Outposts of Civilization
Sketches of Early-day Camps, People and Happenings

Coffee's Mill - Hard Winter for Aurorans - mining experts of old

A miner by the name of Coffee erected a mill in Aurora in 1863.  He later added a small quartz mill, 
which while but a miniature was perfect in its equipment, it had two four stamp batteries; weight of 
stamps 200 pounds each; four amalgamating pans, two eight feet in diameter, two five feet - usual 
proportion.  It was a most company facilities much in excess of the plete mill, capable of reducing 
three tons of ore each twenty-four hours.  In 1866 the writer was employed by Coffee to run the mill, 
work in the pattern shop of the foundry, and attend to his books.  Surely the job looked good after 
my experience in feeding on the husks of the fag end of the lumber business.  From that date until 
1876 the mill figured much in the history of Aurora.  Wells Fargo's books from 1869 to 1876 showed 
shipments of bullion of $40,000 to $70,000 per annum.  Besides, much to my knowledge was taken out by 
individuals.  Some small amounts of the ore came from Bodie, and some of the bullion from ore from 
the Bunker Hill, Bodie, reduced in arrastras on Rough creek by Mooney, Walker, Lockburn and Essington.

The winter following the closing of the Winters mill was in my judgment the worst and most trying time 
in the history of the early days of the camp.  One can hardly conceive the condition; absolutely no 
employment for anyone, snow on the ground, weather boisterous.  No one could hardly conceive the 
condition; absolutely no employment for any one, snow on the ground, weather boisterous.  No one could 
sort over the old dumps, as many had been so employed; but very few "coasting" in the old workings; 
credit denied by most of the merchants - surely the wolf stood gazing at more than one's door.

Prior to this period Montgomery, Benton, Columbus ad Silver Peak had been discovered and were 
attracting some attention.  Many with no families migrated to those localities.  Owens Valley 
attracted others.  Bishop and Round Valley absorbed some few of the families.  The population became 
reduced in consequence to two hundred voters, sometimes less, until the county seat was removed.

In the spring of '68 the snow disappeared.  Those who were left woke up and took stock of the 
conditions by which they were surrounded.  It being the county seat the county officials sand the bar 
were an asset.  Sessions of the court brought many to the town.  All machinery for the camps east and 
south was shipped from Folsom to Aurora on mule teams, then transshipped to its destination on ox 
teams.  A mail contract had been let for a service each week to Independence.  All this brought 
business to the town.  The post office was a distributing office.  The postmaster did a flourishing 
business forwarding the newspapers and periodicals to the outside localities south.

Many buildings were dismantled and sent to those places.  A large number of brick was forwarded to 
Silver Peak for the erection of roasting furnaces, all of which assisted in retaining Aurora on the 
map.

During that winter an incident happened that put heart in what few miners remained.  A man by the name 
of Arnold, a peculiar and somewhat eccentric man, went into the Johnson chamber, so called of the Wide 
West mine during the stormy weather.  In scratching around the walls he discovered a stringer of ore 
an inch or so in thickness.  He proceeded to investigate the possibilities.  It opened out to three or 
four inches, and he continued operations all by himself until he had a few tons of ore.  One day in 
the early spring he came to the little mill and reported that he had some ore he wished to have 
reduced, ten or twelve tons.  One day in the early spring he came to the little mill and reported that 
he had some ore he wished to have reduced, ten or twelve tons.  At that date the mill was leased by 
the day, Coffee furnishing one man to run the engine and feed the batteries, the customer attending to 
the pans, breaking up the ore, and so on.  Arnold considered himself capable of attending to that part 
of it, including the amalgamation.

In those days, during all my connection with the milling business, ore was never assayed, either by 
sample or after passing through the batteries, to determine its value.  The usual method of 
ascertaining value was to put a certain number of cups of quicksilver, weighed, into each amalgamating 
pan.  After running one charge, a cup of quicksilver was drawn and weighed, and from the amalgam it 
produced the value was determined.  Quicksilver was also introduced into the batteries.

On obtaining the usual amount of quicksilver from the first charge the result frightened Arnold, who 
concluded he had made an error in his dope and ruined his prospects.  He rushed up town for John Neidy, 
who was the one expert supposed to know any and all things pertaining to the art of amalgamation.  
Neidy came down and inspected amalgam.  After looking very spitting on the ore to determine its value, 
as was the custom those days, he pronounced everything correct.  The amount of ore was less than 
thirteen tons; the amount of bullion produced was fourteen thousand dollars.  As quicksilver had been 
introduced into the batteries in working this ore, the mill men were forced to hang the stamps up to 
remove amalgam from the batteries every twelve hours.  No doubt some may consider this a fairy tale.  
Turn back to Meredith's report of the early workings of the Green mill on ore from the Johnson chamber 
of the Wide West mine.

Arnold procured three or four small amounts of ore from stringers during the summer, and made his exit 
from the old town with something over $20,000.  To San Jose he hied, and later became a banker in that 
city.

In the early days of silver mining in Nevada there was no authority to guide one but a treatise on 
reduction of ore based on conditions as found in the Hartz mountains, German.  Have studied them when 
I should have been sleeping.  Might as well have studied the Talmud, as far as any practical 
information was obtained.  It authorized the introduction of sulphate of copper sulphite of iron, 
sulphuric acid and other acids, so many ounces per ton of ore; salt was also recommended.  The result 
of those instructions was many failures to save the precious metals, consequently many men called 
themselves amalgamators.  When someone by chance would happen to let the ore work itself by not 
getting much of anything in the pans, he came an expert.  Some very peculiar combinations were 
invented; have observed large kettles of sagebrush steeping to furnish broth to introduce into the 
pans.  In all that period in and about Aurora I never met an educated mining engineer, but many who 
claimed to be experts frequently made us believe they were.  Will mention a couple of examples that 
came under my observation.  A case was on trial in the U.S. Court in Carson City.  A man passing as an 
expert was on the stand.  The opposing attorney commended his cross-examination by propounding the 
following: "Do you know what is considered a mining expert?"  His answer was prompt:  "A mining expert 
is a man who wears glasses, looks wise, and talks Dutch."  Another instance: A man who drove an ox team 
on the Big Meadows in the early days went to White Pine county and later became a man of some note.  
He was put on the stand in the U.S. court.  As an expert he was asked to please tell the jury the 
constituent parts of quartz.  After some moments consideration he replied: "Well, it is just quartz - 
any fool would know that!"  

H. Marden
2507 Pine Street, San Francisco.

(Mr. Marden writes that the year of his leaving Aurora was 1889, instead of 1879, as appearing in his 
first article.)

The Inyo Register, Bishop, Inyo County, California
Thursday, November 11, 1915 - Front Page
Transcribed by Pat Houser for Inyo County GenWeb, February 26, 2005