect, owned by David Williams, is in the heart of the Mount
Reuben district, and has produced some of the best rock taken out of
that region. The work for the past year or two has been in the nature
of development purely. The mine is equipped with a two-stamp mill, and
by many people is looked upon as one of the best prospects of the noted
Mount Reuben district.THE CALIFORNIA.
At
the bottom of a 125-foot shaft the California shows a six-foot ledge of
high-grade ore, and what is more the lead on the surface and elsewhere
has every indication of being a permanent one. C. W. Kline, J. C.
Lewis, R. A. Jones and the Gold Bug Company are all parties at
interest. This is one of the several instances in Southern Oregon where
inharmony among partners is holding back a good mine.REUBEN CREEK PLACER MINING
ASSOCIATION.
This association was organized three months ago in its present form to
avoid the odious requirements of the Eddy law as regards taxation on
capitalization. It is practically an effective partnership, and
controls that rich and well-known portion of Reuben Creek that has
passed into the control of Burton, White & Co., the prime
movers
behind the present organization.GLENDALE.
Glendale, a town of 300 or 400 inhabitants, is situated on the south
edge of Douglas County, close to the Josephine County line, and
thirty-five miles northerly on the railroad from Grants Pass. It is
situated well up Cow Creek and is a thriving railroad point. The
development of the timber interests has given the town its first
impetus and the mines will soon follow. Glendale is the outlet point of
the famous Mount Reuben district, which it taps with a twenty-mile
wagon road, and otherwise is the center of an interesting geologic
district.A big sawmill plant is now operating on Windy Creek several miles northeast of Glendale and the lumber is flumed to the railroad. H. G. ZONNEMAN DEPARTMENT STORE.
The town can boast of a full-grown department store, that of H. G.
Zonneman, who came to Glendale from Salem about four years ago and
bought the J. L. Dewey stock of dry goods and groceries. He last year
bought the additional store and stock of Hugh A. Cuthbert, which
increased the total ground floor space to nearly 5,000 square feet, not
to mention a thousand square feet or so of balcony space, devoted to
rugs, carpets, matting, etc. The stock is complete and up-to-date.LADD & OLSON.
A firm especially suited to the growing mining trade of Glendale and
vicinity is that of Ladd & Olson, who have both mined in
various
parts of Northern California and Southern Oregon. They formed a
partnership and started a small dry goods and notion store at Roseburg
in 1902, removing to Glendale in 1903 and adding a stock of groceries
and provisions.Besides their past direct interest in mining, they also have present direct interests in timber. This relation to both mining and lumbering brings them into close sympathy with the two main industries of the country, and such sympathy is necessary before a merchant is brought to appreciate the situation from the other man's point of view. CHAS. T. NAIL, MERCHANT.
Mr. Nail started up in business September 18, 1901, and has enjoyed a
steady growth along with the general improvement of the town of
Glendale. His stock comprises a general line of dry goods, groceries,
provisions and hardware, and has been added to gradually as business
justified it until today it is triple what it was in the beginning. His
advent into mercantiling on his own responsibility had been preceded by
six years' employment under others in the town of Glendale, and five
years at Wolf Creek. He, therefore, has not only served the people at
Glendale longer than any other merchant, but has had the opportunity of
studying the requirements of the miners, whom he makes a special effort
to serve.L. L. HURD.
Mr. Hurd came to this section several years ago and with customary
alertness at once became interested in the first industry of the
country--mining. He has not only interested himself, but others as
well. On the headwaters of Reuben Creek he, with R. A. Jones and
others, is developing a good prospect.STARVEOUT CREEK.
Sixteen miles east of Glendale on Starveout Creek, several placer and
quartz mines are operated. The district is a continuation northward of
the Coyote-Wolf Creek mining districts, and has about the same
geological formation and mineralogical conditions.COW CREEK.
Below Cow Creek are several good placer properties, at the head of
which stands the well-known Victory mine. This mine is a noted
producer, and is also noted for the installation of a steam power
pumping plant several years ago, at a cost of $80,000, and which proved
a failure. The mine has since then been operated by water gathered
together from several of the nearby tributaries of Cow Creek, and is at
present being successfully operated by E. N. Camp, of Chicago, owner.BLALOCK & HOWE.
