The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1892-05-07
THE GROSH BROTHERS.
Their Discoveries Of Silver in
Nevada.


Nevada.
1t may not be generally known by cur
readers that Hosea B. Grosh and Ethan
Allen Grosh, b,u!hers 0l cur esteemed
fellow courtain Mr.. Warren i. Grosh
were the frst 20 suspect the existence OF
silver il the Washoa region, sud that TIE
subsequent discovery OF that metal IN
Nevada is due to these brothers both of
whom were educated metallurgists. \
recent number of the Engineering and
Mining ,IourHaL contains a very interest
ing sketch OF these young men. They
were the sons of the Rev. A B. Grosh, d
UuiveIsallst Clergyman. Both the young
men received a good education and were
well informed on general subjects and
were of industrious aud temperate habits
Their boyhood was spent in Utica n.
Y, but at the outbreak of the Califoria
lgold excitement in ie49 they were living
in Reading, Pa. An organization of
eighteen men was formed in that place
Cdilcu hC SdiliOi hSSOGlEttIOA vi
Reading" which they Joined, Allen
becoming the secretary o! the associa-
tion. They left Reading for California
in February, 1919. The following
extracts from letter written by their
father to Mrs. DR.. e. B. Winslow, of
Washington, D. c., on July Sth, 1879,
and printed i'll the Lyon County Times,
of Silver City, Nevada August 9th, 1879
gives the subsequent details Of their
lives:
"E. Allen and Hosea B. Grosh went
from Reading, Pa, in company in 1949
and reached California, via Tamplco and
Mazatlan. They soon engaged in gold
mining, most of tbs time at or near Mud
Springs (now Ell Dorado), Ell Dorado
county, with varying, bus never very
prosperous, fortunes. They visited
Carson Valley il 1851, but soon returned
to California. In 1858, however they
made it longer visit, and pretty thor
oughly prospected portions of what they
called Carson Valley Gold Canon,
and 'Washoe Valley and many of the
adjoining mountains.
After their return to California with
specimens for fuller examination, they
wrote many letters giving details of their
discoveries and of the information they
were gradually acquiring respecting
,,nJoc ~ tIair fna 0,a ct.Tc1
that they found what they believed to
be Carbonate of silver, in Gold Canon
"a dark gray mass, probably, by the
sulphuric acid in the water. | resem bles
thin sheet lead, broken very fine, and
lead the miners suppose it to be. The
ore We found at tho forks of the caron-
a large quartz vein-at least boulders
from vein close by here shows itself y
Other ore of silver We think we
have found i'll the canon, and rock
called black rock, very abundant, we
think contains silver These and other
discoveries of this period led to many
conversations with Old Frank, an ex-
perienced Mexican fuiuer, aud toumerous
experiu ents in assy;rg, as their limited
means allowed, preparatory to a return
Carson Valley, They also organized
IA large company Of kindred and
friends in the middle Atlantic States,
called the Utah Enterprise Miuing Com
pany,' of which they were part, and for
which they were ageuts-wh ich was to
enable them to hold and work their
various and numerous discoveries.
But lack Of means delayed their
return to Carson Valley until May, 1857,
when they obtained an outfit by organ
izing the Frank Mining Company
named after old Frank aforenamed,
constituted of themselves and few
waltbier friends who advanced the
money. They soon rediscovered their
our monster vein,' they located in the
name of the Frank Company, and other
veins in the name Of the Utah Enterprise
Company, and located in their own
name what they termed "a smaller but
richer vein'-'a much more promising
vein, because more easily worked. Both
these are said to be AZ or near the forks
of the canon They also mention suits
of vein crossing the canon at two other
poius,' and "a mammoth vein of copper
copper pyrites-25 or 80 miles north Of
the canon, containing considerable
silver and resembling copper then
about being mined for its silver, some
DISTANCE from theirs.
They found great difficulties in max
ing reliable assays, in the nature of ores,
being not, as we had supposed, magnetic
oxide of iron, but the ma gnetic sulphuret
of iron, and other mixtures (antimony,
etc. }, adding difficulties in their toilsome
and tedious labor, with deficient mate
rails and imperfect apparatus. But all
their assays showed the blackIsh, purple
and violet rock to be rich in silver. The
greatest difficulty, one they could not
surmourt except after much time anG
labor, was their poverty. To procure
food they must use nearly every hour
not absolute needed for rest in gold Dig
ging and washing, Leaving only few
spare hours for roasting aud smelling.
While engaged in digging earth OF
Gold Hilt* for washing, Hosea stuca
his pick into the hollow of his foot. Thi
was on August 1911, and modification
set IN and caused his death on Septembe
I'd. He was buried respectfully by hi
fellow miners, and his remains havI
since been removed to cemetery q
Silver City ard memorial stone ba
been placed over them.
ALLEN, as early as he could, Of
| November 18Th, in company with hi
friend, Mr.. Buckle (uow DR.. r. II. Buck
| Superintendent of the Dominion Asylum
London, CANADA, started for California
They were hiudered By the loss of thel
mule and his recovery, and caught i'll th
great snow storm OF that year while i
the Divide Of the Sierra Nevada, an
compelled to kill their mule, aud throI
away their specimens and other baggag
and continue THEN journey on foe
through the deep and trackless snow
Their powder and matches got wet, an
the mule meat being consumed, the
were four days and nights without fir
or food, sleeping in their blankets unde
snow. They reached Mexican miners
camp, legs frozen to above the knees
and thence were taken on sleds to Las
| Chance by the miners Of the latter place
| where MIR. Buckle had one leg and foe
! Of ~ "a tat esT