Mammoth Gold
The Ghost Towns of Lake District

By Gary Caldwell

• Published by Genny Smith Books
• 174 pp.
• $8.95 paperback, ISBN 978-0-931378-12-6
• Library of Congress Catalog Number 89-26340

Gold high on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada brought hundreds of miners racing to Lake Mining District and the boom town of Mammoth City. Mammoth Gold brings back to life the brief but tumultuous years of 1877 to 1881, when hopes leaped sky-high, then abruptly faded and died.

It was gold high on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada that had brought prospectors racing to Mammoth City, California. General Dodge and other moneyed men from San Francisco rushed to the new strike, bought up claims, and formed the Mammoth Mining Company. The company drove several tunnels into Mineral Hill, built a 40-stamp mill, a tramway, and a flume from Twin Lakes. Yet barely two years later the mill shut down forever and the following year all the company's property was sold at a sheriff's sale.

Not content with merely chronicling events, the author continually raises questions. What went wrong? Was it just bad luck? Or mismanagement? Fraud? Highgrading? And who were the gutsy men and women that cast their lot with this harsh, isolated mining camp? Where did they come from? How did they manage? Were they happy? Did they strike it rich? Exploring for answers, Gary Caldwell combines an historian's obsession for accuracy with a writer's love for the people who lived, worked, and died in Lake District.

Excerpts from the Reviews

What Caldwell uncovers is the pioneers' tenacity, resourcefulness and hope.... - Mammoth Lakes Review-Herald

Gary Caldwell's book is history for the lay person, history from the heart of the beholder....events are put clearly into perspective; illustrations are wonderful. What is new here is the excitement created by caring curiosity and exploration, with  a touch of humor. - The Album: Times and Tales of Inyo-Mono, Bishop, California

...a sensitive and interesting account...The 1880 census enables the author to use a rich vein of information about the people  and to add much interesting anecdotal information about their life and times. There is also enough technical data about mining processes along with excellent illustrations of machinery to appeal to mining buffs. - Werner H. Marti, Professor Emeritus of History California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Caldwell's fascination for the area's history prompted more than two decades of research and exploration. The text is accompanied by numerous excellent black and white photos, maps, line art, and detailed mechanical drawings of quartz reduction mills and equipment. A brief glossary of mining terms and a comprehensive bibliography are also included. Well-written and produced, this volume is an excellent look at a typical 19th-century boom town [and] the lifestyles enjoyed by its residents. - Reno Gazette Journal

Contents

• Preface & Acknowledgments / ix
• The Setting: Locations & Sites / xiv
• Mammoth Gold in Perspective / 1
• Discovery / 7
• The Mammoth Mining Company / 11
• Lake District's Camps / 33
• Pine City Tales / 47
• Wagon Roads and Pack Trails / 59
• Lake District's People / 67
• About Town / 73
• Hard Times / 101
• Company Town / 109
• Fire! / 113
• The End of Hope / 115
• What Went Wrong? / 119
• What Really Went Wrong? / 131
• Tailings / 135
• A Self-Guided Tour / 149
• Mining Terms / 157
• A List of Goods for Sale, Mammoth City 1878-1880 / 161
• Works Cited / 163
• Index / 167

About the Author

Gary Caldwell teaches history and archaeology at Mount San Jacinto College in Riverside County, California. Caldwell has participated in archaeological surveys and excavations of sites in the U.S., Mexico and Peru and regularly serves as an archaeological consultant to the Mammoth County Water District and to the U.S. Forest Service in Mammoth Lakes. In 1985 Caldwell conducted an archaeological field school to excavate a site in historic Pine City, one of the mining camps in Lake District. Caldwell received his B.A. degree from Claremont McKenna College and his M.A. degree in history from the Claremont Graduate School. His master's thesis is titled Mammoth City, 1877­1881. Studies and field work in archaeology and post-graduate work in history at UC Riverside followed.

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