Chalk Bluff, California facts for kids

Chalk Bluff is the name of a long ridge of land in Nevada County, California. It stretches for about 10 miles in a northeast direction. This ridge is special because it sits on top of a layer of gold-rich gravel. This gravel connects to a famous gold deposit called the "Blue Lead."

Chalk Bluff was also briefly the name of a mining camp. This camp later grew into the important town of Red Dog. Later, another mining camp east of Red Dog was also called Chalk Bluff. The ridge and the camps got their name from the white, chalky cliffs found there.

Finding Gold and Naming Towns

In the spring of 1851, the first gold seekers arrived in this area. They found gold just east of where Greenhorn Creek and Arkansas Ravine meet today. They called this spot Red Dog Hill. It was named after a hill in Illinois.

More people soon joined them. On July 12, 1852, a meeting was held to choose a town site and name it. Most people wanted to call the town Chalk Bluff. They wanted to build it on Arkansas Hill. Others wanted to stay around Red Dog Hill and name the town Brooklyn.

A historian said that the "Chalk Bluffers" soon realized the Brooklyn spot was better. They moved to the new town, and the first "Chalk Bluff" town disappeared. In 1855, a post office opened in Brooklyn. The town was then renamed Red Dog. This was because another town named Brooklyn already existed.

The Second Chalk Bluff Camp

By 1860, a new mining camp called Chalk Bluff was set up. This camp was located east of Brooklyn (Red Dog). We don't know its exact location today. This is probably because hydraulic mining washed the site away.

People believe it was about 1.5 miles east of Red Dog. It was on Chalk Bluff Ridge, near the Hussey and Timmens mines. These mines were about a quarter mile west of the modern Chalk Bluff Road.

This Chalk Bluff camp had several businesses. There was a carpentry shop and a blacksmith. It also had a sawmill, a saloon, and a boarding house. Dr. Knight's hall was a place for events. A big dance was held there on March 4, 1861. A stagecoach line ran between Nevada City and Omega. It made a stop at Chalk Bluff.

Fire and Decline

A very bad fire swept across the Ridge in early October 1870. It was called "one of the most disastrous fires ever known in this county." The town of Chalk Bluff was saved only by a lot of hard work. However, many businesses and homes in the surrounding area were destroyed or badly damaged. By the late 1870s, the town of Chalk Bluff no longer existed.

The Enduring Ridge

The name Chalk Bluff still lives on. It is the name of the ridge that held many mining camps. Red Dog and You Bet were the most famous camps. They were located at the southern part of the Ridge. Other camps further north included Remington Hill and Democrat.

The Chalk Bluff Water and Lumber Company built a 19-mile ditch. It cost $28,000 to bring water from Steephollow Creek to the mines. Other ditches brought water from the Greenhorn Creek.

Besides mining, Chalk Bluff Ridge was also important for lumber. Louis Voss, King and Wolford, and C. W. Kitts ran large sawmills along the Ridge. They provided wood for Nevada County.

School Days and Today

The Ridge had its own school district. In the 1800s, the school usually had over 100 students. The schoolhouse was located between Red Dog and You Bet.

Most of the people moved away in the mid-1900s. This happened as gold mining declined. Today, Chalk Bluff Ridge is a quiet, rural area. You can still see scars on the land from its hydraulic mining days.