Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1901-12-26
FROM THUNDER MOUNTAIN
CamaS Prairie Citizen Visited the Camp
and Confirms all Stories Told.
THE NEW GOLCONDA
Suggests a New Route by way Of
Dixie Camp and up Big Greek.

Dixie Camp and up Big Creek.
Leland A. Wayland, formerly
hotel keeper at Cottonwood, but
for the past four years a resident
Of Calender, in Buffalo Hump
district, was at the Wiltse house
this week with his wife. He has
just returned from a five months
sojourn in Thunder Mountain,
and confirms all the reports that
have been told concerning the
greatest gold mining camp on earth.
During his stay in there he To-
Gated seven claims, and has just
bonded two of them to Frank
Johnesse for $50, 600, the deal being
made for Boise parties. Mr.. Way
land talked freely about the new
district to the FREE Press, and
said that it was generally acknowl-
edged and conceded throughout
that section that the best way of
reaching the district was by way
of the northern route from Grange
vile and Warrens, and many peo-
pie who have heretofore been going
in the other way will hereafter
take the Grangeville and Warrens
route on account of its easy grades
and low attitudes.
In speaking of the mineral
wealth of the Thunder Mountain
district Mr.. Wayland said:
Thunder Mountain is without
doubt one of the greatest mineral
zones ever discovered in the west.
There is no telling how much ore
the district contains, but the de-
velopment work done so far is
sufficient to demonstrate that it's
title as the greatest gold camp on
earth cannot he disputed. Just
before l left the country another
strike of considerable magnitude
was made on the Glasgow group,
which adjoins some of the original
Caswell holdings, the ore from the
new strike assaying from 800 to
$500 per ton in gold. The vein at
the point of intersection is about
four feet wide and lies between
well.defined walls. Considerable
of this ore would pay to ship out
of the country. 1t shows free
gold in abundance.
"The showing of the district at
this time warrants the belief that
next spring will see one of the
greatest stampedes in the history
of the west. 1t is a difficult matter
to keep men away from place in
which there is gold at any time,
no matter what the hardships may
be which they have to undergo in
order to reach it. The country
there is very rugged, but in good
weather it is not as hard a trip as
some l have taken in these noun
tains. 1t is foolish for anyone to
think of going in there at this time,
because the SUBMITS are all covered
with deep snow, and provisions
are very scarce, not only in the
camp itself, but also at all the sta
tions and outfitting points along
the trail. Nothing can be accom-
plished in there now anyhow, and
people would have to lay idle all
winter, or until the sun reduces
the snow in the spring SO that one
could get out to prospect. There
is lots of good country there that
has not been prospected, but l
guess it will be we'll over-run
before another winter sets in."
Mr.. Wayland suggests that a
wagon road or trail from
Buffalo Hump to Dixie, and from
Dixie down to Salmon river, where
a Dixie man named Campbell is
putting in ferry, and thence up
into the Thunder Mountain basin
by way of Big creek, would be a
great improvement over any other
route, even over the present state
road from Warrens. The Thunder
Mountain itself is not over 1000
feet above sea level, and the ap-
proaches from the Big creek side
are very easy and gradual. The
Grangeville board of trade have
had under consideration for some
time the advisability of construct
ing a wagon road from Buffalo
Hump to Dixie over a practically
level country, and if anything is
to be done in this matter it strikes
US that the present is very op-
perfume time to take hold and ar
range to put it through as early as
possible next spring. There is no
doubt about the great rush to
Thunder Mountain early next
year, and Grangeville may as well
profit by it as any other town, par
ticularly as Grangeville is the
nearest practicable outfitting point
for the new country, and is the
starting point for the three best
routes into the new camp.