What are mining claims?
The best way to describe what mining claims are, is to give you an illustration that is pretty much universally understood. Years ago the US government wanted the west settled by pioneers. As a result Congress created the “Homestead Act”. If a family moved west and took over a 160 acre parcel of land and did certain things to it (clear it, farm it, build their home on it, etc) for a number of years, THEN the US Government would give them a “Homestead Patent” or deed for their efforts. After that point in time, the “homesteader” did not have to farm it, or live on it, etc. The land was his to do with as he choose. “Patent” simply is another word for “deed” from the US government. Essentially, the ownership of all lands west of the Mississippi River originated from patents. Mining claims, like homesteads, were created by a worker (in this case a prospector looking for gold, silver, lead, zinc, copper, etc.) who would go into the mountains and “stake his claim”. At this point the mining c
