National Register of Historic Places evaluation of Argonaut … · existing arch dam into a mass gravity dam. The final dam retrofit alternative design study report is due in November

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION OF THE ARGONAUT MULTIPLE ARCH DAM,

JACKSON, AMADOR COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

Prepared for

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, San Francisco, California

SEMS-RM DOCID # 1160687

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION OF

THE ARGONAUT EASTWOOD MULTIPLE ARCH DAM,

JACKSON, AMADOR COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

prepared for

Dan Shane US Environmental Protection Agency

Region 9 75 Hawthorn Street

San Francisco, California, 94105

prepared by

Judith Marvin Foothill Resources, Ltd. 8331 Stevenson Street

Mokelumne Hill, CA 95245

With contributions by

Mark Walker, M.Phil. and

Adrian Praetzellis, Ph.D.

Anthropological Studies Center Sonoma State University

1801 East Cotati Avenue, Building 29 Rohnert Park, CA 94928

(707) 664-2381 www.sonoma.edu/asc

[email protected]

21 September 2015

Project QC298 42/15

CONFIDENTIAL This report contains confidential cultural resources location information; report distribution should be restricted to those with a need to know. Cultural resources are nonrenewable, and their scientific, cultural, and aesthetic values can be significantly impaired by disturbance. To deter vandalism, artifact hunting, and other activities that can damage cultural resources, the locations of cultural resources should be kept confidential. The Legal authority to restrict cultural resources information is in the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, Section 304 and the Archaeological Resource Protection Act of 1979, Section 9(a).

Anthropological Studies Center i 21 September 2015

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD) is a tailings impoundment dam for the Argonaut Mine in Jackson, Amador County, California. It is one of 17 Eastwood dams constructed in the American West by that important engineer, and one of only two that were built for mine debris retention. The dam was designed during the period when Eastwood’s dams had reached their ascendancy, and is a significant example of both engineering and design. Its period of significance is 1916 to 1942—from when the dam was constructed until the Argonaut Mine shut down forever. Although the EMAD has been disused since the mine closed, it still impounds 165,000 yards of tailings from the 1916 mill and appears to have undergone no significant alterations since its construction. The dam retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association. The EMAD appears to qualify for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) under Criteria A and C, for its role in gold mining and as a rare example of a dam type: the John S. Eastwood multiple-arch dam.

Anthropological Studies Center ii 21 September 2015

GLOSSARY AMA Amador County amsl Above mean sea level APE Area of Potential Effects ASC Anthropological Studies Center CA-OHP California Office of Historic Preservation Caltrans California Department of Transportation CSMB California State Mining Bureau E&MJ Engineering and Mining Journal EMAD Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam EPA Environmental Protection Agency GIS Geographic Information System GPS Global Positioning System NPS National Park Service NRHP National Register of Historic Places ORD Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Research & Development Project Argonaut Mine Tailings Site Superfund Project USACE United States Army Corps of Engineers USGS United States Geological Survey

Anthropological Studies Center iii 21 September 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................... i

Glossary .......................................................................................................................................... ii

Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................... iii

List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... iv

1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 EPA’s Superfund Project Description .................................................................................. 1

2. Environmental and Historical Context .................................................................................. 5 Environmental Context .......................................................................................................... 5 Historical Context ................................................................................................................... 5

The Argonaut Mine ......................................................................................................... 5 Multiple Arch Dams ........................................................................................................ 6 John S. Eastwood .............................................................................................................. 7 The Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam ................................................................................ 9

3. National Register Evaluation ................................................................................................ 13 Application of the Criteria For Evaluation ....................................................................... 13

Criterion A ...................................................................................................................... 14 Criterion B ....................................................................................................................... 14 Criterion C ....................................................................................................................... 14 Criterion D ...................................................................................................................... 14

Integrity .................................................................................................................................. 15 Location ........................................................................................................................... 15 Design .............................................................................................................................. 15 Setting .............................................................................................................................. 15 Materials .......................................................................................................................... 15 Workmanship ................................................................................................................. 15 Feeling ............................................................................................................................. 15 Association ...................................................................................................................... 15

National Register Evaluation Summary ............................................................................ 15

References Cited .......................................................................................................................... 16

Appendix: DPR 523 form ........................................................................................................... 18

Anthropological Studies Center iv 21 September 2015

LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Project vicinity of the Argonaut Mine Tailings Project ........................................................ 2 Figure 2. The Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam in relation to the Argonaut Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site. ................................................................................................................................................ 3 Figure 3. Oblique view of the EMAD and sand dams; view to west. ................................................ 4 Figure 4. Plan view and elevation of the EMAD (USACE 2015:Figure 3). ...................................... 10 Figure 5. Downstream face of the EMAD; view to north. .................................................................. 11 Figure 6. EMAD during construction 1916, spillway in foreground; view to south (photo courtesy of EPA). ...................................................................................................................................... 11 Figure 7. EMAD, showing depth of fill; view to north (photo by Dan Shane, EPA). .................... 12

Anthropological Studies Center 1 21 September 2015

1. INTRODUCTIONFoothill Resources and the Anthropological Studies Center conducted a cultural resources evaluation of the Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD), which is within the Area of Potential Effects (APE) of the proposed Argonaut Mine Tailings Site Superfund Project (Project), in Jackson, Amador County, California (Figures 1 and 2). The Project is considered a federal undertaking and subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, and its regulations at 36 CFR Part 800.

