After the American Civil War, in 1869, A.E. "Fred" Coleman, a former slave, crossed over what is now known as Coleman Creek just west of Julian. Seeing a glint of gold in the stream bed, he climbed down from his horse to investigate. Having had previous experience in the gold fields, he retrieved his frying pan and began panning the sands of the creek. Soon thereafter, Coleman established the Coleman Mining District and was its recorder and also began the mining camp called Emily City, later renamed Coleman City. Learning of the find, others rushed to the district and tried to trace the gold to its source. On February 22, 1870, the first "lode", or hard rock, mining claim was filed in the Julian area. Since February 22 was President George Washington's birthday, the mine was named the Washington mine. Soon hundreds of anxious men and families rushed to Julian to stake their claims. Julian experienced a gold rush and became a tent city overnight. In April 1870, the area's first sawmill was set up and Julian began to take on a more permanent structure. Attempts to build rival mining towns at Coleman City, Branson City and Eastwood were defeated. Owners of the Cuyamaca rancho Land Grant claimed (the Cuyamaca Land Float) Julian, and its mines were within the Rancho boundaries. In 1873, the courts ruled that the Rancho did not include Julian and the mines. While the miners tried to wrestle the gold from deep within the earth, James Madison brought a wagon load of young apple trees into the mountains. The fruit trees flourished in the clear, fresh air. Apples are still a big product in Julian, many of which are used for making the world-famous Julian apple pies. Local historians have variably suggested that the Julian of 1873 rivaled San Diego in population and they unsuccessfully attempted to shift the county seat to the city.