Modern Times
The entrances to the mines are closed off. After being identified as a superfund site and subsequent containment activities, the mining area can now be visited as part of the Santa Clara County Almaden Quicksilver county park. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961. By the time Santa Clara County bought the mines in 1976 and ended operations, 83,974,076 pounds (37,388 metric tons) of mercury (worth more than US$70 million) had been extracted.
The remains of a variety of structures left over from the 135 years of mining activity, including housing for the up to 1,800 miners, are scattered about the park, with the biggest concentration at what was known as English Camp, established by Cornish miners in the 1860s. Some structures were built later by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and there is a memorial honoring the Civilian Conservation Corps firefighters who were stationed there for a time.
Two California Historical Landmark markers honor New Almaden Mine: #339 marks a cinnabar hill where Indians gathered pigment for paint, while #339-1 is near Arroyo de los Alamitos Creek where the actual mining of ore first occurred.
There is also a museum adjacent at the site.
Read more about this topic: New Almaden
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