The dam is historically and functionally associated with the Argonaut Mine Site (CA-AMA-208H) which, together with the Kennedy Mine, constitutes California Historical Landmark #786. The Argonaut Mine operated from the 1850s until 1942 and produced more than $25 million in gold. Ore extracted from the Argonaut main shaft, approximately 0.5 miles to the north, was processed adjacent to the EMAD at the cyanide plant. Tailings were disposed of behind two sand dams, with the EMAD being constructed to contain runoff from the tailings (Figure 3). By 1933 the EMAD basin was filled with tailings, possibly because of breaches in the sand dams. The APE for the Project, excluding the EMAD itself, was evaluated by ASC and Foothill Resources in 2014 (Walker, Shew, and Marvin 2014). This report evaluates the EMAD.

EPA’S SUPERFUND PROJECT Hazardous levels of cyanide, arsenic, lead, mercury, and coal tar have been recorded at the Argonaut Mine, which is immediately adjacent to a residential area and high school. As part of a preliminary assessment of the Argonaut Mine Tailings Site, the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) obtained assistance from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and EPA’s Office of Research & Development (ORD) to assess the stability of the dam and the impact of a possible failure. USACE structural engineers determined the dam is structurally weak and in need of reinforcement (EPA 2015). EPA considers the dam to be a high priority due to its condition and proximity to a populated area. The USACE is considering two options. One option would involve roller compacted concrete infill and the other would involve new concrete buttresses within the archways of the dam. Both options are intended to transform the existing arch dam into a mass gravity dam. The final dam retrofit alternative design study report is due in November 2015. In the interim, EPA has funded the USACE to develop and implement a dam safety monitoring and inspection plan (EPA 2015).

The dam is situated at the mouth of a filled ravine that drains into Jackson Creek, at Argonaut Drive and Sutter Street, at an elevation of 1364 feet amsl. EMAD was designed by engineer John S. Eastwood of San Francisco and built by Bent Bros. of Los Angeles. The California Debris Commission approved its plans on 17 February 1916, and the dam was completed that December at a cost of $23,000 (other accounts vary from $21,680 to $25,000). The dam impounded the tailings from a cyanide plant (evaluated in Walker, Show and Marvin 2014) that was constructed in 1916 to process the ore from the new 60-stamp mill at the Argonaut Mine. The dam was in use from its construction in 1916 until the mine shut down in 1942, and still impounds approximately 165,000 cubic yards of tailings.

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Figure 3. Oblique view of the EMAD and sand dams; view to west.


2. ENVIRONMENTAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT The EMAD is located within the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada, between the Consumnes and Tuolumne rivers. It is located at the mouth of what was historically a roughly northwest- to southeast-trending ravine that drained into Jackson Creek. While there is remnant natural topography (i.e., the upper slopes of the ravine) on the northeastern and southwestern sides of the ravine and east of the dam, most of the area is filled with tailings from the Argonaut Mine operations. The vegetation on the remnant natural topography consists of blue oak and foothill pine woodland with areas of meadow. Vegetation within the tailings area consists of sparse grasses and wetlands plants. HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The Argonaut Mine Originally known as the Pioneer claim, the Argonaut was second in the Central Mother Lode only to the Kennedy mine in size, depth, and production. Little is known of its early history, although work began there in 1850 on a small scale and continued intermittently until 1893. In the late 1880s and continuing through the early 1890s, local and San Francisco capitalists began to purchase land and mining claims in the area, believing the tunnel claim had great potential, (Amador County Deeds, various dates). The owners incorporated in 1893 as the Argonaut Mining Company, and funds were expended on developing the claim. Workers broke ground on 1 January 1894 for the first major shaft, located above or west of the Jackson-Sutter Creek road. Foundations for a hoist and headframe were constructed on the slope of Negro Hill. Water to power the hoist came from the Moore Ditch, which ran along the slope below the road. The hoisting plant was completed by January 1896 (Cenotto 1988a:81). In April 1896 the Amador Record reported that the Argonaut shaft was down 1,220 feet and was being sunk at the rate of 2-1/2 feet a day. In 1898 the shaft was 1,710 feet deep; by 1907 it had reached the 2,500-foot level, with good ore encountered along the way. A new 40-stamp mill was also erected, with stamps weighing 1,000 pounds each (Hamilton 1915:19). The State Mineralogist visited the mine in 1914 and noted that the company offices were in San Francisco. N.S. Kelsey was superintendent and 145 men were employed (Hamilton 1915:19).

