MINES AND MINING 



Vallejo, and other properties near Napa. Among 

 minerals of minor interest it may be noted that 

 there is an active pyrite mine at Lepna Heights 

 on the edge of Oakland, while magnesite is mined 

 in Alameda and Santa Clara counties, also near 

 San Francisco. The most important magnesite 

 mines are near Porterville and Fresno, in the big 

 valley. Portland cement is made by the Standard 

 Portland Cement Company at Napa Junction, and 

 the Pacific Portland Cement Company at Cement, 

 both works being near tidewater on San Francisco 

 bay. The Pacific works are in sight from the main 

 transcontinental trains near Suisun. The Standard 

 Company also has wonts near Santa Cruz, and at 

 Colton and Riverside in southern California there 

 are large works. At Monolith, north of Mohave, 

 are the works built to furnish cement for the Los 

 Angeles aqueduct. The methods of cement manu- 

 facture on this Coast do not differ especially from 

 those elsewhere, though oil is used as fuel at all 

 California plants. The three in Washington burn 

 with coal. 



Visitors to San Diego will be near several fa- 

 mous gem regions, and those traveling across south- 

 ern California will see typical desert mining. North 

 of Mohave, accessible through Searles on the South- 

 ern Pacific, or Randsburg on the Santa Fe Rail- 

 way, is Borax Flat, where the potassium works 

 of the American Trona Corporation are situated. 

 The famous borax mines are in Death Valley, 

 reached by way of the Tonopah & Tidewater Rail- 

 road, while Bodie and other old mines of Owens 

 Valley are accessible by rail from either Mohave, 

 California, or Reno, Nevada. Limitations of space 

 forbid more detailed mention of many interesting 

 mineral industries on the Coast. In the Ferry 

 building at San Francisco will be found the large 

 collections of the State Mining Bureau. Maps and 

 descriptive reports are available there, and detailed 

 information will be given. At Los Angeles the 

 Chamber of Mines and Oil maintains a similar ser- 

 vice in the Germain building. In Oregon the State 

 Geologist, H. M. Parks, State Bureau of Mines, Cor- 

 vallis, will gladly answer inquiries. At Seattle the 

 headquarters of the State Geological Survey, sim- 

 ilarly equipped for service, is at the University. 

 At Victoria, William Fleet Robertson, the Provincial 

 Mineralogist, has unusually complete information 

 regarding mining in British Columbia, and may be 

 addressed. 



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