Yellow Aster Mine Research Material

Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Copyright 2013
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
spcoll@ucsd.edu


Descriptive Summary

Languages: English
Contributing Institution: Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
Title: Yellow Aster Mine Research Material
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 0684
Physical Description: 0.25 Linear feet (1 archives box)
Date (inclusive): 1895-1977
Abstract: Clippings, correspondence, notes and documents related to the Yellow Aster Mine and mining life in Randsburg, California.

Preferred Citation

Yellow Aster Mine Research Material, MSS 684. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.

Acquisition Information

Acquired 2013.

Publication Rights

Publication rights are held by the creator of the collection.

Historical Note

John Singleton, Frederic Mooers, and Charles Burcham staked a claim at what would become the Yellow Aster Mine on April 25, 1895. The discovery was funded in part by Charles' wife, Dr. Rose La Monte Burcham who agreed to help fund her husband's interest in prospecting. The Yellow Aster Mine became one of the major producers of gold in California, attracting prospectors to the area and helping create the town of Randsburg.

Scope and Content of Collection

The collection contains clippings, correspondence, notes and documents related to the Yellow Aster Mine and mining life in Randsburg, California. The collection ranges in date from 1895-1977, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1942-1950. These materials may have been collected by Marcia Wynn Rittenhouse Samelson and used as research for her book Desert Bonanza: The Story of Early Randsburg, Mojave Desert Mining Camp (1949). The collection contains a number of letters both to and from Samelson in which her book is mentioned. Correspondents include Dr. Rose Burcham; Burcham's secretary, Gertrude Alban; Albert A. Burcham; and Clyde Terrell.
Along with correspondence, the collection contains a scrapbook of clippings related to the Yellow Aster Mine and its owners. Two photographs, one labeled "Dr. Burcham's home," are found on the scrapbook's final page. Also included are a number of notes, several clippings, a typed copy of a 1912 article about Charles Burcham, and a legal agreement between the Burcham's and the law firm of Roddy, Campbell & Metson.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Randsburg (Calif.) -- History
Gold mines and mining -- California -- Randsburg
Burcham, R. L. (Rose L.)
Mooers, Frederic
Singleton, John
Burcham, Charles
Yellow Aster Mining and Milling Company

 

RESEARCH MATERIAL

Box 1, Folder 1

Correspondence 1942-1977

Box 1, Folder 2

Scrapbook with clippings 1898-1944

Box 1, Folder 3

Miscellaneous documents, clippings & notes 1895-1940