One of the best strikes in Southern Oregon the past year is that of
Blalock & Howe, made last fall on their prospect of that name
on
Coyote Creek, as shown on the map on page 8.They are supposed to have taken out $15,000 to $20,000 by a few days' work, and the gold, as in the case of the Briggs discovery, appeared in big specimen character, embedded in solid quartz. The Blalock & Howe prospect is developing into a good ledge, and so will many another that is looked upon at the time of its discovery as a simple "pocket." Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 24-25 GOLD HILL
DISTRICT
In our description of the Gold Hill quartz mining properties, we are
sorry not to be able to give more detail to the Roaring Gimlet, Nellie
Wright, May Belle, Fort Lane, Graham and Braden partnership,
Millionaire, Tin Pan and numerous others. We would be pleased to give
the particulars of the discovery and total production of the famous
Gold Hill pocket, which was accidentally found in 1854 by a young
rancher named James Hayes, and which from an excavation less than
thirty feet deep has yielded an amount variously estimated at from
$250,000 to $350,000. The ground is today owned by the Condor Water and
Power Company.UP THE ROGUE RIVER.
Above Gold Hill or Tolo on the Rogue, Mineral Wealth
was deprived of the opportunity of investigating at first hand into the
mineral possibilities of the region. Elk Creek and other tributaries,
however, are known to have gold. The lack of placer gold may have its
explanation in the same cause that operated in the Bohemia and Blue
River country in relation to those conditions.Forty-five miles northeast of Central Point and about eight miles north of the famous Rogue River Falls, W. H. De Zeng is opening up a porphyry dike bonded from P. Applegate and associates. Several miles to the north there are known to be great quantities of quartz, some carrying gold values and some not. The Pearl Mining Company owns 176 acres in an almost solid block of quartz as shown on the surface. Quartz Mountain to the north is probably the biggest body of exposed silica in the state, and here and there carry some values that may someday make it valuable. This whole Cascade country is new and untried, and offers an inviting field for the prospector, since it is safely beyond the railroad limit. HOUCK BROTHERS' INTERESTS.
One mile east of Gold Hill is situated a combination of industries
which embrace a flour mill, a quartz mill and an electric plant, the
property of a partnership consisting of two brothers, J. J. and A. L.
Houck. Mr. J. J. Houck, who has been a resident of Southern Oregon for
fifteen years, commenced business here in 1892 by building a flour mill
with a daily capacity of twenty barrels. Three years later he erected a
two-stamp quartz mill for the reduction of the ore from his mine, and,
incidentally, to handle custom work. The 1750-pound stamps are of the
Hendy type, and the mill is further fitted with a bumping table for
concentrating. The flour mill and quartz mill occupy the same building.The mine, referred to and known as the Ross mine, composed of five claims, is located three miles from the mill and is supplied with the most modern equipment. The shaft on the main vein is down at present 130 feet and is in four feet of ore and will be carried on down by means of first-class steam hoist, pump and drill, power at the mine being supplied from a twelve-horsepower boiler of the locomotive type. This was the first steam drill and the second steam hoist installed in the Jackson County mineral belt. The 130-foot shaft and 100-foot drift disclose a strong vein of free-milling ore carrying values of from $15 to $65 per ton. Fifty tons of high-grade ore are now on the dump awaiting treatment. In 1898 the flour mill was increased to fifty barrels daily capacity. The machinery in the mill is very modern, two-stand Nordyke and Marmon rolls and a one-stand case roll being used. The gyrator system of bolting is employed and the mill is further fitted with a Columbian first break feed governor. A Silver Creek cleaner is used. The cereals, mostly corn, wheat and barley, are brought to the door by the farmers of the locality, and Mr. Houck's product goes exclusively to the local market of Southern Oregon. A 15,000-bushel warehouse was completed last summer, giving a total storage capacity of 30,000 bushels of grain. The situation of the electric power plant is most ideal. A 2,000-foot ditch brings water directly from Rogue River without the construction of a dam and gives a head of twenty-five feet. This water is conducted to twin turbines connected with a Thompson and Houston eighteen-ampere generator, carrying 104 volts. This plant at present gives 100 horsepower, supplying the city of Gold Hill with both power and light. There is also a pumping plant in connection, and power is used to pump water into a reservoir, 300 feet above the town, which gives a pressure of 120 feet on the city mains. At the location of the plant the lowest water available is 150,000 inches, and under the head obtainable is sufficient to generate from 5,000 to 6,000 horsepower. Mr. Houck & Brother own 140 acres of patented land covering one mile of the riverfront. The power station throughout is fitted with the latest and most approved apparatus in electricity and the equipment of the mills, moreover, would indicate that Mr. Houck & Brother do not believe in doing things by halves. Since the preparation of the above description of the Houck Brothers' plant, a group of Eastern capitalists, through Mr. H. Schaeffer, of Milwaukee, have secured an option on the magnificent water privileges that this property controls, and have announced their intention of putting in a large electric plant of 3,000- or 4,000-horsepower capacity to start with. They have secured options on some valuable mining holdings as well and are planning the erection of a smelter. These enterprises would prove of inestimable value to this new district. CONDOR WATER AND POWER CO.
