136-ounce mass of crystalized gold from the Gold Flake vein on Farncomb Hill called "Tom's Baby". Found on July 23, 1887 by Harry Lytton and Tom Groves outside of Breckenridge, Colorado. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Actual size of a gold nugget, taken from Farncomb hill."
Westerman, OttoTwo Bucyrus dredges, the Colorado I (right) and Colorado II (left), in the Swan River Valley at Valdora, north of Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa April 1908. The Colorado I dredged down the Swan River and turned up the Blue River, where it broke down in 1910 and sat idle until 1914. It operated on and off on the Blue River from 1914-1942. The Colorado II went up the Swan River where it operated continuously until 1919. In 1914, both dredges were purchased by the Tonopah Placers Company and renamed Tonopah No. 1 and Tonopah No. 2.
Westerman, OttoJessie Mine and Mill in Gold Run, northeast of Breckenridge, Colorado. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Exterior view of a gold mine."
Westerman, OttoNarrow gauge railway through Illinois Park, looking west toward Breckenridge, Colorado. Germania mine and mill on the left. A train is traveling on Barney Ford Hill high above the gulch. Handwritten caption on card mount: "View showing Train of Cars going around Niggerhill".
Westerman, OttoHydraulic mining at the Kingsbury Placer, northwest of Breckenridge, Colorado. Men stand by as a hydraulic pipe with high pressure nozzle, called a "Giant", forcefully directs water at the hillside. A wooden sluice carries water above piles of discarded rock and small tree branches. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Gold mining by hydraulic power."
Westerman, OttoPhotograph taken by Otto Westerman for the Wapiti Mining Company circa 1896. Shows the view of the Great Flume on Farncomb Hill above American Gulch, six miles east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The buildings of Dog Town can be seen below. This area was known for its crystallized gold.
Westerman, OttoPlacer mining in Summit County, Colorado. Men use pickaxes and a sluice box to prospect for gold in a placer deposit or gulch. Water from the pond above is diverted into a long, sloping wooden trough with grooves on the bottom to separate gold from the extracted rocks, gravel and sand. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Gulch mining".
Westerman, OttoInside the Jessie Stamp Mill mill in Gold Run, northeast of Breckenridge, Colorado. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Interior view of Stamp Mill."
Westerman, OttoHydraulic mining at Kingsbury Placer (later called Banner Placer) in Iowa Gulch, northwest of Breckenridge, Colorado. Men stand by as a hydraulic pipe with high pressure nozzle, called a "Giant", forcefully directs water at the hillside. A wooden sluice carries water above piles of discarded rock and small tree branches.
Westerman, OttoMen stand on the engine and processing house or behind the bucket line of the Reliance dredge after renovations. Circa 1909. At French Gulch east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The Reliance, built under Ben Stanley Revett and the Reliance Gold Dredging Company, started operations in 1905. By 1906 it was working between the Wellington and Country Boy Mines in French Gulch. It changed over from steam to electric power in 1908.
Westerman, OttoMen stand on the engine and processing house, or sit on the platform below, of the Reliance dredge after renovations. Circa 1909 at French Gulch east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The Reliance, built under Ben Stanley Revett and the Reliance Gold Dredging Company, started operations in 1905. By 1906 it was working between the Wellington and Country Boy Mines in French Gulch. It changed over from steam to electric power in 1908.
Westerman, OttoView from Brewery Hill toward Farncomb Hill of mining operations in Georgia and American gulches by the Wapiti Mining Company, northeast of Breckenridge, Colorado, in 1895. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "North slope of Farncom [sic] hill showing the location of the principal Gold mine."
Westerman, OttoHydraulic mining operations in American Gulch below Farncomb Hill near Breckenridge, Colorado, in 1895. Shows the Great Flume, Victoria mill and Wapiti Mining Company's mine buildings. Or, could possibly be the buildings of Dog Town. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "Placer mining by hydrolic [sic] pressure on Farncom [sic] hill."
Westerman, OttoThe Reliance dredge at French Gulch east of Breckenridge, Colorado in 1906. In the foreground is a floating wood platform used to ferry workers, equipment and supplies between the dredge and the shoreline. The Reliance, built under Ben Stanley Revett and the Reliance Gold Dredging Company, started operations in 1905. By 1906 it was working between the Wellington and Country Boy Mines in French Gulch. Rock tailings in the background, and a view of the Tenmile Range.
Westerman, OttoA section of the "Great Flume" called the Swan River and Georgia Gulch flume, northeast of Breckenridge, Colorado, circa 1905-1906. In the foreground, a waste gate diverts water downhill when a repair on the wooden flume was needed.
Westerman, OttoDenver, South Park and Pacific (DSP&P) railway next to the Snow Drift Mine at Farnham spur, southeast of Breckenridge, Colorado. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "The Warriors Mark and Snow drift mine at Farnham, Colo".
Westerman, OttoThe Washington Mine near Breckenridge, Colorado, with the Tenmile Range in the background. Title quoted from handwritten caption on card mount: "The Washington mine, showing ten mile Range."
Westerman, OttoThe Tonopah No. 2 dredge makes its way up the Swan River, north of Breckenridge, Colorado, circa 1915. It was built in 1907-1908 on the Swan River at Valdora by the Colorado Dredging Company and first called the Colorado II. It was purchased by the Tonopah Placers Company in 1914 and renamed Tonopah No. 2. The dredge worked the Swan River continuously until 1919 and was the seventh dredge built in the Breckenridge area.
Westerman, OttoTwo well-dressed men and a burro stand outside a rough hewn log cabin by the Blue River, west of Main Street, Breckenridge, Colorado. Wagons are parked nearby. Looking southwest with Colorado and Southern (C&S) railway boxcars and mill and/or smelter buildings in the background. Circa early 1900s.
Westerman, OttoTwo men dressed in suits lean against the railing of a bridge crossing Blue River, west of Main Street, Breckenridge, Colorado. In the background (right) are mill and/or smelter buildings. Probably looking southwest from the Watson Avenue bridge. Circa 1900s.
Westerman, Otto