A number of communities which sprang up during the era of the Gold Rush days did not survive after the gold was gone. One of those thriving communities was called Grub Gulch. The town of Grub Gulch was on what we now call Road 600 on the Fresno River not far from the gold claim we prospected on last month.

It was said that a miner could always get enough gold from the river to grub stake themselves into better times.

At one time the town had two hotels, two general stores, eight saloons, one grade school, a Chinese laundry (for miners only) and said to have between 1000 to 5000 residents scattered among the hills. The Hotels accommodated many famous people, including two presidents, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft on their way to view Yosemite National Park.

Grub Gulch had problems getting water and had to bring it in from Crystal Springs Mine above the road and sold for $ .35 a barrel. Later two tanks were placed on the hill to serve the community. The town had a lot of social activities and people came from Texas Flat (Coarsegold), Poison Switch, Finegold, and Fresno Flats which is now called Oakhurst. Residents came by horse back and fancy rigs to attend Saturday night dances. The road to Grub Gulch was the main road to Raymond and Yosemite. The road was built with pick and shovel and was very narrow. It is said bells were placed on teams to warn of oncoming traffic.

The mines were the principal support for the town. The nearby mines included the Mamouth Mine, the Enterprise, the Josephene (Suprise), the Rex, the Caledonia, the Crystal Springs and the famous Gambetta (Arkansas Traveler). A few smaller mines were also located in the area. One newspaper report said the Gambetta mine produced $15,000,000. and another news paper said $490,000. These mines employed 500 or more men until the supply of gold ran out. According to the U.S. Constitution Article 1 Section 8 gold was the only legal means of settling public debt and legal tender. You can see how important a grub stake was. It is said fortunes were made by mine workers, freighters and hotel owners. But, Grub Gulch began to declined rapidly by 1900 and the last mine was closed in 1906. The post office closed August 15, 1918. The Gambetta School closed in 1935 with only six students in attendance. Sad to say there is no longer any visable evidence of a town. A historical monument was placed on the site on May 5, 1990.

Madera County Centennial 1893-1903 100 years Looking Back

Copyright 1993 Madera Newspaper, Inc.