Mill City, Mono County, California

Former settlement in California, United States

Mill City

Former settlement

Ruins of stamp mill flywheel

Mill City

Location in California

Coordinates: 37°37′22″N 118°59′32″W﻿ / ﻿37.62278°N 118.99222°W﻿ / 37.62278; -118.99222
Country| United States
State| California
County| Mono County
Elevation

[1]

| 8,320 ft (2,536 m)

Mill City is a former settlement in Mono County, California.[1] It was located 8.5 miles (14 km) west-northwest of Mount Morrison and 0.5 miles (0.8 km) southwest of Old Mammoth,[2] at an elevation of 8320 feet (2536 m).[1]

Dominating the scene in Mill City are remains of Mammoth Mining Company’s 40-stamp mill, including a large flywheel and stone foundations. Other remains include sunken foundations of additional houses, found among pine trees on a hill above the mill site.[3]

Mill City is currently on land owned by the United States Forest Service, who leased the land for recreational cabins. In 2012, tests found that water in Mammoth Creek was contaminated by mercury from the stamp mill.[4] Mercury was used to separate gold from ore at the site, and it was not removed from the mine tailings.[5] The Forest Service conducted a superfund investigation in 2016, and found that the risk to cabin owners from mercury, antimony, arsenic, and lead was high. Subsequent investigations found that the contamination had spread over 5 acres (2.0 ha).[5] The cabin owners had to vacate their premises as of 2019.[6] As of 2019, there were no Forest Service funds to remediate the site, while the previous owners (Union Bank) refused to pay for remediation.[6] The Forest Service would only allow cabin owners back after remediation (or limit their exposure to 5 days/year).[4] In 2022, the Forest Service revoked the permits for the cabins.[7]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mill City, Mono County, California
2. ^ Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, California: Word Dancer Press. p. 1184\. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
3. ^ Nadeau, Remi (1992). Ghost Towns and Mining Camps of California. Crest Publications. pp. 242–243\. ISBN 978-0962710421.242-243&rft.pub=Crest+Publications&rft.date=1992&rft.isbn=978-0962710421&rft.aulast=Nadeau&rft.aufirst=Remi&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Mill+City,+Mono+County,+California" class="Z3988">
4. ^ a b "Frequently Asked Questions for Mammoth Stamp Mill CERCLA Site". USDA Forest Service. April 5, 2017.
5. ^ a b Graham-Wakoski, Noelle (November 16, 2019). "Mammoth Mill Site Cabin Area CERCLA Investigation Status Update" (PDF).
6. ^ a b Hitein, Zachary (November 22, 2019). "Poison Pill For Mill City Tract Owners". The Sheet.
7. ^ "Notices" (PDF). Federal Register. June 8, 2022. p. 34838.

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Municipalities and communities of Mono County, California, United States

County seat: Bridgeport

Town|

* Mammoth Lakes

Mono County map

Census-designated places|

* Aspen Springs
* Benton
* Bridgeport
* Chalfant
* Coleville
* Crowley Lake
* June Lake
* Lee Vining
* McGee Creek
* Mono City
* Paradise
* Sunny Slopes
* Swall Meadows
* Topaz
* Twin Lakes
* Virginia Lakes
* Walker

Unincorporated communities|

* Hammil Valley
* Oasis
* Toms Place
* Wheeler Crest

Indian reservations|

* Benton Paiute Reservation
* Bridgeport Paiute Indian Colony

Former settlements|

* Belfort
* Bennettville
* Bodie
* Dog Town
* Lundy
* Masonic
* Mill City
* Mono Mills
* Monoville
* Montgomery City

* California portal
* United States portal

Authority control databases: National |

* Israel

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