Hart was a short-lived gold

mining town A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historic mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendigo, ...

located in the

Mojave desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...

, in

San Bernardino County, California San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a County (United States), county located in the Southern California, southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the ...

. It existed between 1908 and 1915, and was located on the northeastern edge of

Lanfair Valley Lanfair Valley is located in the Mojave Desert in southeastern California near the Nevada state line. It is bounded on the north by the New York Mountains and Castle Mountains, on the east by the Piute Range, and on the south by the Woods Mountai ...

near the

New York Mountains The New York Mountains are a small mountain range found in northeastern San Bernardino County in California, USA. The range's northeastern area lies in southeastern Nevada. The range lies just south of the small community of Ivanpah, and north ...

. The area is now in the Castle Mountains National Monument, administered by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

History

In late 1907, while a depression gripped the nation, three prospectors from Goldfield – James Hart and the brothers Bert and Clark Hitt – found pockets of rich gold ore in the Castle Mountains, approximately four miles south of the Barnwell & Searchlight Railroad. The strike was touted as the "Second Goldfield bonanza". In early 1908, prospectors swarmed to the strike. During the next few months, 700 people arrived, a camp was established, a telephone line was strung to Barnwell, the weekly newspaper ''Enterprise'' started up, a voting precinct and justice-court township were created, and a post office were established. By summer, Hart's 1,500 residents were served by the Norton House and Martin House Hotels, and the Star

rooming house A rooming house, also called a "multi-tenant house", is a "dwelling with multiple rooms rented out individually", in which the tenants share kitchen and often bathroom facilities. Rooming houses are often used as housing for low-income people, as ...

(

flophouse A flophouse (American English) or dosshouse (British English) is a place that offers very low-cost lodging, providing space to sleep and minimal amenities. Characteristics Historically, flophouses, or British "doss-houses", have been used for o ...

). Other businesses included two general stores, (including the Hart-Gosney), the Ames Book and Cigar Store, a real-estate office, a candy store, two lumberyards, a bakery, eight saloons (including Hart and Hitt, C. Aguire, Arlington Club, Honest John, Oro Belle, and Northern Bar), and a brothel. There were telephone and telegraph services, and a water line. A miners' union was organized. A businessmen's league limited the sale of liquor, enforced police and fire regulations, and ousted gamblers and toughs. Hart and Hitt's original claim was sold by their promoter, Will Foster, to the Oro Belle Mining Company of

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

in 1908 for $100,000. The mine was never profitable and shut down permanently in 1918.Snorf, D.N., “Early Days at Hart; Being the Reminiscenses of John Sherwood Snorf as told to Dorothy (Nelson) Snorf”, 1991, Tales of the Mojave Road Publishing Company, Goffs Schoolhouse, Essex, CA; 208 pp. Illustrated. All the other mines had the same fate. The pockets of high-grade ore proved small, and mining declined as soon as 1909. The largest mine besides the Oro Belle was the Big Chief, originally called the Jumbo, also owned by the Hart brothers. A 10

Stamp mill A stamp mill (or stamp battery or stamping mill) is a type of mill machine that crushes material by pounding rather than grinding, either for further processing or for extraction of metallic ores. Breaking material down is a type of unit operatio ...

was built at this mine. Other mines included the Twin Peaks, the Flyer, the Florence, the Zinc-Graf property, and the Todd Hunter lease. The ''Enterprise'' and other businesses closed. A fire wiped out much of the

business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

(largely deserted); the leading mines suspended work and the miners’ union was disbanded. The court district and voting precinct were abolished, and the post office closed in late 1915.

References

Sources

* *

External links

Hensher 2005

* {{authority control Mojave National Preserve Lanfair Valley Ghost towns in California Populated places in the Mojave Desert Mining communities in California Former settlements in San Bernardino County, California Populated places established in 1907 Populated places disestablished in 1915 1907 establishments in California 1915 disestablishments in California

History

See also

References

Sources

External links