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The New Almaden quicksilver mine

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    Vol. 2. New Almaden Quicksilver Mine

    Rare Books

    In 1863, Watkins was commissioned to photograph the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine near San Jose, California, by William Eustace Barron, a founding partner and San Francisco merchant. This group of 8 mammoth plate photographs depict the structures and works of the quicksilver (i.e. mercury) mine set among hillsides, including smelting furnaces, metal sheds, and paths leading to mine entrances. One view depicts about 40 workers at a quarry, including several adolescent boys posed with wheelbarrows. The miners' community of small houses and wooden shacks is also seen in views titled "Hacienda" and "The Town on the Hill."

    379010

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    Title page: New Almaden Quicksilver Mine

    Rare Books

    A collection of 50 mammoth plate photographs of Yosemite, the New Almaden Mine, and Mendocino, California by photographer Carleton E. Watkins (1829-1916). The prints were in a two-volume set, now disbound, containing a title page dated 1863 and a dedication page reading: "To Ernest Frignet / His California Friends / April 1864." The photographs are landscape views of Yosemite and the Mariposa giant sequoias, taken by Watkins in 1861, followed by 1863 views of New Almaden Quicksilver Mine and Mendocino, both in Northern California. The mining series includes views of workers and the miners' community of small houses and wooden shacks. One view shows young boys with wheelbarrows of rock. The Mendocino Coast images focus on lumber mills near the mouths of Big River, Albion River, and Noyo River, with one view of Native Americans, possibly Pomo, in front of wood plank dwellings, and a group of soldiers at Fort Bragg.

    379010

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    New Almaden Quicksilver Mine, 1852 color

    Manuscripts

    The collection contains 96 drawings, 14 original letters, and 39 facsimiles of letters and manuscripts.

    mssHuttonw

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    New Almaden Quicksilver Mine, October 1851

    Manuscripts

    The collection contains 96 drawings, 14 original letters, and 39 facsimiles of letters and manuscripts.

    mssHuttonw