NEVADA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

LOCATION

COUNTY:Nevada County

STATE:California

Both placer and lode gold mines of Nevada County, opened in 1850 and continuing active to today, produced a total of over 18 million ounces of gold. Many placer deposits are known to be rich today, but have not been touched because of state laws ending hydraulic mining operations. Many Tertiary gravel deposits that produced at least half the placer gold through 1909 include the San Juan Ridge, North Columbia, Scotts Flat, Quaker Hill, and Red Dog, You Bet mines, all of which became big hydraulic operations with huge untouched reserves that are producing small amounts of placer gold by amateur panning and small scale high banking efforts. At French Corral all area stream gravels produce placer colors and nuggets.

In Grass Valley and Nevada City districts, with very many Mother Lode area camps and mines, total production estimated at 2,200,000 ounces of placer gold and 11,000,000 ounces of lode gold. At Grass Valley, on outskirts of town, the Gold Hill Mine was the first lode mine in the district. At Ophir Hill, Rich Hill, Massachusetts Hill; you will find famous mines the Empire, North Star, Idaho, Maryland ( which had the largest production of any lode gold mine in state) all produced very rich lode gold deposits. At Nevada City; the Blue Tent and Sailor Flat operations were placer gold producers. The Champion, Providence, Canada Hill, Hoge, and Nevada City mines were very rich lode gold mines in this area.

At Meadow Lake which is 35 miles east of Grass Valley, a relatively minor lode gold district of several mines, worked 1863-1905, with total production of about 10,000 ounces of lode gold.