Other Gold Districts in
Nevada County

North Bloomfield
The district of North Bloomfield used to be called Humbug City and it was where the famous Malakoff Mine was located. Hydraulic mining used to be done in this area and it caused a pit of seven thousand feet long, three thousand feet wide and six hundred feet deep. This mine was then closed down in 1884 as a result of the Sawyer Decision. It was estimated that there was still around half a billion dollars worth of gold remaining in the gravels. The Malakoff Diggings have now turned into a state park. The gold came from an enormous bed of Tertiary gravels. To get to this place you will need to take the North Bloomfield Road east out of Nevada City.

North Columbia
The district of North Columbia is a placer and lode gold district. In the early days of the gold rush the placers were worked on here. Hydraulic mining was done here as well in the mid 1850’s.

There are a couple Tertiary channels in this area that are exposed and in some areas they are up to five hundred feet thick. This area has also had some high grade gold quartz veins that have been worked on. To get to North Columbia take the Tyler Foote Crossing Road east off of Highway 49 to its junction with the Grizzly Hill Road. You will see North Columbia on the left.

North San Juan
The district of North San Juan is a placer mining area and a few gold quartz veins have been worked on in this area. The district of North San Juan is located on Highway 49.

Rough and Ready
This district was named after General Zachary Taylor who used to be called “Old Rough and Ready” by the men who worked under him. This was the only camp in the Mother Lode that seceded from the Union. Placer mining was done in this area in the early days of the gold rush.

The placer gold in this area can be found in the stream gravels and in a bed of Tertiary channel gravels. In the 1860’s hard rock mining was done a lot in this area as well and the gravels were worked on by hydraulic and drift mining. To get to Rough and Ready you will need to take Highway 20 west off of Highway 49 in Grass Valley.

Scotts Flat
As all of the places the Chinese miners were at, Scotts Flat was worked really well by the Chinese miners as well. The lower gravels in the Scotts Flat area used to be very rich in gold. The district of Scotts Flat is located in the area of the Scotts Flat reservoir.

Smartsville
The district of Smartsville is joined and shared with the Yuba and Nevada Counties. The placers in this area were worked on in the past during the gold rush and later on hydraulic mining was done in 1855. The district of Smartsville is located off of Highway 20.

Washington
Not too long ago this was a very good spot for prospectors and still does well these days too. The area that is located on the sides of the town of Washington along the South Fork of the Yuba River has produced a good amount of gold for people that use portable suction dredges.

Unusual specimens of crystallized gold has also been found at the Red Ledge mine. The placer deposits in the Yuba River were worked on in the past at the beginning of the gold rush and proved to be very rich and productive. The Tertiary channel gravels in this area were hydrauliced in 1855 and this continued on until 1880. After this stopped the Chinese miners worked the mines again.

The district of Washington can be reached by taking Highway 20 going east out of Nevada City around 13 miles to the Washington Road.

You Bet
You Bet is a placer gold district. The placers in this area were worked on for the first time in 1848 and large scale hydraulic mining started in 1855. The gold could be found in the Tertiary gravels. You Bet is located around the junction of Murchee Road and Chalk Cliff Road and it can be reached by taking the Murchee Road south out of Nevada City.