In the early years of its operation, the wastes from the mine went into the North Fork of Jackson Creek, but about 1916, to keep the tailings out of the creek, the corporation removed its 40-stamp mill located below present Route 49, and stopped dumping tailings on “adjacent, erodable piles.” The corporation then built a new 60-stamp mill over the ridge to the west, removing the tailings from the watershed, and constructed a huge debris dam (Eastwood Dam) across the gulch north and west of the old


Jackson High School. The dam also blocked an old stage road to Ione [Cenotto 1988a:81].

To move the waste to the new reservoir behind Eastwood Dam, the mine operators had to liquefy the tailings in the new mill to create a “slime” that flowed by gravity through flume and ditch almost 1 mile into the reservoir. Although engineers estimated when the dam was poured that it would serve for about 25 years, little storage space was left when the slickens ceased to flow in 1942 (Cenotto 2006:25). By 1917 the shaft was 4,300 feet deep and required an elaborate pumping system to stay dry. It was still a profitable operation, however, producing the best average grade of ore of any mine along the Mother Lode during the bonanza period of 1914-1919, with the shaft reaching the 4,800-foot level. Disaster struck in August of the following year when fire broke out on the 3,000-foot level, trapping the crew working below that level. After 22 days of constant work, rescue crews broke through to the Argonaut from the Kennedy Mine, only to find 46 bodies behind a makeshift bulkhead (Wagner 1970:102). Accounts of that disaster have been recounted in several publications, including Wagner (1970) and Mace (2004). The Argonaut was then out of production for over a year, and resumed paying dividends in 1925. From 1923 to 1936, a considerable amount of gold was recovered from tailings produced in earlier years and treated by a separate company known as the Amador Metals Reduction Company. In 1936 ball mills and flotation cells were installed, replacing the 60-stamp mill, and in 1941 a cyanide plant was constructed to treat the concentrates from the Argonaut and Plymouth Consolidated mills (Wagner 1970:108-109). On 28 March 1942 the mine and mill ceased operations, a result of Executive Order L-208 and the wartime restrictions on gold mining. The Corporation was dissolved in 1948. The physical property purchased by Bernard Monte Verda and E. C. Taylor and the machinery removed and sold. A writer noted “the real estate, which has lain idle for years, will one day be developed and then little will remain to mark the spot of the once famous Argonaut mine” (Wagner 1970:109), a portent that is proving to be true. Multiple Arch Dams The EMAD is a multiple-arch structure, defined as a variation of an arch dam that features repeated or continuous arches that slope at ca. 45 degrees to the horizontal. The arches are carried on a parallel buttress wall, structurally integrating the designs of buttress and arch dams. Contrasted with conventional dams, the multiple-arch dam is more lightweight, requires less material to build, and the foundation does not have to be as solid. The design is suitable for a wide range of canyon types, but is not as widely used as in the past. None have been built in the U.S. since 1962 (Webster’s Online Dictionary, 2008-09-30).


Conventional dams are huge structures with a self-weight high enough to resist sliding or overturning under a water load. In contrast, multiple-arch dams are slender structures that employ their shape instead of their mass to resist the water load. Using very little material compared to conventional dams, they are significantly less expensive (Hoster 2009:1). John S. Eastwood was the first and most prolific designer and evangelist of the multiple arch dam and who designed novel dams that minimized the concrete necessary for construction in the early 20th century. These proved less expensive than comparable gravity dams, and offered the possibility that dam building, and hence water control, could be more widely dispersed across the economy of the American West. His technology was developed to minimize dam construction costs, providing water storage, an absolutely vital element in fostering the West’s economic growth (Jackson 2005:3,6). As noted:

To a public that often equated structural safety with greater cost and increased size, his claim of having developed a technologically superior method of water storage represented a counterintuitive approach to the science of dam design. Though Eastwood’s dams have required maintenance during the last 80 years and some have been “repaired” or altered—supposedly in order to make them safer—none has ever failed or caused loss of life or property [Jackson 2005:12].

