Quartzburg, Mariposa County, California
Quartzburg
Burns' Creek; Burns' Camp; Burns' Ranch; Burns' Diggings | |
|---|---|
Quartzburg Location in California Quartzburg Quartzburg (the United States) | |
| Coordinates: 37°32′22″N 120°12′16″W / 37.53944°N 120.20444°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Mariposa County |
| Settled | 1847 |
| Post office discontinued | February 2, 1861 |
Quartzburg (earlier Burns' Creek, Burns' Camp, Burns' Ranch, and Burns' Diggings) is a former settlement in Mariposa County, California, United States, located on Burns Creek approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) upstream from Hornitos.[1] John and Robert Burns settled at the site in 1847, and a mining camp grew up around the placer gold deposits in the creek.[1] The name "Quartzburg" was bestowed by Thomas Thorn after numerous quartz outcroppings were discovered at the site.[1] A post office operated at Quartzburg from October 7, 1851, to February 2, 1861.[2]
In 1851, quartz miners convened at Quartzburg to draft regulations governing quartz mining claims, which subsequently became the standard throughout California.[3]
History
Early settlement
John and Robert Burns arrived at the site on Burns Creek in 1847, before the main rush of the California Gold Rush.[1] Rich, dry diggings attracted a large number of miners, and many comfortable log cabins were built as a village took shape.[4] By November 1850, fourteen rich gold-bearing quartz veins had been discovered in the vicinity.[4]
Colonel Thomas Thorn, who arrived from Texas, became the settlement's most prominent citizen. He established a store and a Masonic lodge, served as the first postmaster when the post office opened on October 7, 1851, and gave the settlement its name based on the quartz outcroppings at the site.[3][2] Thorn reportedly arrived with ten enslaved individuals and drove out what he considered undesirable elements from the camp.[3] He died in 1854.[3]
Quartz mining convention
In 1851, quartz miners assembled at Quartzburg to draft regulations governing quartz mining claims.[3] The regulations produced at this convention became the standard for quartz claim law throughout California, giving the settlement a significance beyond its local mining operations.[3]
Community development
At its peak, Quartzburg supported a population of several hundred residents.[3] The settlement had organized street layouts and supported a school (operating by 1851), a Masonic lodge, a bowling alley, and commercial establishments including Thorn's store.[3] An adobe-walled, brick-fronted store built by Thorn in 1852 remained standing among the ruins as late as 1949.[5]
James Gaines, also from Texas, founded the Mount Gaines Mine in the vicinity, which became one of Mariposa County's largest gold producers.[3]
Founding of Hornitos
In 1850, a group of Mexican miners, gamblers, and dance-hall operators who had been expelled from Quartzburg by an armed "Law and Order Committee" established the town of Hornitos approximately two miles downstream on Burns Creek.[4] Hornitos subsequently grew into one of the more prominent settlements in the county and outlasted its parent community.[4]
California Rangers
In 1853, Quartzburg served as the mustering point for the California State Rangers, a company organized to capture the Mexican bandit Joaquin Murrieta.[3] Several Quartzburg miners participated in the pursuit.[3]
Decline
As the placer gold deposits were exhausted in the early 1860s, the population declined, with many residents relocating to nearby Hornitos.[1][6] The post office was discontinued on February 2, 1861.[2] The Quartzburg School, a one-room schoolhouse established in 1870 approximately 1.4 miles (2.3 km) northeast of the CR-J16/Jenny Lind Road junction, continued to operate until the early 1950s.[5]
Present day
When the Bear Valley–Hornitos Road (CR-J16) was constructed through the site, the remaining ruins of Quartzburg were bulldozed.[6] The only surviving trace of the settlement is the Quartzburg Cemetery, located on the north side of Burns Creek, on the north side of the county road.[1] Fragments of an olive tree on the roadside are reportedly the sole remaining physical evidence of the townsite itself.[3] The property is privately owned.[3]
Several mines in the Quartzburg area, including the Burns Creek Mine and the Mount Gaines Mine, are documented in mining records within the Hornitos Mining District.[7]
See also
- Hornitos, California
- List of ghost towns in California
- California Gold Rush
- Joaquin Murrieta
- Mariposa County, California
- Cat Town, California
References
- ^ a b c d e f Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, California: Word Dancer Press. p. 783–784. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
- ^ a b c "Mariposa County Historical Post Offices". Mariposa County Genealogy. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Quartzburg – California Ghost Town". GhostTowns.com. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
- ^ a b c d Chamberlain, Newell D. (1936). "Beginnings of Hornitos and Coulterville". The Call of Gold: True Tales on the Gold Road to Yosemite. Mariposa, CA: Mariposa Gazette Press.
- ^ a b "Ghost Towns of Mariposa County: Quartzburg". Ghost Towns USA. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
- ^ a b Kyle, Douglas E.; Rensch, Hero Eugene; Rensch, Ethel Grace; Hoover, Mildred Brooke (2002). Historic Spots in California (5th ed.). Stanford University Press. ISBN 0-8047-4482-3.
- ^ "Quartzburg, Hornitos Mining District, Mariposa County". Mindat.org. Retrieved February 11, 2026.