Friday, March 14, 2025
Ashford Mine and Mill in Death Valley
In January 1907, Harold Ashford wandered into the Death Valley region and, attracted by the gold strikes at the Desert Hound Mine, prospected in that vicinity. Within a few months, he discovered that the Keys Gold Mining Company had failed to do the necessary assessment work on several of its claims, and Ashford relocated them and started to work on his own. It took the Keys Gold Mining Company almost two years to discover that someone else was working their former claims. When Ashford refused to vacate, the company took him to court In January 1910; however, the judge found in favor of Ashford, and he retained title to his claims. He might have been better off if he had lost.
