Archaeology of a Chinese mining camp (site CA-SIS-1801-H)

Archaeological Site CA-SIS-1801-H consists of the remnants of a Chinese gold-mining camp and its apparently associated mining evidence. This site, which is situated in north-central Siskiyou County, California, is now privately owned land. Previously, it was a parcel of federal public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). A proposed land exchange that involved transfer of the site in 1995. This report documents the results of the BLM work, which was concentrated within apparent trash deposits. Analysis of the excavation's results indicates that the site was likely used by a small number of individuals, and for a relative short period of time, apparently around 1880. The assemblage of artifacts points to a number of activities having occurred at the site; these ranged from preparation and consumption of meals to indulgence in opium and alcohol. That artifacts allow some interpretations of Site CA-SIS-1801-H's place as one miniscule node within an essentially global commercial/transportation network of Chinese, American, and European goods. In addition, based on the assemblages plentiful nails and their size ranges, the site probably contained at least one small, wood-frame structure. The mining features located at the site permit some interpretations of the small-scale placer-mining techniques employed by the occupants of Site CA-SIS-1801-H.