Collection: Newspapers > Nevada County Nugget

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Title: December 13, 1972 Collection Type: Newspapers Collection Name: Nevada County Nugget Published: December 13, 1972 Copyright: In the public domain or published before 1925 Physical Format: Newspaper # of Pages: 12 Download PDF: User Login Required Download OCR Text: User Login Required

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Original Held At: Doris Foley Library Location: 211 North Pine Street, Nevada City, CA 95959

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6 The Nevada County Nugget \Wednesday Dec. yea il! —_—_— are ss —_ 13, 1972 M.J. Brock MEADOW LAKE In 1865 Meadow Lake experienced a prospecting and realestate boom, and lots were sold by the California Company to “actual settlers," for $25. In the early part of November, 1865, however, the majority of the new home-seekers, being afraid to spend the winter in the Sierras, left for more congenial climes. By the first of December the country was covered with snow to a depth of five feet; and the months of March, April, and May. 1866,were of unprecedented severity at Meadow Lake. All traces of trails and highways were obliterated by the heavy snowfalls. From the 20th of May to the lst of June there was a constant snow. But by the end of June, 1866, there were 4000 people in the newly established town. Everything was excitement and activity. The sole topic of conversation was ledgers, stocks, and town lots. For a lot 60 by 80 feet, on any of the principal streets, from $1500 to $2500 was asked, and in many cases paid. Small tenements rented for $200per month, andrents everywhere were proportionately high, Lumber cost from $50 to $75 per thousand feet. A stock board, composed of thirty members, was organized a unique transaction in view of the fact that there was not a single mine in operation at that time. During the, year; four good roads were opened from the town. One led to Bowman's Station; another led to Jackson's, a few miles distant; a third intersected the main Henness road at a point near Truckee Lake; and a fourth connected with Cisco, on the Central Pacific Railroad, bringing the residents within a day's ride from San Francisco. Eight mills were erected for the reduction of ores, with an aggregate capacity of seventy stamps. The construction of these mills incurred an expenditure of $200,000. Two furnaces for the roasting or ores were built, and Platner's chlorine process was used at one of them. In 18730, Maltman placed some machinery into the U.S, Grant Mill for working the sulphurets, but the plan was abandoned. In 1866 the Meadow Lake Sun was established by W. B. Lyon, H.G. Rollins, and Judge Tilford. During its existence, which lasted only a few months, it earnestly and consistently advocated the superior claims of the town as a “rich metalliferous district." The winter of 1866-1867 was a most severe one, the snow falling to a depth of twenty-five feet; but a large number of the “residents enjoyed the pleasure of being this domiciled, whiling away the weary hours by bringing into requisition indoor pasttimes of every description, Others endured the havc ships and privations in the fond hope of regaining some of the capital they had invested. In this they were doomed to disappointment and despair.. 7 By 1870 Meadow Lake was almost deserted, all that was left being empty structures. On the 27th of September, 1873, a fire originated in the Excelsior Hotel, which soon laid the whole town in ruins. Only two houses were left to indicate the spot where once excitement reigned, and where $2,000,000 had been absorbed in laying out his summit city, which in the zenith of its prosperity boasted twenty saloons and three hotels. I is estimated that during the summer of 1865, 1200 locations were made in the district, containing in the aggregate more than 1,200,000 feet of ledge rock. In the excitement which prevailed, locations were made all over the country. Boulders, masses of granite, and rocks of every description assumed to the distempered fancy of the prospectors the shape and outlines of a quartz ledge and were duly entered upon the recorder's books, The ledges, lying even with the masses of granite around = ——— : History of Ne Published them, and capped witn a species of mineral which is not pure quartz or country rock, are traceable by broad stains of dark, reddish hue. Under the circumstances, it isnot at all surprising that parties whose attention and efforts had been directed towards placer mining should have failed to discover the existence of treasures so strongly concealed by nature. During its short career some thirty mines were developedtoa depth ranging from 30 to 240 feet. All of the old-timers for years looked forward to the time, when a process would be discovered for extracting the gold from the Meadow Lake quartz. HOBART The town of Hobart, or Hobart Mills, is so named because of the large holdings of the Hobart Estate Company, which operates the Hobart Mills and gives employment to over 500 men during the season. The mills were built in 1896 and began operations in 1897, They are equipped with two band-saws and a resaw, and have a capacity of 175,000 feet of lumber per shift. There are a box factory, a sash and door mill, a planing mill, and a modern, fully equipped machine shop now being operated; and the company also operates forty miles of railroad, hauling their logs a distance of twenty-five miles, Seven miles of this road, running from Hobart to Truckee, is of standardgauge track, over which their products are carried to the main line for shipment to various points. To operate these two lines of railroad, there are three standard-gauge and five narrow-gauge locomotives, The company owns a large acreage of pine and fir timber, and has an output of about 30,000,000: feet of lumber during the six months run, each year. Hobart has a post office, an express office, stores, hotels and a school. CHAPTER XII FRATERNAL AND BENEVOLENT ORGANIZATIONS SECRET AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES OF GRASS VALLEY In the early mining settlements of California, the long-