Clark Potter
Clark Potter, a mining friend and partner of the Hunsuckers, built a cabin in the 1870s on 80 acres of land on the upper
Rubicon River. The cabin was about a mile southeast and upstream of theirs at a smaller mineral spring which became known as “Potters
Springs.” No evidence has been found that Potter ever bottled water from his small spring or operated the location for organized tourism.
He, most likely, used the large meadow near his cabin for hay farming. The remains of his cabin were a “curiosity” in the 1900s.
After
being in poor health for several years, Clark Potter died in Georgetown, California on October 29, 1887. The funeral for Clark Potter,
age 70 years, took place in the Georgetown home of Issac Jackson at 3:00 p.m. on October 30, 1887. At the time of the original gold
rush, 1849, he had been 38 years old. He does not appear to ever have married or had children. Evidence suggests that Potter had an
arrangement with Issac and Sarah Jackson. They appear to have agreed to take care of him in their home until he died and in return
would receive his remaining assets. This was a common arrangement during the 19th century for persons without family to look after
them in their final years.
To establish the value of Clark Potter’s estate, the Probate court appointed an appraisal committee. The
appointed appraisers, George Hunsucker, T.Z. Armstrong, and George H. Heuser completed their work on December 26, 1887. They valued
the 80 acres with improvements, then referred to as Potter’s Springs, at $550 and his personal property and cash at $289.50. Potter’s
80 acres, located in Section 32, the next most easterly section of land from Rubicon Springs, was outside the Central Pacific Railroad
land grant sections. To establish legal title to the land, Potter had to pursue a patent under the U.S. Land Office Homestead Act
of 1862. This process took five years before the homesteader could "prove up" their land and gain title. Clark Potter (deceased) received
a patent for the 80 acres called Potters Springs on June 3, 1889. This suggests that he had been in the process of homesteading several
years before his death. In 1890, Issac P. Jackson of Georgetown paid property tax of $9.90 for the estate of Clark Potter. The Probate
Court established the value of Potter’s Spring (80 acres) at $240 with the improvements valued at $200.
Daniel Haggash (relationship
to Potter is unknown) gave all of his rights to Clark Potter’s estate on March 1, 1890 to Sarah Jackson (wife of Issac P. Jackson).
This included the 80 acres of Clark Potter’s Springs. The court finalized the will of Clark Potter on May 12, 1890, giving title for
the 80 acres of Potter’s Spring to Sarah M. Jackson. Forty-four days later, Sarah Jackson sold the 80 acres to Sierra Nevada “Vade”
Clark for $900.
