Garibaldi Mine (Blue Bell Mine; Blue Bell group; Blue Bell No. 1 claim; Blue Bell mill site claim), Skidoo, Tucki Mountain, Skidoo Mining District, Wildrose Mining District (Wild Rose Mining District), Panamint Mts (Panamint Range), Inyo County, California, USAi
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
36° North , 117° West (est.)
Estimate based on other nearby localities or region boundaries.
Margin of Error:
~3km
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Mindat Locality ID:
258809
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:258809:7
GUID (UUID V4):
75734006-9288-452f-a76b-068dccf8c20b
The Blue Bell Group, comprising one twenty-acre unpatented lode claim (Blue Bell #1) and one five-acre unpatented mill site (Blue Bell Millsite), is about three miles east of Skidoo and reached via the gravel Skidoo Road. The turnoff to the mine is about five miles east and north from the junction of the Skidoo and Emigrant Canyon roads; from there the Blue Bell Millsite lies about one-half mile down the slope. Here claimants have erected their tin shack headquarters, still furnished, and identified on its side as "Hidden Wash, McFarlin and Durham Mining." Probably built in the 1950s or 1960s, the cabin and surrounding ground resemble all mine camps of that period within the monument--assorted debris and trash, old appliances, and a dilapidated vehicle litter the ground.
Historical records and early newspaper accounts provide only fragmentary data on this site. Around 1874-75, shortly after the discovery of Panamint City, a party of Italians--Joe and Zeff Nossano, Joe Lanji, and Charles Andrietta--discovered a group of eight silver mines in the new Wild Rose Spring District in the vicinity of present-day Harrisburg. These new properties included the North Star, Star of the West, Maria, and Polar Star mines, all located in the northeast portion of the district, five miles east of Emigrant Spring, and overlooking Death Valley:
Among them is the 'Garibaldi' mine, a very large lode, showing on the surface hundreds of tons of rich ore. An average sample of the ores of this mine, assayed by J. L. Porter, of Cerro Gordo, yielded $238.18 per ton in silver.
This remarkable discovery has been visited by a number of mining men from Panamint, Cerro Gordo and elsewhere, all of whom pronounce it as showing on the surface a larger amount of rich ore than they have ever seen before.
Two months later a correspondent of the Panamint News visited the Nossano brothers' property, which he said included about twenty mines, and wrote that
Their principal mine, the Garibaldi, has an outcrop of an average width of sixty feet; with metalic ore assaying from $400 to $1,800 per ton, the greater portion of which is free milling ore; a large percentage of the ore can be sorted and worked by smelting.
Because it was still a relatively new location, excavations in the area only penetrated about eight feet. An interesting sidelight to the Garibaldi's history is that Dr. S. G. George, early pioneer into the Wild Rose area and discoverer of the Christmas lode in 1860, was working with another gentleman from Visalia, E. M. (F. M.?) Bently (or Bentley), on the eastern portion of the Garibaldi--referred to as the Lady Ethel--during this time.
Reportedly during the seventies ore from the Garibaldi and probably from some neighboring properties was sent by muletrain over a Walker's Pass to the railroad several hundred miles away. By the spring of 1875 the Garibaldi was still upholding its reputation as "the most promising location in the district, if not in the entire county," even though little development work had been done. Ore from here was generally averaging $628 to $1,600 per ton. It was no surprise, therefore, when the Garibaldi, North Star, Polar Star, Star of the West, and Maria mines were sold by the Nossano brothers to a San Francisco syndicate for $70,000. Incorporated under the name of the Garibaldi Mining Company, the group's board of directors included A. J. Bowie, Jr.; Arch. Borlands, William M. Lent; N. B. Stone; and John F. Boyd. They evidently only acted as agents for the Inyo Mining Company, because the latter's superintendent, a William Irwin, immediately took over development of the Garibaldi, spending about $30,000 on the project. The future not only of this mine but of the entire Rose Springs district seemed extremely promising now:
Since the Inyo mining company made the purchase of the Nassano [sic] company's mines, the camp has changed its appearance, and, instead of being the resort of a few prospectors, is shaping itself into a busy mining camp. A town site has already been laid out, a station erected for the accommodation of those visiting the district, the wagon road from Warren springs improved, and work on the Garabaldi and North Star mines commenced.
Although from the meager information presented here it is difficult to determine the exact location of this main camp, presumably the focal point for prospecting activities in the Rose Spring District, it is known that the Inyo Mining Company headquarters were established at the North Star Mine, three to five miles south of the Garibaldi.
By April 1876 the Garibaldi Mine workings consisted of a 100-foot incline run down on the hanging wall and an 18-foot tunnel that had been started to tap the rich ledge. Superintendent Irwin was now contemplating erection of a mill on the site, to be powered possibly by water piped over from the vicinity of Furnace Creek, fifteen to twenty miles east. In June the vein was struck at the bottom of the shaft and ore recovered assaying $600 a ton. Twelve men were employed in drifting, crosscutting, and other development work. Despite the impression that work was progressing well here, before long Irwin decided the ledge had petered out. According to Milo Page, Irwin, who had previously mined in Oregon, simply did not know how to mine under California's geological conditions; others said he miscalculated and, veering away from the ledge by mistake, concluded that the ore had run out. Whatever the reason, the mine was abandoned, Irwin leaving for Bodie to work on the Standard Mine. Several sacks of high-grade ore were left behind on the dump.
