Historical Clippings Book - Quartz Mining (HC-09) (375 pages)

p @ sunday Morning, March 14, 1971 od Too Costly to Mine Gold Production Dwindling By ROD BEAUDRY Sacramento Union Political Writer There’s not much gold coming out of them thar hills, according to a report by the state Division of Mines and Geology. Nobody knows how much gold is left but the amount being mined each year is dropping drastically—from $50 million worth in 1940, $14 million in 1950, $4 million in 1960, and $215,000 in 1970. More than 106 million ounces of gold valued at some $3.7 billion (at current prices) has been mined in California and represents 35 per cent of all the gold mined in the United States. BUT PRODUCTION has declined steadily, even in the last few years—$616,000 worth in 1968 and $335,000 in 1969. Because of high production costs, depletion of easily accessible deposits and increased land values, fewer adventuresome gents are sallying forth into the gold prospect business. The last gold dredge at Hammonton was shut down Oct. 1, 1968—thus ending the dredging era in California. This also was the last sustained commercial gold-mining operation in California. More than 60 years of operations ended in 1962 when the last dredge of the Folsom gold field was shut down. In that same year, one of the last active lode-gold mines in California, the Sixteen-to-One mine in the Alleghany district stopped operations. THE MINES OF Empire-Star Mines Ltd., and Idaho-Marby Eleanor Vincent Connectiovs ~ Sept 15,1972 yland Mines, Inc. at Grass Valley were closed in 1956 ending some 106 years of operation in this locality. This area was worked by hundreds of miners as recently as 1940. Unfortunately, little visible evidence remains of the gold mines, the single most important reason for the development of the western United States. A number of the old ditches, flumes, and reservoirs that once supplied water to the hydraulic mines now are parts of hydroelectric and irrigation systems. Several old gold mining towns, such as Columbia, Johnsville, Coloma, Shasta, and Bodie have become state parks and recreation areas. It is lucky for Californians that the state has preserved these areas—because other areas have vanished without trace. Prosperous dredging fields have been turned into subdivisions; once productive mines, streams and lakes have been inundated by reservoirs of the state water project. A STATE GEOLOGIST in San Francisco said decreased gold production is a matter of economics: “It hardly pays to mine gold anymore,”’ he said in an interview. 3 He indicated that mines closed during World War II still have gold in them—but would cost too much to rehabilitate to meet current codes. William B. Clark, a geologist in the Sacramento office, has written a 186-page book on the ‘‘Gold Districts of California” (which provided most of the historical data used in this article). Mining—Is It Still Welcome in the Gold Country? The industry that built this region’s economy is making a comeback attempt. After bowing out—or being forced offstage by government decree— for nearly three decades, mining is beginning to play a new role in Nevada County. i It is a role fraught with tough land use decisions, profound environmental effects and growing political controversy. This is ‘‘Gold Country,’’ as every tourist knows, but most residents who settled here during the population boom of the last decade never dreamed they might one day see mines operating a few miles from their property. Yet within recent weeks, county officials have approved an open pit barite mine, considered proposals for two. gold exploratory operations and debated whether an existing gravel operation should be allowed to expand. Residents most likely to be directly affected by the projects—in Washington, North San Juan, and just outside Grass Valley-Nevada City— are protesting the noise, traffic, pollution, decreasing residential land values, and disruption of their lifestyle they believe re-opening the mines would create. They fear the few projects now under consideration will generate an onslaught of new mining proposals. Mine operators counter by pointing out that although the county became a residential mecca during the period while the mines were dormant, it lacks an industrial base. Mines will create jobs and needed tax revenue. And, with newly available technology, they insist, the mines can operate without irrevocably damaging the environment. : Not all residents in the affected areas oppose the new operations. Those who favor the mining resurgence see it as a welcome economic stimulus and a return to the county’s glory days, to boom times many remember. In some communities—notably Washington and North San Juan—feelings run high both for and against the projects.

