Click on Photos for a larger view

Alvinza Hayward

Alvinza Hayward was born in 1822 in Vermont and moved to New York early in his life. He studied law but also found interest in lumber and lead mining. Moving on to Michigan, he gained invaluable experience in vein mining. The news of the gold strike in California brought him to the gold fields in 1850 where he subsequently bought an interest in the Eureka mine in Amador County. With shrewd investments and knowledge of mining where others had failed, his fortune started to amass. His successes included the Utica/Selkirk mine near Angels Camp, in which Hayward acquired a one-third interest in the 1880s. In 1901, the mine – long thought to be impossible to work – was said to have yielded the single richest gold deposit in California.

Alvinza Hayward founded the Old Eureka Mine in the early 1850’s, and was also the owner of the Badger and Wolverine Mines. Hayward also obtained interests in the Comstock Lode after 1864. He entered other fields with success in timber, coal, railroads, real estate and banking. He was a director of the Bank of California and in 1870 was one of the original investors in the San Francisco City Gas Company, the forerunner of Pacific Gas and Electric Company. He was often referred to as California’s first millionaire or the richest man in California. Hayward died in 1904. The city of Hayward is named for him.

His experience in Michigan taught him techniques to successfully extract gold from the rock, and he and partners were said to have taken out $5,000,000 from the Eureka. He incorporated the mine, and sold shares of its stock. The Eureka was the first mine in California to be so incorporated, and Hayward amassed a considerable fortune. Success with the Eureka led to other successful mining ventures, including the Springfield Mine in El Dorado County, the Plymouth in Amador County, and most successfully, the Utica in Calavaras County.

When visiting the the mines in Amador County, Mr. Hayward was always dressed as a miner with gray shirt, overalls and miners' boots ; in San Francisco he was always attired like a gentleman of leisure and finely groomed, and altogether an attractive-looking man of affairs. He was indeed a real captain of industry.

These were some of the more prominent success stories from the Gold Rush days. The Gold Rush was the vehicle that gave all a chance to achieve wealth and success. Not many made the fortunes of these men, but varying success still influenced California’s character in countless ways. Even the failures that came west seeking gold and riches left their mark on the state’s colorful history.

Return to our Sutter Creek Tour or click on our Miner to end the tour

Information, photographs courtesy of the Amador County Archives, The Historical Marker Database, and the Chronicling America Database