Gold Bug Park encompasses 61 acres with six mining claims that were once part of the Poverty Ridge Mining District in an area where some of the richest deposits of the Mother Lode were found. During one week in the summer of 1848, three men extracted $17,000 in gold when it was valued at $16 - $19 an ounce. By 1852, all but the heartiest miners had disappeared along with the easiest pickings along the creek. Hardrock mining began in the hillsides in the late 1800’s, peaked during the Depression, and continued until World War II. In 1965, the City of Placerville acquired the property from the Bureau of Land Management and developed it into a park. The park remains significant as a typical neighborhood mining area, containing a small hardrock mine, a working ore stamp mill, hundreds of prospecting holes, and evidence of water supply ditches within its boundaries.