Galice Creek (located in Josephine County) and its tributaries were important placer gold producers, especially in regard to the “Old Channel” gravels which form a terrace to the west of the creek and 600 feet above it. Placer gold was discovered on Galice Creek in 1854, and significant amounts of gold were produced. The Old Channel hydraulic pit on the high terrace was started in 1860 and ultimately became almost 2,000 feet wide and 100 feet deep, the largest such pit in the State of Oregon. It is reported that over 50,000 ounces of gold were produced from the pit. The gravels averaged about .007 ounce of gold per cubic yard and a lot of good ground remains to be mined.

If you see this sign you will know your in the right place.

There are a number of old lode gold mines in the Galice district, and those mineralized zones supplied most of the placer gold deposits found in the area. The Galice district, including Mount Reuben, had a total production of around 268,000 gold ounces. The local placer operations include the Ankeny Mine, Courtney Mine, Carnegie Mine, California-Oregon Mine, and Last Chance Mines.

The hillside just West of the Galice Range (approximately 1/4 to 1/2 miles wide, extending 4 miles to the Southwest), patches of gravel benches about 500 feet above present day streams as dissected by tributaries of Galice Creek there is placer gold. The “High Bench Gravels” along both sides of the Rogue River are gold bearing, but not much worked at this time. Downstream you will find the Dean and Dean placer Mine, and the Rocky Gulch placer Mine. In Hellgate Canyon, the Hellgate placers, were very productive. Along Galice Creek there are many rich placers. The Chinese also worked in the area.

Near these sites: If you go 21 miles Southwest of Glendale in Douglas County, in section 22, 23, and 27 of Township 33S and Range 8W, you will find the Benton Mine, near Mount Reuben. It was found in 1893 and is the largest underground mine in Oregon. It was closed in 1942. The Almeda Mine, Gold Bug Mine, Oriole Mine, Black Bear Mine, and Robertson (Bunker Hill) Mines, were important producers of lode gold in the area.

Lode Gold

The geology of  Oregon gold locations in the southwestern part of the state is complex and not fully understood, being closely associated with plate tectonics and crustal subduction. Numerous gold-quartz veins can be found in greenstone of the Triassic age (248 – 208 million years ago), which trends in belts from the southwest to the northwest parts of Josephine County. Black slate , peridotite, and serpentine of Jurassic age sometimes contain gold-quartz veins and tend to parallel the greenstone belts. Granite, diorite, and gabbro intrusive bodies can be found in many parts of the county, but are generally devoid of mineralization except where they are in contact with older rocks. Josephine County is noted for past chromium, copper and nickel production as well as gold, and exploratory work for nickel continues to this day.

The most productive lode gold mine was the Greenback Mine, which produced approx. 175,000 ounces of gold from a persistent quartz vein in greenstone. It was sunk to an incline of 1,000 feet on 12 levels. The Benton Mine was developed in gold-quartz veins in greenstone near the contact with intrusive diorite and produced 18,500 ounces of gold. The nearby Gold Bug Mine produced 37,500 ounces. Numerous other lode mines produced  between 1,000 and 13,000 ounces of gold, primarily in the period between 1893 and 1942.

Pocket Gold

Josephine County is noted for rich pockets of gold close to the surface. Some of these pockets were fabulously rich, though they were mined out quickly. The best known pocket diggings was in the Briggs Mine near the California line, where masses of gold totaling 2,000 ounces were taken out in 1904. Slabs of gold up to 3 feet in length were reportedly recovered.

Nuggets

A number of nuggets the size of chicken eggs have been found in placer gravels and pocket deposits. A 17 pound nugget was found in 1859 on the East Fork of Althouse Creek below the Briggs Pocket. Another nugget weighing 15 pounds was found in the gravels near the Esterly hydraulic cut in the early 1860’s. Despite the abundance of nuggets in Josephine County, most gold recovered in placer mining operations is fine flakes.

Placer Gold

Placer gold was discovered in 1850 and simple hand mining methods commenced in 1852. Before long, hydraulic methods were introduced and a number of deep cuts were made in the landscape. Placer gold can be found in stream channels, in bench gravels, and in terrace gravels up to 600 feet above the present stream levels. Old channels can be found in terrace gravels, some of which are rich. Gold is generally found at or near fractured or decomposed bedrock. Some of the bench and terrace gravels are cemented. Boulders are common in many stream gravels, and most gravels range from a few feet to over 50 feet in thickness.

Power shovels, dredges and dragline excavators were introduced around the turn of the century and were used up to 1952. Since 1960, individuals with portable suction dredges have found considerable gold in Josephine County and Jackson County to the east. Most placer work is done between February and September when streams contain sufficient water.