Mammoth Lakes area History
History Mining was the key to the settling of the Eastern Sierra. With vast deserts on three sides and an immense mountain on the other, it kept white men away from the native Paiute, Shoshone, and Washoe settlements. But with the discovery of silver ore in the Comstock Region in 1858, that changed overnight. Prospectors from the gold fields on the west side flooded east across the Sierra to the Comstock. Rich gold and silver discoveries at Aurora and Bodie fueled the dreams of many and kept these prospectors searching for their riches.
Four prospectors hunting for the Lost Cement Mine organized the Lakes Mining District on Mineral Hill near Lake Mary in 1877. The following year, General George Dodge bought the group of claims and organized the Mammoth Mining Co.
News that the company was running four tunnels into Mineral Hill and constructing a tramway and 20-stamp mill, and rumor that this was the "largest bonanza outside Virginia City, "sparked a short-lived rush to the Mammoth gold mines. Over a thousand people flocked to Mammoth City the summer of 1878 and close to 1,500 the next. In time, the steady march of horses' hooves and ironclad wagon wheels widened some of the Indian trails into rough wagon roads. Many of our roads today follow these routes. When the riches did not materialize, the Mammoth Mining Company shut down its mill early in 1889, the company stock became worthless, and the property sold at a sheriff's sale. Just a few years later, in 1888, only about a half dozen prospectors remained, compared to the 1,500 just a year before.
During the next twenty years the only other people in Mammoth were cowhands who drove cattle from Owens Valley up into the mountain meadows for summer and fall grazing. It wasn't until the 1900's that a different kind of explorer discovered Mammoth and The Village of Old Mammoth was born. All kinds of new fangled vehicles made it through the desert, up the steep grades and into the meadow; a trip of two and one half days from Los Angeles. A hotel, store, garage, bakery, and post office were established and became known as Mammoth Camp. Tent camps were set up along the Mammoth Creek or in the nearby forest. Many of the visitors were Bishop families coming for the summer; others arrived from Los Angeles. Eventually the summer visitors built cabins along the creek and in the Lakes Basin. Mammoth became a quiet and remote area until the completion of a modern highway in 1937. The camping, hiking, fishing and spectacular beauty of the area made it a sportsman's paradise. The area developed quite a reputation as a summer retreat. Mammoth got its name from the mining era, Mammoth Mining Co.