Historical records show gold was being mined in Sapphire Valley as early as 1844. The mine, called Georgetown, was located at the base of Bald Rock Mountain on what today is Camp Merrie Woode.
Gold was mined up until approximately 1900. In 1888, three men discovered about 50 pounds of sapphire gems in the valley...hence the name!!
After this, stories tell that the mine was also used for gem mining and companies like Tiffany’s out of New York set up operations and exported precious stones out of the area.
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