BlockBefore

Independence, California

30 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1889 and the latest in 1993. It stands in the Arnold-West Point census division. It lies in ZIP code area 95245. It lies near Two Dollar Gulch. The Survey maps it on the Rail Road Flat quadrangle. It stands 2,628 feet above sea level.

Independence within Calaveras County

Then and now

1889 to 1993

The same ground, surveyed 104 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Independence, surveyed 1993
Topographic sheet of Independence, surveyed 1889

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 30 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

375 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 375 fires within 5 miles of Independence between 1992 and 2020, burning about 2,642 acres in total. 12 started naturally. 9 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
Debris and open burning131
Missing data/not specified/undetermined110
Equipment and vehicle use72
Misuse of fire by a minor13
Power generation/transmission/distribution13
Natural12
Arson/incendiarism9
Smoking8
Recreation and ceremony6
Fireworks1

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
9 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreTuolumne-Calaveras UnitMAIN
9 September 1999Naturalunder an acreCentral California DistrictLIGHTNING 23
9 September 1999Naturalunder an acreCentral California DistrictLIGHTNING 29
8 September 2017Debris and open burningunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionCEDAR WY / JESUS MARIA RD
8 September 1993Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreTuolumne-Calaveras UnitTAYLOR
6 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionSMITTY
6 September 1995Debris and open burningunder an acreTuolumne-Calaveras UnitSEARCY
5 September 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionSIERRA OAKS DR RAILROAD_

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Calaveras County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 410 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 410 workings within 5 miles of Independence: 188 past producers, 115 occurrences, 96 unknowns, 10 producers. 10 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Lead, Lead, Copper, Chromium. 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
BlackstoneGold, Lead, Zinc, CopperPast ProducerChalcopyrite, Galena, Gold, Pyrite, Sphalerite
Blazing StarGold, CopperPast ProducerChalcopyrite, Gold, Pyrrhotite
DepositsLimestone, DimensionOccurrence
Fine GoldGold, Silver, Copper, LeadPast ProducerChalcopyrite, Gold, Pyrite
Forest CreekGold, Lead, Copper, ZincPast ProducerChalcopyrite, Galena, Marcasite, Pyrite, Pyrrhotite, Sphalerite
Golden Shearer MineGold, Lead, ZincPast ProducerGalena, Gold, Pyrite, Sphalerite
Silver MountainGold, QuartzOccurrence
Gambetta DepositStone, Crushed/BrokenOccurrence
Golden StormGold, Copper, SilverPast ProducerGold
Golden StormGold, Copper, SilverProducer

Every working recorded in Calaveras 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
Rail Road Flat0.4 miles30
Wilseyville2.1 miles28
Sandy Gulch2.4 miles28
Lynn Park Acres2.8 miles28
Fuchs3.1 miles26
Hams3.2 miles26
West Point3.5 miles28
Bummerville3.6 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 IndependenceAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q6015877The 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 225841. 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.