In the 1850s, Drytown was a place of rich placer mining whose name came from the lack of water in a nearby creek for washing gold. Many Chinese laborers worked in its fields and mines. It served as the east gateway to New Chicago, New Philadelphia, and Amador City, and nearby quartz mines included Fremont-Gover and Treasure in 1867 and Bunker Hill in 1853. It was also the scene of the Rancheria Massacre in 1855 and the site of the Dynan Monument.