The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-03-22
SOME MONSTER NUGGETS WHICH
HAVE BEEN FOUND IN CALI
FORNIA.
LARGEST WAS WORTH s22,27O.
1T WEIGHED OVER l5l POINTS,
TWO FORTUNES GO FOR
DRINK.
HOMANCE OF AN EXHIBIT
Seen at the Worlds Fair-SOme of
the Finds of Late
Years.

The wonderful revival in gold mining
throughout the world has caused much
discussion as to the largest gold mug
gets that have been picked up and
the curious circumstances connected
with the discovery Of some Of the rich
est deposits of the precious metal in
California, says a Pomona, Cal, cor
respondent of the Globe-Democrat
The subject is full of romantic inter-
est, and the large fortunes that have
been stumbled upon in a day by some
gold miners form a perennial source
OF discussion among all classes of peo-
pie in the West. The recent meeting
of the Miners association in San Fran
cisco has been the means of recalling
large number of facts connected
with the finding in California Of chunks
of gold that have brought their dis
coVerers good-sized fortunes.
Col. Daniel Bailey, of Pomona val
ley, who is probably the most expert
enced prospector and gold miner in
California today, has been constantly
engaged in seeking and locating gold
mines since 1856, and he says that the
only man he ever knew of who found
two very valuable gold nuggets was
Daniel Hill, who died a miserable pau
per in the Los Angeles county aims
house several years ago. In the sum-
mer OF 1866 Hill was working gold in
the placer diggings at the Ruby Belle
mine, in Plumas county, away up I'M
der the shadow of Mount Shasta, when
he came across, buried in the gravel,
chunk Of gold and red-stained, water
marked quartz, as large as a horses
hoof. He started off the very next
day for Sacramento, where he sold the
ind at the D. o. Mills bank for $14 600.
In less than ayear Hill had spent ev-
cry dollar of this sum. He squandered
over $4,000 in one week in San Fran
CISCO
When his money was gone he went
pack to work again, and by hard work
maze an average of a few dollars a
DAY Tor the next four or five years
But one day in the fall Of 1871, while
ne and his companions were canning
IN a lonely canyon in the region of
Dutch Flats, Nevada county, he STUN
pled upon another very large nugget
HiIl was looking over a small discard
ed placer mine, and was running the
coarse gravel through his hands while
ms pfactlced eye searched for evidence
or yellow metal. He stopped down to
wash his hands in the brook, when
lying there in the running water was
nugget of gold and white quartz similar
IN size and shape to a baby's head
How the chunk ever got there. and
especially how hundreds Of hungry
gold-seekers had tramped over that
1ocaHly Tor ten years previous and
never got the nugget, is one of the
1aVorlte topics of speculation among
the1 oId,tlme miners in the golden
n a 1t.
again abandoned himself to a long ca
reer Of debaGchery and recklessness
His second fortunate find was spent
as soon as was his first, and he became
drunkard. He never found another
nugget, either large or small although
he searched for years.
The largest nugget ever found In
this state was that known as the
oliver Martin chunk. 1t weighed III
pounds ounces. The precious ore was
mixed with white quartz, and was sold
after having been converted into bui-
lion for $22, Hundreds of pictures
have been made of the golden mass
and all the schoolboys in California
are expected to know the weight size
and value OF the famous nugget There
are bronze facsimileS of the chunk in
many mineral collections in museums
In Europe and America. The nugget
was found near Camp Corona, in Tue
lumne county, in central California.
The date of the finding was Nov. IS
1904. Martin, poor miner, who had
not even the proVerbial dollar to his
name. and companion named John
Flower, were tramping on their way
UP country to new diggings The camp
ed one night in a mountain canyon
when sudden and terrific rain storm
came up In the darkness The water
in the canyon stream suddenly rose
q Z tod 70 oI;-
but the flood overlook them and both
We're carried down stream Flower was
drowned, but Martin, though severely
injured, escaped. While trying to bury
his companions body by the roots of an
upturned tree, Martin discovered the
rlch nugget that bears his name He
was too weak to move it. He attempt
ed 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 10 the spot, and the nugget
was removed. Martin made the mug
get the basis of a large fortune that
he accumulated in the next two dec
AIDES.
In August, 1859, 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 q
gold nugget which weighed 1893 ounces
troy. 1t was sold to r. B. Woodward,
of San Francisco, who paid for it SI8.-
345 for exhibition purposes. It was al
terWard melted and about SIG, 500 real
lied from it.
The biggest nugget IF 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 town of Shasta in
search of spot to mine. They hap
pened to have some business with A.
Coleman, a dealer in hardware and
notions. The three asked him where
was a good place to mine. He careless
ly pointed in a northerly direction, and
said GO over to Spring creek" They
took his advice. located claim on the
creek, some eight miles north of Red
ding, and few days later one of the
Frenchmen picked W a nugget of gold
valued at $500. Ten years later a
miner named Dent Young found a $500
nugget on Flat creek, near where the
Frenchmen found their famous chunk.
GOLD IN PLENTY, BUT FEW
NUGGETS.
Plumas, though che o. - richest
mining counties in California has
yielded few valuable nuggets. The
largest was found by Chinaman near
the mouth OF Nelson creek, and was
worth $4,000. A miner at Elizabeth
town, named Archie Little discovered
a 81, 600 nugget, and MesSers. Hays and
Stedman found one above Mohawk
valley, near the county line, that
weighed 40 ounces and was worth
Sc, 100.
Sierra is Justly famed for its yalu