
Wildcat Mines of the Mother Lode and the Sierras:
Long after the California gold rush was over there were still
prospectors out in the hills trying to find the "big strike" that
would make them rich. Most of the surface gold and placer deposits
were worked out, so the only way to find gold was to dig down into
hard rock following veins of quartz. Hard rock mining was very expensive and much labor was needed to dig
the shafts, so most successful mining operations were conducted by
large companies that could raise capital and hire many workers.
Young, adventurous miners knew that you couldn’t get rich working in
the big mines, so they struck out on their own. Working on a
“shoestring”, these industrious but cash strapped men cobbled
together simple...
Click Here to Read the Wildcat Mines Article.
The Safire Gold Mine
A few photos showing an example of a vertical shaft
head frame for a typical small wildcat mine in the Mother Lode of California. Click on each photo to see a larger
image..
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The Safire Gold Mine |
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The Author in a Side Drift. |
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Like to tell me of
something you have?
If you have an
interesting ore car, or other items from 1849 to the early 1900's you think
might have been used in mining, or perhaps some bits of history,
documents or photos, that
you are willing to share, let me know:
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Typical 4 -Man Wildcat Mine

Wildcat Mine in Nevada

A small mine with a
wooden ore car:
Tuolumne, CA |