John S. Eastwood The son of Dutch immigrants, John Samuel Eastwood was born on a farm near Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1857. He attended the University of Minnesota where he studied surveying and engineering but did not graduate. In 1880, he traveled west to build railroads in the Pacific Northwest, heading south to Fresno in 1883. Working first as a surveyor-engineer, he became Fresno’s first City Engineer in 1885. During the ensuing few years he worked in the fields of logging, mining, petroleum development, irrigation, and electric power generation (Jackson 2005:41, 43, 45). In 1895 Eastwood became vice president and chief engineer of the newly formed San Joaquin Electric Company. Under its aegis, he began construction of the first electric power plant to incorporate every element of the “California Style” of hydroelectric power systems: high-voltage, three phase AC technology, high head penstocks, and long distance transmission lines from remote sites in the mountains to load centers in the lowlands. The enterprise failed due to competition from the Fresno Gas and Electric Company and the lack of a large backup water storage dam during a drought. It was finally reorganized as the San Joaquin Light and Power Company in 1902 and was eventually purchased by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company in 1931 (Jackson 2005:48, 55, 57). The bankruptcy of the electric company forced Eastwood to realize that adequate upstream water storage was essential for any major hydroelectric power system in California. It was an opportune time, as the drought afflicting California was subsiding and interest in hydroelectric


power was gaining momentum. In his backcountry travels, Eastwood became interested in the Big Creek area in the upper San Joaquin River drainage and its possibility for hydroelectric generation. He then became involved in the business empire of Henry E. Huntington and his Pacific Light and Power Company (PL&P). Working with William G. Kerckhoff and Allan C. Balch, Eastwood filed all water rights claims and permits necessary for operating his Big Creek hydro project, intended to carry power from the upper San Joaquin River watershed to San Francisco and Los Angeles. By 1906 all the permits were in line and Eastwood began to conceptualize designs to support the corewall of an earthen dam, a circumstance that led to the perfection of the multiple-arched type of dam. As noted:

Eastwood urged adoptions of multiple arch dams because they represented “the ultimate scientific use of the materials.” They did not rely on bulk for stability, but instead “resist[ed] the waterthrust by the compression of the materials” that formed the structures’ arches and buttresses…. In contrast, he decried the “absolute waste of material and low safety factor’ in earthfill and masonry gravity dams as being “due to the fact that [in these gravity designs] the mass performs its work by the imposition of its weight alone to counteract the water thrust.” In making this conceptual distinction between standard masonry/earthfill gravity designs and his buttressed arch proposal, Eastwood succinctly identified the key characteristic separating the massing and structural traditions of dam design [Jackson 2005:71].

By 1910, Eastwood had been forced out of his role in the PL&P by Huntington, Kerkhoff, and Balch, and left with little more than an unpaid stock assessment bill. The company went on to build gravity dams instead of using Eastwood’s design. He was left only with the satisfaction that he had engineered the most ambitious hydroelectric project ever conceived by one man. Eastwood did go on, however, to design 17 successful multiple-arch western dams between 1908 and 1924, including those at Hume Lake for the Hume-Bennett Lumber Company east of Fresno. This was the world’s first reinforced concrete multiple-arch dam, and demonstrated the practicality of its design. Shortly thereafter he received the contract for the Big Bear Valley Dam in San Bernardino, marking the transformation of his theoretical ideas into concrete structures. Other dams would follow: Bartlett Dam and Cave Creek Dam in Arizona, Littlerock Dam in the Antelope Valley, Los Verjeles Dam in Yuba County, Lake Hodges Dam in Escondido, Anyox Dam in British Columbia, Mountain Dell Dam east of Salt Lake City, and Webber Creek Dam near Placerville. The Eastwood powerhouse at Shaver Lake, California, built in 1987, is named after him. Ultimately, however, Eastwood’s experiences

challenged the “water establishment” by attempting to expose the region to new technologies that could diffuse the advantages of water storage to a wide range of


ambitious, yet financially limited, water users who were otherwise shut out from dam building [Jackson 2005:251-252].

