The NC Gold Trail

A  Journey Into America’s First Gold Rush
Search For Treasure Begins HERE

The North Carolina Gold Trail is a heritage destination trail that spans across the state. There are over 30 counties identified as having a gold history, bearing significance along this trail currently comprised of six counties, in a growing network of historical locations and gold-mining sites.
The goal of the NC Gold Trail is to shine a light on our state’s gold mining heritage, pool our resources to promote as one large concept and as a regional experience.  Bechtler Heritage Center in Rutherfordton is the headquarters of the NC Gold Trail. 

Current members of the Gold Trail are Rutherford County, McDowell County, Rowan County, Cabarrus County, Burke County and Montgomery County including historic locations and attractions in these counties. “This is a tight network of determined and dedicated individuals who are proud of the state’s history. The goal of bringing over 30 counties together to educate and promote this historical trail as a regional experience is exciting,” says Deborah Millikan, Director of the Bechtler Heritage Center and NC Gold Trail Headquarters.

 

Collaborative efforts have ignited a new enthusiasm statewide with the announcement of an album being produced based on the natural beauty of the state of North Carolina and its gold mining legacy. If that’s not enough to get excited about then think about the creativity involved when you have singer/songwriters from all over the state and along the trail coming together to create this musical sound of gold. The NC Gold Album Music Project was launched to collectively bring about an awareness of the state’s history and raise funds to help build the NC Gold Trail. 
The North Carolina Gold Festival in Old Fort is another collaborative effort to bring gold counties and attractions together to educate the public about America’s first gold rush. The state-of the-art, interactive Heritage Map is being developed and will include all the counties that are on board with the gold trail. 
 

The North Carolina Gold Festival in Old Fort is another collaborative effort to bring gold counties and attractions together to educate the public about America’s first gold rush. The state-of the-art, interactive Heritage Map is being developed and will include all the counties that are on board with the gold trail. 
Gold Mining:   Piedmont   Mountain Region   Slate Belt
Gold occurs in North Carolina in both lode (veins, or mineralized zones) and placer (stream sediment or residual) deposits. Although deposits were mined in both the Piedmont and Mountain Regions, most of the early production was in the central Piedmont, particularly in the Carolina Slate Belt and in Mecklenburg County. 

Mecklenburg County contained more mines and prospects than any other county in the state. The most important mines in Mecklenburg County were the Capps, Rudisil and St. Catherine Mines.

The Slate Belt includes the CID Mining districts and such mines as the Reed Gold Mine in Cabarrus County, the Gold Hill Mine in Rowan County, and the Silver Hill Mine in Davidson County. Other counties in the Slate Belt where gold was mined include Guilford County, Montgomery County, Moore County, Orange County, Randolph County, Stanly County and Union County.
("Cid Mine" is a past producer stratabound exhalative deposit site discovered in 1882 in the Appalachian Highlands of North Carolina, The United States.) 
Information inserted by MRDS MIGRATION on 3/12/2002 and last updated by USGS on 4/28/2003.

 In the Western Piedmont, mines were located in Caldwell County, Catawba County, Davie County, Gaston County, Lincoln County, Mecklenburg County, McDowell County, Polk County, Rutherford County, Wilkes County, and Yadkin County.

 

In the Mountain Region, mines and prospects were located in Ashe County, Buncombe County, Cherokee County, Henderson County, Jackson County, Transylvania County and Watauga County. Copper mines in Ashe and Swain Counties produced a by-product gold.

NC Gold Tales will be going more in-depth about the history of these counties in upcoming issues of the magazine. If your county is one listed here, contact them and let them know you are interested in their gold history.

To learn more:
                           www.visitncgold.com 
                           www.ncgoldtales.com 
Plan a tour of the NC Gold Trail Headquarters & Bechtler Heritage Center,

130 W 6th Street, Rutherfordton, NC 28139
Contact:            828- 351-9575
                           info@visitncgold.com