Placer Mines
Before any prospectors in Park County began excavating the mountains, they used placer mining to extract gold from the local waterways. On a basic level, placer mining is a type of surface mining that involves sifting through sediment and mineral deposits to extract and isolate valuable ore: essentially it's "panning for gold!" There are different types of placer mining depending on the environment and types of minerals sought.[1]
You will see placer mines on beaches and in running water typically.[2] Running water placers are also called alluvium placers, referring to the mud within a running stream. Placer mines are used to recover some valuable minerals such as gold, diamonds, gemstones, and platinum.[3]
Placer mines began to appear all over Park County after 1861. Placer gold was found in Tarryall, Fairplay, Alma, Breckenridge, and Leadville.[4] A notable amount came from the beds of the Platte River.[5] Many placer claims existed to the south and west of Alma.[6] The mining town of Montgomery in Hoosier Pass had another small placer gold operation in 1911.[7]
Two notable placer mines in the Alma mining district are Snowstorm, home of the famous Snowstorm dredge, and Cincinnati.[8] In 1882, the Alma Placer Mining Company owned roughly 640 acres of placer mines![9] The only hindrance is that this type of mining can only be conducted during the short summer months.[10]