Ben Soulsby found riches and founded a town,
The Mother Lode has many rich areas, and one of the richest was at one time located in Soulsbyville.
Placer mining ran rampant in the surrounding area, but lode mining would soon take over on an exponential level.
Early in 1852, a young man by the name of Benjamin Soulsby was pursuing a cow that strayed off from the rest of his herd. While searching through the rolling grassy-oak hills, Soulsby stumbled upon a rock outcropping that seemed very particular. Large veins of quartz were visible on the surface and were spread over a decent sized area, sparkling with the shiny glimmer of gold. A claim was filed immediately.
This discovery would soon skyrocket Soulsby's discovery and put it along with the surrounding area on the map of the ever-fastgrowing Gold Country. Mining operations began soon after the discovery and led to the beginning of the town known as Soulsbyville.
A low number of available workers made it tough to find local hard-rock miners, with many already employed by other large mining operations. Noted in “Soulsbyville Mining District” by L.P. Goldstone, Soulsby hired experienced workers in mining, out of Cornwall, England, who later made up much of the workforce.
Soulsby, who took pride in his workers, only wanted the top of the line and smartest working within his mine. He sought out experience and brains regarding finding the valuable shiny yellow metal deep below the earth's surface.
The Soulsby Gold Mine eventually grew, including overall vertical depth and in claim numbers, too. Claims, including Johnson, Churchill, Bradbury, Pennsylvania, Platt, and Gilson, soon joined the overall operation in 1856.
Workings became complex as time went on. Many smaller shafts were worked and sampled, but the Soulsby Mine main shaft reached slightly over 900 feet in depth. By 1890, multiple crosscuts were constructed, but the main two producers of highly sought-after gold were located at the 800- and 900-foot level of the Soulsby shaft. Stopes and winzes were dug out off of these main crosscuts in pursuance of the gold which was valued at $18.90 an ounce in 1890.
It was recorded by the U.S.
Bureau of Mines that the 900foot level of the mine followed a quartz vein with an average thickness of 18 inches. The quartz mine, thanks to Soulsby's discovery, produced more than $7 million by 1909. The mine closed in 1911 due to the veins being exhausted from their valuable ore.
The community was the first in Tuolumne County to be established solely because of a lode mine. The Soulsby Gold Mine was the highest producer within the entire East Belt of the Mother Lode. Soulsby lived out the rest of his life as a wealthy man, and he later passed away in 1930 at the age of 89. He is buried in the Sonora Masonic Cemetery.