Now & Then: Providence Mine,
Making a comeback with the Providence Mine
As the Gold Rush was roaring throughout California, Tuolumne County was producing high quantities of gold from its many flowing rivers.
Placer mining had the spotlight, until the rivers and creeks began turning out less and less gold. A turn in tactics led to the beginning of lode mining. Over time, as lode mining operations began, a pattern began to show itself.
Spanning from the northwest to the southeast across Tuolumne County are three lifelines of gold bearing quartz. The first vein, the West Quartz Belt, spans from west of Columbia and Sonora, then south to Don Pedro Reservoir. The second vein, the Mother Lode Quartz Belt, cuts through the center of Columbia and moves south through the heart of Sonora. The third and final vein, the East Quartz Belt, passing just to the east of Jupiter, makes its way south, meandering through Twain Harte, Soulsbyville, and Tuolumne before ending just to the south of Buchanan. The combination of these three veins covers an area approximately 4 miles wide and 170 miles long throughout the Sierra Nevada.
Of these three quartz belts, one in particular stands out above the rest. The East Quartz Belt is home to many well known, large-scale mining operations. There were countless high-producing mines along the East Quartz Belt, but the most noted are the Confidence Mine, Soulsby Mine, Draper Mine, Black Oak Mine, Buchanan Mine, Starr King Mine, and the Providence Mine.
All of these mines had immense workings at one point in time during their heyday, one of which has plans for reopening here in the Mother Lode. Located east of the township of Tuolumne, out in the foothills among the steep canyons, is the Providence Gold Mine. Originally a placer operation by the name of Consuelo, this area was very rich in gold. The only access into this steep ravine was by mule. Originally, there were no roads to this isolated gold field.
The operation relied heavily on pack mules to bring supplies from nearby Tuolumne. A man by the name of Charles H. Carter eventually moved a small store closer to the mine to allow for less traveling for the miners and more profit for his small general store. According to the Tuolumne City Memorial Museum, it was estimated that Carter received about 25% of the miners' wages through sales of his general store's merchandise.
In 1870, lode mining took the stage of the Consuelo overnight. An adit was punched into the hillside just above the North Fork of the Tuolumne River. Once the adit reached 500 feet deep, a 26-inch vein of gold bearing quartz was the first to produce for the operation.
The mine briefly closed in 1894 upon the death of four miners due to a collapse. During this closure period, James Gloster and Frank M. Cook took new ownership of the mine. The mine reopened in 1895 just to have ownership change to the Tuolumne Consolidated Mining Co. in 1898. Change for the mine was not complete yet. In 1901, the mine was transferred to the Providence Consolidated Mining Co. through a short lease. The mine closed yet again in 1907 when its lease expired.
New Providence Gold Mining Co. became the mine's new owner in 1909. Unfortunately, during the short time that the mine was closed, the mine's condition suffered on an exponential level. The lower levels of the mine began to flood due to half of the mine being located below the water table. The timbering began failing in many sections of the mine due to the rising water levels. Due to the lack of sufficient funding for repairs, the mine closed again in 1916.
By 1916, the mine's inner workings became very complex, requiring heavy wood timbering to be put in place. The mine consisted of 12 workable levels along with many cross cuts, stopes, winzes and a 1,200-foot-deep shaft. The deepest level of the mine is actually about 1,400 feet down. Unfortunately, in 1918, a major fire damaged a majority of the buildings and surface workings of the mine. Since then, the mine has sat idle for 100 years. It was assumed by the time of its closure that the mine had spit out 50,000 ounces of gold.
Though the mine closed many times, never once was the closure due to the lack of ore. Recently in 2017, Providence Gold Mines Inc., based out of Canada, acquired the claim rights to the mine. Upon testing waste rock piles, it was identified that large quantities of gold were left behind. Further geological surveys identified a new quartz vein that was previously undiscovered to past miners. This undiscovered pocket vein, hidden in black slate, would be the fourth vein of the mine. It is located between two of the existing and previously worked veins. According to Providence Gold Mines Inc., “during the Providence's peak production, the mine produced $30 per ton. This newly discovered vein is estimated to produce a much higher quantity in gold.”
Providence Gold Mines Inc. is waiting on mineral rights as well as water rights to resume mining operations. Special permits are in line, due to the company requiring water to be pumped out of the lower half of the mine. The 1,000and 1,100-foot levels will be the main target of the company. Everything from the 700-foot level and below is flooded as of today. This gold mine is spectacular and mind boggling to see, though it is very dangerous and extremely isolated within the foothills of the gold country.