Daily AncestorProspector
A prospector searched the land for gold, silver or other mineral deposits, hoping to find a claim worth mining.
Prospecting is the first stage of looking for minerals. Old-style prospectors walked creek beds and ridges, panning streams for flecks of gold and looking at rock outcrops, then worked any promising spot with pick and shovel.
In some areas a prospector had to stake a claim, marking its corners with posts and registering it, before taking samples. In others, public land was open to prospecting without a claim.
As seen in a recordOccupation column of the 1870 to 1910 census
Hiram Tate, 38, Prospector, Colorado
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Daily Ancestor. "Prospector." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/prospector. Last checked 2026-10-10.