Battle Branch Mine
Encyclopedia
Auraria, Georgia
Auraria is a town in Lumpkin County, Georgia, United States, southwest of Dahlonega. Its name derives from aurum, the Latin word for gold. In its early days, it was also known variously as Dean, Deans, Nuckollsville, and Scuffle Town.-History:In 1828, a man walked Findley Ridge, kicked a rock,...
in Lumpkin County
Lumpkin County, Georgia
Lumpkin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,966. Its county seat is Dahlonega.- History :...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. During the Georgia Gold Rush
Georgia Gold Rush
The Georgia Gold Rush was the second significant gold rush in the United States. It started in 1828 in the present day Lumpkin County near county seat Dahlonega, and soon spread through the North Georgia mountains, following the Georgia Gold Belt. By the early 1840s, gold became harder to find...
, before the Gold Lottery of 1832
Gold Lottery of 1832
The Gold Lottery of 1832 was the seventh lottery in the Georgia Land Lottery, a lottery system used by the State of Georgia between the years 1805 and 1832 to distribute land. It was authorized by the Georgia General Assembly by an act of December 24, 1831 a few years after the start of the...
, men from several different states were all working in the same stream when a dispute over the possession of the place ended in a fight in which a number of men were seriously wounded, providing the name for the mine ultimately located there. After the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, William John Turner Hutcheson, who served with the Blue Ridge Rifles
Blue Ridge Rifles
In June 1861, the city of Dahlonega, Georgia sent their second group of volunteers, the Blue Ridge Rifles to the Civil War front under the command of Capt. Joseph E. Hamilton. The unit was organized as Company E, Phillip’s Legion Infantry. In 1864, the time for which the Rifles' enlistment expired,...
, a Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
fighting unit from Dahlonega, Georgia
Dahlonega, Georgia
Dahlonega is a city in Lumpkin County, Georgia, United States, and is its county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 5,242....
, became superintendent of the Battle Branch gold mine. The mine continued producing gold well into the 1900’s, producing 661.28 ounces (20.568 kg) of gold in 1935.
There is some confusion as to the actual location of the mine. The United States Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
lists two mines named Battle Branch Mine. Both are to the east of Auraria, but one is on the west side of the Etowah River
Etowah River
The Etowah River is a waterway that rises northwest of Dahlonega, Georgia, north of Atlanta. Its name is the Cherokee version of the original Muskogee word Etalwa, which means a "trail crossing". On Matthew Carey's 1795 map the river was labeled "High Town River"...
and the other is on the east side of the Etowah River.
External links
- TopoQuest Map showing west location of Battle Branch Mine
- TopoQuest Map showing east location of Battle Branch Mine
Suggested reading
- Parks, C. F., and R. A. Wilson. The Battle Branch Gold Mine, Auraria, Georgia. Atlanta, 1934.