sumpter valley gold dredge in sumpter oregon

Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge

The Sumpter
Gold Dredge

is open in Sumpter Oregon
May 1st-October 31st.

Dredge Trails
are open year round!

{541} 894-2472

Sumpter Valley
Gold Dredge hours:

8:30 a.m. To 5:00 p.m

Oregon State Park Hours:
7:00 a.m.To 7:00 p.m.

Remember......Park Gates
Will Close Promptly
at 7 pm!

The Gift Store
and Museum is open 9-5
every day during the season!


Inside the giftstore, you can enjoy an informative video
about the history and operation
of the dredge. Then.......
take a walk around
the dredge on well groomed
trails that wind throughout the state park-winter or summer.

Come in and see whats new!
For questions and group tour
information, please call


{541} 894-2472



come in and meet nancy at the friends of the dredge gift store and dredge museum!
Be sure to stop in at the
Friends of The Dredge
Gift Store and Museum!
Nancy would love to meet you!

Be sure to sign our guestbook
in the gift store when you visit!



Got the urge to do some real gold panning? Visitors will find one of our friendly park rangers and park hosts giving gold panning lessons at the dredge on the weekends and during the Sumpter Flea Markets!

park rangers will show visitors how to pan for gold at the sumpter gold dredge in sumpter oregon!







Park Rangers

Park Projects

Oregon State Parks

State Park Photos

Dredge Superintendent's House

Sumpter Gold Dredge Day
Workers Reunion






Have you got a Dredge Story
to share with us?
We would like to hear it!
We love to hear from folks
who have favorite stories
about the Historic
Sumpter Gold Dredge!




For more information about Historic Sumpter, Oregon,
be sure to visit the
Sumpter Municipal Museum!
click the photo to visit the sumpter museum in sumpter oregon


Friends of The Dredge
Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge

Sumpter Oregon

Hello Friends! We appreciate your visit today!
It was 1993 when Oregon Parks and Recreation recognized
the need to preserve one of Sumpter's most visible and important
historic monuments Sumpter, and so....in 1994, took responsibility
for the Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge. Without even moving, Sumpter's
largest Historic Icon had a new home on nearly 80 acres in the
newly formed Oregon State Heritage Area. This commitment from
the State inspired local Sumpter Residents to form a private group...
Friends of The Dredge, Inc. and so a very important partnership
between state and private citizens in Sumpter was born! This
partnership has been quite successful in restoring the Historic
Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge to the current state visitors now enjoy.
Future plans for preservation and continued restoration of the
Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge continue to move forward......

the Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge in 2009

Our latest project to repair and strengthen the roof of the dredge,
replacement of the original tailings under the stacker arm and repair
of the wrench room is finally complete! Even the Wrench Room Floor and Stairwell leading Upstairs is new thanks to the help of the
Oregon National Guard...........See more photos......
What else is new......?

The Gold Dredge Gift Store and Museum has been remodeled
to add a comfortable theatre where visitors can relax and watch an informative video about the history of the Gold Dredge.........
The video includes interviews with actual dredge workers
and visitors may also browse through historic photographs and artifacts in the museum.........Outside, the audio pedestals have been returned to their normal places on the docks and with just push of a button at each station visitors can hear a little more about the Dredge.

Group tours are available ~ just give us a call! Visit our tour page
If guided tours aren't your thing, no worry! You don't need a guide to see the Dredge! You can tour the Dredge and the State Park
at your own leisure and on your own terms!

Park Trails...... There are plenty of well-groomed trails winding
through the entire State Park offering a variety of views at all times of the year! Be sure to allow enough time in your visit to enjoy the trails!

The History of Gold Dredges in Sumpter Oregon......
Gold was first discovered in the Sumpter area in 1862 ushering
in a boom in gold mining and giving birth to our town of Sumpter.
But it wasn't until much later that plans for a mechanized, floating,
placer mining operation in the Sumpter Valley were made.
Originally, there were two earlier Yuba-style dredges built in the
valley dating back to 1912 when the first dredge was built
and then its sister dredge being later constructed in 1915. The
Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge may have come last but certainly was
not least of the three! In 1934, the last gold dredge to be built
was launched with almost as much fanfare as an ocean liner and
carried with it a renewed hope for prosperity for the town of
Sumpter. The last Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge actually inherited
many of its parts from Dredge #2 and was a larger and improved
model with a hull that spanned 125 feet long and was 52 feet wide.
The third dredge boasted 72 buckets and could operate at a rate of
25 buckets per minute. Unfortunately, no matter how big or powerful
the three dredges were, the reality was that more gold was taken
from the Sumpter Mountains by hard rock miners deep underground
than any of the three dredges. And, with the pressures of the
economics of the times bearing down on the area, Sumpter's third
and last Gold Dredge was forced to cease operations forever in
1954 where it sits today. However, despite a certain irriversable
impact on the environment, and despite falling short of their
intentions, Sumpter Valley Dredges carved out a proud
heritage and gained an important place in Eastern Oregon Mining
history. Friends, when you board the Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge
you will no doubt leave the park with a sense of the heritage these
machines have left us. And now........as the restoration process
continues to evolve, The Friends of The Dredge, Inc. members
are passionate in protecting, restoring and sharing our Gold Dredge
with visitors from around the world! If you have never visited
the Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge, we would like to invite you to
come for a visit this summer and we will be more than happy to
show you around! Whether you are a gold enthusiast or just enjoy
exploring the history of our area, the Gold Dredge is a good place to
begin your journey into Sumpter's golden heritage! So if you've got
a few moments to spare today, we invite you to explore our website
and join discussions about the Sumpter Gold Dredge!

Learn more about us

Send us an email: info@friendsofthedredge.com






{About Us}  {Membership}  {Tours}  {Photos}  {State Park}  {Museum}


Friends of the Sumpter Valley Dredge
P.O. Box 291
Sumpter, Oregon 97877
{541} 894-2472


Copyright: 2005-2010 by Friends of The Sumpter Valley Dredge Inc. All rights reserved.

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