The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1897-08-27
OUR COLD HISTORY
Condensed History Of It's Discovery IL
Different Parts of Montana.
FOUND ON GOLD CREEK IN 'e1
"Gold Tom Made the First DiscOv-
cry and the Next Was John White
at Grasshopper Gulch.

The first discovery of gold in Mon
tana, says the Helena Independent, was
made in 1861 On Gold Creek, five
miles below the little village of Pion-
eer, in Deer Lodge county, "Gold i
Tom found placers where there
was gold in paying quantities, and i'll
the most primitive manner possible
worked some of the ground. No at
tempt was made to systematically op-
cate the locally rniil full
year afterwards, when Granville Stu
art, now minister to Uruguay and Par
a ,uay, and his brother James bought
some necessary appliances and oper-
ated the first placer mine in Montana
in 1862. Their tools and appliances
they imported into the country at in
finite labor and expense.
Many millions were taken from the
vicinity in time. The Pioneer, Inde-
pendent and Pixies Peak districts lay
along Gold Creek At the highest
point OH Pilgrim bar four men i'll two
seasons took out $3.50, 000 Down thes
valley there was gold in large quanti-
| ties. but it was so fine miners would
not bother with it. The gold on the
bars further up was coarser and there
was plenty of 1T and many men were
made rich on that single creek, which
was subsequently oyershadowed so
completely by the discoveries at other
points that later Oh bitches were put i'll
and the ground worked on still larger
scale. One of the bitches cost $500. 900
and had flowing capacity of 10, 600
miners inches, an inch being equal
to the supply of 1900 gallons in "A
hours. Under these bitches the ground
was worked out over an area or 3,5oo
feet of au average depth of Is feet to
bedrock, and a total yield OF @l3,-
900, 900.
The next discovery of any import
ance was made by John White and was
called Grasshopper gulch, where the
town of Bannock stood soon afterward.
The ground was of wonderful richness
and before the year was out mining
had been iuaugurated on much larger
scale than on Gold Greek.
More than $20, 900 90 worth Of gold
was taken from the vicinity.
Last Chance Gulch, where Helena
now stands, would cause Klondike
rush ali by itself, if it were once more
stripped of the valuable houses that
now stand upon it and the industry of
the miner were given field for work.
The four original discoverers took
out of their five claims, one claim for
each man aud the discovery claim,
nearly 5000, 900 each, thc richest of it
being not far from where the corner of
Clore and Wall streets now are. And
there was another wonderful rich por-
tion, strip of ground 200 feet square
near where the Montana Central depot
now stands that yielded it's owners,
Taylor & Thompson, $3.50, 900. And in
the estimation of many, the lowest
bedrock ought to have the richest dirt,
and it was not reached. The output
of the Last Chance gulch has been es-
timated at from 1920, 900, ,O00 and some
do not believe that figure was high
enough.
Confederate gulch was discovered in
1865, east of the Missouri river. where
Diamond City afterwards stood.
From three Of the bars above the bee
of the gulch about $1,000, 900 were
taken. From Montana bar the Wheeler
party, consisting of four, took out OF
the territory in single season 5000
900, or nearly half the aggregate pro.
duct Of the whole ground. A single
pan full of dirt. taken from a nook IL
the diggings of the junction of Mon
tana and Confederate gulch wher
the deposit was richest, contained
81, $50 of dust at current value. AnG
in the two years of 1866 and 1866 dis
coveries extended over the we'll known
gulches of Ophir, Bear. Highland and
Lincoln, in Deer Lodge county, and
| luuuy OUuCIS VI 4CSSCI Fd1uCS III OClel
counties. There was not gulch in
that number that did not yield more
than has already been sent to the assay
offices of the United States from Alaska
upon which the present excitement il
founded.
In Bear gulch placers were discov.
, cred in 1863 The yield in gold in two
, seasons alone was not less than 81. 600,
900.
Ophir gulch, on tributary of the
/. Blackfoot river, has yielded as high as
4 $500, 900 to the claim, and in some
4 parts of Mcclellan gulch the same
! gravel has been worked over as many
as five times and has each time paid
} for the work. In one instance fail