The Ah Hee Diggings Interpretive Site vividly displays the mining efforts of Chinese American miners in the late 1880s. Visitors to the site walk among the residual hand-stacked rock tailings, evidence of the backbreaking work of these early pioneers. Although the miners were prohibited from filing their own claims, holders could sell or lease worked-out claims to Chinese American owned companies. Men would take a second pass through the claims, muscling rock piles up and down 16 acres of the valley to expose the streambed and then using gold pans, rockers or sluice boxes to extract gold missed by the earlier operations. The walls at this site were built by Chinese American miners working gold-mining claims for the Ah Hee Placer Mining Company along a five-mile stretch of Granite Creek from 1867-1891.

Highlights: 

The walls at this site are extensive and massive, some measuring 15 feet wide and 12 feet high. As the men made their way upstream, they set aside the larger boulders and formed “walls” that ran parallel to the streams. (This is distinct from rocks left behind by dredges since the boom left lines that run perpendicular to streambeds instead.)With coordination from the USDA Forest Service, University of Idaho archeologist Priscilla Wegars and a team of Passport in Time volunteers excavated the site in 1985 and from 1990-1994. Remains at the Ah Hee Diggings also include a terrace where food was prepared and served, at least one habitation area, and an interconnecting ditch system, the most prominent of which drew water from Last Chance Creek. Over 4,000 artifacts, including mining implements, household bowls, wok parts and foodstuff tins were also unearthed and catalogued.The site is now commemorated as the Ah Hee Diggings Interpretive Site and includes interpretive displays.

Location, Hours and Contact Info:

The Ah Hee Diggings Interpretive Site is located on the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest, outside Granite, Oregon, along the Elkhorn Scenic Byway.The site is closed in the early winter through late spring when the Elkhorn Scenic Byway is not plowed for vehicle traffic from Granite to Anthony Lakes. The site typically opens in June. The parking area and interpretive display are accessible at this site. No fee is needed for this site.Contact info for the USDA Forest Service Wallowa-Whitman National Forest office is: 1550 Dewey Avenue PO Box 907 Baker City, OR 97814 541.523.6391The artifacts and documentation gathered from the site are housed at the Baker Ranger District Office in Baker City: Whitman Ranger District Baker Office 3285 11th Street PO Box 947 Baker City, OR 97814 541.523.4476

Getting There:

The Ah Hee Diggings Interpretive Site is adjacent to the Sumpter/Granite Highway, on the Elkhorn Drive Scenic Byway. From Baker City, travel south on Highway 7 for 26 miles to the Sumpter Valley Highway (State 220). Turn right on the Sumpter Valley Highway and go through Sumpter towards Granite on Forest 73 (Elkhorn Scenic Byway) for about 20 miles. At Granite, turn right on Forest Road 73 and travel 1.5 miles to the site. A pullout along Road 73 has been constructed with information about the site directly below.The site is approximately 45.5 miles from Baker City. The Baker City Municipal Airport is located in Baker City, Oregon. From Portland, Oregon, to Baker City, travel east on I-84 for over 300 miles, approximately 5.5 hours. From Boise, Idaho, to Baker City, travel west on I-84 for 128 miles, approximately 2.5 hours.The drive from John Day to Baker City, Oregon, is approximately 80 miles, or 1 hour 40 minutes, on OR-7 S and US 26 W.Find Out More: USDA USDA, Directions