Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-06
LOST MINES In WEST
GLUE BUCKET CLAIM IN ORE
CON RECALLED.
Miners Account Of an Excursion by
Wagon and the Nuggets
Picked Up.

time to time about the several noted "lost
gold mines" Of the west Among these,
ranking perhaps next in notoriety to the
famous lost "Pegleg." is the BLUE Bucket
Mine of Oregon. practical western
miner who has made something of study
OF these lost mine legends expressed an in
terest in the story printed in The Star some
time ago about the lost mines of the west
and spoke particularly OF the story of the
Tin Bucket Mine incidentally mentioned
in the story. He said that he thought 1t in
all probability Identical with the blue
Bucket and gave a Star reporter the fol-
lowing account of that mine which he said
was correct far as he had been able
to learn. There are still some of the mem
bers OF the original wagon expedition liv-
ing, but none of them have ever found their
way back to the rich placer.
This is the story:
I'm the summer of 1916 a wagon train
OF emigrants was slowly vending its way
from the Mississippi valley to the William
cite valley In western Oregon. August 8
the train having camped the night before
on the west side of Snake river, near the
mouth of Malheur river at or near place
called later Stone House, where now stands
the town of Vale, ore-the men of the
train held consultation with one Stephen
Meek (no relation to the famous Oregon
guide, 10 Meek, and made a bargain with
him to guide them through to The Dalles
VI Inc SOluUlDld Dy d new route, winch
was shorter than the old way. For this
the guide was to receive the sum of $50.
Train in Three Sections
THE train was divided into three sections,
and they started on the new route, this
train being the first pioneer train to
travel it. This route was ever afterward
called Meeks cutoff. Mr.. Meek travelled
with the first section, leaving written on
a SbinpIa for 10 Sertinpa follnuip0
tons stating where they would next make
their camp.
"At place on the way water was
scarce that there was much suffering many
of the men, besides the guide, wandering
in different directions In search of water,
Mr.. Meek coming to camp after a long,
fruitless search with his tongue swollen
that he could not speak until water was
tnat year there had been plenty of water,
but that that season was remarkably dry
one.
I'm giving "reminiscences IN after years,
one of them remarked that when they
first reached the water it was thin enough
to stir with stick, but after two hun
dred head of cattle got to it, it was not
fit to drink. AS was customary in those
days. their wagons were drawn by oxen.
THAT camp received the name of Stink
ing Hollow on account of the large num-
Der of cattle that died there. Henry Mar
lin, who had been UP the guich looking
for water, was surrounded, as was of
course the custom, as soon as he arrived at
the camp. by people asking eagerly if he
had found water. No. he replied but L
found this taking from his pocket and
showing a gold nugget that he had picked
up up the gulch. Some said it gold,
others said no, it is not gold for gold is
in dust.
Didn't Know It Was Gold.
"At one Of their camps when camped
on fiat, somewhere on the way from Vale
to The Dalles. gold nuggets lay scattered
over the surface of the ground. They could
hammer the metal out on the wagon tires
with their wagon hammers, but they did
not know that it was gold.
Several years after the train had reached
its destination In the western part Of Ore
gon woman that had come in the train
was showing curios that She had gathered
to a miner from California When he saw
a nugget that she had picked up at the
fiat mentioned he asked her where She got
that gold. She exclaimed Is that gold?
Why, L could have filled my blue bucket
with IT. The now unknown place where
those gold nuggets were SO plentiful has
ever since been called The Blue Bucket
or The Blue Bucket Mine.
That woman's two sons, who We're only
boys with the train when the discovery
was made, went back over the route, to go
to the place, but were killed by the Indians.
Mr.. Frakes, from Iowa, who was in the
train, stated many years after that when
approaching the fat where the gold was
found they came down a long ridge, and on
reaching the end of tho ridge found that
they could not go directly down to the fiat,
but by geeing of their oxen around they
swung around and came down in that way
to the fat.
Discredited by Some.
"Ten years ago a number of the former
members of the Blue Bucket Train We're
still living and relating "reminiscences OF
that 7 hoy arIo Of OH
sons who claimed to have been in the train
who discredited it. This can be explained
by the statement that 1 have heard made,
that one of the sections of the Blue Bucket
train became so dissatisfied with Mr..
Meek's guidance that they took course OF
their own. If that is true, either that sec
ton, or the other two sections may have
fail ol xnln1 ,l1rt,t