Arrastra

An arrastra operated in Sierra City on Kane Flat near the present Hayes Home and was located in the Sierra Buttes Quartz Mine near the site of the Great 40 Stamp Mill. Arrastras were used to crush and grind gold ore and to grind the tailings from stamp mills even more finely, and some consisted of huge wheel-shaped stones that rolled over the ore to crush and grind it. This one-to-six scale model was developed from a photograph of the actual arrastra, built in 1954 by the boys shop class of Downieville High School under Principal and teacher James J. Sinnott, and formed part of the Sierra County Exhibit in the 1956 California State Fair.

Downieville, California · United States