The golden mirage of the Sierra Nevada: the mystery of the cement mine that drove thousands of seekers crazy (8 photos)

Centuries ago, powerful geological processes formed untold gold riches in the California mountains. These treasures lay unknown until the mid-19th century, when people discovered them, triggering one of the largest gold rushes in history.





It brought glory and ruin, hope and despair, but its most mysterious legacy still excites minds.



Gold Mining in California. Lithograph by Currier and Ives, 1871

In those days, gold was literally lying underfoot. The first prospectors washed river sand and collected nuggets washed down the mountain slopes. Later, when the surface reserves ran out, daring prospectors resorted to radical measures - they changed the courses of entire rivers to get to the hidden deposits under water. Over time, mining turned into a complex industrial process with blasting and crushing hard rocks.





A view north along the San Joaquin Range. The low pass in the foreground is Deadman Pass, home to a lost cement mine

But legend has it that somewhere deep in the Sierra Nevada there still lies an untapped vein of incredible value, the very same "cement mine" that two German immigrants accidentally discovered in 1857. They were said to have discovered a layer of rusty red rock laced with gold nuggets near the Owens River. Having grabbed the samples, the men hurried to civilization, but a tragic accident interrupted their plans: one broke his leg and died in the desert, and the second, barely alive, reached the Millerton camp, where he handed over a piece of rock with gold inclusions to a local doctor, Dr. Randall.



This story caused a stir. Hundreds of gold prospectors poured into the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada, including a young Mark Twain, who later wrote about his experiences in the book "Light Traveled." He met people obsessed with the search, such as Randall's assistant Mr. Whiteman, who spent thirteen years of his life hunting for the phantom mine. Twain saw that very sample of rock: "Nuggets of pure gold sat in it like raisins in a slice of cake."



Dead Man's Pass, where the search begins

Although the legendary vein itself was never found, its search led to the discovery of other deposits. This is how the camps of Bodie, Dogtown, and Mammoth City appeared. It is possible that someone has already found that very mine, but did not understand its significance.



Memorial plaque

In the 20th century, the legend received a new lease of life: writer Horace McCoy claimed to have seen a map with its coordinates. And in 1980, a memorial plaque was installed on the Owens River Road with an ironic inscription: "If you find a vein of pure gold, let us know so we can move this sign to the right place."



Somewhere among these rocky cliffs, a lost cement mine awaits its rediscovery

The mystery of the cement mine remains unsolved. Perhaps it is hidden in the harsh slopes of the Sierra Nevada, or perhaps it awaits someone who can read old maps and believe in the impossible.



Somewhere in the waters of Deadman Creek, gold may still be hiding, waiting for a modern prospector to extract it