Founded in 1849 by George Angel, Angels Camp began as a mining camp and trading store two hundred feet below this site. It became a rich gravel mining area and one of the richest quartz mining sections of the Mother Lode, with production records of over $100 million for Angels Camp and the surrounding vicinity. Prominent in early California history, the townsite was established in 1873. It was also the locale of Mark Twain's famous story, The Jumping Frog of Calaveras, and was frequented by Joaquin Murietta, Black Bart, and other early-day bandits.