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413

Grass Valley,CA - Nevada County - c1900 - Clinch and Company Mercantile Photograph :

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Photographic Images Start Price:50.00 USD Estimated At:100.00 - 300.00 USD
Grass Valley,CA - Nevada County - c1900 - Clinch and Company Mercantile Photograph :
This 8 1/2" by 6 1/2 " cream colored mounted photo by an unknown photographer shows the establishment on Mill Street. Mounted 11" by 8 3/4." It's mounting is worn, the corners are highly wrinkled, they have been handled a lot. There is a lot of discoloring on the mounting. The photo has some foxing and discoloration as well. The contrast is medium, and the focus is fair. There is some fading. For example, the wagon driver's facial features are not discernable, but the people's facial features, who are standing on the sidewalk in front of the building, are. Grass Valley is home to the Empire Mine, one of the richest mines in California. Many miners who came and stayed there came from Cornwall where they mined tin. Their ancestors continue to live in the area. Later at this same site, Charles Clinch and his partner W.D. Bourn Jr. formed the Clinch Mercantile Co., a sort of local J. C. Penney type store, which ran from 1928 to 1989 (Grass Valley/Nevada City Chamber of Commerce website). Clinch's background is very interesting. He was born in California in 1858 and moved to Grass Valley when he was a child. When grown, he joined the firm of McKay and Company, grocers. That business's name later changed to Clinch and Company, and finally incorporated in 1903 as the Clinch Mercantile Company. It was the largest grocery business in the county according to Leigh Hadly Irvine. Most notably, Clinch served two terms as Mayor of Grass Valley from 1899 to 1902.
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