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Fine Gold Creek

"Fine Gold" redirects here. For the film, seeFine Gold (film).For the standard for gold refining, seefineness.

Fine Gold Creek,inFine Gold Gulch,is acreekin agulchinMadera County, Californiathat is ariver tributaryof theSan Joaquin River.[2][3] It is approximately 18 miles (29 km) from its mouth on the San Joaquin through where it has two forks to its headwaters.[2]

Fine Gold Creek
Fine Gold
Fine Gold Creek is located in California
Fine Gold Creek
Location in California
Fine Gold Creek is located in the United States
Fine Gold Creek
Fine Gold Creek (the United States)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyMadera County
Physical characteristics
SourceFine Gold
• locationThornberry Mountain
• coordinates37°15′46″N119°37′22″W/ 37.26285°N 119.62285°W/37.26285; -119.62285[1]
2nd sourceNorth Fork Fine Gold
• locationThornberry Mountain
• coordinates37°14′44″N119°39′53″W/ 37.24553°N 119.66472°W/37.24553; -119.66472[1]
3rd sourceLittle Fine Gold
• locationGoat Mountain
• coordinates37°16′30″N119°33′35″W/ 37.27513°N 119.55972°W/37.27513; -119.55972[1]
MouthMillerton Lake
• coordinates
37°02′53″N119°38′24″W/ 37.0480048°N 119.6398644°W/37.0480048; -119.6398644[1]
• elevation
191 metres (627 ft)
Basin size90 square miles (23,000 ha)
Basin features
Tributaries
• leftNorth Fork Fine Gold Creek37°11′46″N119°37′01″W/ 37.19619°N 119.61689°W/37.19619; -119.61689[1]
• rightLittle Fine Gold Creek37°11′46″N119°37′01″W/ 37.19619°N 119.61689°W/37.19619; -119.61689[1]

LikeCoarse Gold Gulchin the same county and many other places in California, its name derives simply from the practice of gold mining.[4]

Course and tributaries

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The mouth of Fine Gold itself is roughly 3 miles (4.8 km) north-east of whereFort Millerused to be (which is now underMillerton Lake).[5]

The headwaters of the main Creek are on the south slope ofThornberry Mountainat 4,000 feet (1,200 m) above sea level, and its course downstream is overall in a south-westwards direction to the San Joaquin with a fall of 3,600 feet (1,100 m) along its length downstream of its tributaries.[2]

  • Its major permanent tributaries are:
    • Little Fine Gold Creek— a fork whose headwaters are on the western slope ofGoat Mountain,with a fall of 2,700 feet (820 m) along its length and flowing south-eastwards for 4 miles (6.4 km) then southwards for 2 miles (3.2 km) then south-westwards for its remaining 4 miles (6.4 km)[2]
    • North Fork Fine Gold Creek— a 6 miles (9.7 km) long fork whose headwaters are west of Thornberry Mountain at 4,000 feet (1,200 m) above sea level, with a fall of 1,700 feet (520 m) along its length and flowing south-eastwards[2]

Its minor tributaries are largely ephemeral, drying up in the summer.[6] Most of its length comprises long lengths of sand-bottomed creek bed connecting a few rocky pools, which are between 1 and 2 metres deep in the summer months.[6]

The total area of the Creekdrainage basinis 90 square miles (23,000 ha), and the basin's northern boundary is at 4,400 feet (1,300 m) above sea level.[6]

A reservoir on the Creek was considered in 2005, with water to be pumped from Millerton Lake or the San Joaquin, or even through a tunnel fromKerckhoff Lake,and supplemented by the inflow from Fine Gold itself.[7][8][9] Madera Irrigation District had considered a similar project in 1991, and discarded it because of the pumping requirement.[10]

Ecology

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The environs of Fine Gold comprise woodland foothills, mainly oak, digger pines, and willows, interspersed with occasional grassland andriparianhabitat that includesFraxinus latifolia,and variousPopulus,Salix,andCephalanthusspecies.[11] This is fairly well developed at the upstream end of the Creek.[12]

Vegetation to be found in the streambed includesPolypogon monspeliensis,someMimulusandCyperusspecies,Mentha pulegium,andclover.[13] Fish are mainly non-native species in the Creek basin, with the Sacramento sucker and hitch and the California roach found in the Creek.[12]

The river banks have been damaged by grazing in places, and the grazing, local roads, and the construction of the Millerton Lake, from which fish like the green sunfish invade the Creek, have reduced the Creek's biodiversity.[12] The whole watershed had been designated an Aquatic Diversity Management Area of the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project.[12] At the mouth of the Creek, where it is inundated by Millerton Lake, the river banks are moderately steep.[12]

There are eight special status plant species in the Creek watershed, andAmbystoma californiense,western spadefoot, and western pond turtle have been recorded there.[14]

Demographics and transport

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The Creek watershed is sparsely populated, with access roads to farms, and scattered housing with mostly single-family homes.[15] It is traversed by Hidden Lake Boulevard, Ralston Way, and County Road 210.[15] Where it joins Millerton Lake, County Road 216 provides access to a small residential area named Hidden View, and Hidden Lake Estates.[15][16]

Native people

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The lower part of the Creek is part of the traditional territory of theMono Native American peopleofNorth Fork,with the upper part in traditionalChukchansi Yokutsterritory although the Chukchansi largely live nowadays in thePicayune Rancheriaarea at Coarsegold.[17] There were Mono hamlets in the lower part.[17] TheDalinchi Yokuts's traditional territory encompassed lower Fine Gold, O'Neals, and part ofCoarse Gold Gulch,and theDumna Yokuts's traditional territory ran along the north bank of the San Joaquin and included the mouth of Fine Gold.[18]

