Newton Mining District (Utah). Recorder Mining records, 1892-1897.

The decade of the 1890s was a boom time for mining in the state of Utah. The state's southern-most major mineral belt extends through the Wah-Wah and Tushar Mountains of Piute and Beaver Counties. The Newton Mining District, organized 26 November 1892, includes an area in eastern Beaver County along the Piute/Beaver County border. Utah mining districts were organized in accordance with federal mining law which allows individuals to claim mineral wealth found in the public domain (Statutes at Large, Treaties, and Proclamations, of the United States of America, vol. 17, 1872, chap. 152). Local mining districts managed mining operations and district recorders kept records of claims. Newton Mining District record books include a variety of records. Notices of location or claims are most prominent. These notices identify each claim by a unique name and provide descriptions that include location and dimensions. Location notices provide the names of claims holders and dates of discovery andrecording. The books also include minutes of miners' meetings, a copy of by-laws, notices of location for mill sites, documents offering proof of annual assessment labor, and notices of intent to hold claims for those years (1893-1894) when Congress temporarily suspended the work requirement. Each document in Newton District books is signed by a district recorder or deputy.