Donald and Sylvia McLaughlin Natural Reserve
Information
The Donald and Sylvia McLaughlin Natural Reserve (MNR) is located 15 miles southeast of Clearlake, CA, near where Napa, Lake, and Yolo counties meet. MNR holds a historical collection that is unique in the NRS. Prior to its inclusion in the NRS, the McLaughlin site was owned and administered by the Homestake Mining Company (HMC), which operated the McLaughlin Gold Mine from the early 1980s to the late 2000s. The reserve was established in 1992 as part of the HMC's long range management plan for the site. Its current collections contain materials pertaining the mine, as well as the site's geology, climate, ecology, land use history, and the HMC's relationships with the University of California and California State University systems.
In the early 2010s, the HMC was still concluding its operations on the site, and it was in the process of transferring additional documentation to the MNR's collections.
Resources
The Bancroft Library Regional Oral History Office Western Mining Series holds a collection of interviews with individuals involved with the McLaughlin Gold Mine. To access these interviews, click on the link below, then scroll down to the "Multi-Interview Volumes" pertaining to the Homestake Mining Company and Knoxville Mining District.