Odanscoils
Well-known member
Man I'd love to spend a season on your claim with some nice heavy equipment. If I retire that is.
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Lost Gold At The Dead Man's Mine
- Thread starter GhostMiner
- Start date
GhostMiner
Active member
MAY 31 1936 PART ONE
This morning we did the final panning and weigh from yesterday's gravels while Will cooked us all a miners mountain man breakfast of eggs, bacon, beans, hot water corn bread, and coffee, I sweetened my coffee with a shot of Irish. There was gold in the weigh and it was an ounce. That could have been gold gravels slid over from the lift or it might be of its own value. More digging will tell us.
We saw a crew of three prospectors heading north up the creek while at breakfast. We all went over to talk with them. They were all well outfitted and had come all the way from Pennsylvania. They had dreams of gold dancing in their eyes like Will. Their plan was to follow the creek higher up into the mountain. I warned them about the rif raf that may still be roaming and wished them good luck. They were all armed with rifles and shotguns. They looked to be green.
Jacob and me resumed the pick and shovel work. The buckets were becoming harder to walk out of the trench as the depths slowly deepened. I had set up a hand winch anchored at a stout tree near the dig. We would soon be using it I think. The gravels remained quite loose with hardly any river rock and we made good time ending the day with 265 buckets. There is no sign of any bottom at 12 feet in depth and the trench has become a rounded pit. We may need to use some of our cut timbers to brace the sides as it is loose.
After a supper of beans and corn bread we opened a bottle and were ready to sit around the fire and trade stories when once again there was gunfire up north on the mountain. John figured it to be about half a mile. It stopped and started several times. Something was going on up the creek. We figured it might be the rif raf had seen the new prospectors camp and set upon robbing them. John hollered out that he had enough of this and he was going up to have a look see and nobody was going to stop him. I told him I'd go with him and told Jacob and Will to stick at camp and guard our goods.
There was a full moon and the visibility was good. We headed on up the side of the creek with rifles at the ready. The gunfire had stopped for a spell but then started up again. It didn't take us too long to get close to the rifle fire and we bellied up near what looked to be a camp with a fire going. For sure it was the three greenhorns from Pennsylvania under fire from someone in the woods up above. We were about 50 feet from them and I gave a holler and said it was us miners they met in the morning from down below. I said we would help them and would circle up to the east and north of the robbers and get them in a crossfire. I told them to stay put and keep shooting. They hollered back and said they would. John said let's get 'em.
John and me circled way around to the east so as not to be seen and closed in on them from the north. They didn't know we were up there and we could see the rifle flashes. It looked to be the same four we had run off and probably robbed Will and killed a prospector. They were well covered by trees and we could hear them laughing as they fired volly’s down at the greenhorns. John took aim and fired a round that hit the mark and we saw one of them drop over on the ground. I don't know how good he was hit because he crawled off into the brush. The other three now knew we were there and took off running up the mountain. We fired several shots and they were gone. We chased them up the mountain as best we could but after about 10 minutes we lost them. I told John they might be laying for us.
We ended up heading back down towards the greenhorn camp and hollered out to them we had one hit and three got away. They came out of their cover and we set about looking for the rag tag we had dropped. We found him under a bush. He was grazed in the leg but not too bad.
TO BE CONTINUED ...............
This morning we did the final panning and weigh from yesterday's gravels while Will cooked us all a miners mountain man breakfast of eggs, bacon, beans, hot water corn bread, and coffee, I sweetened my coffee with a shot of Irish. There was gold in the weigh and it was an ounce. That could have been gold gravels slid over from the lift or it might be of its own value. More digging will tell us.
We saw a crew of three prospectors heading north up the creek while at breakfast. We all went over to talk with them. They were all well outfitted and had come all the way from Pennsylvania. They had dreams of gold dancing in their eyes like Will. Their plan was to follow the creek higher up into the mountain. I warned them about the rif raf that may still be roaming and wished them good luck. They were all armed with rifles and shotguns. They looked to be green.
Jacob and me resumed the pick and shovel work. The buckets were becoming harder to walk out of the trench as the depths slowly deepened. I had set up a hand winch anchored at a stout tree near the dig. We would soon be using it I think. The gravels remained quite loose with hardly any river rock and we made good time ending the day with 265 buckets. There is no sign of any bottom at 12 feet in depth and the trench has become a rounded pit. We may need to use some of our cut timbers to brace the sides as it is loose.
After a supper of beans and corn bread we opened a bottle and were ready to sit around the fire and trade stories when once again there was gunfire up north on the mountain. John figured it to be about half a mile. It stopped and started several times. Something was going on up the creek. We figured it might be the rif raf had seen the new prospectors camp and set upon robbing them. John hollered out that he had enough of this and he was going up to have a look see and nobody was going to stop him. I told him I'd go with him and told Jacob and Will to stick at camp and guard our goods.
There was a full moon and the visibility was good. We headed on up the side of the creek with rifles at the ready. The gunfire had stopped for a spell but then started up again. It didn't take us too long to get close to the rifle fire and we bellied up near what looked to be a camp with a fire going. For sure it was the three greenhorns from Pennsylvania under fire from someone in the woods up above. We were about 50 feet from them and I gave a holler and said it was us miners they met in the morning from down below. I said we would help them and would circle up to the east and north of the robbers and get them in a crossfire. I told them to stay put and keep shooting. They hollered back and said they would. John said let's get 'em.
John and me circled way around to the east so as not to be seen and closed in on them from the north. They didn't know we were up there and we could see the rifle flashes. It looked to be the same four we had run off and probably robbed Will and killed a prospector. They were well covered by trees and we could hear them laughing as they fired volly’s down at the greenhorns. John took aim and fired a round that hit the mark and we saw one of them drop over on the ground. I don't know how good he was hit because he crawled off into the brush. The other three now knew we were there and took off running up the mountain. We fired several shots and they were gone. We chased them up the mountain as best we could but after about 10 minutes we lost them. I told John they might be laying for us.
