The Mammoth Claim (or Lead) - 1865
The Mammoth Claim (or Lead) was just what the name implied. Consisting of 98 claimants and 99,000 square feet, it was the largest claim ever filed with the San Fernando Petroleum Mining District (SFPMD). The claim was within the circle in the above map (section of the 1943 Santa Susana USGS Topo map - called the San Fernando Mountains in 1865). It was located southeast of the Pico Oil Spring claim, west of the Towsley claim, and south of the Dewitt and Moore claims and was recorded on July 18, 1865, in Book A, SFPMD Locations, Pages 12-16. See here (PDF) to read the claim. It was written that the claim was for 100,000 sq. feet, but it was actually 99,000 sq. feet when you do the math (2 claims of 1500 sq. feet and 96 claims of 1000 sq. feet = 98 claims, the number of signatures, for a total of 99,000 sq. feet). The most noteworthy names were Edward F. Beale, Robert S. Baker, Christopher Leaming, Sanford Lyon, B. Van Stephenson, and Romulo Pico.
On July 22, 1865, E.F. Beale, B. Van Stephenson, Chistopher Leaming, Sanford Lyon, R.S. Baker, A.B. Chapman, and Renaldo (Romulo) Pico, were deeded everyone else's interest in the property for the "sum of one dollar and various other good and valuable considerations." (Los Angeles County Recorder's Records, Deeds, Book 7, pp. 292-296.) This was only four days after the mining claim was filed.
Shortly later, on August 2, 1865, B. Van Stephenson, Christopher Leaming, Sanford Lyon, R.S. Baker, A.B. Chapman, and Romulo Pico, deeded their interest in the property to E.F. Beale for one dollar each. (Los Angeles County Recorder's Records, Deeds, Book 7, pp. 296-298.)
So, after only about two weeks, Beale became the sole owner of the whole claim.
We get a feel for what was going on from this excerpt of a letter from Chris Leaming to Beale written on July 3, 1866 (from the Robert S. Baker Papers at the Huntington Library):
"Now General, I think our Mammoth claim ought to sell for one half as much a claim as the San Fernando [which was selling for $4.50 per foot at the time]. We have in the Mammoth 99 claims of one thousand feet square each. I will say sell less than one half the price of the San Fernando is now selling for, say one dollar per foot if no more can be had, which is $1000 a claim, or $99,000 for the whole claim or tracts of land containing 2300 acres.
I have prospected over this land and find that oil can be obtained in a number of places. The main Pico oil vein passes through this tract. Also there is another oil vein that passes through this tract south of the Pico vein, parallel. This range has not yet been prospected for the reason that the first locations made did not reach south far enough. At the same time, the Mammoth Company claims all of the land that is of any value. I think one half of the Mammoth Tract is as good oil land as the San Fernando Claim. If so, according to the present price of the San Fernando Stock, the Mammoth ought to sell for $2.25 per foot or $2500 a claim of 23 acres.
However I cannot dictate, neither do I wish to, for I am one of the Company who have rested perfectly satisfied ever since you received the title from the Company, that you would do all in your power to sell, and for as good a price as possible, and for the interest of the Company generally.
I am still Recorder of the district consequently I can keep a watch over our claims so that no one make record or relocates them. The former county surveyor and myself have been engaged in surveying this oil range and are getting up a complete map of the whole district."
Apparently, a Mammoth Company was created with E.F. Beale in charge and some of the others, including Chris Leaming, as stockholders (or officers of the company). Sadly, I found no information on the Mammoth Company. Beale owned all of the land and would sell plots, sharing the profits with the stockholders. This whole setup was a plan, probably concocted by Beale, to make a lot of money. There was petroleum at Pico and Towsley and this claim included virtually all the land covering the suspected oil producing vein (or zone) that should run between the two canyons on the north side of the (now called Pico) anticline.
Unfortunately, virtually no oil was found on that land. The so-called vein of oil did not exist. The oil would be proven to exist only in small pockets running along the anticline. There is no evidence that Beale ever sold any claims or made any money on the Mammoth Claim. The actual claim would eventually expire because none of the required work, specified by the SFPMD, was done on it. After that, it was available to anyone wanting to file their own claim.