Tyrone Comfort - Gold Is Where You Find It (1934)

(I missed your comment a few days ago) Very cool that this was displayed in the White House.

Gold was pegged at $20 per oz for a long time, then in the mid 30s was allowed to increase to $35 per ounce which, coupled with the depression, renewed interest in lots of old mining districts.

The painting has an airline but no water line. Maybe artistic license, maybe not; old drills didn't use water to keep the dust down so would rapidly give the operater silicosis and were accordingly called widowmakers. I'm not sure when the transition was but even by the 30s I suspect people wouldn't drill dry. Jackleg drills today have two hoses https://www.viewbug.com/photo/72260893

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