We ended up heading back down towards the greenhorn camp and hollered out to them we had one hit and three got away. They came out of their cover and we set about looking for the rag tag we had dropped. We found him under a bush. He was grazed in the leg but not too bad.
TO BE CONTINUED ...............
GhostMiner
Active member
MAY 31 1936 PART TWO
We poured some alcohol in the wound and tied a piece of cloth around his leg. The bullet had gone through the flesh of his calf and he was able to hobble around some. We asked him who he was but he wasn't talking. I told the greenhorns we had business to settle with him and were taking him down to our camp and we would let them know what we got out of him in the way of information. They agreed with us as to not contacting the law.
Will and Jacob were surprised to see we had caught one of the gang. Will said he was one of the crew that had robbed him. We filled them in on what happened. We tried to get information out of him but he just said they were prospectors. We tied up his hands and lashed him up to a tree. Then we walked away and had a quick meeting. When we came back to the robber I told him John was for hanging him and he talked the rest of us into it. He just sneered and said we wouldn't do it. Then John brought over a wooden crate about two feet high. We set it under the branch of the tree and made a noose out of some rope. John threw the rope over the branch and we unlashed the robber from the tree and told him to stand on the box. He said he wouldn't and started shaking a little. John and me lifted him onto the box and I told Jacob to put the noose around his neck and pull the rope tight and get up on the branch and wrap the rope around it a few times and tie it off.
John told him he wanted to know where his gang was camped and who he was. He said if he didn't talk he was going to kick the box out from under his feet. His hands were still tied behind his back. John said we'll hang you and nobody will ever find you and he would do it for sure. The rif raf was shaking. John said he would ask him one last time and if he didn't talk he was a dead man.
TO BE CONTINUED ..........................
We poured some alcohol in the wound and tied a piece of cloth around his leg. The bullet had gone through the flesh of his calf and he was able to hobble around some. We asked him who he was but he wasn't talking. I told the greenhorns we had business to settle with him and were taking him down to our camp and we would let them know what we got out of him in the way of information. They agreed with us as to not contacting the law.
Will and Jacob were surprised to see we had caught one of the gang. Will said he was one of the crew that had robbed him. We filled them in on what happened. We tried to get information out of him but he just said they were prospectors. We tied up his hands and lashed him up to a tree. Then we walked away and had a quick meeting. When we came back to the robber I told him John was for hanging him and he talked the rest of us into it. He just sneered and said we wouldn't do it. Then John brought over a wooden crate about two feet high. We set it under the branch of the tree and made a noose out of some rope. John threw the rope over the branch and we unlashed the robber from the tree and told him to stand on the box. He said he wouldn't and started shaking a little. John and me lifted him onto the box and I told Jacob to put the noose around his neck and pull the rope tight and get up on the branch and wrap the rope around it a few times and tie it off.
John told him he wanted to know where his gang was camped and who he was. He said if he didn't talk he was going to kick the box out from under his feet. His hands were still tied behind his back. John said we'll hang you and nobody will ever find you and he would do it for sure. The rif raf was shaking. John said he would ask him one last time and if he didn't talk he was a dead man.
TO BE CONTINUED ..........................
GhostMiner
Active member
MAY 31 1936 PART THREE
John put his boot up against the box and started to push against it a little. John said he had ten seconds to talk or he would hang. Then the robber gave in. He was shaking and hollering not to hang him, he would talk. John said to start talking before he changed his mind. He left him up on the box. The robber said he was from Nevada. He had fell on hard times and came to California for the gold. He wasn't very good at mining and met up with the other three hooligans in town one night. He joined up with them. He said they had robbed a lot of people but he personally hadn't killed anyone. It was the ring leader who was the murderer. He didn't even know their last names. He said they had a camp hidden in a remote ravine about a mile up to the north just off the creek a few hundred yards. They would go up and down the creek laying for prospectors and rob them. They also stole a truck in town and had robbed and beaten a few people as well. He described the area of the camp pretty well but John told him he was going to guide us to it in the morning when we could see better. He agreed.
We lashed him back to the tree and took our turn on guard duty until daybreak. After a quick breakfast John and me hiked higher up the mountain while Will and Jacob guarded camp. This is the last thing I wanted to spend my time on as it took us away from our mining but we had no choice it seemed. When we got up there we found the campsite but it was deserted and most everything was removed. They must have cleared out in the middle of the night.
I asked the robber where they might have gone. He just shrugged his shoulders and said maybe they're getting out of the area. There wasn't much we could do and now had to decide what to do with the robber. John asked him what he should do with him. The guy pleaded that if we let him go he would high tail it back to Nevada and we'd never have any more trouble from him. He's had enough of this kind of life and was going home.
We walked him back down to our camp and had a quick meeting. Then we untied his hands and told him to git or we would kill him for sure. He thanked us and ran out of there with his tail between his legs. I am hoping we did the right thing.
We all went back to our jobs although it was a late start. John and Will got 2 ounces from yesterday's 235 buckets. Jacob and me dug 120 buckets of good gravels and quit at dusk. We'll see tomorrow how we did. We are still standing watch at night.
TO BE CONTINUED ....................
