10K WHITE GOLD DIAMOND HEART NECKLACE

980808 {yymmdd)

The Gold Spike. The gold spike was presented by David Hewes of San Francisco, who had become wealthy by leveling the sand ridges and dunes and filling in the water lots. His offer to provide a gold spike was accepted by President Leland Stanford of the Central Pacific R.R. The spike was made and finished by Schulz, Fischer & Mohrig, San Francisco, with a rough gold nugget attached to its end or point. It was reported as 6 inches long, weighing 18 ounces and valued at $350. Its actual description is: 5 5/8 inches long (overall) and 17/32 inches square, 14.13 ounces in weight, 14.292 specific gravity, 13. 377 ounces approximate gold, and 17.6 carats fine. It was inscribed on all 4 sides with the names of the officers and directors, the donor and the salutation, and on the top were the words "The last Spike." The inscription has been printed many times. The spike was on exhibition in San Francisco and later in Sacramento before going to the "front." After the ceremony it was removed from the "last" tie, brought back to California, and returned to the donor in whose possession it remained until it was given in 1892, as part of his art collection, to Stanford University. In 1936 the university deposited the spike in the Wells Fargo Bank, San Francisco, with arrangements for its exhibit daily in the history room; on November 1, 1954, it was returned to the university where it now reposes in the museum.