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Gold Town, California

28 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1915 and the latest in 1992. It stands in the East Kern census division. It lies in ZIP code area 93501. It lies near Standard Hill. The Survey maps it on the Mojave quadrangle. It stands 2,713 feet above sea level. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.

Gold Town within Kern County

Then and now

1915 to 1992

The same ground, surveyed 77 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Gold Town (historical), surveyed 1992
Topographic sheet of Gold Town (historical), surveyed 1915

Compare 1915 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 28 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

103 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 103 fires within 5 miles of Gold Town (historical) between 1993 and 2020, burning about 728 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 13 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined60
Arson/incendiarism13
Smoking9
Equipment and vehicle use8
Firearms and explosives use4
Misuse of fire by a minor4
Natural2
Railroad operations and maintenance1
Debris and open burning1
Recreation and ceremony1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
7 September 1994Missing data/not specified/undetermined80 acresCalifornia Desert DistrictSOLIDAD
6 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreKern County Fire Departmentnot named
18 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreKern County Fire Departmentnot named
18 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined6.5 acresCalifornia Desert DistrictBACKUS
10 September 2008Debris and open burningunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
10 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0194
9 August 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0177
6 August 2005Naturalunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 0172

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Kern County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 57 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 57 workings within 5 miles of Gold Town (historical): 34 past producers, 10 producers, 7 prospects, 2 unknowns. 12 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Silver, Gold, Silver, Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Exposed Treasure MineGold, Silver, ManganesePast Producer
Four StarGold, Silver, Lead, CopperPast Producer
LaddLeadProspect
Mamie ProspectUraniumOccurrence
Mojave Rock ProductsStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Pharlap ClaimsBerylliumProspect
Pride of Mojave MineGold, Copper, Lead, Manganese, SilverPast Producer
Silver Queen MineSilicaPast Producer
Soledad Mountain DepositSilver, Gold, Antimony, Lead, CopperPast Producer1894
Unnamed Feldspar OccurrenceFeldsparOccurrence

Every working recorded in Kern County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Fleta0.6 miles28
Reefer City (historical)0.9 miles28
Actis3.2 miles25
Sanborn3.3 miles30
Gloster3.3 miles25
Mojave3.5 miles28
Chaffee4.5 miles28
Sage (historical)4.7 miles28

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Gold Town (historical)An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q5578891The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1703063. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.