John put his boot up against the box and started to push against it a little. John said he had ten seconds to talk or he would hang. Then the robber gave in. He was shaking and hollering not to hang him, he would talk. John said to start talking before he changed his mind. He left him up on the box. The robber said he was from Nevada. He had fell on hard times and came to California for the gold. He wasn't very good at mining and met up with the other three hooligans in town one night. He joined up with them. He said they had robbed a lot of people but he personally hadn't killed anyone. It was the ring leader who was the murderer. He didn't even know their last names. He said they had a camp hidden in a remote ravine about a mile up to the north just off the creek a few hundred yards. They would go up and down the creek laying for prospectors and rob them. They also stole a truck in town and had robbed and beaten a few people as well. He described the area of the camp pretty well but John told him he was going to guide us to it in the morning when we could see better. He agreed.
We lashed him back to the tree and took our turn on guard duty until daybreak. After a quick breakfast John and me hiked higher up the mountain while Will and Jacob guarded camp. This is the last thing I wanted to spend my time on as it took us away from our mining but we had no choice it seemed. When we got up there we found the campsite but it was deserted and most everything was removed. They must have cleared out in the middle of the night.
I asked the robber where they might have gone. He just shrugged his shoulders and said maybe they're getting out of the area. There wasn't much we could do and now had to decide what to do with the robber. John asked him what he should do with him. The guy pleaded that if we let him go he would high tail it back to Nevada and we'd never have any more trouble from him. He's had enough of this kind of life and was going home.
We walked him back down to our camp and had a quick meeting. Then we untied his hands and told him to git or we would kill him for sure. He thanked us and ran out of there with his tail between his legs. I am hoping we did the right thing.
We all went back to our jobs although it was a late start. John and Will got 2 ounces from yesterday's 235 buckets. Jacob and me dug 120 buckets of good gravels and quit at dusk. We'll see tomorrow how we did. We are still standing watch at night.
TO BE CONTINUED ....................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 1 1936
We continue to stay in very rich gravels, the richest I have ever dug. The weigh gave us another ounce. Based on the amount of gravels the ground seems to be holding up and we may be glory bound. My worry of our creek slowing may be cured as well. I sent Will in with the truck to pick up a Meyers pump to supply the tom if needed. So far the creek is still running a sufficient current of water but it has started to slow some. The pump should keep the gravel processing at a good level when the time comes.
Jacob and me are still hauling out the buckets from the trench or pit on a steep incline. Our depths are deepening each day. We are now into the loose gravel with the occasional rounded rock and there is no sign of a bottom. The gold is chunk with some fine and is found in promiscuous amounts per ton. We are digging just north of the kettle and now at a greater depth than the bottom of that glory hole. I continue to pan samples as we dig and the gold is always there. We have started to timber the sides of the wall where needed in order to keep them stable. I have Jacob working at the northern end of the trench picking and digging away at the base while I continue to work the top. We are in an area about 15 to 20 feet in length and 6 feet in width. I am working the eastern side into the fault and widening the dig at the same time. I have been able to drive into the eastern wall by using the pick and bar and those gravels are good and show gold. Today we worked very hard and it felt good to be back to digging and finding gold. We hauled out 250 buckets today and are quite proud of ourselves. It will be Hoover stew and whiskey for me tonight.
TO BE CONTINUED ......................
We continue to stay in very rich gravels, the richest I have ever dug. The weigh gave us another ounce. Based on the amount of gravels the ground seems to be holding up and we may be glory bound. My worry of our creek slowing may be cured as well. I sent Will in with the truck to pick up a Meyers pump to supply the tom if needed. So far the creek is still running a sufficient current of water but it has started to slow some. The pump should keep the gravel processing at a good level when the time comes.
Jacob and me are still hauling out the buckets from the trench or pit on a steep incline. Our depths are deepening each day. We are now into the loose gravel with the occasional rounded rock and there is no sign of a bottom. The gold is chunk with some fine and is found in promiscuous amounts per ton. We are digging just north of the kettle and now at a greater depth than the bottom of that glory hole. I continue to pan samples as we dig and the gold is always there. We have started to timber the sides of the wall where needed in order to keep them stable. I have Jacob working at the northern end of the trench picking and digging away at the base while I continue to work the top. We are in an area about 15 to 20 feet in length and 6 feet in width. I am working the eastern side into the fault and widening the dig at the same time. I have been able to drive into the eastern wall by using the pick and bar and those gravels are good and show gold. Today we worked very hard and it felt good to be back to digging and finding gold. We hauled out 250 buckets today and are quite proud of ourselves. It will be Hoover stew and whiskey for me tonight.
TO BE CONTINUED ......................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 2 1936
Last night we built the campfire and ended up deep in the cups swapping stories and lies until nearly midnight. Jacob and Will had asked to go into town and make a visit to the tavern but I told them it is far too risky. We don't know if the hooligans have left the area and that place is a gathering area for rif raf and misfits. They are young and full of oats but I don't need them getting into trouble or being followed. So we all blew off steam at camp. We had it building for days.
After a late start Will and John finished the weigh and Will walked up to the dig. He was carrying a jar and had a grin on his face from ear to ear. Jacob and me stopped shoveling and climbed out of the trench to see what was up. He said to have a look at the jar and handed it over to me. It was heavy. I kidded him and asked what did he do, fill it with rocks? I asked him how much was in there. The answer was 6 ounces. Jacob started doing some kind of Irish jig I couldn't identify. I told Will we are on to something good here. He was never told about the kettle gold. I decided he had earned the right to know. He was stunned. I showed him the pit where we dug it out. He said he couldn't believe we got 220 ounces out of that hole. I just told him we are in an area of concentration unlike anything I have ever experienced. I said we may well be on the road to almighty glory. I also told him that my hunch was as we got deeper it was going to get even richer. How rich I didn't know but we are getting lower with no end in sight. Will went back to work at the creek with dreams of glory in his eyes as we all did.
Even with our headaches Jacob and me were able to dig 210 buckets of rich gravel. Tonight we ate and rested and drank a little bit of my Irish whiskey for good luck.
