There Is A Lot Of Gold In “The Hills” Of Washington State!

When most people think of gold mining it almost always begins with "The Gold Rush" of the mid 1800s.  While California is the state most associated with the mining and discovery of gold, Washington State was no slouch in its own right during the mining craze.

Seattle benefited economically from the Klondike gold rush (even though there was zero gold there) as they were nicely between mining operations in California and British Columbia.  Washington State's proverbial gold rush was limited to one year and one place, but what it spurred is still being felt today.

Washington's Initial Gold Rush Was More Like A Gold Spot

In 1873 gold was found in Swauk Creek in Central Washington.  The creek runs through multiple counties, but the gold was discovered by farmers that lived in Kittitas County.  A number of prospectors were inspired to come to the area but no massive discovery was in their future.  That didn't stop those with the ambition to find the precious metal, and that ambition would make the Evergreen State the "Evergold"State.

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Liberty, WA (now a 'living' ghost town) became the first gold mining town in the state.  As more people flocked to the state to find their fortune, more areas bearing nuggets were discovered.  It grew to such a degree that Washington State has become one of the biggest gold producing areas in the U.S.

Washington State Ranks #2 For Most Places To Find Gold

Analysis by SD Bullion reveals the Evergreen State boasts 2,271 places where gold can be found.  That translates to 34.17 sites per 1,000 square miles.  As the map above shows, the majority of locations are in the Cascade Mountains with plenty of gold still being discovered in Kittitas, Chelan, and Snoqualmie Counties.  Rivers in the state are where most gold is found with the Snoqualmie River one of the most gold rich rivers.

Before You Grab Your Sifting Pan And Waders...

You can't just go gold mining on a weekday.  You need to apply to obtain a specific permit and carry a copy of the Gold and Fish Pamphlet at all times while prospecting.  You also need to be aware of areas that are private property so you don't run afoul of those laws.

As a whole, the Unites States is the 4th largest gold producer in the world with Washington the 12th largest producer among States.  The only state in the Pacific and Mountain Time Zones that we outpace for production is Wyoming, but we only trail California for the amount of gold producing locations.

In case you were wondering, of the 50 states in the nation, 32 of them have at least one place where gold can be found within it's borders.