Loading map...

1898 Map of Colfax

Name: 1898 Topographic Map of Colfax
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1898
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1898

About this map

The Middle Fork Yuba River and South Fork Yuba River carve through this Sierra Nevada landscape during a period of intense industrial activity. This survey captures the height of hydraulic mining operations, most notably the Malakoff Mine near North Bloomfield. The map documents the intricate network of flumes and ditches required to power these massive operations, alongside established gold-country settlements like Alleghany and North Columbia.

Transportation corridors are dominated by the Southern Pacific RR and Central Pacific RR winding through the southern reaches. Numerous small camps and waystations such as Snow Point, Moores Flat, and Chips Flat illustrate the dense settlement patterns of the era. The presence of the County Hospital near Harmony Ridge and remote mills like Sugar Pine Mill provide evidence of the social and economic infrastructure supporting the region's mining and timber economies.