North Star Mine and North Star House: California Gold Mining History Preserved
The story of North Star House in Grass Valley, California begins with the North Star Mine, one of the most sig…
History
A Gold Mine of History
North Star House sits at the intersection of California gold-mining history and Arts & Crafts architecture.
1836
James Hague is born in Boston, MA.
Hague earns an engineering degree from Harvard before continuing his studies in mining and geology in Germany, later launching a career as a consulting mining engineer that takes him across the American West.
1876
Arthur De Wint Foote marries Mary Hallock Foote.
Foote, an engineer trained at Yale's Sheffield Scientific School, marries author and illustrator Mary Hallock Foote. She joins him on the frontier, beginning a partnership that would shape both of their careers.
1887
James Hague purchases the North Star Mine.
Backed by strong financial supporters, Hague acquires the North Star Mine along with several nearby claims, believing that consolidation was the key to long-term success.
1895
A new power plant and pumping system are completed.
Hague turns to his brother-in-law Arthur De Wint Foote, whose design includes the world's largest Pelton wheel — a groundbreaking hydroelectric solution for the mine.
1904
Julia Morgan is commissioned to design North Star House.
Shortly after becoming the first licensed female architect in California, Morgan is commissioned by James Hague to design an architecturally distinguished home for the estate.
1905
North Star House is completed.
The residence is finished, serving as a grand home for the Foote family and a statement of Hague's success in the mining industry.
2006
Restoration of North Star House begins.
After more than 20 years vacant and vandalized following the mine's closure, the North Star Historic Conservancy begins the ongoing work of restoring the estate.
An Era of Deterioration
After the mines shut down, North Star House stood vacant for over 20 years — vandalized and on the verge of collapse — before restoration began in 2006.
Building North Star House
How architect Julia Morgan blended Arts & Crafts simplicity with Beaux-Arts classical principles to design the estate in 1904.
From the Journal