Browns Valley, California

Browns Valley
Unincorporated community
Browns Valley is located in California
Browns Valley
Browns Valley
Location in California
Browns Valley is located in the United States
Browns Valley
Browns Valley
Browns Valley (the United States)
Coordinates: 39°14′32″N 121°24′33″W / 39.24222°N 121.40917°W / 39.24222; -121.40917
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyYuba County
Elevation
[1]
269 ft (82 m)
ZIP code
95918
Area code530

Browns Valley (also, Brown's Valley) is an unincorporated community in Yuba County, California. Browns Valley is located 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Marysville and is near Collins Lake.[2]

History

Yuba River (c. 1900), near Browns Valley, California
Yuba River (c. 1900), near Browns Valley, California

Before the establishment of the Browns Valley community, the land was the home to the Concow Maidu and the Nisenan people.[3]

In the fall of 1849, gold was found in the township of Long Bar and along the Yuba River, only three miles away from Browns Valley.[3] The name of the community was in honor of a settler who arrived in 1850 and discovered gold here.[2] In the early days of mining in this area, gold was extracted in many different ways including hydraulic mining.[3] The mines had to be continuous monitored because competition was high, and people would try to steal mining claims.[3] Initially the area mined for gold, and when that ran out they mined quartz (which sometimes would encase the gold).[3] The Chinese and Irish immigrants that came to the area for mining work, and also worked to build rock walls across many areas of Browns Valley.[3]

Browns Valley was the home of the Sweet Vengeance Mine, founded by six African American men.[4][5] Other African American mining operations in the community included the Rare Ripe Gold and Silver Mining Company (also known as the Rare Ripe Company); and the Horncut Mine.[6][7][8] In 1868, the Rare Ripe Gold and Silver Mining Company incorporated, and had an office in Maryville.[8]

In 1863, Tensions grew over the land in this area between miners, ranchers, and Native Americans; and there was a forced removal of Native Americans to a reservation in Mendocino County.[3] A post office was established at Browns Valley in 1864.[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Browns Valley, California
  2. ^ a b c Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 455. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g D'Arcy, Roberta Sperbeck (2012). Browns Valley. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 9, 15, 18–19, 21. ISBN 978-0-7385-8896-4.
  4. ^ Delay, Peter J. (1924). History of Yuba and Sutter Counties, California. Los Angeles: Historic Record Company. p. 200.
  5. ^ Beasley, Delilah L. (1919). The Negro Trail Blazers of California (1997 ed.). New York: G. K. Hall. p. 104. ISBN 9780783814261.
  6. ^ "A History of Black Americans in California: Industry". Five Views: An Ethnic Historic Site Survey for California. November 17, 2004.
  7. ^ Savage, W. Sherman; Logan, Eloise (1977). Blacks in the West. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-313-20161-5.
  8. ^ a b Walker, Juliet E. K. (2009). The History of Black Business in America: Capitalism, Race, Entrepreneurship. UNC Press Books. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-8078-3241-7.