Oro Grande, California

Oro Grande consists of a town that is located on the outside of the city of Victorville right before getting to Barstow. The mines of Oro Grande are located on the northeast hills of the town. The gold in this town was first discovered at the beginning of the 1880’s and mining was done all the way until the 1930’s. The gold in this area occurred in quartz veins and was very rich particularly on the surface. The veins consisted of narrow and irregular shapes and a few rich pockets could be found when mining the veins.

Oro district, California
The Ord mining district is located on the south side of Barstow and east of Victorville. When going into Victorville on Interstate 15, you will need to take highway 18 and get off east on Old Woman Springs Road. On Old Woman Springs Road go east to Camp Rock Road until you get into Harrod road. From Harrod Road you will want to go Ord Mountains. The mountains were called the Ord Mountains in honor or the Civil War General E. O. C. Ord. Gold was first found in this area in the 1970’s and it was worked on for a good number of years before ending the 1930’s. This area is mainly a lode mining district, however some placer gold has been found here as well. There have also been some signs of possible big deposits of copper and silver in the district. Gold in this area occurs in quartz veins in granitic rock.

Alvord district, California
The Alvord district is located on the east side of Barstow and close to the Alvord Mountain. The main production in this area has come from the Alvord mine. The strike occurred in 1885 and the mine was then worked on and off ever since. To get to Alvord simply take highway 15 out of Barstow all the way to Harvard Road from here go north to a gravel road and then turn right. Take another right to the second road on the left. Here you will find the Alvord Road which will lead you to the mountain.