The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-02-10
BIG CHUNKS OF GOLD
MANY FOUND IN CALIFORNIA THAT
WE'RE WORTH A FORTUNE.
One Weighed 151 Pounds g Dances,
and Was Worth $3~6,27O-Lots of
Nuggests Worth More than $1,000.

That story in the Sun about the find
ing of a gold nugget in the mining re-
gions of Patagonia worth $5.00O," said
Col. T. p. Brooks. who has been a gold
miner in California and Arizona for
forty-ive years, seems to have made
a great commotion among those miners
down in South America, but that was
only a boy of a nugget by the side of
many that haze been taken out of the
earth and rocks in California. Daniel
Hill. who died of delirium tremens in a
Jail in Los Angeles several years ago,
was the luckiest man 1 ever knew or
heard of in getting suddenly rich twice.
He dug two hunks Of solid gold out
of the gravel as simply and easily as a
man rolls a stone out of the hillside.
The first nugget was found in June,
1866, in the Ruby Belle claim, north of
Plumas. 1t was as large as a mans
head and was combined with water
stained quartz. c. p. H~untington's
brother in Sacramento bought it for
$1,000 cash down. In the fall of 1871
Hill was placer mining on his own ac-
count in Dutch Flats, and. by hunky,
he washed out another nugget of gold
and quartz about the size and shape of
a horses hoof. He quit work and went
right down to Frisco, where he got
$14, 200 for his lucky find. He had spent
every dime of his little fortune in six
months, and went back to hard work
in the mountains again. Blu hat ended
his streak of luck, and he never made
over $40 in any one day after that; more
often 50 or So a day, and sometimes not
a dime"
The Miners Association of California
has among it's great mass of literature
the development of mining operations
in this State many interesting facts
concerning big nugget of gold. The
largest nugget ever found in this State
was that known as the Oliver Martin
Chunk. 1t weighed Isl pounds and 6
ounces. The precious ore was mixed
with white quartz, and it was sold
after having been converted into bullion
for 1920. Hundreds Of pictures have
been made of the golden mass, and all
the schoolboys in California are ex-
pected to know the weight, size and
value of the famous nugget. There are
bronze fac-similes of the chunk In many
mineral collections in museums in
Europe and America. The nugget was
found near Camp Corona, in Tuolumne
county, in central California. The date
of the finding was Nov. Is, 1854. Martin,
a poor miner. who had not ever the
proverbial dollar to his name, and a
companion named John Flower were
tramping on their way up country to
new d~iggings. They camped one night
in a mountain canyOn when a sudden
and terrific rainStOrm came up in the
darkness. The water in the canyon
stream suddenly rose. The miners at
tempted to climb the hill, but the flood
overlook them and both were carried
down the stream. Flower was drowned,
but Martin, thOugh severely injured, eS-
capped. While trying to bury his COM
panion's body by the roots of an up
turned tree Martin discovered the rich
nugget that bears his name. He. was
too weak to move it. He attempted to
reach some neighboring miners but
tainted from exhaustion and was found
on the trail by them. When able to
walk some weeks later Martin took
them to the spot and the nugget was
removed. Martin made the nugget the
basis of a large fortune that ne accumu-
lated in the next two decades.
OTHER BIG NUGGETS.
In August, 1869, w. A. Parish, A.
Wood, j. Winstead, F. N. l.. Clevering
and Harry Warner were partners in the
Monumental claim near Sierra Buttes,
in Sierra county. In the last week of
that month they discovered a gold mug
get which weighed 1888 ounces troy. 1t
was sold to r. B. Woodward, of San
Francisco, who paid for it $21. 636. 50 for
exhibition purposes. 1t was afterward
melted and 17,654.94 was realized
from it.
The biggest nugget of gold ever found
in Shasta county was discovered in
the spring of 1870. One day three
Frenchmen, two of whom were named
oliver Longchamp and Fred Rochon.
drove into the old tow Of Shasta in
search of a spot to mine. They hap
pened to have some business with A.
Coleman, q dealer in hardware and no.
tons. The three asked him where was
q good place to mine. He carelessly
pointed in a northerly direction and
said, go over to Spring creek" They
took his advice, located a claim on
the creek some eight miles north of
Redding. and a few days later one OF
the Frenchmen picked up a nugget of
gold valued at Sc. 200. Ten years later
q miner named Dent Young found a
$50 nugget on Flat creek near where
the Frenchmen found their famous
chunk.
Plumas, though one of the richest
mining counties in California, has
yielded few valuable nuggets. The
largest was found by a Chinaman near
the mouth of Nelson creek. and was
worth s., 800. A miner at E~lizabethtown
named Archie Little discovered a $1,000
nugget, anu NleSSIS. nays liz oSCoo~
man found one above Mohawk valley.
near the county line. that weighed 420
ounces and was worth IS, 700.
Sierra is justly famed for its valuable
masses of gold found both pure and
mixed with quartz. George H. Norman
and Frank Aman found near Gibson
vile in 1867 a nugget that weighed over
one hundred ounces and was worth
81. ECO. In 1851 at French ravine a lump
of quartz and gold together was. dis
covered from which $4,000 in gold was
taken. In 1855 in the same ravine a
still more aluable nugget of gold and
quartz was found, and from it $4,000
was obtained. At Minnesota, in the
same county, a nugget that weighed 266
ounces was found. This was valued at
SIS, 900. At French ravine in 1850 a
mass of gold and quartz was picked
up that weighed 263 ounces and was
worth $4.S93. In 1870 a splendid nugget
of gold was discovered in the Rainbow
mine at Allegheny. which was imme-
diately shipped to London, and was
there sold for s23. 600. In 1860 a chunk
of gold that weighed ninety-five POUNDS
and six ounces was discovered in the
same county.
In Placer county in 1859 Edward Gill
bert. in his drift mine near Butcher
ranch. twelve miles from Auburn. found
a nugget of gold and quartz that
weighed twenty pounds. Eight pounds