Archaeology

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There are three known archaeological sites on the Creek, one a standing two-story house.[19]

Mining

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Mining in the area is documented inRobert A. Eccleston's diary of theMariposa War,and Eccleston himself mined there shortly after the war.[3] Eccleston recorded little success, unlike N. H. Stockton who in September and October 1850 claimed to have made more thanUS$30(equivalent to $1,099 in 2023) per day some days in his journal.[3]

Fine Gold Creek divided the Hildreth Mining District on the west from the Fresno Mining District on the east.[20]

In an 1894 survey, the California State Mining bureau recorded, amongst others:

  • Quartz mines:
    • theBessie H. Mineon Fine Gold operated by E. Wright of Pollasky[21]
    • theColumbus Mineon North Fork operated by J. Morrison and F. Nimes of Coarsegold[22]
    • theCrabtree Mineon North Fork operated by T. Jones of Coarsegold[22]
    • theFine Gold Mineand theStarbuck Mineon Fine Gold operated by Mark Anderson of O'Neals, the former 3.5 miles (5.6 km) to the north-east of the O'Neals post office[22]
    • theHenrietta MineandLottie K Mineon Fine Gold owned by J. A. Harris and W. Reed of Pollasky[23][24]
    • theMargarite Mineon Fine Gold owned by Charles Baker et al. of O'Neals[25]
    • thePray Mineon Fine Gold owned by D. McLellan and Charles Melvin of Coarsegold[26]
  • Placer mines:
    • theAchsah D. Mineon Fine Gold operated by C. B. Holstead of Pollasky[21]
    • theBowdler Mineon Fine Gold operated by J. M. Bowles of Hildreth[21]
    • theCombination Claimon Fine Gold operated by J. W. Strathan of Hildreth[22]
    • Little Willie's Mineon Fine Gold owned by G. P. Gunter of Pollasky[24]

References

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  1. ^abcdefCalTopo map
  2. ^abcdeWood 1912,p. 34.
  3. ^abcGudde 2009,p. 115.
  4. ^Gudde 1998,p. 146.
  5. ^Kyle et al. 2002,p. 173.
  6. ^abcCDWR 2005,p. 3–12.
  7. ^CDWR 2005,p. ES–6.
  8. ^CDWR 2005,p. 6–7.
  9. ^CDWR 2005,p. 6–53.
  10. ^BOR 1995,p. 2—27.
  11. ^CDWR 2005,p. 3–21.
  12. ^abcdeCDWR 2005,p. 3–24.
  13. ^CDWR 2005,p. 3–22.
  14. ^CDWR 2005,p. 3–28.
  15. ^abcCDWR 2005,p. 3–41.
  16. ^CDWR 2005,p. 3–42.
  17. ^abCDWR 2005,p. 3–47.
  18. ^Kroeber 1976,p. 481.
  19. ^CDWR 2005,p. 3–46.
  20. ^Crawford 1894,p. 158.
  21. ^abcCrawford 1894,p. 154.
  22. ^abcdCrawford 1894,p. 155.
  23. ^Crawford 1894,p. 157.
  24. ^abCrawford 1894,p. 159.
  25. ^Crawford 1894,p. 160.
  26. ^Crawford 1894,p. 162.

Sources

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  • Wood, Beatrice Dawson (1912). "Fine Gold Creek".Gazetteer of Surface Waters of California(PDF).U.S.G.S. Water-supply papers. California State Water Commission.
  • Crawford, James John (1894). "Gold — Madera County".Mines and Mineral Resources of California.Report of the State Mineralogist. Vol. 12. Sacramento: California State Mining Bureau. pp. 153–167.(Report of the State Mineralogistat theInternet Archive)
  • Gudde, Erwin G. (2009). "Fine Gold: Creek/Gulch". In Gudde, Elisabeth K. (ed.).California Gold Camps: A Geographical and Historical Dictionary of Camps, Towns, and Localities Where Gold Was Found and Mined; Wayside Stations and Trading Centers.University of California Press.ISBN9780520261440.
  • Gudde, Erwin G. (1998). "Gold". In Bright, William (ed.).California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names.University of California Press.ISBN9780520266193.
  • Kyle, Douglas E.; Rensch, Hero Eugene; Rensch, Ethel Grace; Hoover, Mildred Brooke; Abeloe, William (2002). "Madera County".Historic Spots in California(5th ed.). Stanford University Press.ISBN9780804778176.
  • Upper San Joaquin River Basin Storage Investigation: Initial Alternatives Information Report.California Department of Water Resources. 2005.
  • Surface Storage and Conveyance: Technical Appendix #6 to the Final Least-Cost CVP Yield Increase Plan.United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation. 1995.hdl:2027/uc1.31210025007095.
  • Kroeber, Alfred Louis (1976).Handbook of the Indians of California.Bulletin. Vol. 78. Courier Corporation.ISBN9780486233680.

Further reading

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  • Moyle, P.B.; Randall, P. J.; Yoshiyama, R.M. (1996). "Potential Aquatic Diversity Management Areas in the Sierra Nevada".Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project: Final report to Congress, vol. III, Assessments and scientific basis for management options.Davis: University of California, Centers for Water and Wildland Resources.


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