TO BE CONTINUED ......................
Last night we built the campfire and ended up deep in the cups swapping stories and lies until nearly midnight. Jacob and Will had asked to go into town and make a visit to the tavern but I told them it is far too risky. We don't know if the hooligans have left the area and that place is a gathering area for rif raf and misfits. They are young and full of oats but I don't need them getting into trouble or being followed. So we all blew off steam at camp. We had it building for days.
After a late start Will and John finished the weigh and Will walked up to the dig. He was carrying a jar and had a grin on his face from ear to ear. Jacob and me stopped shoveling and climbed out of the trench to see what was up. He said to have a look at the jar and handed it over to me. It was heavy. I kidded him and asked what did he do, fill it with rocks? I asked him how much was in there. The answer was 6 ounces. Jacob started doing some kind of Irish jig I couldn't identify. I told Will we are on to something good here. He was never told about the kettle gold. I decided he had earned the right to know. He was stunned. I showed him the pit where we dug it out. He said he couldn't believe we got 220 ounces out of that hole. I just told him we are in an area of concentration unlike anything I have ever experienced. I said we may well be on the road to almighty glory. I also told him that my hunch was as we got deeper it was going to get even richer. How rich I didn't know but we are getting lower with no end in sight. Will went back to work at the creek with dreams of glory in his eyes as we all did.
Even with our headaches Jacob and me were able to dig 210 buckets of rich gravel. Tonight we ate and rested and drank a little bit of my Irish whiskey for good luck.
TO BE CONTINUED ......................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 3 1936
Lord make me a rainbow and may the mother of all the saints shine down upon me and my crew. The weigh of gold from yesterday's 210 buckets was done. We had 18 ounces in the pan. I am too tired to write much more tonight and am more than half drunk. All my feeble mind is capable of tonight is thinking of gold. Jacob and me dug 235 buckets today. We are exhausted and more than happy and our bellies are full.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
Lord make me a rainbow and may the mother of all the saints shine down upon me and my crew. The weigh of gold from yesterday's 210 buckets was done. We had 18 ounces in the pan. I am too tired to write much more tonight and am more than half drunk. All my feeble mind is capable of tonight is thinking of gold. Jacob and me dug 235 buckets today. We are exhausted and more than happy and our bellies are full.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 4 1936
Yesterday's dig brought us another 9 ounces of gold. The rate of gold per ton is staggering. The gold has been poured into a very concentrated area. Jacob in his working of the northern trench has already encountered country rock which is disappointing. However, the area where I have been digging shows no sign of a bottom. We may very well end up with a shaft following a deep opening down into the fault. Before I pursue that possibility I have decided to work the eastern trench wall even further to see if we encounter the same rich gravels. So today that is what we did, worked the eastern wall with the pick and shovel. This was heavy and slow work as we encountered large rock that had to be moved with the bars. Some test pans showed color and the work was not in vain. I would like to continue this plan for a few days or more to see what is there. Our bucket total was a meager 180 today even though we worked till nearly dark. I am turning in early tonight and will stand my watch when it's time. There has been no trouble and all has been quiet here except for the sound of the pick and shovel striking gravel.
Yesterday's dig brought us another 9 ounces of gold. The rate of gold per ton is staggering. The gold has been poured into a very concentrated area. Jacob in his working of the northern trench has already encountered country rock which is disappointing. However, the area where I have been digging shows no sign of a bottom. We may very well end up with a shaft following a deep opening down into the fault. Before I pursue that possibility I have decided to work the eastern trench wall even further to see if we encounter the same rich gravels. So today that is what we did, worked the eastern wall with the pick and shovel. This was heavy and slow work as we encountered large rock that had to be moved with the bars. Some test pans showed color and the work was not in vain. I would like to continue this plan for a few days or more to see what is there. Our bucket total was a meager 180 today even though we worked till nearly dark. I am turning in early tonight and will stand my watch when it's time. There has been no trouble and all has been quiet here except for the sound of the pick and shovel striking gravel.
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 5 1936
Our 180 buckets from the eastern wall dig was somewhat disappointing but did give us one ounce. Jacob and me continued our attack in the wall amongst very heavy ground filled with old channel rock. I did several test pans of these gravels at various levels but the color is not there. We were able to take 160 buckets down to the tom and tomorrow's weigh will tell us if we should move away from the eastern wall or keep going. Everyone is for continuing at the main trench which we know is rich. I am trying to determine the area of the strike and where it fades away. I should have a good idea tomorrow. There is nothing easy here and everything is a battle against rock and heavy gravel but the rewards have been unbelievable to this point. We are all still dreaming of continued glory. Our creek continues to flow well enough for the tom and we have not used the pump yet. I think we may have another week or two of good water before it is needed.
This evening we had a bobcat enter camp. He prowled the perimeter as we watched. John got up with his pistol and fired a round sending him running down along the creek heading up the mountain. We have seen black bear but have not had any come into camp. There are lion in the area as well but we have not seen any. Will shot a rattler near the creek yesterday and that is the first one we saw.
TO BE CONTINUED ...................
Our 180 buckets from the eastern wall dig was somewhat disappointing but did give us one ounce. Jacob and me continued our attack in the wall amongst very heavy ground filled with old channel rock. I did several test pans of these gravels at various levels but the color is not there. We were able to take 160 buckets down to the tom and tomorrow's weigh will tell us if we should move away from the eastern wall or keep going. Everyone is for continuing at the main trench which we know is rich. I am trying to determine the area of the strike and where it fades away. I should have a good idea tomorrow. There is nothing easy here and everything is a battle against rock and heavy gravel but the rewards have been unbelievable to this point. We are all still dreaming of continued glory. Our creek continues to flow well enough for the tom and we have not used the pump yet. I think we may have another week or two of good water before it is needed.
