Cleburne County Gold In The News

1891

ALABAMA GOLD – A Rich Mine Found in Cleburne County
A recent issue of the daily Hot Blast of Anniston, Ala. contains the particulars of one of the most wonderful gold discoveries ever made in the United States.  The mines are located in Cleburne county thirty miles from this city. The specimens brought here today are amazing rich and would yield $300 per ton. Solid nuggets have been found weighing from 10 to 100 pennyweights.  A company was formed at once to develop the property with Mr. William Noble, the celebrated iron manufacturer, as president. [Source: Vernon Courier, Lamar County AL, February 5, 1891]

1892

Gold is being sent from the Arbacooche gold mines in Cleburne count to the mint in New Orleans, where it is coined into “fives,” tens” and twenties” and returned to Anniston and put in circulation.  [Source: Vernon Courier, Lamar County AL, December 22, 1892]

1893

The proprietor of the Crown Point Gold Mines in Cleburne county are greatly elated over the progress they have made, and will double their present capacity in a few weeks.  [Source: Hamilton Times, Marion County AL, May 4, 1893]

There is great activity in the gold fields in Cleburne county.  A number of mines are being worked now and new mines are being opened.  Real estate in the mountains of Cleburne will soon be more valuable than that of any other section of the state. [Source: Vernon Courier, Lamar County AL, May 18, 1893]

While digging a well at Heflin, J. E. Crawley, a colored man, struck a rich vein of gold ore.  It is said to be very valuable and has caused great excitement around the town. [Source: Hamilton Times, Marion County AL, June 15, 1893]

At the Southland and Wilburn gold mine, fifteen miles from Heflin, they are working with an old fashioned wooden stamp mill with a four stamp capacity and ordinary battery pans, and are saving from $15 to $20 a day.  [Source: Hamilton Times, Marion County AL, September 28, 1893]

1895

OPENING GOLD MINES – Hacks, buggies, and wagons are outgoing from Heflin each day to the newly discovered vein in the Arbacoochee gold mine. The gold is on the property of the Mark Pinson estate. Mr. Pinson owned considerable lands, some of which he considered very valuable in minerals.  The Arbacoochee gold mine was worked successfully more than fifty years ago. Some fifty years ago a man by the name of Mirobee worked in this mine and only mined the find about one and a half feet. While the miners were at work Saturday they came to an old wheel. No one knew how it came to be imbedded in the creek bank. Afterwards an old man came up and said that the wheel was brought from Villa Rica when he was a little boy, more than a half century ago. It came from some old gold mine in that section, and was used by Mr. Frobee forcing the water out of his mine.  Just under this old wheel was the richest deposit of gold that has ever been known in this section. Queer to say but the wooden hub of the wheel was in a perfect state of preservation.  [Source: Hamilton News Press, Marion County AL, July 25, 1895]

GLISTENING WITH GOLD
– The Richness of the New Find Has Not been exaggerated – Owned by an Anniston Company
Anniston, July 19 – Mr. E. E. G. Roberts who has just returned from Arbaccochee, Cleburne county near where the rich gold vein was found Saturday was interviewed this morning by the Age-Herald correspondent. He said that the reports of the size and richness of the vein had not been exaggerated and that it fairly glistened with the yellow metal.  The vein, which was found at a depth of about 30 feet, has been tested very little as yet, and there is no way of computing its value. Several thousand dollars worth of gold has already been taken out of the vein with crude and imperfect methods which are used.  The property is owned by the Anniston Gold Mining Company of which William Noble and E. E. G. Roberts, both of this city, are president and secretary and treasurer, respectively. The gentlemen who were erroneously reported in the Age Herald this morning as owners have some land near by however. The Anniston Gold Mining company knew of the existence of the vein and had had the Messrs Hilton, who are practical gold miners and who discovered the vein, looking for it for four or five months. This vein is supposed to be the mother of all the placer deposits in that immediate section from which something over $1,000,000 of gold was taken in the 40s.  Several California gold miners who are at Arbaccochee declare that they have never been seen or heard of anything in California or elsewhere to equal it. Scores of prospectors and capitalists have been attracted and may options asked for with but few sold. The gold fever in Cleburne has never been higher or more hopeful and the excitement is intense. Anniston is greatly interested both on account of the nearness of the fields to this city and that the rich vein is owned by an Anniston company.

1897

GOLD LANDS SOLD
Ex-Governor Smith, of Birmingham, W. A. Searboro, of Anniston, and others the other day sold Cincinnati parties eleven thousand acres of gold lands in the Arbachoochee fields in Cleburne county for $117,000.  Machinery will be put in operation and the property developed immediately.[Source: Marion County News, Marion County AL, May 13, 1897]

RICH FIND
A rich find of gold has been made by Messrs A. B. Hilton and G. Riley near Chulafince, Cleburne County [Source: Marion County News, Marion County AL, November 11, 1897]