Eastwood died in August 1924 after suffering a heart attack while swimming at his ranch on the Kings River east of Fresno. His obituary noted that he “constantly endeavored to give the most economical design for a given location,” and for being “always the seer, the prophet of things to be, the dreamer who saw far into the future, and who, happily for us, was able to make some of his dreams come true (Jackson 2005:237, 313). Eastwood was buried in Fresno’s Mountain View Cemetery, followed by his wife Ella in 1933 (Ancestry.com). The Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam John Eastwood considered himself primarily a builder, not an engineering theoretician. His Eastwood Construction Company was to design two dams in Jackson, Amador County, California. Established by Congress in 1893, the California Debris Commission was charged with regulating mining operations that might affect stream flow along the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, requiring the construction of debris dams to hold back mine tailings. Located in Jackson, the Kennedy and Argonaut gold mines were the deepest on the California Mother Lode, producing mine tailings that were not allowed to flow into local streambeds. As they required less material than comparable concrete or masonry gravity dams, the Kennedy Mining and Milling Company, and later the Argonaut Mining Company, no doubt saw Eastwood’s dams as an inexpensive way to retain their tailings. In 1914, Eastwood received a contract from the Kennedy Mining and Milling Company to build a dam of his own design to impound the debris and tailings from their underground operations. The 455-foot long Kennedy Dam was built by the Eastwood Construction Company in six months and was completed in December 1914. Originally erected to a height of 30 feet above ground level, it was raised to 50 feet in 1916. Dam materials were mixed using locally quarried sand and gravel and conveyed to the forms in concrete buggies and deposited through homemade portable chutes. The dam cost $25,658, with Eastwood receiving about $2,000 for his services as designer and contractor, eventually receiving additional compensation when its height was raised (Jackson 2005:143-145). As a result of the success of the Kennedy Dam, in 1916 Eastwood received a commission from the Argonaut Mining Company to design a second debris dam in Jackson. Originally planned to be 80 feet high, the 420-foot long Argonaut Dam was built to a height of 46 feet. With 14 arches with spans of 32 feet, the Argonaut Dam generally resembled the Kennedy design, but did not feature its three-hinged arches. The dam was built by Bent Brothers of Los Angeles at a cost of approximately $23,000; Eastwood receiving little more than $1000 for his design commission. As noted by Jackson,


Although Eastwood’s associations with the California gold-mining industry did not yield any large structures nor generate much income, it did provide a convenient venue for him to demonstrate the versatility of his designs [Jackson 2005:146].

Current Condition

The dam is of poured in place concrete, 420-450 feet long, 46 feet high, with 13 visible arches that range in thickness from 18 inches at the base to 12 inches at the top (Figure 4). The arches, along with the buttress walls, were reinforced with tons of re-used 1 1/8-inch hoisting cable, which daylights out the back of the walls. In addition, tie beams have been constructed between six of the arches to brace the tallest of the buttress walls (Figure 5). Spacing between the arches is approximately 30 feet 1 inch. The foundation of the dam may be composed of a weathered clayey siltstone of low plasticity. However, a 1931 letter states that the “dam rests upon a hard dense diabasic rock of good quality”(USACE 2015:2). Water was initially drawn from the bottom through a 16-inch iron pipe, but the drain is no longer extant. It was also constructed with a simple wooden spillway at its north end (Figure 6). The spillway is also no longer extant. The dam appears to have undergone no significant alterations other than the decay or demolition of the spillway, but has deteriorated to some extent. The top surfaces of all the concrete arches show signs of erosion, and all the downstream faces have signs of efflorescence, rust staining from the embedded wire rope, and algae buildup. Dense vegetation has grown up on the downstream side of the dam while the upstream side has been filled with mine tailings (Figure 7). USACE structural engineers have determine the dam is structurally weak and in need of reinforcement (EPA 2015).

Figure 4. Plan view and elevation of the EMAD (USACE 2015:Figure 3).


Figure 5. Downstream face of the EMAD; view to north.

Figure 6. EMAD during construction 1916, spillway in foreground; view to south (photo courtesy of EPA).


Figure 7. EMAD, showing depth of fill; view to north (photo by Dan Shane, EPA).


3. NATIONAL REGISTER EVALUATION This section applies the Criteria for Evaluation of the National Register of Historic Places at 36 CFR 60.4 to the Argonaut Mine Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam. The EMAD is historically and functionally associated with the Argonaut Mine Site (CA-AMA-208H), the location of the mine portal and headframe, and the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site. Caltrans evaluated the contiguous Argonaut and Kennedy mines as eligible for listing on the National Register as a historic mining district in 2004. According to the evaluation, the properties are eligible under Criteria A, C, and D at the state level of significance. The period of significance of the proposed district is 1857 to 1942 (Supernowicz, Huddleson, and Wooten 2004:102). The Kennedy Mine Historic District was listed on the National Register under Criteria A and C at the state level of significance in 2009. ASC evaluated the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site in 2014 (Walker, Shew, and Marvin 2015), recommending the site as eligible to the NRHP under Criteria A, C, and D. The State Historic Preservation Officer concurred with this evaluation. Application of the Criteria For Evaluation To be eligible for listing in the NRHP, a property must be significant in American history, architecture, engineering, or culture and possess integrity of location, design, materials, workmanship, feeling, setting, and association. In addition, the property must meet one or more of the four National Register criteria:

a) that are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; or

b) that are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or c) that embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of

construction, or that represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or

d) that have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history. (36 CFR 60.4)

The period of significance is 1916 to 1942. This period begins with the construction of the EMAD, when the Argonaut Mine’s operators began to impound tailings on-site and ends when the Argonaut mine closed. A Historical Context and Archaeological Research Design for Mining Properties in California (Caltrans 2008) provides evaluative contexts for properties that are associated with the final stages of ore processing and the disposal of processed ore. The contexts for the evaluation of this property are Technology 1900–1942 and Policy 1900–1942 (Caltrans 2008:118, 149).