This evening we had a bobcat enter camp. He prowled the perimeter as we watched. John got up with his pistol and fired a round sending him running down along the creek heading up the mountain. We have seen black bear but have not had any come into camp. There are lion in the area as well but we have not seen any. Will shot a rattler near the creek yesterday and that is the first one we saw.
TO BE CONTINUED ...................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 6 1936
Well, I have proof that I cannot always trust my eyes or the pan as we did the weigh and produced two ounces from the eastern wall dig. Amongst a bit of consternation from the crew I have decided to keep working it to see if it gets better. I told everyone that we need to determine the pay area perimeters. We know the trench is rich. We are not too worried about water as we have the pump when needed. There should be enough water in the creek for the pump all the way into fall.
So back to it Jacob and me went. Swinging and digging. Prying and digging. It is a battle against rock. We continue to widen the work area a bit and are also getting deeper in the process. My shoulders and elbows are sore from the pick work. Jacob is relentless and relishes every challenge. I am happy to have my brother beside me.
The digging is slow now. Every bucket requires three times the effort. I am almost hoping to run out of pay so we can move. There was some noise up higher above our dig site today. I couldn't determine the origin but it seemed to be distant and maybe a few hundred yards higher than us. The sounds were like a holler back and forth but didn't sound human. I can't explain it and Jacob just shook his head and shrugged it off.
We ended up taking 130 buckets out of the east wall. I did a few test pans when we were digging but again saw little to no color. We will see. Jacob and I knocked back a good amount of whiskey and talked about home and what we would do with the gold. Then we turned in and waited for our turn on watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
Well, I have proof that I cannot always trust my eyes or the pan as we did the weigh and produced two ounces from the eastern wall dig. Amongst a bit of consternation from the crew I have decided to keep working it to see if it gets better. I told everyone that we need to determine the pay area perimeters. We know the trench is rich. We are not too worried about water as we have the pump when needed. There should be enough water in the creek for the pump all the way into fall.
So back to it Jacob and me went. Swinging and digging. Prying and digging. It is a battle against rock. We continue to widen the work area a bit and are also getting deeper in the process. My shoulders and elbows are sore from the pick work. Jacob is relentless and relishes every challenge. I am happy to have my brother beside me.
The digging is slow now. Every bucket requires three times the effort. I am almost hoping to run out of pay so we can move. There was some noise up higher above our dig site today. I couldn't determine the origin but it seemed to be distant and maybe a few hundred yards higher than us. The sounds were like a holler back and forth but didn't sound human. I can't explain it and Jacob just shook his head and shrugged it off.
We ended up taking 130 buckets out of the east wall. I did a few test pans when we were digging but again saw little to no color. We will see. Jacob and I knocked back a good amount of whiskey and talked about home and what we would do with the gold. Then we turned in and waited for our turn on watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
GhostMiner
Active member
June 7 1936
After breakfast we weighed yesterday's gold count. Got an ounce. That's damn good gold and i'm happy to see it but the guys are anxious for more. Jacob and me went back up to the faultline and brought Will with us for extra power today. We crashed the pick against the rock walls of the fault with grunts and sweat a flying. Rock bars were used to move the bigger rock that was cemented in place. We are in the wall of the fault now and i'm looking for openings or crevices that might have trapped gold. It's a treasure hunt more than a mining operation at this point.We all know that when we decide to quit the wall we can start working the good trench gravels again.
Will let out a few curse words and I saw that his pick handle had broke. Jacob and I just dropped onto the rock and sat there laughing. I sent Will down to the tom with a load of full buckets and told him to put a handle on it and come back up. He eventually came back up with the truck and joined the fight once again. I hit a little seam and pried it open. I set a bucket down and scooped some garavel out of there and into the bucket. Maybe about half full. I took it over to the tub and panned some of it. I gave a holler to Will and Jacob. They came over and had a look see. The pan was full of coarse gold and pickers. They all got real excited and we went back to that seam. It wasn't too wide but went back in a ways. I hammered at it and pried like hell on it with the bar. More of it broke off and I scooped more material out into a bucket. Down to the tub I went and panned some of it. Loaded with heavy gold.
Now we were all getting real excited and started taking turns swinging on that seem with a pick and sledge and then a bar to pry on her. We got a big two foot chunk out and it ended. We took out the material. We had a total of three buckets and change out of that seam. I told the boys to keep them seperate and marked so we could process this by itself. We ended up only getting 50 buckets total but the three from the seem might be something special.
When we told John and showed him some gold in the pan he got real happy. He said to me that I must for sure know what I was doing. I just laughed and said it's just a big treasure hunt. We'll see what we end up getting tomorrow.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
After breakfast we weighed yesterday's gold count. Got an ounce. That's damn good gold and i'm happy to see it but the guys are anxious for more. Jacob and me went back up to the faultline and brought Will with us for extra power today. We crashed the pick against the rock walls of the fault with grunts and sweat a flying. Rock bars were used to move the bigger rock that was cemented in place. We are in the wall of the fault now and i'm looking for openings or crevices that might have trapped gold. It's a treasure hunt more than a mining operation at this point.We all know that when we decide to quit the wall we can start working the good trench gravels again.
Will let out a few curse words and I saw that his pick handle had broke. Jacob and I just dropped onto the rock and sat there laughing. I sent Will down to the tom with a load of full buckets and told him to put a handle on it and come back up. He eventually came back up with the truck and joined the fight once again. I hit a little seam and pried it open. I set a bucket down and scooped some garavel out of there and into the bucket. Maybe about half full. I took it over to the tub and panned some of it. I gave a holler to Will and Jacob. They came over and had a look see. The pan was full of coarse gold and pickers. They all got real excited and we went back to that seam. It wasn't too wide but went back in a ways. I hammered at it and pried like hell on it with the bar. More of it broke off and I scooped more material out into a bucket. Down to the tub I went and panned some of it. Loaded with heavy gold.
