Location and History
This district is in central Mono County just north of Mono Lake and about 15 miles south of Bridgeport. It is a lode and placer district that occupies an area on the east flank of the Sierra Nevada and the Mono Plains. It extends from Mono Lake north to the Keith district and includes the areas known as the Mono Diggings and Dogtown Diggings districts. Mono and Dogtown Diggings were first mined in 1857, and the district was organized in 1879. Work continued steadily to the early 1900s, but the greatest output was during the 1870s and 1880s.
Geology
The country rock in the area consists of hornfels, limestone, schist, and slate with granitic rocks in the Sierra Nevada. To the east are Tertiary andesites, which in places are overlain by sands and gravels derived from the Sierra Nevada. Auriferous gravel deposits occur in ill-defined channels that range from a few to more than 50 feet in thickness. The gold values varied considerably. Several quartz veins with abundant sulfides contain copper, silver and some manganese; there is some mineralized schist. The value of the total Output of the district is unknown, but it is estimated to be several million dollars.
Bibliography
Whiting, H.A., 1888, Jordan mining district: California Min. Bur. Rept. 8, pp. 363-367.