The biggest single investment made in Southern Oregon during the past
four or five years is that of the Condor Water and Power Company, whose
big dam
of the "horseshoe"
pattern, situated at Tolo, or four miles above Gold Hill at a point
where the Rogue River leaves the Rogue River Valley basin, was finished
last year, affords a twenty-foot head and is capable of generating an
almost unlimited supply of power.This company, financed in New York and represented locally by Dr. C. R. Ray, has acquired numerous mine, timber and agricultural holdings, and with its ability to furnish cheap electric power for the interurban railroads that will sooner or later network rich Rogue River Valley, promises to involve a greater outlay of capital than any other enterprise in this part of the state. The most important single holding of its various mining properties is the Braden quartz mine at Gold Hill, which, at a depth of about 400 feet, already has large quantities of medium-grade free gold ore blocked out. A twenty-stamp mill will be erected this year. The gold quartz mining industry of the Gold Hill district especially will see a decided development under the impetus of electric power for mill and mine as planned by the Condor company. WATER GULCH.
This is a small gulch three miles or so long and emptying into Rogue
River about two miles above Gold Hill. Some placer ground at the mouth
of the creek is owned by the Condor Water and Power Company and W. J.
Hayes; it is the quartz and base ore development, however, that
betokens the most for this gulch. At the mouth, and crossing Rogue
River, is a big iron dike; little work has been done but a large iron
oxide capping, carrying a little gold also, may develop into something
quite interesting with a little greater depth. It is known as the
Garfield. A group of Seattle men, headed by J. D. McCauch, recently
bought it for something like thirty thousand dollars, it is stated on
good authority.The best-developed quartz claim on the creek is the White Horse owned by W. L. McClure, but at present under bond to Davidson, Ward & Co., of Portland. A splendid vein is shown up as a result of some very systematic development work on the part of Mr. McClure. The value of the ore is said to be satisfactory; a very little more work is required to have ore blocked out for a depth of four hundred feet. MEADOWS, UPPER EVANS CREEK.
An interesting mineralogical section is the Meadows, on upper Evans
Creek, which has a greater field of mineralization than any other like
area in Southern Oregon. The minerals include gold, silver, copper,
nickel, cobalt, cinnabar, coal, asbestos, mica, iron and lead. The best
developments are in copper, coal and cinnabar. The Southern Pacific has
spent considerable money prospecting for coal.Dr. Chisholm, of Gold Hill, is doing the most extensive development in copper, and the best cinnabar prospects are owned by a San Francisco company, of which Mr. H. Bowers is the local representative. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 26-27 Galls,
Kane and Birdsey Creeks.
GALLS CREEK--THE COOK ESTATE.
If Galls Creek has any dredging ground--and to the writer it seems to
have--it is on that part of the creek covered by the Cook, Horn and
Lawrence properties, lying in the order named as you go upstream, and
commencing about two miles from the mouth.The Cook homestead, or property of the W. S. Cook estate, and comprising 160 acres of land adjoining Galls Creek on the west, is today in the hand of R. M. Cook, who, in his own right, controls the corresponding eastern side of the creek, or for a distance of one-half mile. The ground that will probably be found to be dredging ground constitutes a flat strip about 100 yards wide. A shaft sunk at the lower end of the ground encountered bedrock at a depth of forty-six feet. This was done in 1896 by M. J. Lawrence, who was planning for a hydraulic elevator. He found the ground rich enough, but too deep for that class of mining as developed up to that time. THE H. D. HORN PLACE.
