Mineral King
Mineral King | |
 Mineral King Valley from Timber Gap | |
| Location | Tulare County, California |
|---|---|
| Added to NRHP | October 24, 2003 |
Mineral King is a subalpine valley in southern Sequoia National Park, USA, carved out by the East Fork Kaweah River. It is also the name of the community of historic cabins in and near the valley, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Mineral King Road Cultural Landscape.
The valley lies at an elevation of over Template:Unit foot, and is bounded by notable landmarks such as Sawtooth Peak, Timber Gap, Empire Mountain, Farewell Gap, and Sawtooth Pass. The valley is a popular destination for hikers. Many trails lead out from the valley, including one to Eagle Lake.
Mineral King is located 25 miles off of Highway 198 in Tulare County, California. The winding, mostly-paved road starts in Three Rivers and climbs to the end of the valley, which is Template:Unit foot feet above sea level. The road is usually open to public travel between Memorial Day and early to mid November.
In the late 19th Century, rumors of precious metals in White Chief Canyon and on Empire Mountain created the short-lived boomtown of Beulah. In the end, the rumors proved to be false, but the valley nonetheless achieved its name: Mineral King.
Cabin groups
Mineral King is one of the oldest communities in the High Sierra, with many families owning cabins for six or seven generations.[1]
One mile before reaching the Mineral King cabins is another grouping of 30 or so cabins in an area named Faculty Flat. The Faculty Flat cabins were mostly built in the 1920s are many are listed in the National Historic Register. The name Faculty Flat derives from a group of Los Angeles educators that originally populated the area. There are no commercial services available anywhere in the Mineral King Valley and visitors must bring virtually all their food, camping supplies, firewood, and other essentials with them. None of the cabins have electricity and most utilize propane for lighting and cooking with fireplaces providing heating. There are a few public telephones scattered throughout the Mineral King Valley, notably at the Cold Springs campground, a trail head parking lot, and at the very end of the road.
Another group of about 50 cabins is about 4 miles down the road from Mineral King in a community called Silver City. Silver City has the only commercial services available anywhere in the region and is the site of the Silver City Resort. Whereas it is neither a City nor a Resort there are cabin rentals available, a restaurant, and a small general store with camping and souvenir items for sale. However, no gasoline or fuel of any kind is available anywhere after leaving California Highway 198, 25 miles down the winding Mineral King road (a 90 minute drive). [2]
Just down the road from Silver City is an even smaller community of about a dozen cabins, called Cabin Cove. Nearby is the Atwell Mill public campground whose name relates to a sawmill facility dating back to one hundred or more years ago. The National Park Service charges fees for utilizing campsites both at Cold Springs and Atwell Mill. Bears, marmots and other wild animals abound so campers need to take precautions to protect their food and vehicles. Suggested precautions are posted by the Park Service at the public campgrounds. Camping is not permitted in any location along the road except in the public campgrounds.
Walt Disney ski resort
Disney's Mineral King Ski Resort was a project developed by Walt Disney and Company in the late 1950s and 1960s. Disney had become interested in skiing around this time, and decided to build a ski resort in Mineral King Valley. At the time, many skiers believed this to be the largest potential resort in all of California. Disney's bid won out over those of other developers, with plans made to build 14 ski lifts, serving an expected 2 million annual visitors, by 1973.
The ski resort was never built though, due to environmental concerns raised by a coalition of preservationists, led by the Sierra Club, and including the National Park Service, and the Forest Service. After years of legal battles between pro-development and preservationist groups, the Mineral King Valley was annexed into Sequoia National Park in 1978 by an act of Congress. That legislation effectively stopped the plan to ever develop the area into a ski resort.
Preservation groups
There are two groups devoted to preserving Mineral King:
- The Mineral King District Association, whose main focus is on attaining recognition of Mineral King as a living historic community.[1]
- The Mineral King Preservation Society, which is nonprofit, public benefit corporation dedicated to preserving the natural and historic assets of the Mineral King area. Since its inception in 1986, the society has engaged in research, restoration, and preservation planning. Among its other activities is a new partnership with Sequoia National Park to insure preservation of all historic resources in the National Register listed area and assist in volunteer projects and educational activities.[3]
Notes
References
- Jackson, Louise A. Beulah: a biography of the Mineral King Valley of California. Tucson, Arizona: Westernlore Press. ISBN 0-87026-065-0. OCLC 17830966.
- "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved 2007-08-16.
- "Mineral King (populated place)". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2007-08-16.