Clifton Mining District (Utah). Recorder Proof of labor record books, 1874-1939.

The original by-laws of the Clifton Mining District required that miners do one day's work on a claim within sixty days of discovery and two more day's work within the first year in order to hold the claim free from forfeiture. When Congress passed a general mining law in 1872, it imposed a federal requirement of $100 worth of work annually (Statutes at Large, Treaties, and Proclamations, of the United States of America, 1872, vol. 17, chap. 152). When work had been completed in the Clifton District, the district recorder visited the claim to confirm that work had been done satisfactorily and to certify the same in his record. Book P contains statements signed by Clifton District recorders certifying that they had inspected various claims.

In 1897 the Utah State Legislature defined the manner in which work done on mining claims should be recorded (Laws of Utah, 1897, chapter 36). Utah law required the filing of affidavits sworn by claim owners. These affidavits were to describe indetail the work completed, including the amount of earth moved, who actually did the work, and the actual cost. Most proof of labor documents filed in Clifton Mining District after statehood were affidavits complying with these guidelines.