The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-08-10
MISS HILTON MINER.
Pr0spected For Gold With the Men
and Struck 1t Rich.
She Recently Sold n Mine for $25,O 900.
Her Career In Arizona.


had during the last few months In selling
a gold mine that she found Is likely 10 bo
a common topic OF discussion In every min
ing camp and about every campfire Of min
ing prospectors all this year.
Miss Hilton is about 20 years old, OF
sturdy 1guSc and about feet inches In
height She Is gold and silver mining
prospector In the full sense of the word.
She recently sold her interest In the Kan
sas mine, In western Arizona, for $26, 900
TO the Higgins brothers Of Salt Lake City.
From her earliest recollection Miss Hill
ton has been interested In plineralogy.
When her father used to bring ~ his home
In Stockton, Cal, specimens OF gold and
silver quartz and would sit for hours by
the window as he slowly turned tho ore
over and over, all the time silently study
ing the bits of stock, little Jennie took an
uncommon interest In the sparkling and
variegated chunks When she grew older,
she became diligcnt student Of mineral
ogy. She passed her vacations In San
Francisco and Chico IN reading geology
and mineralogy. She grew To know every
mineral specimen In the Academy Of Sci
ences In San Francisco. Her girl friends
set Jennie Hilton down for an old maid
crank.
In the summer vacation Of 1890 Miss
Hilton went from her school at Spadra TO
visit her brother, wlo had moved to Pbe.
nix, A. L. She says that she arrived in
Phenix one night, aud the next afternoon,
In q temperature OF over 1l0 degrees in the
shade, went forth, with geological ham,
mer and bottle Of acid In hand to learn
about tho rock formations In the noun
tains of the Gila valley.
Not only did the young woman miner
decide that shc could find gold or silver
mines as well as any one, but she induced
her brother and an old bachelor uncle 10
give up their occupations and, with tho
littlo money they had laid away for the
proverbial rainy day, TO join her In long
continued seeking of gold among the
mountains or out across the burning des-
erts OF Arizona
Almost every day In the year parties Of
mining prospectors and miners 6 = with
q grub stake from Phenix Tor the noun
tains and foothills but the sight OF trim
little Miss Hilton, dressed in short wooen
skirts, heavy shoes and an ins.nense sun
bonnet, trudging along at the side OF her
two donkcys, both laden with the usual
camp outfit Of blankets, piclIaxes, pans,
skillets, gridirons, bags of rations and car
petsacks of clothing and followed in pro-
cession by her big brother and her uncle,
each accompanied by "a laden jackass, was
"a sight that has remained distinct amid
the hundreds of similar scenes In the
memory of the spectator. No one believed
for moment that the party would contin-
ne prospecting for more than a few weeks
From the first day Miss Hilton was zeal
Gus In her work. She waited some weeks
to try the life and To be sure she was not
rash; then she wrote to the school trustee
at Spadra, resigning her place, drew some
of her savings from bank in Los Angeles
and became full fledgcd prospector.
In the fall of 1890 the young woman and
her brother and uncle prospected over some
90 miles Of mountains They did not go
at 1t haphazard. Thoy listened to all that
the old time miners in that region told
them. They passed several weeks In the
region round about Congress, A. It., and
located several mines there, only 10 find by
later experience that these never would
pay. The mines at Congress were studied
for days at time. The miners were in
tervicwed repeatedly.
The next winter tho schoolteacher pros
pector and her companions went down to
Globe, A. T., which was then becoming
timo tho most notorious community in the
territory, for all tho hard characters-men
who shot and stabbed-had rushed there
But that did not deter Miss Hilton. There
wero but two other women In Globe that
winter. Sho s;lys she wns treated with
kindness, and on many occasions the cour-
tesy shown her In rude way by the queer
old characters who had lived on the bor-
der of civilization for a generation was
almost touching No oaths were uttered
intentionally In her presence; no man ever
raised glass of whisky to his lips If he
knew she was present.
When tho warm months of spring and
summer returned, Miss Hilton and broth
er and uncle started out again. They
travelled through tho San Rita mountains
and found little or nothing In the way of
ores that were considered worth locating
as claims. They licnt northward 10 Pres
cott and for soyoral months searched the
mountains there. They passed month
In searching through Guaymas canyon.
In the winter Miss Hilton opened an Office
for assaying In Prescott and did fair
business. Her method of making assays
was liked, and the miners had confidence
In her statements
She was asked 10 remain in Prescott,
but when spring opened her enthusiasm
f0r prospecting was fred again by the
news her brother sent her that he had
found over in the Harqua IIala region tho
best looking aurifcrous rock in the whole
territory In two weeks moro Miss Hilton
had closed her assay Office and was on her
way across tho country 20 Harqua Hala in
company with her uncle and accompanied
by the usual complement OF jackasses and
camp outfit.
Tho original Harqua Halo mines, which
had been worked for several years, were
then, as they now are, probably the rich
est in the territory and were attracting all
the attention of the miners thore. Miss
Hilton passed some time i'm studying tho
land, and then for several weeks she and
her brother and uncle went up and down
in the low range of barren, sunbakcd
mountains that skirt the east shore of the
Colorado river.
Seven mining claims were located. Ono
was tho Kansas mino, which, Miss Hilton
A. a. a. a 4