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The Golden Highway—Calaveras County
January 2004 by Frank Lorey III
Heading north along Highway 49 into the central Mother Lode, the first old mining town in Calaveras County was Melones, located along the banks of the Stanislaus River. The town was named for the unique coarse gold flakes found in the gravels that resembled melon seeds, hence the name that came from the Mexican miners.Resurrecting An Old Hard Rock Mine—A Series of Small Victories
…we cheered and high-fived each other as the ore cart slowly crested the top of the headframe, then picked up a bit of speed on the short downhill section and came to an abrupt halt, ejecting its contents of ore…
What's In A Name?
The names attached to these areas came about from many sources. Many are easy to see why the name was given while others had a more contrasting note to them.
Molybdenum
Molybdenum, referred to as “molly” by miners, is a white metal that is alloyed with iron to form hard, tough and strong steel. It was first used in World War I for armor plate on ships. Nowadays, molybdenum is routinely used to harden structural and tool steel, and to reduce corrosion.
Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: Stupid Is As Stupid Does
The temptation to enter the dark interiors beckoned to me before the day was finished but I resisted.
Gondwana Gold Gravels
The German scientist, Alfred Wegener, came out with his theory of "continental drift" in 1912. He was considered a crackpot and it was half a century before geologists and planetary scientists began to take a second look at his theory.
Underground Mining: Stoping Methods
In an old mine that does not have stopes, you know the old miners did not take much if any ore out of that excavation. On the other hand, if you see large stopes within the mine you know that it is these places where the miners found profitable ore deposits within the vein.
Trio Accused of Stealing $1.7 Million in Gold
Three former employees of a Colorado gold mine face charges of stealing more than $1.7 million in unprocessed gold, prosecutors said.
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