DesertDisciple Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 (edited) Hello, I live in Southern California, in the High Desert area and would like some help with a mystery. I work for the County Library and a year ago I was a supervisor up in Running Springs. A gentleman came in one day hoping I could provide some info on an old abandoned stamp mill that he had found. He was a real nice guy, homeless guy and we spent a good 30 minutes looking through local history books and googling different stamp mills. there are plenty in the general area that are well known and have info but the one he found didn't have any info whatsoever and was in an area that didn't coincide with any we could find info on. We were able to pull up a map online and he pointed to the general area where he thought it was, on the Southeast side of the mountain. Anyway, he left with nothing conclusive and i have regretted ever since not asking if i could go stomp around the mountain with him and check it out. I guess I was too "sensible" at the time. Anyway, I want to find it. if anyone knows anything about stamp mills in the Big Bear area or has first hand knowledge, Id love to hear from you. Be assured that I don't plan on going and taking stuff apart. I'm just in need of some adventure. Anyone looking to join? :) Edited February 7, 2014 by DesertDisciple Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianinsa Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 Sounds like it could be fun and possibly illegal _ yeah if I were closer I'd give it a bash!!!Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Ivan Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 If I was out on the west coast, I would already have a pack on and boots laced up. Sounds like an adventure to me! -Crazy Ivan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertDisciple Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 Glad to see general interest! Sorry you guys aren't closer. Goes to show though that homeless folks often have a lot better local information than even our libraries sometimes. I feel like it's often worth it to start there when asking for neat locations and local arcana. @ianinsa - I edited that last line out of the post, as it made me seem like a vagabond. LOL! I'm not looking to steel anything, but I'm still picturing finding some cool, century+ old tool. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 have you skimmed the area with google earth/maps satellite view? the aerial photography has a lot of detail but its too much area to pan through randomly but if you have a guess at a starting point you would probably be able to identify a large (presumably?) structure and compare notes. once you have identified the general area you should be able to pull the parcel maps and the ownership records. definitely second doublechecking ownership for legal purposes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertDisciple Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 @ Chinobi - Great idea! I have considered that, the only obstacle being that we were looking at the map over a year ago and he was guessing. But I can still narrow it down to about 10m2 . I did not realize you could pull up ownership records from Google maps. Unless you're talking about getting the coordinates and using a different service? I will have to spend some time tonight scanning. There is also an organization called Big Bear Blacksmiths listed on the CBA website, and apparently they meet at a stamp mill. I would be a dummy not to call. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertDisciple Posted February 7, 2014 Author Share Posted February 7, 2014 Does this look stamp-millish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Ivan Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 Looks like there is a truck in that photo with 2 people next to it (scrappers?). Also looks like there was a fire and 1/2 of the building to the west had damage? With that style roof it almost looks residential but who knows? -Crazy Ivan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted February 7, 2014 Share Posted February 7, 2014 It would be a separate service. use google to find the approximate location, then the county assessors office website to find the overall area and determine what book to look in and subsequently what page and parcel number. from there I think it would be a search of public records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertDisciple Posted February 8, 2014 Author Share Posted February 8, 2014 @CrazyIvan - I can definitely see the fire damage, but I can't make out a truck in the image. Good eyes though! Looks like you're experienced with this sort of thing. @Chinobi - Thank you! I'll be sure to continue scanning and come up with a list of possible locations. Google provides coordinates, so I can probably do a lot with that. There's actually a preserve called 'Pioneertown' at the base of the mountain. The wash you see in the picture is actually a road that goes from up in the mountains down to Yucca Valley. I think I can call the folks at the preserve and ask if there are any historical sites/mills in the area. Thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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