1850: The Gold Lake Romance

As told by Mrs. Mary Haven Edwards in 1926

I have been asked to tell the story of the romance of Gold Lake. 

80 years ago, the Indians thronged this mountain valley. On top of Indian Mountain, a great camp was maintained. Here, until a few years ago, Indian relics, especially arrowheads, were found abundant, and even yet the smooth stones hollowed out for grinding corn are found. The Indian canoe on our beach, discovered 30 feet out by Don Edwards a few years ago, had doubtless been lying on the pebbles beneath the surface of the lake for 75 years. There may be others, as the Indians used to sink their canoes when the lake froze over and they moved their families down to Gold Valley and Mohawk for the winter.

In the early 1850s the mountains swarmed with mining men, and many a prospector owed his good luck to friendly Indians. It is a mystery to this day where the red man found so much of the gold they exchanged at Downeyville and Sierra City for the merchandise the miners brought up from the Sacramento Valley. It was too great a risk to track the Indians back to their habitations, and when they learned the value put upon the yellow metal by the intruders, they guarded their treasure beds with jealous care. But the Indians became very friendly with their white neighbors, so long as they kept away from the higher mountains: and the dusky women and children often came into town.

There was one Indian maiden said to be very attractive, a beautiful girl who made many friends among the white settlers, who named her “Dora”.

In 1853, 73 years ago, a young doctor, an Englishman, came to Downeyville  - Dr. Elmer Hayward.  He was of good family and highly educated, but eager for travel. He was attracted to America, and when he reached New York, hearing of the gold rush, he came at once to California. Following the crowd, he came to Downeyville, and while watching his opportunity, he opened an office and became the successful physician of this mining center.

One day, in mid June, the lovely Indian girl, Dora, called at Dr. Hayward’s office. She had been persuaded by her white friends to see him professionally. Dora spoke good English; she was ill enough to require  considerable attention. Thus there arose a warm friendship between the Indian maiden and the young English doctor. This friendship became a matter of comment in Downeyville, and reports of it drifted out to the Indians, and reached the ears of Dora’s Indian suitors, of whom she had several. But neither their appeals or the warnings of Dr. Hayward‘s white friends could persuade Dora to give up their friendship. He laughed at their fears for his life, knowing that as a physician, he was necessary to the people of Downeyville and the country around, and he reasoned that an Indian would hesitate long before attacking him, thus arousing the enmity of the white man. Doris‘s devotion to the doctor was plain to all, while his friendship with her was so frank and sincere, and his bearing so confident and fearless that the alarm of his friends was allayed.  But the disappointed and jealous Indian Braves chose another method of revenge.

When Dr. Hayward reached his office early on the afternoon of July 7, 1853, he found among those waiting for him an Indian, and the dusky brave had seemed grateful for services that the doctor had rendered unexpectedly for him previously.  Because he seemed anxious to show him gratitude, the doctor lent a credulous ear to the tale he told: this is his story:

Not far from Downeyville, resting on the very crest of the ridge, was a lake, so pure and clear that not only could its fish be seen, but also long stretches of yellow-looking stuff, which Indian divers had found to be gold. It was from this source, he said, that the Indians obtained much of the precious metal they gave for trinkets, whiskey, and merchandise. But they had no way to get at the gold, and this treasure, he said, lay there for the white man to gather. The Indians kept the white man out - few had ever seen the lake, but because of the doctor's kindness, he would guide him to a place where he would see for himself, and afterwards he would do all he could to help in the mining operations.

Dr. Hayward went with him; they reached the mountain overlooking the lake, just before sundown. It must’ve been the cliff behind our camp - above Farrell’s, perhaps. The water spread out before them, beautiful and clear, and beneath them, as the brave had said, was the big patch of yellow on the lake bed - to all appearances gold.  Today, near sunset time, this can still be seen from the right positions.

The doctor was carried away by this wonderful discovery. He was charged not to tell Dora, as she might tell the other braves, and they might interfere, but enough white men could be told to help him carry out the work. Dr. Hayward had saved several thousand dollars in his practice, which, with the money he had brought with him from England gave him enough to swing his enterprise alone. He did not want a partner, but thought he would borrow the rest. He went at once to San Francisco for equipment, the purchase of hoisting machinery, and some expert divers. He also planned installing an immense siphon-like plant, which he hoped to force the small nuggets and thin gold flakes, samples of which the Indians had shown him, through steel pipes much more quickly than by buckets loaded by divers. The floor of the lake is smooth and sandy, and he felt sure this could be done.

News of this strange project spread all over the mountains  - great excitement prevailed, and many encouraged Hayward to believe this thing would succeed. The time came when he would know that he either was a millionaire or a popper. On the advice of friends, Hayward kept secret the day of the first attempt. With a few tried companions he came to the lake on August 11 to witness the diving. He had no fear of the result and was in high spirits. He had sent word to Dora to meet him at the lake, but she was not there. From the timesheet had begged him not to undertake it, saying that the Indians were duping Him, and she thought there was no gold in the lake. He laughed at her, and showed the nuggets already from the lake.  In vain, she begged him, and then, discouraged, went away.

August 11, 1853 is remembered as  “Black Day” in the mountains. The first bucket brought no gold, again and again they tried. The yellow sand that came up had no suggestion of gold. Finally, there was no more money to pay the laborers. He had borrowed money. It was a pauper. Extreme fatigue, lack of food, of rest, the terrible drop from buoyant Hope to utter disillusionment - these wracked his reason.  Stupefaction was followed by hysteria, then a complete mental breakdown, and with reason gone, he escaped to his friends and wandered down the Sacramento Valley.

Dora, desolated by the sad fate of the man she devotedly loved, first killed with her own hand the two Indian bucks who had led Dr. Hayward into this unhappy venture; thus for stalling the vengeance which the miners planned for the tribe, and then she two fled down the Sacramento Valley. Their story followed them, and soon after, their dead bodies were found: both had been shot, and the pistol, belonging to neither of them, was lying on the ground between them. No one will ever know whether he found the weapon and turned it on himself, and she, finding him dead, took her life with it….., he had lost his reason, because of the pursuit of the gold he never found; she had lost the man who meant all of life to her.

And today, the beautiful, quiet lake is visited by those who come away from the pursuit of gold, to seek peace and renewal; the boat drift over its gentle surface, in search  - not of gold - but of fish.

And this is the present romance of Gold Lake .

Summer of 1926