The Tertiary Channels & Gravels of the Sierra Nevada in California are famous not only for the sheer volume of gold recovered from them, but also the dramatic hydraulic and drift mining methods used to mine them. The history of gold mining in California would not be complete without a coverage of these gravels. Read On

Right Click the image to download any document.

Tertiary Channels
William B. Clark
California Division of Mines, Mineral Information Service, March 1965

This document presents the basic mining history of California's Tertiary Gravels. Mining Districts and Production are discussed and a basic map showing the Tertiary Channels and the principal gold bearing deposits is presented.

Right Click the image to download. (1.5 Mb)

Old River-beds of California
Joseph LeConte
For the National Academy of Sciences, Oct. 1879

This paper is an introduction to the Tertiary Gravels from a geologic standpoint. It explains in terms, as simple as possible, the complicated nature of these gold-bearing gravels. It provides a basic understanding of the grand geologic forces that moved the gold where it is today. (1Mb)