One hundred and fourteen acres of deeded land constitutes this ground,
which was homesteaded by Mr. Horn's father a good many years ago. It
controls three-fourths miles of the creek, and lies just below the
mouth of Alder Gulch, on which is located the promising Gold Standard
quartz mine owned by Kubli & Co., and which is one of the best
in
the Gold Hill district. Half of the land comprises excellent farming
ground and the additional area available would bring the total close up
to 100 acres. A small ditch out of Galls Creek and three-fourths mile
long was recently built and covers the place quite well for irrigation
purposes. Aside from its prospective dredging value this place is
valuable as a ranch because of its topography, soil and location as
regards market. since it is within the triangle determined by the Last
Chance, Bill Nye and Golden Standard quartz mines.THE J. M. LAWRENCE PLACE.
This place comprises 134 acres, but was homesteaded as a complete
quarter section in 1871. After purchase by the present owner, M. J.
Lawrence, a tract of twenty acres containing the Bliss quartz mine was
sold off as also another strip of six acres to the Bill Nye Company.
The place controls a half mile of the creek, at the same time extending
easterly far enough to include a lot of good agricultural land. From
the house to the creek--a distance of a hundred yards or so--there is a
good strip of ground known to contain a wide channel of good pay
gravel. It is disclosed by shafts and cuts at various points.HOLDINGS OF T. DUNGEY.
On the gulch emptying into Galls Creek just north or below Alder Creek
are located an interesting group of quartz and placer claims owned by
Mr. Dungey. The quartz claims, three in number, are situated about one
mile north of the Golden Standard. Mr. Dungey relocated the ledges five
or six years ago, taking up what was supposed to be worked-out "pocket"
holes. He milled $1,300 to $1,400 at Houck's mill from a half dozen
tons of ore. These are two sister ledges and all show up well,
considering the amount of work done. They are on a line with the
Graham-Braden and Millionaire mines, but several mines west.GOLD HILL AND BOHEMIA COMPANY.
This company, of which Davidson, Ward & Co., of Portland, are
the
fiscal agents, has three separate properties in the Gold Hill district,
all situated on Galls Creek. The Gold Bank comprises eighty acres of
patented land and lies about two miles from the mouth of the creek on
the ridge dividing Galls Creek from Kanes Creek. This property has
hardly been prospected at all as yet, but it contains several seams
that give good promise of developing into permanent leads. The surface
of this ground is among the notedly rich spots of the Gold Hill
district. The Gold Producer lies one-half mile from the Gold Bank and
on the same side of the creek. It is down in the basin, however, so
that it will have to be worked by pump and hoist. Shafts sixty-five,
twenty-five and twenty feet have been sunk on it and enough ore stoped
to pay for this work. Since it is a sinking property and therefore a
more expensive one to work, the Gold Producer will be allowed to await
its development awhile, or until the other properties of the Gold Hill
and Bohemia Company get to producing.The Red Oak is a ledge near the Golden Standard, and while still almost entirely undeveloped, is, nevertheless, described as being a prospect of almost equal promise with that of its well-known neighbor. THE ALICE MINE.
A center of interest at the present time is the Alice mine on Kanes
Creek (see map). This property was found about twenty years ago by
Enoch Rhoten, who took out a lot of free gold by means of an arrastra.
The property was bought from the Rhoten estate by Morton Lindley in
1893 and four years later it was bonded to John R. Mitchell, a
prominent Colorado man, interested with an English company known as the
Gold Key Syndicate. This company had plans formulated and contracts
ready for the construction of a big electric power plant on Rogue River
about opposite Gold Hill when the South African war broke out and so
affected interests of the company elsewhere that the plans had to be
given up. A carload shipment of seventeen tons to Selby made by
Mitchell in 1898 gave returns of one ounce six pennyweights gold per
ton.It is a large ledge. Taken through its total width it will constitute a forty-foot body of low-grade ore, with the values occasionally running quite high. A crosscut at the bottom of the winze and representing the lowest point in the mine will average better than seven dollars for a width of thirteen and one-half feet. This winze is from the ninety-foot level and is itself forty feet deep. The tunneling on the property totals over five hundred feet. A quartet of Eastern Oregon men last fall took hold of the property. Their experience with Eastern Oregon ore enabled them to see an opportunity in the Alice that was going unappreciated by other men, and they are today adding a mill and cyanide plant of fifteen or twenty tons daily capacity. The mill, which is of the new Ideal type, is an experiment with them, but since they are not men of a hidebound, non-progressive type, and, moreover, since this particular experiment happens to be costing them nothing, as they merely removed the mill from a neighboring property, they are quite willing to find out what the Ideal can do for itself on this particular ore. C. R. Townsend, an experienced assayer and cyanide man, is the managing partner, and Mr. M. J. Roelsma will have charge of the mill. One-half mile up Galls Creek from the Alice, Winter & Nutt have three new claims. Wm. Mendenhall and associates also have some good prospects in this vicinity. THE BOWDEN MINE.
