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The Sequoia National Forest Centennial
Celebrating a Century of Service, 1905 - 2005

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HISTORICAL ACTIVITIES

 

Historic Logging Operations
Before the area became part of the Sequoia in 1935, the largest grove in the world, Converse Basin, was the site of the most extensive giant sequoia logging operation.

Amazingly, the operation never produced a profit for the operators. During the late 1930s, after the purchase of the cutover lands from timber interests, the Forest Service, with the help of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), began a gradual and extensive cleanup of the obsolete lumber camps at Hume, Millwood, and Converse Basin and the restoration of the forest ecosystem.  Today these cutover lands host some of the best examples of giant sequoia regeneration, with vigorous stands of young trees thriving near the remaining monarchs.

Flumes
Elevation and steep terrain prompted timber companies to look for ways other than roads and wagons to transport the product to market.  Flumes were their answer.  These structures were used to transport lumber harvested and milled on the mountain ridges down to the Central Valley.  The Sanger flume was constructed in 1889 and ran from the mill at Millwood, along Mill Flat Creek (54 miles), to Sanger.  This flume also transported people down the mountain on occasion.  In 1910, the Hume Bennett Mill constructed the longest flume that began at Hume Lake and traveled 59 miles down Tenmile Creek to the Kings River, connecting to the old flume to Sanger.  The Tenmile Creek segment was too steep for all but a few flume riders.  (See They Felled the Redwoods and The Whistles Blow No More, by Hank Johnston.)  Traces and remnants of the flume are still present in some areas.

Flumes and penstocks diverting water to power plants are prominent in some areas of the forest.  Along the Tule River, the flume is visible from Highway 190, from Springville to Pierpoint Springs, and even crosses over the highway.  Other highly noticeable flumes and penstocks in use today are located along the Upper and Lower Kern River.

Lumber Mills
Millwood was located near Sequoia Lake, which was created as a storage pond and water source for the flume.  This mill was used during the logging of Converse Basin.  The Hume Bennett Mill replaced Millwood and was located in Long Meadow at the confluence of Tenmile and Long Meadow Creeks.  Construction began in 1908 when Converse Basin was nearly cut over.

Hume Dam was the first concrete reinforced multiple arch dam built in the United States.  Nominated as a National Historic Landmark, if designated, the dam would become one of the few National Historic Landmarks in the National Forest System.  The resulting lake was used for log storage and as a water source for the flume.  Today the lake is a popular recreation destination.

Hoists and Logging Railroads
Hoists were used, along with log chutes, to transport logs to mills, rough sawn lumber to the drying yards, and to the flumes.  Converse Hoist was located on Hoist Ridge.  Remnants of the hoists, such as the Rob Roy hoist, and evidence of the chutes can be seen today in some areas.

Early Settlers
Large-scale logging, gold mining, ranching, and farming brought settlers to communities in and near the Sequoia's boundaries. Evidence of many cabins on the forest still exists.  The Kern Valley Museum in Kernville has displays and exhibits on the history of ranching, mining, the film industry, and hydroelectric development in the Kern River Valley.

Native American Heritage Resources
Prehistory: The Sequoia has a long and rich history of Native American occupation, travel, and trade, dating back at least 10,000 years.  That prehistoric use has left behind thousands of archaeological sites throughout the forest at all elevations and in all environmental ecotones.

Winter villages, large sprawling summer trade camps along high elevation travel routes, stone-tool manufacturing locations, small overnight hunting camps, food processing sites, and plant collecting areas have all been documented in great abundance on the forest.  These sites were occupied by a variety of tribes who have lived in the southern Sierra Nevada, including very recent occupations within the lifetimes of many local residents.

The Sequoia occupies transition zones between the desert cultures to the east and Central Valley cultures to the west.  Yokuts, Kawaiisu, Tubatulabal, and Mono Indians all utilized portions of the forest.  The Tule River Indian Reservation, the second largest in California, is partially surrounded by the forest.

Historic Trails

The Sierra Nevada was a steep and formidable obstacle, especially for settlers and miners attempting to reach new territories open for settlement or exploration.  Toll trails offered these early travelers passage over the mountains.  Examples of these trails are the Dennison Trail, Hockett Trail, and Kanawyer Trail.

Mining

Mining in the Sequoia is primarily associated with the metamorphic formations, and mainly in pursuit of gold, uranium, and tungsten.

Mining activity was concentrated on the southern portion of the forest in the Kern River District, along the Upper and Lower Kern Canyon and in the Piute and Greenhorn mountains.  Early settlement patterns of the Kern River Valley were largely influenced by this activity.

Today gold mining is confined mostly to weekend prospecting. Mining is not allowed in the Giant Sequoia National Monument.

During the gold rush, gold mining in this area was focused in the Kern River Valley.  The first significant discovery of placer gold was at Greenhorn Gulch in 1855.  When placer gold played out, miners found gold bearing quartz and extracted the gold, using stamp mills to crush rocks and chemical processes to extract the gold.  The Kern Valley Museum has displays and exhibits on the history of gold mining in that area.

Want to Know More? Check out our Timeline Panels (pdf format)
Beginning 1850 - 1904	Early Forest Service 1905 - 1909	Custodial 1910 - 1932	Depression 1933 - 1940	War Years 1941 - 1945
Post War 1946 - 1959	Multiple Use 1960 - 1969	Public Participation 1970 - 1992	Ecosystem 1993 - 2005	Future

 

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