Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1883-02-17
Camp WGst;nctOn.
CUSTER Cry. OAK. Feb. -. 1888.

CUSTER Cry. OAK. Feb. 10, 1888.
EDITOR CUSTER CuRoNIcLE:-It is with
pleasure | pen you a few facts concern
ing the mines of Camp Washington. In
the {. w. belt or groupe Of mines there
are over fifty locations, many Of them
containing large veins Of fine ore, but
the Mayflower ia the most prominent,
and the richest, when the width and
extent of the ore vein is considered in
fact, it is t o-day the great mineral
wonder of Camp Washington and the
Southern Hills. 1t is the only instance
known to this country where a ledge of
such magnitude and OF such uniform
richness was already opened and deyel
oped when discovered. The Maytiower
requires but little or no outlay Of capital
TO make il Il paying mine and lis face
ought TO be worth many thousands.
Nature in a philanthropic mool did the
prospecting and developing, much to the
satisfaction of the owner> Any friends,
McSherer and Foran. The outer or
banging wall of the tire. sure vault,
through the wear AMI tear of ages, crum
b'ed and slipped from the ore body u
distance of many feet leaving several
hundred tons of the very choicest quartz
lying against the hillside TO be broken
down at small expense. The lead crops
above ground the entire length of fiji
teen hundred feet. The development is
being made near the north end, the
present working consist i'm sinking a
shaft near the base Of the hill disclosing
a separate vein two feet in thickness
and carrying any amount of free gold.
The lead at this point shows a body of
ore cropping 10 the surface fifty feet
wide and one hundred and fifty feet
long almost any of it showing free gold.
No estimate of the richness Of the ore
has vet been made except by mechanical
assays, Of which large results are obtain
ed. The owners have made an ore bin
and are saving the ore with a view of
hauling it to -Four Mile and having it
milIed in the spring. The mine is most
fivorablv located, easy of access and
within two hundred yards Of French
creek, four miles northwest from Custer
City and about two mics from the Gold
Star mill.
There are several Claims in the vicini-
ty of the Maynower, though not very
much developed which show large
bodies Of fine ore, assaying from five to
forty and rs high as one hundred and
twenty dollars in gold. The first exten-
tons south of the Mayfowcr are Janu-
airy, Prospect, Patterson, Spotted Leo
pard, Union, Star, Old sam. American
Eagle, Craven and Silver Chief being
the most prominent, having been more
worked than the balance Of them
though there is not a claim in the {. w
groupc that does not prospect we'll in
the pan.
Although many Of the claims III this
camp have the appearance Of being
abandoned &c l. the case in many oth.,
portions Of the Hills, the prospector still
clings 70 his location managing 10 do the
amount Of work required by law t. ho!L
them. Douyant with hope in the future
he has no other encouragement exccp,
that Of hi: prospect. The fact sthat toe
much sAmenecs exists, not enough
strange f!ceS to be seen, nothing to re
vivc hi- former energy. he is eaking out
a miserable cxistanrc. Yours,
Az OLD PaospEcroR.