An important and substantial collection of photographs documenting the mining towns of Nevada County. The main focus is on Nevada City, Grass Valley, North Bloomfield, but towns such as Truckee, Graniteville, Rough and Ready, Floriston and others are represented as well. The collection was assembled by pioneering dealer, collector and scholar Ron Lerch Individual photographs of this area are scarce to begin with, and an extensive collection such as this represents decades of work and would be likely impossible to replicate today.

Photographs related to the important and historic mining town of Nevada City include: An 1890s albumen copy of a daguerreotype of the city in its infancy; An early and important photograph, dated 1877, showing prominent citizens, business owners, and city officials; A group of boudoir cards showing the enjoyable aftermath of a large snowfall on main street; Several large-format photos pertaining to the successful lumber operations of Martin Luther Marsh and his brother Daniel as well as a photo of M.L. Marsh's stately Italianate home located at 254 Boulder Street; views of prominent businesses including the Banner Brothers Clothing Store; Union Hotel Bar; Freeman’s bakery; Herald Printing Office; and more.

Nevada City mines represented in the include the Mayflower, Phoenix, Champion, Providence, and Home. One extremely unusual Nevada City photo shows a group of men digging up the road along main street with the Union Hotel visible in the background. The odd part is that three of them are wearing large, paper-mache masks. The reason for this is lost to history.

Photographs related to Grass Valley include: An 1870s unusual image captioned “Hydraulic Parlor passing through arch on Main Street”; A group portrait showing a reunion of pioneers (all identified), dated 1901; A cabinet card of a female musician, shown with guitar and lute; A view of Watt Park; An interior shot of the Nevada Club; A view of the Bear Valley House, where the Donner Party was taken after their rescue; Two interior shots of Nevada County Electric Power's Grass Valley office; and more.

Notable photographs from North Bloomfield include: Several views of the famed Malakoff mine; A beautiful group portrait of the North Bloomfield Brass Band; A shot of the Edwards Crossing Toll House; and more.

Local photographers represented in the collection include the pioneering female photographer Julia Ann Randolph, as well as Charles Ferrand; John Simeon Swart; O.C. Percival; W.A. Clinch; Moore; V.L. Dorsey; and S.S. Noble. The collection also includes cabinet cards, cdvs, and other portraits of local citizens.

SCANS OF THE COLLECTION AND AN INVENTORY LIST AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST