Research

Scope and Content Note

This series consists of approximately 100 forms submitted to the Secretary of State of notices of discovery of gold and silver, listing the town and county in which the discovery was made. Forms contain geographical information about where the discovery was made, as well as descriptions of the mineral vein. Some notices, despite nominally being about the discovery of gold or silver, list other minerals as well. The discovery of these minerals gave the owner a claim that could be sold off via a notification to the Department of State at the bottom of the form. Many claimants used the notices to immediately sell their rights to outside businesses.