Now we were all getting real excited and started taking turns swinging on that seem with a pick and sledge and then a bar to pry on her. We got a big two foot chunk out and it ended. We took out the material. We had a total of three buckets and change out of that seam. I told the boys to keep them seperate and marked so we could process this by itself. We ended up only getting 50 buckets total but the three from the seem might be something special.
When we told John and showed him some gold in the pan he got real happy. He said to me that I must for sure know what I was doing. I just laughed and said it's just a big treasure hunt. We'll see what we end up getting tomorrow.
TO BE CONTINUED ..................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 8 1936
The weigh was done this morning. The 47 buckets of wall gravels gave us half an ounce. Not too bad we thought but very hard work to get it. Then came the weigh from the 3 buckets from the seam in the wall. There was heavy gold in the pan that brought us another ounce. An unbelievable amount of gold for such a small amount of gravel. This gives me even more confidence that the trench holds a fortune in gold as I think much of the deposit lies below this depth in a depression or kettle in the old channel. We have now mined a total of 284 ounces which is already far beyond anything I could have expected.
We all decided to take a day of much needed rest as the work has been hard on our bodies. I have run out of holes in my belt and have had to punch in a new one as I have lost quite a bit of weight from the heavy work. I told the boys to head into town and gave them a list of supplies. When they came back we talked about the operation over hoover stew. We built a small fire. The night sky was filled with stars and I broke out a special bottle of Four Roses I had stashed away. We filled our cups and toasted the mine and the gold. Eventually we all retired and Will took first watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ...................
The weigh was done this morning. The 47 buckets of wall gravels gave us half an ounce. Not too bad we thought but very hard work to get it. Then came the weigh from the 3 buckets from the seam in the wall. There was heavy gold in the pan that brought us another ounce. An unbelievable amount of gold for such a small amount of gravel. This gives me even more confidence that the trench holds a fortune in gold as I think much of the deposit lies below this depth in a depression or kettle in the old channel. We have now mined a total of 284 ounces which is already far beyond anything I could have expected.
We all decided to take a day of much needed rest as the work has been hard on our bodies. I have run out of holes in my belt and have had to punch in a new one as I have lost quite a bit of weight from the heavy work. I told the boys to head into town and gave them a list of supplies. When they came back we talked about the operation over hoover stew. We built a small fire. The night sky was filled with stars and I broke out a special bottle of Four Roses I had stashed away. We filled our cups and toasted the mine and the gold. Eventually we all retired and Will took first watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ...................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 9 1936
Jacob, Will, and me again worked the east wall at the fault. About mid day John came up to the dig site with a visitor. He said he was a bounty hunter out of Nevada. This guy looked worse than the hooligans we had encountered. He was wearing two Colts and carrying a rifle. I asked him what he wanted. The man said he had been hired by a certain company to track down a gang of murderers and thugs who he believed were roaming our neck of the woods. He said he dealt in people - dead, captured, or detained. In his words he was hired to capture or eliminate the gang by whatever means possible. He was wearing some kind of tin star and showed us paperwork giving him all authority in both Nevada and California. He did not give us any information as to who exactly it was that hired him. I asked him if he was a law dog. He just said he was a bounty hunter and made his own law when he was working.
He wanted to know if we had seen this gang and showed us some pictures. He said they were wanted in Nevada and California for strong arm robery and murder. I looked at the pictures and passed them around to everyone. It was the same group of rag tags we had encountered. Everyone knew the rule which was keep your mouth shut and we will handle our own problems alone without involving the law. We all told him we hadn't seen them but would keep a watch. He gave us his card and said to notify him if we saw them. He said if we didn't it would go hard on us.
We watched him walk back down to camp and John followed him down. I told Will to go down there also just in case there was trouble. A little while later Will came back up and we continued our work. We were slowly widening out the dig area to the east. Some of the gravels had loosened up around some round rock and we made hay. I panned some as we dug and saw color. We ended up with 215 buckets which was a pretty good day. We'll see what we get tomorrow.
At supper we were talking about the scroungy bounty hunter. John said we should have kicked his ass for the way he talked to us. And he meant it. I just said not to worry about it and I wondered if that crew was still in the area. Will said that the thugs most likely had a pretty good idea we were getting gold and he wouldn't be surprised if they were still somewhere on the mountain. I said to just keep on guard and keep standing watch at night and we should be ok. Secretly I was worried.
TO BE CONTINUED .................
Jacob, Will, and me again worked the east wall at the fault. About mid day John came up to the dig site with a visitor. He said he was a bounty hunter out of Nevada. This guy looked worse than the hooligans we had encountered. He was wearing two Colts and carrying a rifle. I asked him what he wanted. The man said he had been hired by a certain company to track down a gang of murderers and thugs who he believed were roaming our neck of the woods. He said he dealt in people - dead, captured, or detained. In his words he was hired to capture or eliminate the gang by whatever means possible. He was wearing some kind of tin star and showed us paperwork giving him all authority in both Nevada and California. He did not give us any information as to who exactly it was that hired him. I asked him if he was a law dog. He just said he was a bounty hunter and made his own law when he was working.
He wanted to know if we had seen this gang and showed us some pictures. He said they were wanted in Nevada and California for strong arm robery and murder. I looked at the pictures and passed them around to everyone. It was the same group of rag tags we had encountered. Everyone knew the rule which was keep your mouth shut and we will handle our own problems alone without involving the law. We all told him we hadn't seen them but would keep a watch. He gave us his card and said to notify him if we saw them. He said if we didn't it would go hard on us.