The Bowden Mining Company are developing a promising prospect about
four miles southeast of Gold Hill, a prospect that has already yielded
from $15,000 to $20,000. Like its neighbors, the Millionaire, Graham
& Braden, Nellie Wright, Maybelle and others, it is deprived of
development work by tunneling because of its situation in the low hills
that border the western fringe of Rogue River Valley. Proximity to the
great farming district of Southern Oregon may have its advantages;
freedom from shaft sinking is not one of them. The Bowden people have
faced the situation squarely and have equipped their property with the
best sinking plant in the district. A 100-horsepower boiler with engine
and hoist capacity for sinking 750 feet constitute the main equipment.
They are now down 175 feet in a well-timbered double compartment shaft,
inclined to coincide with the slight dip of the vein and disclosing
high-grade ore at various levels. There is an excellent showing at the
bottom and the ledge throughout averages twelve or fifteen inches.CENTENNIAL GULCH DRIFT MINE.
Centennial Gulch was the richest gulch of upper Kane Creek. Its values
were unquestionable contributed in great part by Paddy Hill. There is a
north and south channel that seems to bear a very close relation to
that eminence, hugging the east skirts of the hill. The wash is almost
ten feet deep, very high grade and seems to be traceable as a distinct
channel.This ground belongs to Mr. George Hall, of Medford, who has owned it for ten or twelve years. It was formerly the property of the Centennial Company, a group of Portland capitalists, who had been handicapped in their operations by lack of right of way, and to such an extent that the property, when Mr. Hall bought it, had not been worked for ten years. The water right is equally inadequate, so that Mr. Hall, after trying for two years by ground sluicing with the surplus water from the McDougall ditch, has operated the mine by the present method and through lessees until the last year. In the ten years the various lessees have worked out about $15,000, drifting in all a total of less than an acre. The Centennial Company sluiced $80,000 from four acres. There is evidence that what has been removed is but a small sum as compared with what is still unmined. It remains for some individual or company with the means and enterprise to equip the property on a scale commensurate with its true value. DREDGING OPPORTUNITY ON KANES
CREEK.
What appears to be one of the best opportunities for dredging in
Southern Oregon, a district that will in the near future abound with
dredgers, is on Kanes Creek in the property of E. E. Miner. Mr. Miner
owns two tracts on this stream, separated by the old Birdsey homestead,
and both places, as well as the Birdsey place, will someday be dredged.
The two forks of Kanes Creek and their tributaries were very rich
wherever they were worked. They were worked until the flat basins of
the valley made further work impracticable. The upper Miner place
occupies a position in the valley a little below the mouth of the rich
Centennial Gulch on the west, and directly opposite the even more rich
Harris Gulch on the east. Moreover, the famous Paddy Hill, a circular
eminence noted for its numerous pockets, joins the property on the
west; indeed, is partly included in the acreage. It is impossible to
take a pan on this hill without getting a trace, showing a richness of
the decomposed surface that would warrant sluicing or piping were water
available--in fact, parts of the outskirts of the "Hill" were worked in
that way and proved very rich.The Kanes Creek basin at this point is fully a thousand feet wide. There are various opportunities of getting some idea of what the ground contains, although a verification can come only from prospecting by drilling, which, of course, will be done by whoever options the property. A shaft sunk near the east side of the basin in 1901 by a man named Thorpe showed good values, and a drift of thirty feet toward the present creek paid for the work. Below, on the creek, and about one-fourth mile distant, a thirty-foot shaft was sunk the following year. A prospect drift northward or at about right angles to the stream and below the present stream level paid about one dollar a foot for a distance of twenty-five or thirty feet, although the dimensions of the drift were but about three by five feet. Four hundred feet north of this point or where the two channels of Kanes Creek meet a twenty-seven-foot shaft was sunk and $19.90 taken from the bedrock. The gravel itself was not washed, although it prospected throughout. There is one thing which gives an ideal opportunity for averaging up the gold contents of the top gravel. The left fork of Kanes Creek, which joins the right fork at the Miner ranch, cuts through the ranch like a tail race. The McDougall ranch above is shown up in the same way. For a depth of six or ten feet the upper stratum of gravel is exposed. Of course, it is essential in this connection to remember that the gold of nearly all the old channel washes of Southern Oregon is found concentrated in the lower gravel or near the bedrock. Such is true, for instance, on Foots Creek, where the Champlin Company is dredging. The Miner holdings of 350 acres control one and one-fourth miles of Kanes Creek and include some good quartz prospects as well. SARDINE CREEK.
