Spring Valley
(Vandewater/Fitting)
The Eagle mine, which would become the principal mine at Spring Valley, was first located in 1868. In 1874, the Oakland Gold & Silver Mining Co. purchased the mine and erected a fifteen-stamp mill. The mill never operated successfully under the Oakland Co., and in 1876 the property was taken over by Vandewater Smith, who incorporated the Vandewater Gold & Silver Mining Company three years later. In mid-1880, a post office bearing the Vandewater name (occasionally spelled "Vanderwater") was opened, inconsistently lasting for three years, during which time the Eagle mine was expanded and the mill operated, treating up to 30 tons of ore daily. In 1885, however, the Vandewater property was sold off due to delinquent taxes. In 1890, the Humboldt Mill & Mining Company restarted the mill, processing 350 tons before falling silent again for nearly a decade. Meanwhile, placer mining in Spring Valley continued - primarily by Chinese.
By the early 1900s, the Eagle (now known as the Bonanza King) was under the ownership of the Bonanza King Mining Company, managed by J.P Fitting. The mill was again placed in operation, and a settlement of roughly a dozen cabins developed taking Fitting's name when it gained a post office in 1905. The new community was connected to Lovelock by a semi-weekly stage, with a fare of $3. Around the same time, the Federal Mines Company took up all of the placer ground in Spring Valley and undertook hydraulic operations (fed by a four-mile pipeline). Plans were made for the installation of a wooden dredge by the Federal Co., which finally materialized in 1910. Unfortunately, problems were had keeping the dredge afloat, as water seeped into old workings and repeatedly drained the dredge pond. The dredge operated until 1914, and in the years since only minor leasing work has been done.
