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Tumco is located approximately 2 miles east of highway S34 at a point 13.5 miles from the junction of S34 and Interstate 8 in extreme southern California, west of Yuma, AZ.
This area was mined as early as 1780-'81 by the Spanish. They were placer mining for gold in Jackson gulch and load mining in Madre Valley. This is believed to be the earliest known gold mining in the state. The district was named the Cargo Muchacho after two Mexican boys came into camp with their shirts covered with gold dust. Extensive mining of the district didn't begin until the coming of the Southern Pacific railroad to Yuma in 1877.
Tumco got its name from the mining company called The United Mines Company. The original mine was discovered by Peter Walters in 1884 and was named the Gold Rock mine. Mr. Walters sold out his interest in the mine for $75,000 and left the scene. The mine was renamed the Golden Cross and a small mining town developed to support the mining community. This town was named Hedges for the vice president of the mining company. Then in 1910, a new company took over the mine and renamed the town of Hedges to Tumco which is an acronym for the mining company's name. At one point, the town of Tumco supported a population of several thousand people. The town consisted of several dozen buildings including a dance hall and two cemeteries but by the early 1940's the town was down to about 30 people.
The mines were very productive in the late 1800's and the early 1900's and by 1914, the Golden Cross shaft was down to an estimated 1,100 feet and there were over 8 miles of underground workings. The total production from the mines as of 1942 was approximately $2,863,000 worth of gold and produced 45% of the county's (Imperial county) gold production.
The town is a ghost now with little left to see. The last time I was there, the town site consisted of a couple of rock walls and the remnants of the mining operations. This was several years ago. As with all of the old mining areas, the mines may be back in production. We are planning a trip in the near future and will update this page at that time.
Reference: Desert Fever by Larry M. Vredenburgh, Russell D. Hartill, and Gary L. Shumway, and the Gold Districts of California, bulletin 193, California Division of Mines and Geology, 1970.
