Loretto Mine

The Loretto Mine consists of a group of five patented claims - 102 acres - plus 546.83 acres of State school land (with a 10% royalty to the State of California), 28 miles east of Big Pine, Inyo Co., California.

The property has been in my family or our companies for 3 generations. In 1907 a shaft was sunk to a depth of 1,800 feet on the vein. Over 2,800 feet of drifts and crosscuts in and along the ore body were run from various levels of this shaft, including from the 300 foot level, the 435 foot, the 550 foot, and the 780 foot levels. Over 30 miles of power lines brought electricity to the site, and more than $250,000 of development work was performed on the Loretto patented claims between 1907 and 1915. In 1959, the father of the present owner obtained a loan under OME Contract No. 6092 issued by the U.S. Office of Mineral Exploration to rehabilitate the shaft to the 300-foot level and to drive 600 linear feet of drifting, and later to the 435-foot level of the shaft. This work was conducted between 1961 and 1963, for a total cost of $25,669.

Geological engineers from the Office of Mineral Exploration inspected the property in 1963 and caused the issuance of a ''United States of America Certification of Possible Production Under an Exploration Contract'' which was issued on November 21, 1963. It stated that, ''The Government hereby certifies that mineral or metal production may be possible as a result of the exploration work.” Between 1951 and 1969, Mr. Noack spent an additional $118,000 developing the property. There were about 600 feet of drifting at the 300 foot level and over 1,000 feet of drifts and crosscuts at the 435 foot level from the shaft.