Sandy Gulch

Most landmark plaques commemorate an event. This one is a headstone for a whole town. It records the trading centre of 1849, the Carsner brothers finding nuggets in the sand, the ditches that brought water from the Middle Fork of the Mokelumne, and the first custom stamp mill, and then it says there are many pioneers buried in the cemetery and that the monument is erected in memory of them. The stone itself had to be replaced in 1993.

What the plaque says

SANDY GULCH THIS SITE, IN 1849, WAS A TRADING CENTER FOR PIONEER MINERS OF NORTHEASTERN CALAVERAS COUNTY. IT WAS NAMED AFTER THE GULCH WHERE WILLIAM AND DAN CARSNER FOUND LARGE NUGGETS IMBEDDED IN THE COURSE SAND. WATER FOR MINING WAS BROUGHT FROM THE MIDDLE FORK OF THE MOKELUMNE RIVER, THROUGH THE SANDY GULCH AND KADISH DITCHES. QUARTZ MINING BEGAN IN THE EARLY FIFTIES. THE FIRST CUSTOM STAMP MILL WAS AT THE HEAD OF SANDY GULCH. THE SCHOOL AND ELECTION PRECINCTS WERE ESTABLISHED EARLY. HANGMAN'S TREE STOOD NEAR THE CENTER OF TOWN. NUMEROUS MI-WUK INDIANS LIVED HERE THEN. THERE ARE MANY PIONEERS BURIED IN THE CEMETERY. THIS MONUMENT IS ERECTED IN MEMORY OF THEM. ORIGINALLY DEDICATED BY THE NATIVE DAUGHTERS OF THE GOLDEN WEST 14 SEPTEMBER 1941 PLAQUE REPLACED BY THE CALAVERAS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY-1993

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Columbia State Historic Park — 24 mi
  The Gem of the Southern Mines, still open for business on a car-free Gold Rush main street.

More markers nearby

• West Point — 1.2 mi
• Rail Road Flat — 2.8 mi
• Glencoe — 3.4 mi
• Chaw Sé Roundhouse — 6.7 mi