•- 



THE GRAVEL DEPOSITS: DUTCH FLAT AND GOLD RUN 



143 



The Central Pacific Railroad runs on the divide between the North Fork 

 of the American and Bear River, and the gravels which come first in geo- 

 graphical order lie chiefly on this divide, a small portion of them, however, 

 being to the northwest of the last-named stream, and between it and its trib- 

 utary, Hollow Creek. The main mass of the gravel extends uninterruptedly 

 from Elmore Hill, just south of Bear River, for a distance of about five and 

 a half miles to Indiana Hill on the American. The towns of Dutch Flat and 

 Gold Run are situated on this range of gravel, the former near its northern 

 extremity, the latter about two miles north of its southern end, the railroad 

 passing through the latter and a little to the east of the former locality. A 

 wide branch of this gravel also extends off from the main mass in a south- 

 westerly direction, although intersected by Bear River, on the west side of 

 which is the third important mining town of this district, Little York. 



This main mass of gravel, as is evident from an inspection of the map, is 

 prolonged in the deposit which, with only a slight break at Bear River, ex- 

 tends continuously from Liberty Hill to Lowell Hill, on the divide between 

 Bear River and Hollow Creek. Beyond LoavcII Hill are still three isolated 

 patches of gravel, near each other and in the same general line of direction, 

 upward towards the summit of the Sierra. Besides these, there are a few 

 small areas of gravel to the south of and near the line of the railroad ; the 

 mining camps dependent on these are known as Blue Bluffs and Lost Camp. 

 These different deposits, at all of which somewhat active mining operations 

 were going on in 1870, will now be described in the order indicated, and 

 principally from Mr. Pettec's notes. 



1. Dutch Flat, Gold Bun, and Little York. 



As before remarked, the gravel deposits are almost continuous from 

 Indiana Hill, on the North Fork of the American River, to Elmore Hill 

 on Bear River above Dutch Flat. In fact, with the exception of the gap 

 at the cafion of Little Bear River, there is no absolute break of continuity 

 between the two places mentioned, for none of the intermediate ravines cut 

 through to the bed-rock at all points. In endeavoring to trace the connec- 

 tion of the channel, or channels, in this great mass of gravel, the problems 

 presented are, as usual in such cases, not without difficulty. Above Elmore 

 *iiil there can be no question as to the direction of the ancient stream ; for 

 from Elmore the bank at Liberty Hill is plainly in sight at a distance of less 

 than two miles, and so much higher that the tops of the trees on the summit 



