WorldWide Drilling Resource

Alaska Miners Association Phone: 907-563-9229 Fax: 907-563-9225 ama@alaskaminers.org www.alaskaminers.org American Exploration and Mining Assn. Phone: 509-624-1158 Fax: 509-623-1241 info@miningamerica.org www.miningamerica.org WorldWide Drilling Resource ® is proud to be a member of these mining associations. Women in Mining 866-537-9694 wim@womeninmining.org www.womeninmining.org 47 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® NOVEMBER 2014 A Brief History of the Priest Mine by Harry W. Short Engineering Geologist When placer gold was discovered at Coloma in 1848, a new era opened in California history. Miners and prospec- tors descended from all over the U.S. and the world seeking their fortunes in gold. Small towns like Placerville (aka Hangtown) sprang up in the California mother lode. One mine in Northern California (Alleghany) was discovered by a group of Chinese sailors who jumped ship in San Francisco. Gold-bearing veins in the Mariposa Formation date back to the Jurassic Age 190 million years ago (mya). The forma- tion is a one- to two-mile-wide band of sedimentary rocks that were metamor- phosed into hard slates during periods of intense deformation and recrystallization. Later in geologic history, these rocks were intruded by granitemagmas, and gold-bear- ing veins formed in the joints and frac- tures in shard rocks in the formation. After placer mining became non- productive, hard rock mining evolved when the gold miners recognized the placer gold came from rock in the hill- sides that were transported, deposited, and mixed by stream activity. Many small mining companies began digging their own drifts (horizontal shafts) following the ore-bearing veins. ThePriest Mine is a hard rockmine of this era that was hand dug, and thousands of pick marks left by the miners tell the story of the hard life they endured. The mine was named the "Priest" after a miner who historians say pro- vided Sunday worship services for the miners. There is an area inside the mine that held a board which was used for an altar. The air shaft of the mine con- nects to the Gold Bug Mine below. The natural flow of air kept the mine dry and at an even temperature. A wooden cover overhead keeps out debris and var- mints. Both mines, plus the Silver Pine Mine, are located in the Gold Bug Park at Placerville. John McKay took over the mine in 1926. Tracks were laid and ore cars moved the ore for delivery to an eight- stamp mill to break it down in preparation for extracting the gold. The ore-bearing rock was mined in the Mariposa Formation ±190 mya. The miners worked shifts of 2-3 men, and it took 24 hours for the air to exchange before they could go back to work. No records were kept about the amount of gold extracted. All the mines throughout the moth- er lode were closed by the U.S. President because gold mining was considered a nonessential industry, and the men were needed to fight in WWII. However, this did not stop the search for strategic minerals necessary for the war effort. My Freshman Geology Professor Dr. Gordon Bell explored the area around Globe, Arizona, for copper, aluminum, lead, zinc, and others needed for con- struction of war equipment. The last owner of the four mining claims in the park area was William Meagher. When the mines were no longer workable, the Bureau of Land Management took over and leased the land as public property. In 1965, the City of Placerville received a 25-year lease with the stipulation the land would be used only for recreational activities. The property was deeded to the city in 1981, and Placerville became the only municipality in the State of California to own a gold mine. The mine was approved as a National Register of Historic Places and also as a State of California Point of Interest in 1984. In April 1980, the Placerville Gold Bug Park Development Committee was formed to administer the property. Special thanks to Rich Dvoracek, mining geologist who provided valuable help in the prepara- tion of this article. Harry Harry Short may be contacted via e-mail at michele@wwdr-usa.com Eight-stamp mill. Each stamp weighs 500-600 pounds.