This area is in the mountains above Lytle Creek. I went with friends and family to hike down to an area that another friend told me about where he found a nugget. Instead we got turned around and ended up the mountain on the other side at the famous Big Horn Mine - which I don’t regret. First of all, the hike is not a long as others, and very beautiful as well. Secondly, the Mine itself is interesting and set in beautiful surroundings. It’s not like your usual mine where it’s just a hole in the mountain or ground, this mine is balanced high on its airy perch 7000 feet up on the rugged eastern face of Mount Baden-Powell with its century-old ten-stamp mill overlooking the beginning headwaters of the historic East Fork of the San Gabriel River thousands of feet below, by any standard-scenic, historic or size-the Big Horn Mine is undoubtedly the queen of all Southern California mines. The view is absolutely astounding! Just to see the mine nestled high up on this steep gulch is amazing and spectacular to see.

 

There wasn’t much water in the area, so I took some sample dirt from the Mine and panned it about a mile down in some slow flowing water coming out of another mine (see photos below) and found a some little flecks of gold which was pretty cool. It wasn’t much, but now you know that ‘it’s a gold mine alright’!  

Charles Vincent Dougherty/History of the area

 

A gold-bearing quartz vein was first discovered and worked in 1896 by that grizzled old hard rock miner, hunter, civil war veteran and fugitive Charles Tom Vincent aka Dougherty whose cabin and stamp  mill can still be found nearby. It has had several owners over the past century with the present proprietor a Canadian mining corporation (Siskon Gold Corp.) which has not worked the mine for the past few years.

Soledad Summit was renamed around 1881 to Vincent - according to a 1971 recollection by Kate S. Valenta, who for decades owned a cafe and cabins at Vincent, in honor of San Gabriel Mountains hunter and prospector Charles "Tom" Vincent, who was also the namesake of Vincent Gap 50 miles away on what is now Angeles Crest Highway. (Vincent, who in 1894 discovered the Big Horn gold mine near Vincent Gap, supposedly revealed on his deathbed in 1926 that his true name was Charles Vincent Dougherty, and that he assumed the false name years earlier after he and a mining partner in Arizona killed three men they found ransacking their cabin)

 

Charles “Tom” Vincent (whose real identify is a whole story in itself) was reported to have discovered the Big Horn Mine around 1895 when hunting for Big Horn Sheep. The area, which included East Fork and other canyons, had been active with gold mining operations for decades. Placer operations started in the district as early as 1838. Prior to his find of gold on Baden Powell, Vincent had tried his luck looking for gold in the East Fork of the San Gabriel’s. With two friends, possibly Civil War buddy Charles Locher (Lockwood) and prospector N.D. Shippy, Tom Vincent dug Tunnel #1 deep into the mountain and found more gold. Unfortunately, they could not afford to get it out and crush it. They worked this claim until approximately 1898. Tom Vincent and his partners would later sell the mine, but continue to work for its new owner for a short period. Vincent kept two other nearby claims called Blue Cat Mile and Little Nell Mine. Vincent gave the title of these two mines to Levi and Dorothy Noble of Valyermo, Ca..Who actually bought the Big Horn Mine from Vincent is still in debate. Three sources of information kept in the archives of Wrightwood Historical Museum gives three slightly different stories that made it a little fuzzy at first.

 

The Mountaineer Progress exclusive story that was written by Dennis Nadaline over thirteen years ago was supported by a “confidential report” provided by Siskon Corporation (an owner of the Big Horn Mine) in 1979. The Siskon Corporation report stated that Tom Vincent sold Big Horn Mine in 1902 to the Lowell and California Mining Company. It was this company who cut out a rough wagon road that ran from Valyermo, up Big Rock Creek, across Vincent Gap, and around the slopes of Baden-Powell to the mine. This service road was completed in 1903. The mine operated from 1903 till 1908. During this time, fifty men were employed.

Author Bobbi Holmes, of the Mountain/Hi-desert Guide, wrote of a different account in the August 1987 issue of that paper. “In 1898 there was a great flurry over the Big Horn. During that time period an article in the Los Angeles Times stated; “F. V. Layton…is now manager of the Big Horn Mining Company of this city. It is capitalized for $2,000,000 and owned by Senator S.M.White, Judge F.M. Ross, L.W. Blinn, J.A. Graves and a few others, all of Los Angeles…”.

