All Articles
Placer Gold in the Black Hills, South Dakota
March 2001 by Edgar B. Heylmun, PhD
During the Indian Wars in 1874, General George Custer and his men camped on French Creek in the southern Black Hills, near the present site of Custer, South Dakota. Two of his men found placer gold in French Creek. Word got out, and before long, a party of prospectors arrived. However, the government had signed a treaty with the Sioux Indians to stay out of the Black Hills. This led to prospectors sneaking in and working creeks all over the region at their own risk.Additional articles that might interest you...
Picks & Pans: Virginia Prospecting
April 2003
On a recent day in late November, the Virginia deer hunting season was in full swing. For most of the morning, while I was busy shoveling stream gravel into a sluice, the surrounding woods echoed with the sound of gunfire and...
On a recent day in late November, the Virginia deer hunting season was in full swing. For most of the morning, while I was busy shoveling stream gravel into a sluice, the surrounding woods echoed with the sound of gunfire and...
Drywashing for Eluvial Gold in the Desert—Using a Portable Drywasher and Hand Tools
February 2005
Often the gold being recovered by drywashing is too fine to be recovered by metal detecting. For every “detectable” nugget found, there could be hundreds of smaller flakes of non-detectable size. Thus, for those that “read the ground,” and snipe for areas of favorable placer concentration, drywashing will continue to be both an inexpensive...
Often the gold being recovered by drywashing is too fine to be recovered by metal detecting. For every “detectable” nugget found, there could be hundreds of smaller flakes of non-detectable size. Thus, for those that “read the ground,” and snipe for areas of favorable placer concentration, drywashing will continue to be both an inexpensive...
Silver Boom Prompts Idaho Mine Expansion
January 2011
The Lucky Friday is already one of North America’s deepest hard-rock mines. Now, the 62-year-old mine is about to get much deeper.
The Lucky Friday is already one of North America’s deepest hard-rock mines. Now, the 62-year-old mine is about to get much deeper.
Drive Under Way to Restore the Rights of Suction Dredgers
September 2009
California Governor Schwarzenegger signed SB 670 on August 6, 2009, which temporarily halts suction dredging in California until a new Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is completed. This was despite a request from...
California Governor Schwarzenegger signed SB 670 on August 6, 2009, which temporarily halts suction dredging in California until a new Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is completed. This was despite a request from...
Bigger Is Not Always Better
October 2009
I stayed on the nozzle (about 25 pounds) and Dave moved rock. We worked the hole for two and a half days. Most of the time was spent moving overburden.
I stayed on the nozzle (about 25 pounds) and Dave moved rock. We worked the hole for two and a half days. Most of the time was spent moving overburden.
Wyoming's Billion Dollar Nugget—The Trilogy Ends
July 2011
With eight loads processed, a pumpkin-size rock fell into the hopper, stopping the whole operation until I could lift it out.
With eight loads processed, a pumpkin-size rock fell into the hopper, stopping the whole operation until I could lift it out.
Chinese Camp, California and the Tong War of 1856
February 2000
In an enterprise known for its boom-to-bust pattern, Tuolumne County produced some of the most productive and enduring gold mining towns of the last half of the 19th century in. California.
In an enterprise known for its boom-to-bust pattern, Tuolumne County produced some of the most productive and enduring gold mining towns of the last half of the 19th century in. California.
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