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Inyo County,CA - 1905 - Keane Wonder Mines Deed :

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Documents Start Price:25.00 USD Estimated At:50.00 - 75.00 USD
Inyo County,CA - 1905 - Keane Wonder Mines Deed :
South Bullfrog Mining District. A carbon copy agreement, unsigned and undated, between John Keane and Domingo Etcherran of California and E.H. Wedekind of Rhyolite, NV for the above-mentioned quartz lode mining claims, for the sum of $150,000, payable in installments. Five typewritten pages plus several more pages of handwritten notes on yellow lined paper. The mine, now in ruins, was once a large lode gold producer. It’s location was near Chloride Cliffs on the slope of the Funeral Range in Death Valley. “Back in 1904 this mine was founded by partners Jack Keane (from Ireland) and Domingo Etcharren. After they had discovered gold on the western slope of the Funeral Mountains, they developed their claim into the Keane Wonder Mine. They both sold their claims for around $45,000 and Domingo bought a store in Darwin. However, Mr. Keane returned to his homeland Ireland where, he committed murder and was sentenced to 17 years in prison. The operation lasted 12 years and then it was reopened in the 1930s. An estimated total of $750,000 to $1 million was brought in from silver and gold. Source: Southern California's Best Ghost Towns (recommended reading), By Philip Varney & My Own Personal Knowledge. Submitted by: Nick Walrath” [Ref: www.ghosttowns.com/states/ca/keane.html]. There is quite a bit more information on the property, with quotations from local newspapers, on this website.