Big Four Mine

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Also known as the War Eagle Mine.

From the California Journal of Mines and Geology, Vol. 47, No. 1, Jan. 1951:

3 claims are owned by Mrs. Agnes Reid, Panamint Springs, California; Silas Ness, Olancha, California; William Braun, Bishop, California, and Marie Keck, Los Angeles, California.

Replacement-type ore is in a brecciated and altered zone in limestone and consists mainly of cerussite, with some zinc and silver. Narrow seams of cerussite are in a zone 1-foot to 4-feet thick. The zone dips to the northwest about 30 degrees.

The workings are on two levels. The lower levels is a short adit driven S. 20 degrees E., ending in a small irregular slope. The upper level has a 110-foot adit driven along a fault S. 55 degrees E. The adit ends in an irregular 80-foot stoped section. Recently, an adit was driven eastward from the portal of the lower adit; stoping will continue from this new heading.

A 900-foot crosscut adit was driven N. 70 degrees E. at the base of the hill many years ago.

To the northwest across the canyon, two 30-foot adits have been driven N 25 degrees E. and N 30 degrees E. by Richard B. Walls, a lessee, in 1947. Thirty tons of shipping-grade ore was produced.

The present location of the property was made by William Reid in 1940 and the first work was done in 1942. The property was leased to Elmer Perry in 1944 and 1945, and 372 tons of ore was mined during this period. In 1946 the property was operated by WIlliam Braun and Sials Ness, who shipped 11 cars of ore during 1946.

In May 1949 the property was under lease to Lee Foreman and William Skinner and some work was done by two men on contract basis.

The property is idle.