The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-06-22
RICH GOLD FIELDS
IN NEW DISTRICT
important Developments Near
Route of Clark Road.
GREAT INTERESTiN CRESCENT
DECLARED MORE PROMISING
THAN WAS ToNoPAH.

Crescent District. Lincoln County,
Nevada. June 17.-This district is stu
ated in the very heart of one of the best
mineralized sections, not only in the
state of Nevada. but Of the whole con-
tinent, and on the line Of the new san
Pedro road. Beginning at Crossman's
spring. wei known TO the early pio-
neers Of this desert country, which is
situated only four or five miles from the
California line, there radiate the fol-
lowing mining camps: EldOradO can
yon, thirty miles northeast: Search
light, seventeen miles east; Vanderbilt
seventeen miles south; Mineral hill,
twenty miles southwest; Ivanpah and
the Copper World, twenty-five miles
west, and GOOdsprings, thirty miles
northwest. Some of these districts
were famous more than thirty years
ago and produced millions of dollars in
gold, silver, copper and lead. while
others of more recen1 date. like
Searchlght. for instance, are Just COM
ing to the front with their bonanzas
and giving an incentive to most of the
older districts in which work will be
resumed before the year is ended.
Crescent district, which lies in the
heart Of the Mccullough mountains,
WSS known to the pioneers Of Ivanpah
to contain mineral in the arly sos, but
il was not until 1889 that John Hughes
ventUred across the desert on a pros
pecting trip and located the first claim,
which he named the Esmeralda. He is
still living in EidoradO canyon The
scarcity of water and lack of transpor-
tatiOn facilities precluded much pros
pecting until 1892, when George Sim
mons. Win Sherman, Milt Sayne, Alva
Phelps and one or two others visited it;
\
ors. who, upon looking it over, pro-
nounced it good" and camped with it,
A number of locations were made, and
some development was done, and in 1898
the Legal Tender was found and five
stamp mill was erected near Cross
mans spring, where, in the meantime,
an abundance of water had been devel-
oped- The mill was kept running in a
desultOry fashion for several months.
and owing to mismanagementa and dis
agreements among the owners, It was
closed down, and subsequently, in $685.
it was taken down and removed to some
other point. Although considera BILE
high-grade ore had been handled by the
mill from several of the locations and
quite d quantity had been shipped away
to FL PasO. Pueblo and San Francisco
the closing down of the mill gave the
camp a black eye and it relapsed into
innocuous desuetude.
Turquoise Mine Found
It was during the period of inaction
following the collapse that an event Oc-
CURED which deserves mention at some
length Some time during 1896 George
Simmons, while prospecting on the
slope of Sugar Loaf peak, which lies
about three miles east Of CrOSsman's
spring, found a peculiarly stained piece
Of quartz, which some Of the prospect
Ors pronounced copper. Mr.. Simmons
put it in his pocket, by no means salts
fed that it was copper Upon reflect
ing about it for some time. and after
a closer examination of it, he came to
the conclusion that he had seen similar
quartz in the BurFO mountains. in New
Mexico. where the well known turquoise
mines are situated, several years be-
fore, and he concluded it was turquoise.
Then began a long and weary search,
and il was not until eight months after
ward that he found what is probably
the largest and most valuable turquoise
mine in the world.
Signs of Ancient Work.
Upon development Mr. Simmons
found that the mine had been worked
ages ago. and the question, by
whOm?" must be left to the archaeolo-
gist to answer. Your correspondent,
who, through the kindness of Mr.. Sim
mons, was permitted to go through the
workings, saw stone hammers and large
slabs of stone, used for polishing the
gems, and imbedded in the schist in
which they are found were seen pieces
of charcoal showing that the mining
had been done by fire. Evidences show
that the mine was worked and the tools
thrown in and covered up with debris.
F'riar MancOs de MIA, who made an
extensive trip through New Mexico
and the southwest in 1899 mentions the
turquoise, in his report. and in writing
Of one of the pueblOs, says:
THE people are white and wear ap-
pareI. and lie in beds. Their weapons
are bows; they have emeralds and
other jewels, although they esteem none
so much as the turquoise, wherewith
they adOrn the walls of the porches of
their houses and their own apparel and
vessels. and they use them instead of
money through all the country"
Coronado, who passed through the