The discovery of gold at what would be known as the Baldwin Mine
in November of 1873 started a rush to the area. To avoid
transporting ore into Holcomb Valley to be processed a stamp mill
was constructed below the mine in Bairdstown
(see "Doble" cache).
By November of 1874, 144,000 pounds of mining machinery had been
transported to the site and construction of the mill was well
underway. This was packed in using ox teams from the railhead at
Spadra, about 5 miles west of Pomona. The route in took them
through the Cajon Pass and Holcomb Valley to the mill site.
Assembly of the Joshua-Hendy 40-stamp mill and the 150 horsepower
Corliss Steam Engine was completed by March of 1875. You can see
photos and a description of a stamp mill in the "1900 Stamp Mill"
cache. To obtain the large amount of water needed to operate the
mill a 5 mile long flume was constructed
see "Flume Tunnel" Cache).
The boom was short lived. Within two months the quality of ore
being mined was far below expectations and 20 of the 40 stamps were
shut down. By November of that year operations ceased. It was
leased to process ore in 1876 before being closed down again. In
August of 1878 the mill burned to the ground leaving the ruined
machinery. The machinery stayed there until the First World War
when it taken as scrap for war materials.
Today the Pacific Crest Trail runs right through the mill site.
There you will see the six of the large bolts the secured that
Corliss Steam Engine. Next to the trail you can also see some large
support timbers that have been cut off just above ground level. I
found a couple of square nails on the ground there.
This photo, taken around 1900, is the only known photo of the
mill. Five of the eight stamp batteries are standing. Each battery
contains five stamps (you can see the shafts sticking up from the
batteries). About midway to the top of the shafts you can see a
collar. This is what the cam would hook to raise and drop the
stamps. The Baldwin Mine is above the top of the stamps on the far
right. You can also see what is left of the Fraser & Chalmers
150 horsepower Corliss Engine. Running 24 hours per day, the daily
fuel requirement would have been 8 cords of dry pine (11,000 lbs).
The massive flywheel was 24 feet in diameter with a 38 inch face
and weighed several tons. This remaining equipment was scrapped to
use as raw material during the First World War. Today the Pacific
Crest Trail runs "through" the flywheel.
This is an illustration of the type of engine used to power
the mill. These engines were designed to be broken down for
transport by pack animals. Though the total weight of these engines
was 14,000 pounds or more, each piece weighed a maximum of about
300 pounds and had a length of 8 feet or less. The cylinder and
piston are horizontal. This must be installed perfectly level or
the piston will gouge the cylinder wall. Lubrication for the moving
parts was obtained by slaughtering a pig and using the fat. Similar
engines, of various sizes, were used all over these mountains to
power saw mills, stamp mills and other types of machinery.
In the above picture you will see a device sticking up
vertically from the engine. There are two balls affixed to the top
of it. This is the governor that controls the speed of the engine.
The governor is geared to the engine so when it runs the balls
spin. As the engine speeds up the balls spin faster causing them to
swing further out. As they swing out, the steam supply valve is
closed preventing the engine from tearing itself up. This is where
the term "running balls out" comes from.
Steam engines have a long history in mining. As a matter of
fact, the first practical (but crude) steam engine was patented in
1698 by Thomas Savery for the purpose of pumping water out of coal
mines in England. He named it "The Miners Friend; or, an Engine To
Raise Water by Fire".
This picture of a stamp battery, similar to the ones at this
mill, will give you an idea of the size of the stamps. Each stamp
weighed about 1000 pounds!
Four of the anchor bolts that held the massive Corliss Steam
Engine. These bolts are embedded in a large cement foundation that
is now completely buried.