Sardine is located within the Gold Hill district (see map) and has
produced considerable gold. It still has a lot of unworked ground, and
it is a fair question whether the land about its mouth and owned by
Messner & Son does not offer an inviting opportunity for
dredging.Immediately above the Messner ranch are 360 acres of deeded land controlling a mile and a half of the creek and owned by R. L. Dusenberry; there is a two and a half mile ditch out of Sardine Creek, but it gives a very small head, so that while the ground is known to compare with the best on the creek, its working effectiveness is far below what the mine properly needs. Mr. James N. Smith, on the opposite side and a mile above, owns 320 acres that he has bought at different times from C. Vrooman of Gold Hill. Mr. Smith's holdings are especially valuable in that they control two of the oldest and best water rights of the creek. Mr. Smith divides his time profitably between mining and ranching and shows what a young man of industry and enterprise can do, for, his present holdings, which could probably not be touched for ten thousand dollars, have been built up from nothing by mere dint of thrift and industry since his arrival in the camp only eight or ten years ago. FORKS OF SARDINE CREEK.
Mr. F. B. Ketchum owns four claims, including one above the forks. The
property was acquired by Mr. Ketchum October 15th last, by purchase
from Mr. Charles Veachler, who had owned and operated it for six years.
At this mine the bars and benches were not alone in receiving attention
from the sluice miners, as the surface debris or loam and even the
bedrock of soft decomposed porphyry was also sluiced away. In fact, it
is to the latter that Mr. Ketchum has directed his operations alone for
the past season, and with good results. There is another creek that
comes in here or near the forks named Drummond Gulch, from which Mr.
Ketchum gets his water for mining. A three-quarter-mile ditch
(2x3xlx½
feet) affords a season of three months or so by means of reservoir
heads. Half of Mr. Ketchum's ground is still unworked, the rest would
pay to rework; during a ten days' run in April of last year, or when
Mr. Ketchum had the property merely under bond, he got one hundred and
ten dollars from a thousand square feet of this formerly worked
bedrock. Mr. Ketchum is working with a pressure of 180 feet, more than
any other mine on the creek.Adjoining Mr. Ketchum's property is some good ground owned by H. L. White, but under lease to J. L. Mosena. Mr. Mosena placers in winter, but spends his summer developing some good quartz prospects about three miles up the right fork. DRUMMOND GULCH, SARDINE CREEK.
Drummond Gulch, aside from Ketchum's ditch, is interesting in the fact
that Miller, Owen & Reed are opening up a small but
permanent-looking vein of high-grade ore, on which they are today
operating a small one-stamp Kendall prospect mill by steam.The west fork of Sardine is interesting mainly in the Lucky Bart quartz mine, which has produced fifty thousand dollars or so, and has certain earmarks of becoming a good mine; it is owned by Joe Beeman, but is under lease and bond to Hayes & McKay of Gold Hill. Below the Lucky Bart, G. W. Sperry has two claims, one purchased and the other located. They comprise a square of forty acres and therefore include only about one claim length of the creek--from Johnson's claim above to the Ketchum mine below. Mr. Sperry is planning a small hydraulic equipment and can also boast of a sulfur spring as part of his mineral holdings. The last claim up the creek visited by our correspondent was that of G. R. Hammersley, about a mile above Sperry's. Mr. Hammersley owned the ground, and doubled its value by the purchase of the old Maybright ditch. This ditch gives a seventy-five-foot pressure at present point of piping, and is still more than a quarter of a mile from the lower end of the claim. At the upper end of the claim there is a natural reservoir site that could be improved and would increase the value of the property very materially. BIRDSEY CREEK.
A striking thing about Southern Oregon mining is how every little gulch
will have its banks of wash gravel ten to twenty and thirty feet high
where no pay was expected several years ago. Still others were known to
have pay but were not opened up.Willis M. Hiatt is opening up such a claim on Birdsey Creek, near Foots Creek, and has an excellent showing. Three years ago he bought the ground, two claims, from Sam Matthis. It lies three miles from the mouth of Bear Gulch, and probably represents the ancient flow of that tributary of Birdsey Creek. Mr. Hiatt has the first water right out of Birdsey, plays a No. 1 giant against a twenty- or thirty-foot bank with a 160-foot pressure, and is taking out good pay. Mineral Wealth, Redding, August 1, 1904, pages 28-29 EVANS CREEK DISTRICT. WOODVILLE.
