20 Main St., Nevada City, California
James J. Ott was born in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in 1826. He emigrated to America in 1847-48, traveling west overland. Arriving in California in 1849, Ott eventually settled in Sierra County. There he opened and ran a general merchandise store for about three years. James Ott was well into the study of medicine when he decided to leave Europe, and this early education qualified him as a competent chemist and metallurgist. It was only natural that while dealing with miners, he would try his hand at assaying, converting raw gold dust into ingots. While still in Sierra County, Ott heard of the discovery of gold-quartz veins near Grass Valley, Nevada County, California. Shortly thereafter, in the fall of 1852, he sold his store, relocating to Nevada City, adjacent to Grass Valley. Opening a small laboratory, he did a little assaying, but spent much of his time developing a method to extract the gold that remained in the sulphurets after the free gold had been crushed and washed from the quartz by crude, inefficient mills. As his assistance, he hired Frederick Blesseten, a German metallurgist. Within a year, Otto perfected a Chlorination Process that recovered 88% of the gold and silver from sulphurets which had formerly been regarded as waste. His methods did much to make hard-rock gold mining pay. Almarin B. Paul, the master millman of the day, praised Ott in “The Mining & Scientific Press.”
The Ott Nevada City work shop was in the rear of 30 Main Street. Williamson & Dawley, Bankers, occupied the front part of the building, together with F. Schotte, Assayer, who worked for the bankers. The baking operation was terminated by fire in 1855, and James J. Ott bought the property and undamaged fixtures, as well as Mr. Schotte’s business. After the fire damage was repaired, Ott’s Nevada Assay Office was established. To this day there is controversy concerning Ott’s role in assaying the early discoveries of “black looking” rock from the barren hills of western Utah Territory. This dark rock, of course, proved to be silver ore containing some gold, and the rust to the Washoe country was on. Such was the beginning of the fabulous Comstock Lode and the formation of the Territory of Nevada. Ott assayed ore from the LeCompton or Hearst mine, located just outside of town. This claim never proved to be a big winner, but it provided a start for George Hearst, who joined the stampede to the Comstock. There he commenced building the great Hearst fortune, and in time commenced the fabulous newspaper empire bearing his name. John Mackey, later famous in Virginia City mining circles, depended upon Ott’s advice and judgement, as did W. C. Ralston, founder of the Bank of California in San Francisco, Lloyd Tevis, Charles Brenham, Thomas Bell, Mark Zellerbach, and others equally distinguished in the annals of western history. In his later years, Ott turned much of his assaying business over to employees, and became involved in mine promotion. He was the principal owner of the United, Oriental, Italian, and LeCompton quartz mines, besides owning interests in several placer and hydraulic diggings.
James Ott built a fine home on Aristocracy Hill in Nevada City, furnishing much of it from abroad. He married, and successfully raised three daughters and a son. Ott was a Town Trustee, a high officer in the Odd Fellows, the head of the branch of the Swiss Mutual Benefit Society, and generally active in the civic and social affairs of Nevada City. Following his death in 1907, at the age of eighty-one years, his son Emil, head assayer for the Juneau Alaska Gold Mines, returned home to take over his father’s Assay Office. Emil J. N. Ott and the Nevada City Assay and Refining Office were depicted in an article titled “The Gold Country” that appeared in the Feb 2, 1948 issue of “Life” magazine. In 1953, at Emil’s death, the business was sold, after serving the community continuously for 101 years.
$100.00, 1859 Gold Assay Ingot J. J. Ott Assayer, N. C., CAL
Obverse: Denomination punched in rectangular frame, the frame open at lower left providing space for a large dollar sign, both frame and symbol raised (being formed by casting); (name) / (title) / (location) / all letters raised (and also formed by casting); G 880 punched into a similar rectangular frame (the second 8 double stamped), this one closed, with F(?) towards r. end, both frame and letter raised (and likewise formed by casting).
Reverse: (All punched): No. 1607 / OZS 5 D 10 1/2 / Express Company stamp within oval, bearing winged wheel motif and legend: F(?) A & CO EXPRESS (in three lines) / (date).
2,632.65 Grains.
(The stamped weight of this piece cals for 2,652 Grains; the difference can undoubtedly be explained by wear and signs of minor filing.).
Very Fine. A clean, attractive ingot, but one showing minute manufacturing flaws (characteristic of a cast), a few nicks, and several unimportant peripheral knocks or bruises. Believed to be unique, but the late Sven Skaar, former president of the Nevada County Historical Society, claimed to have two other Ott gold assay ingots. This piece has been alleged to have been obtained from Mr. Skaar, but according to John Ford’s records it was obtained from one John Kenworthy, Phoenix, Arizona, by Paul Franklin acting on Mr. Ford’s behalf. Ex John J. Ford, Jr., 1956; F. C. C. Boyd, 1956-58; Boyd Estate, 1958-59; New Netherlands Coin Co., 1959, to us. We subsequently sold it to Mr. Gibson. Another exceptionally rare and fascinating item of unusual historical importance and interest.
The Express Company stamping on this ingot has never been satisfactorily identified. Several noted philatelic authorities have been consulted in the connection, including New York dealer Robert A. Siegel and western authority Henry H. Clifford, a long time collector of Western Express Covers and specialist in the postal history of California.
Part of “The Gibson Collection”, auctioned November 11, 1974, Stacks Bowers.
[11/1974] https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/auctionlots?AucCoId=3&AuctionId=516500