1956 Medal Empire Mine Brass Parks & Recreation

Coin Details

Description

The 1956 Empire Mine brass medal from Parks & Recreation commemorates the Empire Mine, one of the oldest, largest, and most productive gold mines in California history. Located in Grass Valley, Nevada County, the Empire Mine operated from 1850 to 1956 — over a century of continuous gold production that yielded approximately 5.8 million ounces of gold from 367 miles of underground tunnels. The mine's closure in 1956 marked the end of an era in California's gold mining industry. The brass medal's connection to Parks & Recreation reflects the transition of the mine property to a state park, which occurred in 1974 when the State of California purchased the 784-acre estate. The medal was produced to commemorate the mine's closure and the beginning of its preservation as a historical site. The Empire Mine State Historic Park now preserves the mine buildings, the owner's English manor house and formal gardens, and interpretive exhibits documenting the mine's century of operation. The Empire Mine was owned for much of its history by William Bowers Bourn II, the heir to a San Francisco mining fortune who transformed the property into a grand estate. The mine buildings, designed by architects Willis Polk and Julia Morgan, represent some of the finest industrial architecture in the American West. The brass medal preserves the memory of a mine that produced wealth rivaling any in the world and whose story embodies the full arc of California's transformation from Gold Rush territory to modern state.

Rarity Notes

Brass medals commemorating specific mines are produced in limited quantities. The Empire Mine closure medal marks a historically significant event in California gold mining history.

Cross References

PCGS #906617; Empire Mine, Grass Valley CA; operated 1850-1956; California State Historic Park