 

The Los Angeles Times reported some amazing facts of the early operations of the mine that indicated that perhaps this Los Angeles group first bought the mine from ol’ man Vincent. By 1898 the mine had developed to a depth of 300 feet and had been crosscut in several locations for a distance of 1200 feet in length! This Los Angeles company subsequently dug Tunnels #2, #3, and #4 into Big Horn Mine. Revealed in this crisscross of tunnels was a wall of gold ore over fifty feet in width that contained two million tons valued at over 8 million dollars! Was it a brag put forth by an overzealous reporter? Probably. It turns out that during that time the mine only brought in the sum of $100,000 worth in gold. Even so, the progress that was made at Big Horn Mine over the years made it an important venture for future owners, such as a man named Fenner, who bought it in 1901.

On July 31, 2006 the Wrightwood Historical Society received a letter from Norman A. Lamb, President of California-Engles Mining Company based in Greenville, California. He reported the following: Colonel F.C. Fenner bought Big Horn Mine in 1901. Sixteen years later, after his death in 1917, Fenner's wife, Cora, maintained the property.

 

Throughout the last half of 1933, the Administration's policy of reflation raised the price of gold well above the par of $20.67 per ounce. By early September, the dollar had depreciated 35 percent against the French franc, and by mid-September the dollar-pound rate had spiraled up to $4.80. On October 22, with the price of gold at $29 an ounce, Roosevelt, hoping that the program would raise commodity prices, authorized the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to purchase gold newly mined in the United States and, if necessary, to buy gold in the world market. On October 25, the RFC set its price for domestic gold purchases at $31.46, which was 27 cents above the world price. After the RFC began purchasing gold in the world market, the price of gold rose almost daily--to $34.01 on December 1--and the pound appreciated to $5.18. From April to December 1933, the Federal Reserve increased its holdings of government securities from $1.84 billion to $2.43 billion. (Federal Reserve Bulletin, June, 1989 by Leland Crabbe)

 

The Roosevelt Administration's move spurred Cora Fenner into action. It motivated the incorporation of Fenner Mines, Inc.. If you notice the signatures on the stock certificate above, you will see Cora had signed her name as president. This stock certificated was also provided by Mr. Lamb.

(stock certificated provided by Norman A. Lamb, president of California-Engels Mining Co.. It was dated November 7, 1936. On record at Wrightwood Historical Museum)

 

Colonel F.C. Fenner bought the Big Horn Mine in July of 1901 and attached his newly acquired mine to his Lowell and California Mining Company, which was an Arizona corporation. Tunnel work began anew in 1902 as the lode was cut by tunnel #5, and a 2 stamp mill operated for a year and a half. 1903 brought the creation of tunnel # 6 and a 10 stamp mill began producing in the summer of 1904. The Big Horn mine was hopping and by 1907, when tunnels #7, #8, #9 and #10 were built. Between July of 1904 and October of 1906, 15,564 tons of ore was mined and treated by the 10 stamp mill. At $2.25 a ton, it brought in over $39, 720.

 

On the southeastern side of Baden, Powell the Lowell and California Mining Company built a small community where the miners stayed. Included with the outbuilding was a store and Telephone poles for a small phone service. Supplies were brought up through the Valyermo and Big Rick Creek area and up the rough road to the mine. The road through present day Big Rock Creek still exists. It stretches pass Fenner Camp, whose namesake was the owner of Big Horn Mine, Colonel F. C. Fenner. Temporary housing for mine workers were also set up near present day California Dept Of Forestry And Fire Protection Fenner Cnyon-Conservation Camp. By 1907, the Big Horn Mine property was in litigation and it remained idle until 1914.

 

In the later half of 1914 Mudd and Wiseman conducted exploration work for the owners. During that time, and into 1915, a new tunnel was dug through the rough Baden Powell mountain. It is known today as the Fenner Tunnel. Unfortunately, the new tunnel route proved futile and was relinquished the following year. Colonel Fenner died in 1917, and even though his wife Cora kept the mine in order, operations at Big Horn Mine remained idle until 1934. In that year, Mrs. Fenner granted a lease to R. Huffman-The Big Horn Mining Company.

