The Gold Bug Park features an underground tour of the authentic hard rock mining shaft of “Gold Bug Mine”. The mine started in 1888 and now has a…
The Kentucky Mill is one of the best preserved stamp mills I have had the pleasure to visit. A large part of that preservation is its more modern…
The Empire Mine has been on our list to explore for several years. We finally got a chance to drop in for the mine yard tour. The Empire…
Originally I had written off the Kennedy as a mine to tour because it lacked a stamp mill or underground tour. Then in Oct 2014 we decided to…
The Eby Stamp Mill is an example of the type of facility used in hard rock gold mining to crush ore. It is one of the few stamp…
Malakoff Diggins is California’s largest hydraulic gold mine. There are no shafts (except for massive drain tunnels) because the gold was dug up by using high pressure water…
The Plumas-Eureka State Park consist of the Plumas-Eureka (Mohawk) Stamp Mill, the museum was built in the old miners barracks, the Eureka Tunnel, nearby Jamisin City and mine, and the…
I added the Hiller Tunnel as a mine to visit because the 600 ft long tunnel is about as authentic as it gets. Though the tunnel is not…
Not much is know about this 5 stamp mill other than the men pictured above restored it in 2012 to be placed in the Downieville Memorial Park along…
In the foothills above the affluent San Jose suburb of Almaden Valley lies dozens of mercury mines and the ruins from nearly 140 years of mining operations. The…
We visited Harrisburg in 2014. Moderately preserved with moderate vandalism, sadly. Harrisburg is located in Death Valley National Park only a short distance west of the Eureka Mine.…
Cashier Mill is located in Death Valley National Park only a short distance east of Harrisburg, California. The Eureka Mine that fed the mill was opened in 1905…
The Eureka Mine is located in Death Valley National Park only a short distance west of the Harrisburg, California. The mine was opened in 1905 by Shorty Harris…
We have driven by and through Chinese Camp several times over the years on our travels up and down Highway 49 but never stopped. But now with Lake…
On Main Street in Georgetown is a restored stamp mill from the Slate Mountain Mine. The mine was a few miles south east of town. The mill was…
Bodie is the king of the ghost towns and also the most authentic mining town remaining in California. You wont find any hot dogs or souvenirs here (well,…
Founded in 1852 by French miners who struct gold in the nearby Tuolomne River La Grange was a mostly lawless town after mining all but ceased by 1880.…
We took off on a warm summer day to look for mines near highway 49 south of Lake McClure and made a pass through Hornitos. I call…
On a trip from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon we stumbled upon Chloride after a stop for gas in Uranus. Gold and other minerals were first discovered…
Sutter’s Mill is a replica Sawmill located in Coloma at the Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. Though it is not a gold mill it has a strong tie to…
This 5 stamp mill sits in a small roadside park across the street from the “Native Sons of the Golden West” building in Auburn. The park also has…
The old town of Coloma has some residents but is generally considered a ghost town. The only residents are museum/park workers and a few miners. Several original buildings…
Here is where the great California Gold Rush began in Jan 1848. James Marshall found gold after trying to clear a larger channel for the water from his…
Old Sacramento features scores of original period buildings from the Gold Rush, almost all of which have been transformed into restaurants and tourist shops.Train rides, steam boats and…
Mariposa is a true California Gold Rush town without a doubt. It started as a mining camp 6 miles away near a small creek called Aqua Fria in…
Sutter’s Fort is certainly no mining town but it holds a strong tie to the great California Gold Rush. The fort was built in 1839 as a trade…
This small California mining town was occupied by thousands of miners only shortly after the discovery of gold in the area. Dozens of banks, saloons, stores and hotels…
Martin Murphy Jr. Historical Park located in Sunnyvale is home to this 5 stamp Hendy Stamp Mill. The Joshua Hendy Iron Works company was well known for building…
This is the real deal. The Eagle and High Peak mines are open for guided tours through a 100o’ tunnel up and down ladders and stairs. Lots of…
Greenhorn Park has a ball mill; an arrastra, which is a primitive mill used to grind gold or silver ore; a stamp mill; a blacksmith shop; and a…
Calico Ghost Town is a former silver mining town that was transformed into a family attraction by Walter Knot of Knot’s Berry Farm fame in 1951. Walter replaced…