Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 22.djvu/14

4 his belt he dug around in the rocks and sand and found nuggets of gold. He returned to camp and reported his discovery to Pool. Together they went back to the spot and staked out their mining claims.

Returning to Yreka they bought a camp outfit and mining tools and returned to work their claims. They had kept quiet in regard to their discovery; but in some way it became known and in two months from the time Cluggage found the nuggets of gold a thousand men were on the spot. Claims were staked out and every man went to work to dig out the gold. No time was spent in building cabins; a man would throw his saddle blanket over a manzanita bush and put his bed under it. Some built shelters of bark and brush while others put up tents. Fortunes were taken out that winter, and many who had families in the east and elsewhere went back in the spring and summer and brought them to the Rogue River valley. This was the beginning of the settlement. Some took up land in the valley while others settled in Jacksonville and Ashland. The county of Jackson was organized by an act of the legislature on the 12th of January, 1852. Until 1853 there were but four white women in Jacksonville, namely, Mrs. McCully, Mrs. Evans, Mrs. Lawless and Mrs. Gore.

The winter of 1852 was an exceptionally hard one. Snow fell until all trails were completely blocked. Flour rose to one dollar a pound and salt was priceless. Some adventurous men went to California on snow shoes to buy salt. Provisions gave out and towards spring the people had to live on wild game, meat cooked without salt. The summer of 1852 was very dry, about such a summer as the one just past, and the wheat and potato crop were not a great success, but the following season was more favorable.

Ashland was founded in 1852 by Abel D. Helman and Robert Hargadine. A saw mill was built on Mill creek, and in 1854 a big flouring mill was built there, the first in the Rogue River valley. Ashland was named from Ashland, Ohio, Mr. Helman's