Criterion A The EMAD appears to be eligible under Criterion A for its association with the Argonaut Mine, one of the longest-lived and most important mines in the California Mother Lode (Supernowicz, et al. 2006). The EMAD is also associated with the continuing legacy of the 1884 Sawyer Decision and the 1893 Caminetti Act in the form of engineering controls required of mining companies to manage their byproducts. The theme of Policy considers the effect of federal, state, and local mining regulations on mining. The massive Argonaut tailing piles and dams that buried the ravine that once ran through this area are dramatic responses to California’s legal landscape in the early 20th century. They are a direct result of earlier court decisions and federal legislation that lead to a 1913 agreement between mine owners and an anti-debris association made up of Central Valley agricultural interests (Berriman 1981). These features also indicate the amount of capital and level of effort that mine owners were willing to invest to continue operations. This is fine. Criterion B The EMAD does not appear eligible for listing on the NRHP under Criterion B. Although John S. Eastwood designed the structure, it cannot be said to be his best work or that with which he is most associated. According to National Register Bulletin 15 "Architects, artisans, artists, and engineers are often represented by their works, which are eligible under Criterion C. Their homes and studios, however, can be eligible for consideration under Criterion B, because these usually are the properties with which they are most personally associated." Criterion C The EMAD appears eligible for listing on the NRHP under Criterion C at the statewide level of significance for its engineering design. Although none have been built in the past five decades, the dam design provided a cost-effective means of dam construction for a multitude of uses in the early 20th century: logging, hydroelectric power, water shortage, and mine tailings retention. The Argonaut Mine Dam is one of only two multiple-arch Eastwood debris dams ever constructed. It is an important component of the history of dam building and mining in the American West. Criterion D The EMAD does not appear to be eligible under Criterion D. It is an extant structure, not an archaeological site and so is unlikely to yield data important in history. Its value as a historic structure is more appropriately captured under Criterion C.


INTEGRITY Although the EMAD’s structural integrity is compromised, it retains its historical integrity. There are visible cracks in the structure and there is rubble at the north end of the dam that indicates an impact from the construction of Argonaut Drive. The top surface of the dam shows signs of erosion. Other than these impacts, the dam remains essentially unaltered from the time of its construction. Location The EMAD possesses integrity of location. It is situated where it was built. Design The EMAD possesses integrity of design. Aside from the removal of the original spillway, it does not appear to have been significantly altered since its construction in 1916. The structure clearly reflects its historical function and unusual design. Setting The EMAD possesses integrity of setting. The setting reflects its historical function of tailings impoundment. Materials The EMAD retains integrity of materials. It does not appear to have been rehabilitated or altered since its construction in 1916. Workmanship The EMAD retains integrity of workmanship and clearly reflects the innovative design and construction that contribute to its significance. Feeling The EMAD retains integrity of feeling. The structure’s scale and construction is an impressive reminder of the investment mining companies were prepared to make to continue operations in the legal landscape after the Sawyer and Caminetti decisions. Association The EMAD possesses integrity of association. It is part of the landscape of mining and processing operations the comprised the Argonaut Mine. Its link to these operations is well documented. NATIONAL REGISTER EVALUATION SUMMARY In the opinion of the authors, the Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam appears eligible for listing on the National Register under Criteria A and C at the state level of significance.


REFERENCES CITED Amador, County of var. Deed Books Amador Record var. Amador Record. Jackson, California. Ancestry.com var. Eastwood family data, accessed at Ancestry.com. Berriman, Clyde R. 1980 National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination For. Kennedy Tailing

Wheels. City of Jackson, Jackson, California. California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) 2008 Historical Context and Archaeological Research Design for Mining Properties in California.

California Department of Transportation, Sacramento, California. Cenotto, Larry 1988a Logan’s Alley, Amador County Yesterdays in Picture and Prose, Volume 1. Cenotto

Publications, Jackson. 2006 Logan’s Alley, Amador County Yesterday’s in Picture and Prose, Volume V. Cenotto

Publications, Jackson. Coats, Roger 2012 John S. Eastwood. Central Sierra Historical Society.

www.sierrahistorical.org/john-s-eastwood/ (accessed 9/1/2015) Eddy, Lewis H., Associate Editor 1916 The Argonaut Mine, Calif. Engineering and Mining Journal. 162(1) 5 August 1916. Environmental Protection Agency 2015 Executive Summary, Eastwood Multiple arch Dam, Dam Failure Study. June 9, 2015 Hamilton, Fletcher. 1915 Mines and Mineral Resources of Amador County, Calaveras County, Tuolumne County.