Later in 1877 it appears that W. L. Hunter picked up this mine, along with the Argonaut, Junietta, Blizzard, and Virgin, later selling interests in them to W. K. Miller and E. N. Medburg (N. J. Medbury) of Lone Pine, these three then proceeding on development work together. No further mention was found of the Garibaldi Mine until a formal notice of location for the Blue Bell Mine was filed in 1883 by N. J. Medbury and W. L. Hunter, "8 miles East from Emigrant Spring on south side of canon emptying into Death Valley. Is about opposite to Mouth of Furnace Ck. and about 10 miles air line north of Telescope Peak and is relocation of Exchequer or Garabali [sic] Mine." According to the U.S. Mint several high-grade silver mines were being operated in the Wild Rose District in that year, some of which had been discovered ten years or so before during the height of the Panamint City excitement. These included the Virgin, Peru, Kuler, Silver Star, Mohawk (aka North Star), Valley View, Umpire, Argonaut (aka Nellie Grant), Genette (Junietta?), and Empire State. Ore was also being recovered from the old workings on the Garibaldi; 150 tons of material on the dump had assayed $100 per ton on the average and were being shipped to San Francisco for treatment. Development work was being financed solely by proceeds from the ore shipments.
By the time another year had passed several thousand dollars had been expended on development of the Argonaut, Junietta, Blue Bell, Blizzard, and Virgin mines by Hunter, Miller, and Medbury. The Blue Bell reportedly contained a well-defined twenty-foot ledge showing ore averaging $80 per ton, with over 100 tons of ore lying on the dump. Over $1,000 had been spent on development of this property alone. In the late summer of 1884 10-1/2 tons of ore from the Mohawk, Blue Bell, and Argonaut mines were sent to the Snow Canyon mill for treatment in order to determine the ore's milling quality; about 3,400 ozs. of silver bullion were produced.
In November 1884 Medbury and Miller sold a J. M. Keeler one-half interest in the Blue Bell, Mohawk, Valley View, Blizzard, Argonaut, and Jeanette (sic) mines for $1,600. Evidently the mine underwent yet another name change, because two years later a notice of location for the Silver Queen Mine was filed, located in Rose Springs Mining District and "formerly known as the Blue Bell Mine or Garibaldia." The property in question had been located 2 April 1886 by M. M. Beaty (probably Beatty) and Joseph Danielson. Again on 1 January 1888 a Silver Queen Mine on the east side of the Panamint Range and about twelve miles northwest of Coleman's borax works in Death Valley, "formerly known as the Blue Bell or Garabaldia mine" was located by Paul Pfefferle and Joseph Danielson. In 1902 the Garibaldi Mine, now including an 80-foot shaft and 150-foot tunnel, was linked to Charles Anthony of Darwin. It is more uncertain whether a 1906 discovery of a Blue Bell No. 1 and No. 2 claim took place at this site. Their location is given as "between the Casa Diablo Company's mines and the old Wild Rose property. . . ." and "are about four miles south of the old Wild Rose. . . ." Because of the vague description of boundaries it would be difficult to determine the area involved without further research into the Casa Diablo Company and its holdings. It is the writer's opinion, however, that this refers to claims further south and west, possibly outside the present national monument.
In 1906 the old Garibaldi Mine near Skidoo, possessing numerous long tunnels and shafts, was owned by Kennedy (probably F. C.) and Gray, who had performed limited development work. It was during this year that the first reference was found to "stone mill buildings" on the property. Kennedy received an offer for the mine at this time, a sale that might have been consummated, since in 1911, Mr. Ball was working the "Girabaldi" and had several tons of ore ready for shipment. Before long the mine was again abandoned, and no record of any mill or smelter returns for the next several years has been found. One memo in the mining office file lists the Garibaldi as being worked in 1953 for gold. A later list shows W. M. Hoover as owner of the Garibaldi and E. H. McGlothlin and Earl Enger as owners of the Blue Bell. According to McGlothlin, who by 1974 was one of four claimants of the Blue Bell Millsite and the Blue Bell #1 lode claim (encompassing the old Garibaldi Mine), a lessee of the property shipped about 150 tons of selected material from the site in 1967, and he himself had shipped nine to ten tons to Barstow a year later. No documented production for the mine has been found.
N. J. Medbury, W. K. Miller, and J. M. Keeler soon became partners in the Mohawk, Blue Bell (aka Garibaldi), and Argonaut (aka Nellie Grant) mines, and in 1884, interested in testing their ore's milling potential, Miller hauled 10-1/2 tons of the material from these mines thirty miles across the Panamint Valley to a mill in Snow Canyon. Four bars of bullion, weighing 3,400 ozs. were produced, proving that the material was of good milling quality.Greene, 1981
List of minerals for each chemical element
Localities in this Region
- California
- Inyo County
- Panamint Mts (Panamint Range)
- Wildrose Mining District (Wild Rose Mining District)
- Skidoo Mining District
- Tucki Mountain
- Skidoo
- Garibaldi Mine (Blue Bell Mine; Blue Bell group; Blue Bell No. 1 claim; Blue Bell mill site claim)
- Skidoo
- Tucki Mountain
- Skidoo Mining District
- Wildrose Mining District (Wild Rose Mining District)
- Panamint Mts (Panamint Range)
- Inyo County
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
North America PlateTectonic Plate
- Antler Foreland BasinBasin
- Basin and Range BasinsBasin
- Mojave DomainDomain
USA
- Death Valley National ParkNational Park
- Sierra NevadaMountain Range
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References
