BELLVILLE — The Ohio Buckeye Gold Prospectors are hosting Gold Rush Days Sept. 3 and 4.
The annual Labor Day weekend commemoration of the 1853 Ohio Gold Rush is at the organization’s Richland County claim between Butler and Bellville.
Each year near the site where Dr. James Lee made his not-so famous strike, hundreds of visitors are treated to two days of hands-on gold prospecting-related activities and competitions. The 2022 gathering promises to become the biggest gold prospecting event in Ohio’s history.
The Gold Prospectors Association of America and its local chapters are committed to keeping the American heritage of gold prospecting alive and well throughout the nation, and the Ohio contingent puts all their effort into promoting the hobby as a family-friendly outdoor activity.
“We have people from small children to grandparents out here playing in the river,” says chapter activities director Patrick O’Masters. “This is truly an activity that anyone can enjoy.”
Panning for the small bits of gold which past glaciation and annual flooding has deposited into the area has become the pastime of choice for many Mid-westerners.
Most prospectors will tell you that it only took finding that first tiny speck of gold to ignite a fever that lasts a lifetime and has sparked many adventures.
While the gold in Ohio is fine and sparse, the skills needed to recover it are the same as those used by small-scale miners in California, the Yukon, or Australia in the 1800’s.
From lessons on gold panning to common dig operations where participants new to the hobby work alongside seasoned diggers using large pieces of prospecting equipment getting valuable advice and sharing in the rewards of their efforts.
It’s been said that the real gold is the time spent with family and friends, bits of yellow metal are just a bonus. With free parking, admission, vendors, food wagons, and many free activities, Gold Rush Days both an affordable and fun way for the entire family to enjoy the outdoors.
The event will be held at the GPAA Swank claim at 1099 Cutnaw Rd Bellville, Ohio, Sept. 3 and 4. For more information on the event, visit the website: www.buckeyegold.com or GPAA-Ohio Buckeye Chapter on Facebook.
Note: The Buckeye Chapter of the GPAA is a Non Profit 501(c)(7) organization.
