Sierra Buttes Geology & Gold Mines

[Wild Bill]

Sierra County has produced more large nuggets than any other county in California.  There are many old historic high grade mines around the Sierra Buttes with a history of huge nuggets found in the area.  Including the Monumental Nugget which weighed 1,493 Troy Ounces.  Found August 27, 1867.  East of Gold Lake at the Hayes Steelman drift mine in July 1886 a 39.75 lb. 540 Troy Oz Lunker was unearthed.  March 12, 1886 a 52 Oz chunk was discovered.  August 7 1886 another Big nugget at 52 1/2 Oz at the Hayes Steelman.  The Locke Mine just east of Hayes Steelman also had great nuggets.   In 1972 Jack Rose found a 28 Oz quartz and gold specimen while hunting in the area of the Buttes.  Some of the high grade quartz mines include the Sierra Buttes Mine, Bigelow, Sacred Mound, Kentucky, Buttes Saddle, Phoenix, Chips, Columbo and Mountain Mine.  I lived and mined in Sierra County at one time and often dreamed of detecting down slope of some of these mines but never did.  For you young and hardy detector prospectors, this could be a good area with so much potential.  Of course do diligence on claims and patents is in order.  Here’s a good video on the geology of the Buttes.

A photo I took east of Sierra City years ago.

[Wild Bill]

Here’s a photo of a good friend leaving our place to go gold prospecting the old fashioned way!  He’d stay for weeks in remote areas.  

[Wild Bill]

The discrepancy in the weight of the Monumental Nugget in the video and my mining records seems to be this.  “The Nugget taken out weighed 103 pounds.  It was boiled in nitric acid for one afternoon and weighed 97 pounds avoirdupois after having been cleaned.  Some six or eight pieces of it, varying in size from that of a single fist to that of a double fist, had been broken off before directions came to take it out whole.  Had this additional amount not been broken off the weight would have been augmented by probably 20 or 25 pounds.”  The Monumental Mine was a placer and the nugget was found in a crevice after sinking a shaft.  The mine was discovered when a pack horse was acting up and kicking at the ground exposing some small nuggets.  This mine is above Sierra City and below the Sierra Buttes mine. 
source Sierra city and Goodyears Bar by James J. Sinnott 

[oldmancoyote1]

4 hours ago, Wild Bill said:

Here’s a photo of a good friend leaving our place to go gold prospecting the old fashioned way!  He’d stay for weeks in remote areas.  

I'd like to know more about this man.  Is he a pocket hunter per Jack London and Nancy Austin?  What else can you tell us without given away secrets of course?

[Wild Bill]

Oldmancoyote1, Rocky was a loner and that’s how he lived.  His tools were pick, shovel, steel pan and classifier.  Had a good sense of humor like when our young daughters were watching him cleaning hooves and one of the horses keeps kicking.  Rocky hobbles the irate equine and drops it to the ground with a thud and a groan.  Proceeds to tell the girls about the personality of a horse while he sat on the horses head, rolled a cigarette and gazed at High Commission the mountain across the river.  Patiently smoked his cigarette, taking his time while seated on the horses head.  The horse got the message and so did the girls.  We had our own pack horses, Star and Sierra.  When we left Sierra County and moved to Northern Nevada we gave Star to a friend but kept Sierra.  She lived to the ripe old age of 44.  Quite unusual.  She was never shod which was better on rock with traction.  She never required a Veterinarian in her long life and was as sure footed as a mountain goat.  Today things are different there.  No more gold dredging, few prospectors and most of the guys we knew moved or passed away.  We occasionally take a trip to visit friends there but it’s been quite a while.  Now the new thing is rafting and mountain biking and much of the history is fading and unknown by the new generation.  Here’s a good article on much of those trails that were carved out through sweat and backbreaking work by those early prospectors and miners.  Good info…  https://dirtscrolls.com/14960490-the-hidden-downieville

[oldmancoyote1]

Thanks for the info.  The Downieville area sounds fascinating.  At 79 I guess I'll never get into that area much to metal detect.  I might try once.  Is there one place you would recommend that I might get into if I grit my teeth and keep pushing?

[Sourdough Scott]

@oldmancoyote1, I'm just over the hill north of Downieville in Plumas County. I'd be glad to take you out detecting in the general vicinity, when the snow melts of course.  

[Wild Bill]

Hi old man and Scott, I would start with the North Yuba below Goodyears Bar.  From there down the Yuba is fed by Goodyears Creek where Tertiary channels of the White Bear Mine contribute gold, Rock Creek where the famous Ruby Tertiary drift mine is and Woodruff Creek where the Brush Creek high grade lode mine is.  Also the Brown Bear Tertiary channel is cut by the North Fork of the Yuba.  Both Rams Horn campground (right downstream from Goodyears) and Indian Valley campground farther down might provide a campsite or a day stay.  Obviously detect bedrock cracks and crevices.  Many detector/prospectors ignore the gavel bars because the chances of a nugget sitting on top is slim to none.  However I have seen high grade specimens found in and on top of gravel bars.  The biggest piece of gold I had ever found was where it shouldn’t be.  On top of the gravel with sand covering it.  So DETECT THE GRAVELS!  Detect the campground bedrock and gravels, gold can be anywhere, I’ve seen it.  Be careful especially this time of year.  High fast moving ice cold water!  I’m 71 now, have arthritis and I’ve slowed down but still enjoy detecting.  Much of the high rough country I’ll probably never see again so Nevada is my stomping grounds now.  There’s probably more open ground these days as dredging is no longer allowed.  But do do diligence on claims is recommended.  Maybe ask locals in Downieville where you might be able to detect.  Ask Feather who owns the Mexican restaurant in town if it would be possible to detect the gravels at Goodyears Bar town site.  Last time we talked she still lived there.
Good luck! 

[Wild Bill]

Guys you might like the Lure Lodge.  My buddy Pete and I built the steel bridge there after a Fish & Game truck tried to cross the old wooden bridge and it broke!  Almost lost the water tanker full of trout in the river.  
https://m.yelp.com/biz/the-lure-resort-downieville

It’s right there at the mouth of Slate Castle Creek just up stream from the bridge that the 21 Oz Nugget was found by Rob Stout running an 8” Precision dredge.