Argonaut and Kennedy Mines

Amador County · Jackson · location approximate

Argonaut Mine, discovered 1850, and Kennedy Mine, discovered 1856, played dramatic roles in the economic development of California. They produced $105,268,760 in gold. Kennedy Mine has a vertical shaft of 5,912 feet, the deepest in the United States, and changed mining methods in the Mother Lode. Argonaut Mine was the scene of the Mother Lode's most tragic mine disaster. Forty-eight miners were trapped in a fire at the 3,500-foot level on August 27, 1922—a few survived. Both mines closed in 1942.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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