We watched him walk back down to camp and John followed him down. I told Will to go down there also just in case there was trouble. A little while later Will came back up and we continued our work. We were slowly widening out the dig area to the east. Some of the gravels had loosened up around some round rock and we made hay. I panned some as we dug and saw color. We ended up with 215 buckets which was a pretty good day. We'll see what we get tomorrow.
At supper we were talking about the scroungy bounty hunter. John said we should have kicked his ass for the way he talked to us. And he meant it. I just said not to worry about it and I wondered if that crew was still in the area. Will said that the thugs most likely had a pretty good idea we were getting gold and he wouldn't be surprised if they were still somewhere on the mountain. I said to just keep on guard and keep standing watch at night and we should be ok. Secretly I was worried.
TO BE CONTINUED .................
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 10 1936
We got another 4 ounces from yesterday's dig. The ground continues to pay like a glory hole. The three of us continued north into the easier gravel in the wall. There was a lot of broken shale that didn't provide us much resistance. We swung and chopped and shoveled with sweat flying and the occasional curse word when a pick bounced back off some hard stone. This was one of our better days as far as bucket totals and we kept John working with 260 of them. We were all exhausted by dusk and drove back down to camp with the last load on the bed of the old Ford. We'll help John finish up in the morning before we go up and dig.
It was a pleasant evening and we were all sitting around the fire before first watch and toasting each other when we heard someone holler out as he came up our side of the creek from the south where down below the main road runs. It was the tin star bounty hunter again. John didn't think much of this guy to put it mildly. The bounty hunter yelled out he was comin' into our camp. John got up and bluntly said that nobody here invited you into camp and we had no business with him.
It was starting to get dark and we wondered what he was up to out here roaming at night. The bounty hunter didn't exactly like John's comment and told him so. John asked him why he was here. The guy said another robbery had taken place up on the mountain maybe 2 miles away. He figured this gang was still roaming up & down the creek robbing prospectors and also going into town and doing the same. He was sure they were hiding out. Then he said the wrong thing to John. He asked how much gold we were getting. Then he said he couldn't believe we hadn't run across this crew and who knows, maybe we were tied in with them in some way and helping them.
My heart sank. I thought to myself why did he have to go and say that? John looked at him and said he'd had enough of his mouth and called him trash. I jumped in and said we don't know anything about the gang and we were hard working miners minding our own business. The bounty hunter asked again how much gold we were getting. John told him it was none of his damn business and to get the hell out of camp or he'd kick his ass.
The guy said to look at his star. He had all authority to question and interrogate. John told him we don't know anything and if you ask about our gold one more time you're gonna' have a problem. He looked at John and could see he meant business. He started to leave but as he was walking out he turned and said he might be back again with paperwork to take us to town in front of a judge and make us give sworn testimony. Then he was gone, hiking back down to the road.
I told everyone that he thinks we know something but doesn't have any real authority and is trying to bluff us. John said if he comes back and tries to force him to go into town he's in for big trouble. I just said not to worry about it and let's just keep getting our gold. John was so angry he couldn't sleep so he took first watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ................
We got another 4 ounces from yesterday's dig. The ground continues to pay like a glory hole. The three of us continued north into the easier gravel in the wall. There was a lot of broken shale that didn't provide us much resistance. We swung and chopped and shoveled with sweat flying and the occasional curse word when a pick bounced back off some hard stone. This was one of our better days as far as bucket totals and we kept John working with 260 of them. We were all exhausted by dusk and drove back down to camp with the last load on the bed of the old Ford. We'll help John finish up in the morning before we go up and dig.
It was a pleasant evening and we were all sitting around the fire before first watch and toasting each other when we heard someone holler out as he came up our side of the creek from the south where down below the main road runs. It was the tin star bounty hunter again. John didn't think much of this guy to put it mildly. The bounty hunter yelled out he was comin' into our camp. John got up and bluntly said that nobody here invited you into camp and we had no business with him.
It was starting to get dark and we wondered what he was up to out here roaming at night. The bounty hunter didn't exactly like John's comment and told him so. John asked him why he was here. The guy said another robbery had taken place up on the mountain maybe 2 miles away. He figured this gang was still roaming up & down the creek robbing prospectors and also going into town and doing the same. He was sure they were hiding out. Then he said the wrong thing to John. He asked how much gold we were getting. Then he said he couldn't believe we hadn't run across this crew and who knows, maybe we were tied in with them in some way and helping them.
My heart sank. I thought to myself why did he have to go and say that? John looked at him and said he'd had enough of his mouth and called him trash. I jumped in and said we don't know anything about the gang and we were hard working miners minding our own business. The bounty hunter asked again how much gold we were getting. John told him it was none of his damn business and to get the hell out of camp or he'd kick his ass.
The guy said to look at his star. He had all authority to question and interrogate. John told him we don't know anything and if you ask about our gold one more time you're gonna' have a problem. He looked at John and could see he meant business. He started to leave but as he was walking out he turned and said he might be back again with paperwork to take us to town in front of a judge and make us give sworn testimony. Then he was gone, hiking back down to the road.
I told everyone that he thinks we know something but doesn't have any real authority and is trying to bluff us. John said if he comes back and tries to force him to go into town he's in for big trouble. I just said not to worry about it and let's just keep getting our gold. John was so angry he couldn't sleep so he took first watch.
TO BE CONTINUED ................
rick in mi
Well-known member
Fun to read history
GhostMiner
Active member
JUNE 11 1936
Yesterday's 260 buckets were a big disappointment to us all and yielded barely an ounce. The ground continues to be fickle. Just when I think we are once again glory bound we have a light weigh. I know that one ounce out of that volume of gravel is very rich. However, we all believe the pot of gold awaits us here. We must just keep working.
