Bear Canyon Mine
Extensive hard rock mining first for copper and then for gold started in Soledad Canyon by the Santa Clara River in 1861 and continued off and on until the early 1950’s. Most of the gold ever recovered in Los Angeles County came from the Soledad Mines. The mines are generally abandoned and sealed, but are a draw for mining history enthusiasts. A gold placer mine in Bear Canyon, an offshoot of Soledad Canyon, is one of the smaller, but more accessible, mines. There are 4 tunnels, but the 176 foot main tunnel is the longest and most conspicuous. The entrance is heavily barred, but a patch in one bar indicates that somebody with a blowtorch didn’t let that stop them. Lack of yield records suggests that this was one of numerous failed depression-era mines.
Soledad Canyon, Los Angeles County
Images by Andrew Schmidt