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Gold discovery
On that day, Reed's son Conrad found a large yellow rock in Little Meadow Creek on the Reed farm in Cabarrus County. This rock reportedly weighed 17 pounds and for three years was used as a doorstop at the Reed house -
Period: to
1799 gold mining to current
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Gold is sold for $3.50
In 1802 a Fayetteville jeweler identified the gold nugget. He purchased it for the asked price of $3.50—one-tenth of one percent of its true value -
discovery becomes a business
John Reed began the Reed mining operation by forming a partnership with three local men. The partners supplied equipment and workers to dig for gold in the creek bed, while Reed provided the land. The returns were to be divided equally. The men mined mainly in the off-season from farming, giving first priority to raising their crops. Before the end of the first year, a slave named Peter had unearthed a 28-pound nugget. Using only pans and rockers to wash the creek gravel, the -
Search for underground gold
"Placer," or creek, gold mining led to underground mining when it was learned in 1825 that the metal also existed in veins of white quartz rock. The search for underground or "lode" gold required much more money, labor, and machinery. Underground work at Reed was not begun until 1831. Four years later a family squabble resulted in a court injunction that closed the mine for a decade. -
The mine after John Reed's death
John Reed was a wealthy man when he died in 1845. Soon the Reed mine was sold at public auction. The mine changed hands many times through the years until 1912, when the last underground work took place there. Placer miners found the last large nugget at Reed in 1896. The yield of the mine in large nuggets alone ultimately totaled more than one hundred pounds. -
Reed Mine today
Portions of the underground tunnels at the Reed mine have been restored for guided tours. A visitor center contains exhibits of gold and historical mining equipment. An orientation film highlights the first gold discovery, and tours of a restored ore-crushing stamp mill are offered. A picnic area is available, and trails wind through the historic mining area.
The Reed Expansion Committee, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of North Carolina's gold mining.