p @ sunday Morning, March 14, 1971 od Too Costly to Mine Gold Production Dwindling By ROD BEAUDRY Sacramento Union Political Writer There’s not much gold coming out of them thar hills, according to a report by the state Division of Mines and Geology. Nobody knows how much gold is left but the amount being mined each year is dropping drastically—from $50 million worth in 1940, $14 million in 1950, $4 million in 1960, and $215,000 in 1970. More than 106 million ounces of gold valued at some $3.7 billion (at current prices) has been mined in California and represents 35 per cent of all the gold mined in the United States. BUT PRODUCTION has declined steadily, even in the last few years—$616,000 worth in 1968 and $335,000 in 1969. Because of high production costs, depletion of easily accessible deposits and increased land values, fewer adventuresome gents are sallying forth into the gold prospect business. The last gold dredge at Hammonton was shut down Oct. 1, 1968—thus ending the dredging era in California. This also was the last sustained commercial gold-mining operation in California. More than 60 years of operations ended in 1962 when the last dredge of the Folsom gold field was shut down. In that same year, one of the last active lode-gold mines in California, the Sixteen-to-One mine in the Alleghany district stopped operations. THE MINES OF Empire-Star Mines Ltd., and Idaho-Marby Eleanor Vincent Connectiovs ~ Sept 15,1972 yland Mines, Inc. at Grass Valley were closed in 1956 ending some 106 years of operation in this locality. This area was worked by hundreds of miners as recently as 1940. Unfortunately, little visible evidence remains of the gold mines, the single most important reason for the development of the western United States. A number of the old ditches, flumes, and reservoirs that once supplied water to the hydraulic mines now are parts of hydroelectric and irrigation systems. Several old gold mining towns, such as Columbia, Johnsville, Coloma, Shasta, and Bodie have become state parks and recreation areas. It is lucky for Californians that the state has preserved these areas—because other areas have vanished without trace. Prosperous dredging fields have been turned into subdivisions; once productive mines, streams and lakes have been inundated by reservoirs of the state water project. A STATE GEOLOGIST in San Francisco said decreased gold production is a matter of economics: “It hardly pays to mine gold anymore,”’ he said in an interview. 3 He indicated that mines closed during World War II still have gold in them—but would cost too much to rehabilitate to meet current codes. William B. Clark, a geologist in the Sacramento office, has written a 186-page book on the ‘‘Gold Districts of California” (which provided most of the historical data used in this article). Mining—Is It Still Welcome in the Gold Country? The industry that built this

region’s economy is making a comeback attempt. After bowing out—or being forced offstage by government decree— for nearly three decades, mining is beginning to play a new role in Nevada County. i It is a role fraught with tough land use decisions, profound environmental effects and growing political controversy. This is ‘‘Gold Country,’’ as every tourist knows, but most residents who settled here during the population boom of the last decade never dreamed they might one day see mines operating a few miles from their property. Yet within recent weeks, county officials have approved an open pit barite mine, considered proposals for two. gold exploratory operations and debated whether an existing gravel operation should be allowed to expand. Residents most likely to be directly affected by the projects—in Washington, North San Juan, and just outside Grass Valley-Nevada City— are protesting the noise, traffic, pollution, decreasing residential land values, and disruption of their lifestyle they believe re-opening the mines would create. They fear the few projects now under consideration will generate an onslaught of new mining proposals. Mine operators counter by pointing out that although the county became a residential mecca during the period while the mines were dormant, it lacks an industrial base. Mines will create jobs and needed tax revenue. And, with newly available technology, they insist, the mines can operate without irrevocably damaging the environment. : Not all residents in the affected areas oppose the new operations. Those who favor the mining resurgence see it as a welcome economic stimulus and a return to the county’s glory days, to boom times many remember. In some communities—notably Washington and North San Juan—feelings run high both for and against the projects.