Lost California Treasure

California Ghost Towns and Historic Mining Camps

California ghost-town and mining-camp records with historical context, access cautions, field notes, source links, and interactive map references.

Open Ghost Towns on the map All records

2 Ghost Towns Records

  • Columbia Placer District ghost town · Columbia State Historic Park, Tuolumne County · High probability

    Known as the 'Gem of the Southern Mines,' Columbia was established in 1850. Placer miners discovered gold trapped in a labyrinth of limestone karst formations. Miners used high-pressure water hoses to wash away the.

  • La Porte Placer District ghost town · La Porte (formerly Rabbit Creek), Plumas County · Medium probability

    Originally settled as 'Rabbit Creek' in 1850, La Porte became one of the most famous hydraulic and drift mining districts in the Northern Sierra. The district targeted a highly productive Tertiary river channel (the La.