California State Mining Bureau, San Francisco, California. Hoster, Zoë 2009 Multiple Arch Dams: Evolution of the Form. Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Science in Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Program in Structural Engineering, Princeton University. Academia.edu, San Francisco, California.


Jackson, Donald C. 2005 Building the Ultimate Dam: John S. Eastwood and the Control of Water in the West.

University Press of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas. Paperback Edition. Mace, O. Henry 2004 47 Down, The 1922 Argonaut Gold Mine Disaster. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New

Jersey. Mining and Engineering World 1916 Argonaut Co’s. Tailings Dam. Mining and Engineering World, Vol. 45-46, Nov. 11, 1916 Supernowicz, Dana, Julia Huddelson, and Kimberly Wooten 2006 Historic Resource Evaluation Report for the Proposed Widening and Rehabilitation Project, State

Route 49/88 in Jackson and Martell, Amador County, California. 10-AMA-49, PM 4.0/5.8 and 9.8/10.5 EA 461300. Prepared for Gary Gagliolo, Acting Chief, Central Sierra Environmental Analysis Branch, Central Region, Fresno, California.

Thompson & West 1881 History of Amador County. Thompson & West, Oakland, California. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2015 Argonaut Dam Stability and Retrofit Alternative Investigation, Jackson, CA. Phase I Technical

Report. Prepared for Dan Shane, Environmental Protection Agency, Daniel McMindes, Technical Lead, SPD. Prepared by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, Sacramento, California.

Wagner, Jack R. 1970 Gold Mines of California. Howell-North Books, San Diego, California. Walker, Mark, Dana Shew, and Judith Marvin 2014 A Cultural Resources Inventory and Evaluation of the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and

Tailings Site, Jackson, Amador County, California. Prepared for Dan Shane, Environmental Protection Agency. Prepared by Anthropological Studies Center, Sonoma state University, Rohnert Park, California.

Webster’s Online Dictionary 2008 Accessed at www. Merriam-Webster,.Inc., 2015.


APPENDIX: DPR 523 FORM

State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #

PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial NRHP Status Code

Other Listings Review Code Reviewer Date

Page 1 of 5 *Resource Name or #: Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD)

P1. Other Identifier: Argonaut Tailings Dam *P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County: Amador

and (P2b and P2c or P2d. Attach a Location Map as necessary.) *b. USGS 7.5' Quad: Jackson Date: 1962 T 6N;R 11E; SE ¼ of SE ¼ of Sec 20; Mount Diablo B.M.

c. Address: City: Jackson Zip: 95642 d. UTM: Zone: 10 ; 69376 mE/ 424287 mN

e. Other Locational Data: (e.g., parcel #, directions to resource, elevation, etc., as appropriate) Elevation: 1364 ft. amslStructure is located at Argonaut Drive and Sutter Street, Jackson, California

*P3a. Description:The Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD) was a tailings impoundment dam for the Argonaut Mine from 1916 to 1942.The dam lies within the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site (see Location Map), but was not evaluated as part of thatsite(Walker, Shew, and Marvin 2014).It is located at the mouth of a filled ravine that drains into Jackson Creek. The dam is of poured in place concrete, 420-450 feetlong, 46 feet high, with 13 visible arches which range in thickness from 18” at the base to 12” at the top. The arches, along with thebuttress walls, were reinforced with tons of re-used 1 1/8-inch hoisting cable, which daylights out the back of the walls. Inaddition, tie beams have been constructed between 6 of the arches to brace the tallest of the buttress walls. Spacing between thearches is approximately 30’-1”.

3b. Resource Attributes: HP11 *P4. Resources Present: Building Structure Object Site District Element of District Other (Isolates, etc.)

P5b. Description of Photo: (View, date, accession #)

*P6. Date Constructed/Age andSources: Historic Prehistoric Both

*P7. Owner and Address: Marilyn Van Horn, 4193 King Arthur Court, Palo Alto, CA 94306

*P8. Recorded by:Judith Marvin, Foothill Resources,Ltd., 8331 Stevenson StreetMokelumne Hill, CA 95245

Mark Walker, Anthropological Studies Centre, Sonoma State University, 1801 E. Cotati Ave. Bldg 29, Rohnert Park CA, 94928

*P9. Date Recorded: March 2014, August 2015.*P10. Survey Type: Pedestrian

*P11. Report Citation:Marvin, Judith, and Mark Walker in prep. Evaluation of the Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam, Jackson, Amador County,

California. Submitted to US EPA, Region 9 Walker, Mark, Dana Shew, and Judith Marvin 2014 A Cultural Resources Inventory and Evaluation of the Argonaut Mine Cyanide

Plant and Tailings Site, Jackson, Amador County, California. Submitted to US EPA, Region 9.