 

The Big Horn Mining Company

 

The Big Horn Mining Company was Los Angeles based. By 1934 Big Horn Mine resembled nothing of what Tom Vincent and his partners started thirty-six years prior. It consisted now of fifteen claims and two patented mill sites. Between high grade metamorphic rock and medium-grade metamorphic rocks, Huffman’s company found a 25 foot quartz vein. Found between 3 tunnels at different elevations inside the mountain (the intermediate tunnel was 600 feet in length and it had cut the vein 400 feet below the outcrop. The lowered crosscut tunnel was 1450 feet in length), the find promised an average market value of $4 dollars a ton. At least twenty five employees worked at the mine as a diesel plant and a compressor was installed, as was a 50 ton flotation plant. The temporary employer settlement on the southwest portion of Baden Powel was improved to a permanent one and a power line was installed to the mining property. Upgrades were also made on the property's outbuildings and the old mill building and the road leading to the property was improved. The company was ready to tackle the reinvigorated Big Horn Mine operation. But everything went sour before long. The Huffman Company relinquished the property in 1936 when they were unable to get into a continuous production routine.

In 1937 the property was leased with the option to buy by the American Metal Company Limited of New York. This company conducted a massive examination of Big Horn Mine that included geological mapping, tunnel surveying, obtaining channel samples and drilling eight exploratory tunnels. This company’s role in Big Horn Mine production was short lived. The mine opened only briefly and was closed.

 

In 1938, Big Horn Mine was sold to Security Industrial Corp. (SCI), which was owned by H. B. Chessher. A Nevada based company, SIC transferred the Big Horn Mine to an associated company named Siskon Corporation in November of 1966. Activity by this company was general maintenance and minor exploration and sampling in 1980 and 1981. There was still gold in them hills, it just took too much time, money and effort to get it out to make it worthwhile.

 

In April of 1981 Siskon Company and all its assets were sold to Hanna Mining Company-also known as M.A. Hanna Company. This company was home based in Cleveland, Ohio. Usually a company that mined ore in the Midwest, they expanded their operations to include silver and gold mining in the southwest.

Although grotto members and others have explored its several levels apparently no mapping except of course by the original miners was done until now. Estimates of its length varied from thousands of feet given by John Robinson in his Trails of the Angeles to 26 miles by Forest Service rangers.

 

The writers undertook the task of mapping it in the fall of 2002. It required six trips and the completed map below has a total length of 8700 feet. At that time the writers believed  that all  of the mine had been mapped. However in 2003 the L.A. County Fire Dept.-Search and Rescue Unit-obtained a set of maps dated 1916 from the Dept. of the Interior which showed substantially more tunnels and levels  of which we were unaware. Locating these “lost passages” which according to the old map total about 3,500 feet will be extremely difficult since the entrances are now either clogged or sealed.

 

In December 2006 a conservation group called the Wilderness Land Trust purchased the 277 acres of the Big Horn Mine inholding within the Sheep Wilderness Area of the Angeles National Forest from its longtime owner Siskon Gold Corporation. This conservation group is presently attempting to transfer title to the Angeles National Forest authorities who are concerned about possible liability issues.

 

There are several nearby smaller tunnels apparently not connected to the main complex. The longest is the so-called Fenner entrance, named after a former owner, located about a quarter mile below the stamp mill and its two tunnels. This open tunnel contains about two and a half feet of water throughout its 402 foot length. The old map shows more than 450 additional feet of passage beyond its present collapsed end. The map indicates there was no connection with the main complex.

 

This mine has a tremendous amount of shoring of various types indicating the miners belief that the mine is unstable. Within the past several years an unknown group placed a 12 foot wooden ladder at the terminus of the mine which leads to an upper room which has not yet been fully explored as of October 2008.

Just beyond the stamp mill a faint trail with dangerous exposure continues over a mile passing a prospect that supposedly contains a hidden tunnel. The writers strongly recommend against any solo trips on this dangerous trail  and urge all parties to tie in with rope. The trail ends at the top of a rather steep canyon. At the bottom of the canyon another tunnel entrance may be seen. This tunnel is reportedly quite shallow but has not been visited by the writers.