Just before supper we once again were visited by the bounty hunter. Now he was becoming a nuisance. He announced himself and strolled into camp like he was one of us. He told us his trail had gone cold and he may quit the search for the gang of thugs. John looked at him and said why are you out here telling us your problems? Yesterday you were threatening us with some kind of order from a Judge you were going to serve on us? The bounty hunter said his name was Bill. He said he was sorry for that but was desperate to make a bounty as his funds were running low. He asked if he might join up with our crew. This was incredible and John laughed in his face. I just said sorry, we don't need any help. John told him to get out of our camp and fast. Bill the bounty man looked at John and said he didn't like being talked to like that. John said he didn't care what he liked and he wasn't welcome. The bounty hunter looked at me and said that I was the leader of the crew, can't I give him a try? He refused to talk with John anymore. He started to argue his point for joining up with us. John said we don't hire trash like you and to git. Bill said he wasn't talking to him. John simply reached out and pulled the guy's hat down over his eyes and let go with a right hand to his jaw. The bounty hunter went down with a thud.
John grabbed the guy's rifle as the man got up shaking his head. He started to reach for one of his side arms but John clocked him over the head with the rifle butt and removed both revolvers. The guy cursed at John and John rammed the rifle butt into his belly and brought it up into his chin. This must have been something John had learned fighting the Germans in the Great War. The fight was all out of Bill. John told him to git or he'd get worse and thanks for the guns. Bill stumbled out of camp heading down towards the road.
Now John and I got into a heated argument about all this. I told him this wasn't the way to handle things and he couldn't just haul off on anyone that crossed him. I don't know if he listened or not. I actually think he likes this kind of thing and it will catch up with us at some point. John just said that Bill wasn't leaving as told and he just helped move him along.
The rest of the night was quiet and all of us had a few drinks to settle down. Jacob's eyes had been big as saucers during the beating. He was not used to this kind of thing. John went up on the first watch while the rest of us turned in. I feel like I am running out of time here and this mining venture is getting more dangerous by the day.
TO BE CONTINUED .................
Yesterday's 260 buckets were a big disappointment to us all and yielded barely an ounce. The ground continues to be fickle. Just when I think we are once again glory bound we have a light weigh. I know that one ounce out of that volume of gravel is very rich. However, we all believe the pot of gold awaits us here. We must just keep working.
Just before supper we once again were visited by the bounty hunter. Now he was becoming a nuisance. He announced himself and strolled into camp like he was one of us. He told us his trail had gone cold and he may quit the search for the gang of thugs. John looked at him and said why are you out here telling us your problems? Yesterday you were threatening us with some kind of order from a Judge you were going to serve on us? The bounty hunter said his name was Bill. He said he was sorry for that but was desperate to make a bounty as his funds were running low. He asked if he might join up with our crew. This was incredible and John laughed in his face. I just said sorry, we don't need any help. John told him to get out of our camp and fast. Bill the bounty man looked at John and said he didn't like being talked to like that. John said he didn't care what he liked and he wasn't welcome. The bounty hunter looked at me and said that I was the leader of the crew, can't I give him a try? He refused to talk with John anymore. He started to argue his point for joining up with us. John said we don't hire trash like you and to git. Bill said he wasn't talking to him. John simply reached out and pulled the guy's hat down over his eyes and let go with a right hand to his jaw. The bounty hunter went down with a thud.
John grabbed the guy's rifle as the man got up shaking his head. He started to reach for one of his side arms but John clocked him over the head with the rifle butt and removed both revolvers. The guy cursed at John and John rammed the rifle butt into his belly and brought it up into his chin. This must have been something John had learned fighting the Germans in the Great War. The fight was all out of Bill. John told him to git or he'd get worse and thanks for the guns. Bill stumbled out of camp heading down towards the road.
Now John and I got into a heated argument about all this. I told him this wasn't the way to handle things and he couldn't just haul off on anyone that crossed him. I don't know if he listened or not. I actually think he likes this kind of thing and it will catch up with us at some point. John just said that Bill wasn't leaving as told and he just helped move him along.
The rest of the night was quiet and all of us had a few drinks to settle down. Jacob's eyes had been big as saucers during the beating. He was not used to this kind of thing. John went up on the first watch while the rest of us turned in. I feel like I am running out of time here and this mining venture is getting more dangerous by the day.
TO BE CONTINUED .................
Smigo
Well-known member
I love reading this stuff.
Could you post some pictures please. Im in Australia and love seeing areas and things from other parts of the world.
GhostMiner
Active member
Thank You for reading the journal. I will post some pictures of the area the journal is based on in a bit. It is in the Sierra Nevada Mts of northern California.
GhostMiner
Active member
Posting some pictures of the area this journal is based on. The journal is based on an old government report that I came across when researching our 300 acres of mining claims. The old White military truck found abandoned near the dig site gave me the inspiration for the charactor Sarge. The pictures show the actual old workings and the final gold totals from 1936 in this journal are real. I also believe that the amount of gold mined was just a small amount of the true gold deposit which most likely lies deeper than the crew was able to dig. I am including a picture of gold & possible gem stones
taken from the site when we tested the area. It is chunky and 91% pure. I would like to permit the area and re-open the old mine eventually. The guy standing by the white Ford F150 is me. Also the guy with the Deere 360 is me.
taken from the site when we tested the area. It is chunky and 91% pure. I would like to permit the area and re-open the old mine eventually. The guy standing by the white Ford F150 is me. Also the guy with the Deere 360 is me.Attachments
GhostMiner
Active member
More pictures. The old White military truck abandoned near the dig site. The picture of the creek is where the crew camped and set the tom to wash gravels.