*Attachments: NONE Location Map Sketch Map Continuation Sheet Building, Structure, and Object RecordArchaeological Record District Record Linear Feature Record Milling Station Record Rock Art Record Artifact Record Photograph Record Other (List):

DPR 523A (1/95) *Required information

P5a.

*Required information

State of California � The Resources AgencyDEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATIONLOCATION MAP

Primary # HRI # Trinomial

Page 2 of 5*Map Name: Jackson, Calif. *Scale: 1:24,000 *Date of Map: 1962; PR 1973

*Resource Name or #: Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD)

¿

Argonaut Cyanide Plantand Tailings Site

DPR 523J (1/95)

CALIFTN 0 0.5 1

KILOMETERS0 0.5 1

MILES

Argonaut EastwoodMultiple Arch Dam

DPR 523B (1/95) *Required information

State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD Page 3 of 5 *NRHP Status Code *Resource Name or # Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam B1. Historic Name: Argonaut Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD) B2. Common Name: Same B3. Original Use: Tailings containment dam B4. Present Use: disused

*B5. Architectural Style: Multiple Arch Dam *B6. Construction History: Constructed in 1916 to impound tailings from the Argonaut Mine and its cyanide plant. There are no documented alterations to the dam since its construction. The Argonaut Mine ceased operations in 1942, and the corporation dissolved in 1948. The dam was periodically inspected after construction. *B7. Moved? No Yes Unknown Date: Original Location: *B8. Related Features: The EMAD impounds tailings that fill a small east-west trending valley. The tailings rise to the west behind the EMAD in two tiers, each retained by a sand dam. In addition, the remains of cyanide plant for the Argonaut Mine from 1918 to 1938 lie west of the EMAD on the north side of the valley. This is discussed in Walker, Shew, and Marvin (2014). B9a. Architect: John S. Eastwood. b. Builder: Bent Bros. of Los Angeles, CA.

*B10. Significance: Theme: Mining Technology 1900–1942 and Mining Policy 1900–1942 Area: Amador County Period of Significance: 1916-1942 Property Type: HP11 Applicable Criteria: A, C

Criterion A. The EMAD appears to be eligible under Criterion A for its association for its association with the Argonaut Mine, one of the longest lived and most important mines in the California Mother Lode. The EMAD is also associated with the continuing legacy of the 1884 Sawyer Decision and the 1893 Caminetti Act in the form of engineering controls required of mining companies to manage their byproducts. The theme of Policy considers the effect of federal, state, and local mining regulations on mining. The massive Argonaut tailing piles and dams that buried the ravine that once ran through this area are dramatic responses to California’s legal landscape in the early 20th century. They are a direct result of earlier court decisions and federal legislation that lead to a 1913 agreement between mine owners and an anti-debris association made up of Central Valley agricultural interests. Criterion C. The EMAD appears eligible for listing on the NRHP under Criterion C, at the statewide level of significance, for its engineering design and for its association with John S. Eastwood, who was the first to design multiple-arch dams and who served as their major proponent over the ensuing two decades. Although none have been built in the past five decades, the dam design did provide a cost-effective means of dam construction for a multitude of uses in the early 20th century: logging, hydroelectric power, water shortage, and mine tailings retention. The Argonaut Mine Dam is one of only two multiple-arch Eastwood debris dams ever constructed, and is an important component of the history of dam building and mining in the American West. B11. Additional Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes)

*B12. References: Walker, Mark, Dana Shew, and Judith Marvin 2014 A Cultural Resources Inventory and Evaluation of the Argonaut Mine Cyanide Plant and Tailings Site, Jackson, Amador County, California. Submitted to the US Environmental Protection Agency, Region 9, San Francisco, California. Prepared by the Anthropological Studies Center, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park , California.

B13. Remarks:

*B14. Evaluator: Judith Marvin, Mark Walker

*Date of Evaluation: August 2015

(This space reserved for official comments.)

State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial Page 4 of 5 *Resource Name or # Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD) *Recorded by: Judith Marvin, Mark Walker *Date: August 2015 Continuation Update

DPR 523L (1/95) *Required information

Plan view and elevation drawing of EMAD (USACE 2015: Figure 3)

State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial Page 5 of 5 *Resource Name or # Eastwood Multiple Arch Dam (EMAD) *Recorded by: Judith Marvin, Mark Walker *Date: August 2015 Continuation Update

DPR 523L (1/95) *Required information

EMAD, showing depth of fill on upstream side; view to north.

EMAD, showing downstream side; view to north.

Documents

National Register of Historic Places evaluation of Argonaut … · existing arch dam into a mass gravity dam. The final dam retrofit alternative design study report is due in November