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![Souvenir Mining Spoon Boise, Idaho.jpg - SOUVENIR MINING SPOON BOISE IDAHO - Sterling souvenir spoon with a figural miner's pan and tools on the end of the handle, spoon measures 5 5/16" long and weighs 0.60 troy ounces, bowl features an embossed view of three men panningfor gold, scene is entitled, "Struck it Rich", bottom of the bowl is engraved "Boise, Idaho", reverse of spoon is marked with the trademarks for Paye & Baker and "Sterling". [Boise, the capital of Idaho, had its beginnings in the Idaho gold rush of the early 1860s. In 1834 Fort Boise, owned by the Hudson Bay Company, was established by British fur traders. The fort, now known as Old Fort Boise, was located at the mouth of the Boise River, 40 miles from present day Boise. In 1854, due to frequent Indian raids, the fort was abandoned. With the discovery of gold in the Boise Basin in 1862, a new Fort Boise was built in 1863 to help protect the influx of gold seekers. A town site was located next to the fort, and with the protection of the military, the new town of Boise grew quickly. Its location on the Oregon Trail coupled with routes to the nearby gold mines made Boise a prosperous commercial center. In 1864 the territorial legislature incorporated Boise and made it the capital of the Idaho Territory. With Idaho statehood in 1890, Boise became the state’s capital. Placer deposits of gold were first discovered about 25 miles northeast of Boise in 1862 and soon additional deposits, including significant numbers of lodes, were found covering the mountainous land known as the Boise Basin. Boise Basin was divided into several mining districts and it covered an area of 300 square miles. Some of the most notable districts were Idaho City, Moore Creek, Centerville, Quartzburg, Pioneerville and Grimes Pass. All these districts and deposits yielded over 2,800,000 ounces of gold between the years of 1863 and 1959. The placer deposits were worked first by large hydraulic washers. Sometimes entire hillsides were washed away. Lode work was more erratic and less dependable; miners would work lodes for a few years until another fresh deposit was discovered in a different mining district within the Boise Basin and they would pull up stakes and move on. Mill sites worked in a similar way. Whole operations would be dismantled and reassembled again and again around the Boise Basin. The height of the boom lasted from 1863 to 1866. By 1867 many sold out to Chinese miners who were able, through industrious work, to make the mines pay. Quartz mining prospered in the 1870s with a number of stamp mills in operation. Dredge mining began in 1898 and continued till the 1950’s. The Boise Basin was the richest gold strike ever seen in America. More gold was taken out of the land during this rush than the California 49er or the Klondike gold rush – it’s estimated that more than $250,000,000 was taken from this area in the two decades following its discovery.]](Souvenir Mining Spoon Boise, Idaho.jpg) |
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| Souvenir Mining Spoon Boise, Idaho | SOUVENIR MINING SPOON BOISE IDAHO - Sterling souvenir spoon with a figural miner's pan and tools on the end of the handle, spoon measures 5 5/16" long and weighs 0.60 troy ounces, bowl features an embossed view of three men panning for gold, scene is entitled, "Struck it Rich", bottom of the bowl is engraved "Boise, Idaho", reverse of spoon is marked with the trademarks for Paye & Baker and "Sterling". [Boise, the capital of Idaho, had its beginnings in the Idaho gold rush of the early 1860s. In 1834 Fort Boise, owned by the Hudson Bay Company, was established by British fur traders. The fort, now known as Old Fort Boise, was located at the mouth of the Boise River, 40 miles from present day Boise. In 1854, due to frequent Indian raids, the fort was abandoned. With the discovery of gold in the Boise Basin in 1862, a new Fort Boise was built in 1863 to help protect the influx of gold seekers. A town site was located next to the fort, and with the protection of the military, the new town of Boise grew quickly. Its location on the Oregon Trail coupled with routes to the nearby gold mines made Boise a prosperous commercial center. In 1864 the territorial legislature incorporated Boise and made it the capital of the Idaho Territory. With Idaho statehood in 1890, Boise became the state’s capital. Placer deposits of gold were first discovered about 25 miles northeast of Boise in 1862 and soon additional deposits, including significant numbers of lodes, were found covering the mountainous land known as the Boise Basin. Boise Basin was divided into several mining districts and it covered an area of 300 square miles. Some of the most notable districts were Idaho City, Moore Creek, Centerville, Quartzburg, Pioneerville and Grimes Pass. All these districts and deposits yielded over 2,800,000 ounces of gold between the years of 1863 and 1959. The placer deposits were worked first by large hydraulic washers. Sometimes entire hillsides were washed away. Lode work was more erratic and less dependable; miners would work lodes for a few years until another fresh deposit was discovered in a different mining district within the Boise Basin and they would pull up stakes and move on. Mill sites worked in a similar way. Whole operations would be dismantled and reassembled again and again around the Boise Basin. The height of the boom lasted from 1863 to 1866. By 1867 many sold out to Chinese miners who were able, through industrious work, to make the mines pay. Quartz mining prospered in the 1870s with a number of stamp mills in operation. Dredge mining began in 1898 and continued till the 1950’s. The Boise Basin was the richest gold strike ever seen in America. More gold was taken out of the land during this rush than the California 49er or the Klondike gold rush – it’s estimated that more than $250,000,000 was taken from this area in the two decades following its discovery.] |  Original Image |
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