Long Tom
As mining operations became more complex, the long tom came into widespread use. The long tom was a shallow trough 15 feet long and 15 inches high and often increasing in width near the low end and through which a constant stream of water ran. A miner would toss in ore and it would wash down through a sieve tacked across the top, called a riddle, where the rocks and stones could be easily picked out but the fine particles would pass through and fall into a shallow box with cleats, much like the rocker, where the gold dust was collected.
The use of a long tom to refine gold from the ore bearing soil required a constant stream of water. Men would dig ditches to divert a stream. They built dams and flumes, sometimes transporting water great distances to where it was needed. One common method of moving water was a wheel, much like the paddlewheel of a riverboat that was connected to a series of buckets on a belt or to a pump. In river mining operations where the stream was diverted so the bed could be mined waterwheels were common and often placed as close to one another as possible.
Operating the Long Tom required several miners. At least two men shoveled dirt, rocks, and gravel into the top of the Long Tom. The third member in the crew threw out the bigger rocks as the material moved along the box. Twice daily, the gold and sand caught on the riffles would be removed and panned.
The disadvantage of The Long Tom was that it needed a continuous source of fast-moving water. That required that the Long Tom be located on a riverbank or that ditches must be constructed to deliver water to the mining site. The first mining ditches in Gold Country were most likely built to supply Long Toms.
The use of a long tom to refine gold from the ore bearing soil required a constant stream of water. Men would dig ditches to divert a stream. They built dams and flumes, sometimes transporting water great distances to where it was needed. One common method of moving water was a wheel, much like the paddlewheel of a riverboat that was connected to a series of buckets on a belt or to a pump. In river mining operations where the stream was diverted so the bed could be mined waterwheels were common and often placed as close to one another as possible.
Operating the Long Tom required several miners. At least two men shoveled dirt, rocks, and gravel into the top of the Long Tom. The third member in the crew threw out the bigger rocks as the material moved along the box. Twice daily, the gold and sand caught on the riffles would be removed and panned.
The disadvantage of The Long Tom was that it needed a continuous source of fast-moving water. That required that the Long Tom be located on a riverbank or that ditches must be constructed to deliver water to the mining site. The first mining ditches in Gold Country were most likely built to supply Long Toms.