The leading merchant, W. V. Jones, who is also the Southern Pacific
Company's agent, is a wide-awake man, and knows the needs of his
district. He has always been interested in the mines, and once had the
Hammersley mine on Jumpoff Joe Creek under control and management. The
hotel at Woodville is conducted by Mr. R. M. Moore, a man also fully
awake to Southern Oregon's chief industry. He has a two-thirds interest
in a quartz prospect on Fielder Creek, four and one-half miles above
Woodville. THE HOMESTAKE.
Within a mile of Woodville the Homestake mine, owned by W. J. Stanley
and associates, but now under bond to a company of Wisconsin and
Eastern Oregon men, organized under the name of the Enterprise Mining
Company, is making an excellent showing. The ledge is not a large one
and lies quite flat in the hill, but a fine chute of ore has been
developed and a five-stamp McFarland mill is being erected. A half mile
or so westerly from the Homestake M. H. Lowell owns eighty acres of
patented ground on which a strong north and south quartz lead, standing
almost perpendicular, has been disclosed and may prove a valuable
prospect. A shaft twenty-three feet deep and an open cut 300 feet below
disclose the quartz in gold-bearing character.THE LONE STAR MINE.
This is the most important hydraulic mine at present operating on Evans
Creek, and it is situated on that creek's chief tributary, Pleasant
Creek, about six miles above where the two creeks meet. It is operated
by the Lone Star Mining Company, of which C. E. Wickstrom is the
principal stockholder. The most of this property was acquired by Mr.
Wickstrom about six years ago from Calvert Brothers, Lister &
Company, and made the nucleus for the present holdings of 305 acres,
200 of which are deeded land.Mr. Wickstom took this property up at a time when its real value was yet to be proved. He constructed a small ditch and did a lot of painstaking prospecting. As soon as the extent and value of the gravel deposits had been sufficiently determined, he added (1901) a big five-mile ditch and flume from Pleasant Creek. Since that time he has worked off upwards of two acres annually. The present point of operation is at the mouth of Harris Gulch, a west tributary of Pleasant Creek, and the wash is best described by saying that it is very much like that of the Golden Drift or old Dry Diggings ground at their present point of operation on Bloody Run Gulch and described elsewhere. The gold is very much the same, three-fourths of it being very coarse. For removing logs and stumps Mr. Wickstrom employs a novel arrangement, namely, a drum and cable, and he finds it far better than using powder. Good property adjoining the Lone Star is that of L. Antoine, who is also one of the stockholders of the Lone Star Company. THE CAMERON MINE.
This property, situated below the Lone Star mine on Pleasant Creek, is
operated at the present time by its owner, Mr. D. Cameron, as a
hydraulic mine. Operations are considerably handicapped, though,
because of the lack of pressure and dumping facilities. There are
several parallel channels running through the ground, and from twelve
to sixteen feet deep. Much of the ground was covered by three short
ditches which furnished a good pressure, but this ground has mostly
been worked over.The ground comprised in this mine has been worked since the early days and was owned by different parties at the time when Mr. Cameron six years ago effected a consolidation. Today it embraces 1,100 acres. It has been examined lately to ascertain its possibilities as dredging ground, and by those who know of its character and conditions otherwise, it is declared to be a most excellent piece of property. SYKES CREEK.
On Evans Creek, several miles above the junction with Pleasant Creek,
are its two best gold-bearing tributaries, Murpheys Gulch and Sykes
Creek. The first one you come to is Sykes Creek, and the two best
properties of the creek are the Jones holdings a mile or two up the
creek and the Hillis estate at the mouth. These properties should be
combined under one ownership, as they today handicap each other fatally
in the matter of water rights and dump. It is possible, however, that
each might be dredged.MURPHEY GULCH.
Above the mouth of Sykes Creek a little over a mile is the mouth of
Murphey Gulch, also a tributary of Evans, but from the south side. This
creek furnished some of the richest of early-day diggings. Carter,
Siver & Ammons are operating a good property today, although
with a
small plant and on a back channel. Several quartz ledges up this gulch
have been receiving some attention during the past year.An interesting property is that |