Historic Resource Evaluation Project - Tuolumne Utilities District

the Table Mountain Company claims (Deed Book 18:252). The Peoria Ditch was still
depicted as late as 1907 (Thom 1907; USGS 1900); however, in 1916 it was described as
7.14 miles long, but not in use for the previous 20 years except intermittently for the first
three miles. Several flumes were rotten and the ditch was in poor condition (Rhodin
1916).
Along its route from the Slum Dam, the Table Mountain Ditch branched westerly 2.18
miles to French Flat, supplying only a few farmers by the 1910s (Rhodin 1916). Another
branch forked westerly to Tuttletown and Jackass Hill (USGS 1900), and was depicted a
few years later as ending at Tuttletown (Thom 1907). Although the ditch was not
depicted on the earlier maps of the area, it had undoubtedly been constructed by the
1850s, as numerous arrastras, stamp mills, and other mining facilities were operating in
those years; it may have been the ditch noted in 1855 as the Reynold’s, Goodwin & Co.
Ditch, carrying water from Mormon Creek near Twist’s Ranch to Tuttletown (Claims
Book 1-7:194), and later known as Gale’s Ditch (GLO 1870; Dart 1879). Gold was first
discovered at Mormon Gulch on Mormon Creek by a group of Mormons in 1848, but the
place was renamed for Judge Anson A.H. Tuttle after he settled there (Gudde 1975:354).
In 1916, the Table Mountain Ditch was noted as supplying the Rawhide Mine, the French
Flat Ditch, and formerly the Peoria Ditch. It was in excellent condition, with a total
length of 5.5 miles (Rhodin 1916).
Evaluation. The Table Mountain Ditch appears to be eligible for listing on the NRHP
under Criteria A and C, as a contributing property to a potential Tuolumne Utilities
District National Register District. Under Criterion A, the Table Mountain Ditch was
completed in 1852 as part of the TCWC system, taking water from the South Fork
Stanislaus River, through the Columbia system, and by way of the High Flume to access
the rich diggings on Table Mountain and the Rawhide Ranch, important early Gold Rushera
mining districts. As such, it was associated with the TCWC and its successors, one of
the largest and most important entities in Tuolumne County from 1852 to the present.
Under Criterion C, the Table Mountain Ditch retains its integrity to its period of
significance (1852-1967) along more than 95% of its length and embodies the distinctive
characteristics of its type, period, and method of construction. Along its route, it conveys
its integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association
to a remarkable degree, especially in the sections on Table Mountain and through the
tunnels, and conveys water in the same manner as when it was first constructed.
Other Sites and Features
In the course of the ditch survey, 28 previously unnoted, historic-era, non-ditch sites were
found in addition to ditch features. These resources were photographed, described, and
the GPS location was recorded (Table 1). Detailed photograph and GPS logs were kept
to organize data collection. Given time constraints, GPS recordings were limited to five
satellite readings per point, instead of the optimal fifteen readings. California Department
of Parks and Recreation forms (523A, J) were prepared for these features; the records are
included in Appendix A.
Foothill Resources, Ltd. 4.49 TUD Ditch Sustainability Project
Francis Heritage, LLC
Historic Resource Evaluation Report