Alvord Mine...

Another view of the Alvord Mine site.

The rugged country in the Alvord Mountains.

Alvord Mine, Part XII.

The lone blogger, at the Alvord Mine ruins.  

Was Alvord's "striped butte" somewhere nearby?  

As I listened to the wind whip around the rocks, I wondered if Alvord and his party did indeed pass through here.

We may never know.

Alvord Mine, Part XI.

As I came closer to the Alvord Mine, I entered a canyon.  Here, the trail ascends and becomes rough and rocky, necessitating the use of four-wheel drive low range.  The loose dirt adds to the challenge.

But, I made it, after driving slowly and carefully.

Below, is a photograph of a ruined building at the site.

To be continued.

Alvord Mine, Part XI.

Most of the route, after leaving the pavement, is a graded dirt road, but there are patches of sand that scattered throughout.  Still, I was able to negotiate this part of the trip with my old Jeep Cherokee (an "XJ" series, for those who are Jeep aficionados) in two-wheel drive. 

However, as I approached the mine, things changed.

To be continued.

Alvord Mine, Part X.

Well,let's get back to my Alvord Mine visit. It was a perfect day to be in the desert, with clear skies and temperatures in the 80's.

Finding the correct route to the mine proved to be difficult, because I tried to find the site from memory. The problem is that it had been several years since I'd last been to the Alvord Mine. Consequently, I took the wrong exit from I-15. I wasn't too far off, though. Still, one of the "check points" along the route to the mine is a bullet riddled tank, located seven miles off I-15, which marks the location of Alvord Well. Despite missing this landmark, I was able to get back on course, using a paper map and the Back Country Navigator app. that is installed on my telephone. The reader will notice that I am not providing details about the route itself. This is because I don't want to be responsible for anyone getting lost!

To be continued.

Alvord Mine Part VIIII: Video re-posted via YouTube. It should now be watchable.

Alvord Mine Part VII correction: The video can now be played.

The Alvord Mine, Pt,. VIIII

Operations at the Alvord Mine ceased in 1952.   The idle mill was on site until 1955.

Today,  all that remains at the site are the ruins of a couple of buildings.

To be continued.

Alvord Mine, Pt. VIII.

By the time that the mill had burned, the Alvord Mine had produced roughly $50,000 in gold.

After the fire, the mine sat idle for the next four years.  In 1895, after more prospecting took place, the Alvord ore was tested.  Another mill had to be built in order to test the ore, and the Alvord Mining Company of Pasadena did so, most likely near the spot where the old mill had burned.

Evidently, the test results indicated that mining was still at least somewhat worthwhile, because mining operations resumed, with the  ownership of the mine changing hands numerous times until mining operations stopped altogether in 1952.

To be continued.

Alvord Mine, Part VII...

The area near Mule Canyon.  This spot is in the Calico Mountains.  Alvord and his party may

have camped here, or at an area in the Alvord Mountains known as "Spanish Canyon."  "Spanish Canyon" may once have been known as "Mule Canyon."   So, I'm not sure which "Mule Canyon" is the right spot.

To be continued.

The Alvord Mine, Pt. VI...

Throughout the early 1880's, the Alvord Mine was bought, sold, and worked by several different individuals and/or companies. 

Between 1884 and 1887, the mine was being operated by a J.B. Osborn, of Daggett.

By May of 1885, Osborn was hauling ore to processing sites at Camp Cady, where a mill had been built near the Mojave River.  That month, $36,973 was earned by the mine. 

The Alvord mine kept producing steadily, until September of 1891, when a fire destroyed the mill that had been built at Alvord Well. 

To be continued.

Alvord Mine Pt. V.

Though no one was ever able to locate Charles Alvord's lost mine, gold WAS discovered in the Alvord Mountains by others, just before the year 1881.  A mining operation- which was named in honor of Charles Alvord, was set up, and it is thought that an arrastre was used to process the gold, early on. 

Nonetheless, an outfit that was called the Alvord Consolidated Quartz Mining Company sold 75,000 shares of its stock, in order to finance the mining operation.  This was in February of 1881.

To be continued.

Alvord Mine, Pt. IV.

So, the question is whether the site of the Alvord Mine ruins that still sit, baking in the desert sun, are located at the site of Charles Alvord's lost mine.  Modern lost-mine "scholars" insist Charles Alvord's first-find did NOT occur at the spot where the ruins are located.  They cite the fact that the gold produced at the developed Alvord mine was valued at only $12.75 per ton, whereas Alvord claimed that HIS mine could pay the national debt - in 1860 dollars, of course.

To be continued.

The Alvord Mine, Part III...

Alvord's one-time partner, Joe Clews searched Alvord's "striped butte" for another eighteen years.  Clews believed that the site was located at a spot called "Mule Spring", which, itself, is located in Mule Canyon.  Mule Canyon, in turn, is located in the Alvord Mountains (as the range is known today.)  The problem with most desert springs, is that they only run after heavy rain. 

Consequently, Clews never found Alvord's "striped butte", and the site became yet another Lost Mine.

To be continued. 

The Alvord Mine...Part II.

Three times, Charles Alvord tried to find the spot where he'd found his gold streak.  His remaining partner, Joe Clews (the only one who hadn't ridiculed Alvord) accompanied Alvord on Alvord's third and final attempt to locate the spot. 

Telling Clews that the spot was in the vicinity of a "striped butte", near the group's campsite during the first expedition, the two men searched in vain.

After this, Charles Alvord appears to have been swallowed up by the mists of time.  One legend has it that he was murdered.  Whether this is true or not, his former partner, Joe Clews continued the search.

To be continued.

A Visit To The Alvord Mine Ruins...

It was a temperature inversion of sorts; over 100 degrees Fahrenheit at my home in the Rancho Cucamonga area, and only 90 degrees in the desert!  Indeed, this was a great day to pay another visit to the Alvord Mine!

Like many old mines, the Alvord Mine was named for a person.  In this case, one Charles Alvord, a prospector in the area, who, in 1860, came across manganese ore in which gold was embedded.  His partners, laughing at him, ignored his discovery, because he was inexperienced (i.e. a "tenderfoot"), and because they were looking for the fabled "Lost Gunsight" silver mine, anyway..  Well, that's one version of events.  Another version has him finding the gold by himself and then keeping the find from his partners.  Either way, Alvord's sample was assayed, and it did, in fact contain gold.  What's more, is that Alvord's sample was more valuable than any of the other samples obtained during the expedition. 

From here, things get a little murky.  For, as with many mine stories, the discoverer was unable to re- locate the site.

More to come...