Though Lonesome Ranch is more than just a gold mine, it is one nonetheless. 150 years ago, this vast and isolated ranch was home to hundreds of prospectors who came and went, working and living in this distant gold mining settlement. The property, which is tucked away in the heart of California’s Sequoia National Forest and replete with artefacts from the Gold Rush era, is listed for $2.5 million.
According to listing agent Shamon Shamonki, the property “was almost like a town” in 1867 at around 197 acres. There were nine ancient cottages, six abandoned gold mines, and a dilapidated brothel in the region, all signifying that over 4,000 miners called it home. The mining camp went from being a booming business to a ghost town in the early 1870s.
The present owner, a retired DJ by the name of Simon T., is selling 17 plots of land that he has amassed over the years. Simon started purchasing property from a guy known as “Lonesome Al” in the early 1980s, and after he passed away 20 years ago, he named the compound in his honour.
The 1860s rustic beauty has been preserved in the restoration of three of the cottages. In order to maintain “an authenticity of the era,” Shamonki notes, gas lighting and antique stoves are there in addition to a few contemporary amenities like sinks and toilets. Simon worked on the cabin restoration for ten years.
The brothel’s kitchen cabinet conceals one of the underground entrances, so prospective purchasers may wish to pack a torch and pick. Sluice boxes and mining carts are among the abandoned mining equipment scattered over the area. There’s even a tiny cemetery there.
“It could have been a gunfight over a prostitute, or something else entirely, and they buried a few in the area, which they later turned into a cemetery,” Shamonki speculates. Members of the Piute tribe visited the property’s Native American grinding circles in the summer “to grind food and get away from the heat,” according to Shamonki.
Lonesome Ranch is a getaway from the modern world. With many solar panels, propane tanks, generators, satellite phone and internet, wells, streams, and even a water tower, the property provides an off-grid existence. A repurposed barn has a helipad just outdoors, but you can store your helicopter inside if the weather becomes too bad.
The main cabin on the site was formerly “a very small log cabin of 20′ x 30′” from the original mining camp, but Simon T. informed us via email that it has since been enlarged.
A buyer would have the option to develop 17 single-family homes “at the very least” because the property is composed of 17 distinct land lots, according to Shamonki, which creates a plethora of investment potential. You may create your own neighbourhood or transform it into a vibrant historic setting. It’s being discussed by some to become a glamping destination, according to Shamonki.
And hey, at least there’s a place to rest your bones forever if you (or anybody else) meet an unfortunate end among these hills.
