New Almaden's Christmas Water

By Craig MacDonald

Christmas Season, 1867 was an exciting time for Francois Pioche, a San Francisco Banker, who signed a lease which would enable him to bottle a very special mineral water.

The native of France used his 10-year, 2.5 acre lease to produce "New Almaden Vichy Water" and sell it nationwide. Pioche named the water and springs on the Quicksilver Mining Company property—"Vichy" after Vichy France. (The springs were located near the Southwest Corner of Almaden Road and Bertram Road in New Almaden, 12 miles south of downtown San Jose.)

This heavily-advertised, carbonated bottled mineral water became a sensation for Christmas Holiday Celebrations as a mixture with champagne, sherry, brandy, white & red wine and beef broth.

Not only was it a hit for Holiday gatherings but year-round because of its alleged "healing powers." National newspaper and magazine ads proclaimed the magic tonic was "highly efficacious in cases of impoverishment of the blood, weakness of the nervous system, chronic inflammation of the liver, stomach, spleen, loss of appetite and bad digestion."

Pioche and his agent, Onesime Chauvin, claimed, "The water restores lost strength, energy and good digestion ruined by excess eating, drinking, immoderate smoking and chewing…."

Unfortunately, in 1882, the water went flat when miners in the 2,100-foot level of the Buena Vista Shaft punctured the springs carbonation source.

Today, visitors can see an historical plaque for Vichy Springs on the right bank of Alamitos Creek. By the bridge, there's still part of an exposed wall and some wooden pieces from the water well used to get the valuable liquid, which was bottled nearby. (You can still see "New Almaden Vichy Water" bottles in the wonderful Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum, located by the fabulous Casa Grande Mansion at 21350 Almaden Road.)

A few years ago, a study commissioned by the county showed "Bubbles (natural carbonation) were observed in Alamitos Creek." However, there also have been warnings not to eat the fish or drink the water from the creek because of high levels of mercury left over from many years of mining.

Around the corner from the bridge is one of the nation's finest French restaurants, La Foret at 21747 Bertram Road. For four decades, it has earned its top reputation for its cuisine and romantic location, overlooking the creek, trees and vegetation.

In 1848, a creekside boarding house was built and used by miners until the 1930s, when it became Café del Rio, a popular restaurant. Later, the structure housed La Foret.

You can see marvelous historical photos and read about the Vichy Water, La Foret and so much more in the fantastic Arcadia Book, "New Almaden" by historians Michael Boulland and Arthur Boudreault, who have been very active in helping save the area's history.

New Almaden grew near the oldest and richest mine in California. The Ohlone Indians were the first to discover the value of the hill's red rocks (cinnabar) for body paint, trading and religious ceremonies. In 1845, Andres Castillero saw the cinnabar (the ore which contains mercury.)

"The discovery of mercury as the California Gold Rush began (1848), allowed the United States to recover gold and silver with no dependence on foreign sources," wrote the authors.

When cinnabar is heated, it produces mercury (quicksilver—a liquid metal). Mercury enabled miners and mining companies to more easily separate gold and silver from ore. This revolutionized the mining process, allowing for maximum profits.

This interesting book shows--in intimate detail and photos—the Mexican, Cornish, Chinese and other mine workers and cultures. It paints a fascinating picture of where they worked, lived, played and died. You'll even read about West Point grad, Henry Halleck, who was the Mine Manager from 1853-1861, before being recalled into military service and ending up Commanding General of the Union Armies in the Civil War. In 1863, he even helped prevent the seizures of the mines by the government.

Halleck, as Mine Manager, commissioned one of the most beautiful mansions in the state—Casa Grande (on the National Register of Historic Places). The Casa was used to entertained many dignitaries and housed top mine managers.

John McLaren, who would become famous as the Superintendent of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park for more than 55 years, helped landscape the gardens and create a lagoon on lush grounds. Casa Grande later became part of Club Almaden, where people ate, swam, danced, played volleyball and shuffleboard. On its side, a popular Opry House was created for Melodramas.

The area was mined until 1976, when the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors purchased the property for a County Park, saving it from development. In 1998, they purchased the Casa Grande to house the interactive, Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum, 21350 Almaden Road. It was an outgrowth of a private collection that local resident Constance Kambish Perham has been collecting and showing to people for many decades.

Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation employees, the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association (led by tireless Kitty Monahan) and many volunteers make this one of the best spots to visit in California.

Volunteers from The California State Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, led by the State's First Historic Preservation Chairperson, Susan Bergtholdt, got families to donate thousands of dollars worth of genuine antiques and DAR purchased other original period items to furnish the Casa Grande's Front Parlor, Drawing Room, Library and elsewhere for its grand re-opening in 2010. They also provided funding for signage for Outdoor exhibits, explaining the significance of mining equipment.

Author Wallace Stegner loved New Almaden and wrote about its beauty and people in his Pulitzer Prize winning book, "Angles of Repose."

From its hills, you can hike, bike, ride horses and see spectacular views of the Bay Area as well as see remnants from the mining era, including a 100-foot high chimney.

To see more on its history, read Arcadia's book, "New Almaden."  For mining museum, outdoor museum and much more, look at www.newalmaden.org.

(The writer's mother introduced him and his sister to the incredible beauty and mining history of New Almaden many years ago. He became an historian and did research on it with historians Constance Perham, Clyde Arbuckle and Laurence Bulmore (son of the Quicksilver Mining Company's last manager). His brother-in-law is a docent at the Casa Grande.)