In the town of Corarsegold, Ca. which is in the foothills North of the Fresno area by about 30 miles and to the East of Madera about the same distance. An area rich in old Logging & Gold minning history. Quite a number of years back there was an Southern Pacific Spur Line that ran up into the foothills from Merced, Ca to the tiny old towns of Raymond & Knowles, litterally only a stones throw away almost - these are two other small towns to the West of me in the foothills. When the Madera Sugar Pine lumber Company, which is just outside the Southern boundry of Yosemite National Park, started its' logging opperation the SP Spur line delivered a Small Shay Loco to Raymond which then had to be disassembled and taken by Ox & wagon a considerable distance of about 20 miles up to the Mill area, I believe, which was in Cedar Valley with an elevation change of at least 1500', no small task but it was done. CV is above Oakhurst, one small town North of where I'm at and then on up to the CV mill and reassembled. This would mean that they very possibly went right by my property here or possibly even through it as the old stage road cuts right through my place also, indeed it passed right through the back yard.
From the Gold minning standpoint, there were a number of operating Hard Rock Mines with a few operating Stamp Mills to crush the Ore and a fair amount of Gold was derived from the area but much farther up Hwy 49 which starts in Oakhurst the next town North there were much larger mines and much bigger Gold producers.
So there you have it.