PERSONAL STATUS PAGE

I live in the Heart of the Mother Lode, 7 miles due south of Alleghany California on the Middle Yuba River. Home is the "Alchemist Gold Mine", where I do both Lode and Placer mining. My cabin (pictured right) was originally built in 1926 by a miner named Bill Whore. As a result, I naturally refer to it as the Whore House. It was built from redwood that was salvaged from a water flume that supplied water to a hydroelectric power plant which powered one of the oldest and largest gold mines in California history. When power service was brought to the area in the early 1900's, the plant was shut down and the flume abandoned. Bill Whore built a total of 3 structures with wood from the flume. One of the structures burned down around 1948 but the others are still in good condition. Since 1989 when I first became the owner of this cabin, I have totally refurbished it. Although the cabin is located 7 miles from Alleghany, I have all the conveniences of any home in town. I make my own electricity from water and my telephone line runs a total of 9 miles to a tree in town where the phone company provides my service connection. The road is narrow and considered by several 4 wheel drive clubs as an off road vehicle course. In the winter the road is often buried under several feet of snow. But the clean fresh mountain air, the fantastic star displays at night, and the wonderful piece of mind near the river make it all worth while.