Mohave County miner., 1883-02-25
The Gold Basin District.

northwestern FestiOI OI MohaVe county an' was formed in November. 1881. The fac
 that gold lodges were known to exist in tha part of the county had been known to olC
 settlers and prospectors for years, but nC attempt was made to organize any distric or do any work towards prospecting tht lodges until the month of November, wher the district was regularly formed by R. G
 Patterson, John Fox, George Marsan, J
 W. Yoacham, Louis Siebrecht and others The boundaries of the district are as fol- lows: Commencing at the Colorado river at the mouth of Sacramento Wash and run ming thence south about forty miles to Mountain Springs; from thence east to WalIapai Valley, between ten and twelve miles; thence north, down the Wallapai Wash, forty miles to the Colorado river: five miles to the place of beginning. The district is bounded on the north by the the river, on the east by Lost Basin district 1 (which will be described in a future issue) on the south by the Wallapai district and on the west by the Minnesota district and
 
 district commences about five miles north of the southern boundary and little east of Cold Springs and runs continuously to the river. This district is entirely with. out timber of any description except some small oedars near the southern end of the district and about five miles southwest of the Fl Dorado mine, of little or no use for mining purposes. At present this is one of the greatest drawbacks the district has had to contend with, but as the Atlantic and Pacific railroad passes within forty miles of it, the want of timber will soon become one of the wants of the past. As regards water the district is poorly supplied, except on the northern portion where an inexhaust- ible supply can be obtained from the river. The rest of the district has to depend on springs for water and there are not many of them. though there is no doubt that as the country becomes better prospected new ones will be found, and the mines themselves will furnish an abundance of water. The largest and best known of these springs is called Salt Spring and is in Salt Spring Wash, about two and a-half miles from the river, and on the direct line of the main mineral belt. This spring contains an abundance of water flor milling purposes. Cold Springs lie at the other end of the dis triot and probably furnish enough water for a five stamp mill. Grass Springs, though not in the district, are so near to it as to justify mention. These springs are A. IL and lie in the Grass Springs Wash on the southern slope of the Music Mountain range, running into the river about twenty five miles from Pierce's Ferry. There is always plenty of water in these springs for stock and prospectors, if they keep their heads level-and if they can't they have no business prospecting, will have no difi- culty in finding water. The district is neither rocky nor rough and one can go almost anywhere in it with light wagon. Prospectors will find plenty of fuel in the shape of bayonet and date cactus, and in the washes catclaw and occasionally desert willow. The lodges are all true Assure veins, probably truer and better defined than in any other part of the Territory and the formation is granite, slate and syenite. The ore is free milling quartz varying in color and being sometimes deeemposed, carrying free gold and very little silver. The gold is of heavy character generally denomin- ated "shot gold" and is evenly distributed throughout the rock, though in isolated in stances it is found i'll the shape of ''leaf gold" Some of the quartz shows copper stains and where these are found the ore may be depended on to go over $40 to the ton. The lodges vary in thickness from two feet up to five, six and eight feet, and the average value per ton of the ore prod4ced in the district 80 far is about $25 or $50. Among the mora prominent mines in the district already worked we mention ths Fl Dorado and the Excelsior, owned by Patter- Son and company; the Poor Man, owned by Steen and Davis; the Golden Rgi9, owned by Siebreclt anl Sol. Rowe; the 0. K, owned by Patterson and Lassell; the Old Hickory and the Red Ciouc, owned by Sam. Pastor. and the Harmonica and Hope, owned by Oroofeg and Burke. It is not in the province of this article to enter into a detailed description of these mines and ws have only made mention Of the abovs be- cause on most of them the owners will be found at work, and for the purpose of show ing that the work of developing the district is going on.At present the only facilities for milling ore from this distri5t are to be ob- tained at the five stamp mill at Grass Springs, which has been in operation some few months and has worked considerable amount of ore, principally from the Fl Dorado mine. Ore from this mine is hauled thirteen miles to the mill, at an expense, heretofore, of $8 per ton, and most of it has milled over $40, The owners of the mill are about to add two Frua concentra- tors and expect by their aid to work the ore up to very high percentage. To get into this district one should start either from Blackberry, forty-thrse miles, or Min eral Park, thirty eight miles. From Hack berry there is a splendid road down the Wallapai Valley, hugging the range pretty cIocaIv to Pattarson,S wall a diGtanca of