Archive Record
Images
Additional Images [7]
Metadata
Catalog number |
1997.2.2650 |
Object Name |
Newsletter |
Date |
2005 |
Description |
TITLE: Quicksilver County Park News Newsletter of the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association WINTER 2005 ISSUE 78 PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE The year 2005 has hit us with many great opportunities for the Almaden Quicksilver County Park and the New Almaden Museum. The trails will need some serious work after these rains and our paper archives are developing into a wonderful resource for research work. We have received many wonderful items for display at the Museum. A year ago , Richard Wachs, a member of our Board, passed away. In his will he left us a beautiful painting of the Guadalupe Mines. Enclosed in this newsletter is an account of the painting. Dick Wachs was one of the original Board members, who attended everyone of our meetings, wrote many articles for the Newsletter and gave tours of the Perham Museum for school children. He was a valued member of NAQCPA. We are grateful for his efforts on our behalf and for remembering us in this kind act of a donation of the painting. The other item, recently donated is a charming child's rocking chair used by the Bulmore girls when they lived at the Casa Grande. This is on display in the NEW Room. The George Benson Family, friends of the Bulmores, gave the rocker to the Museum before moving out of the area. See you in the Park or in the Museum . Kitty (408) 268- 6541 NATIVE AMERICANS WORKED AT THE NEW ALMADEN QUICKSILVER MINING COMPANY By Art Boudreault We have long known that some of the workers at the Quicksilver mine worked the caves prior to the advent of the Spanish and Mexican arrival around 1775. We now have started a project to identify those who worked at the mines during the mining period from 1845 onwards and we can use your help in the research. Chris Carson brought this web site hap://hometown.aol.comilnammec/RainClowilltml to our attention last summer. Lorraine Escobar, a well-known native genealogy expert, is the author of this web site. This statement caught my attention." Of their thirteen children, Antonio Soto was the seventh child and he was born in Pajaro, near Castroville, California. By 1877, Antonio married a Portuguese woman, Carolina Penna. Times grew hard and families had to follow the work. Although many worked as Vaqueros and farm hands, mining was lucrative business in the Almaden mines, near San Jose. In 1878, their daughter, Guadalupe Soto, was born in Almaden." I am aware that Antonio Soto lived at the tollgate house in the period of 1979 through June 1881. Noting that Lorraine has identified this person, her great-grandfather, as a native American Indian, I wondered how many more might have lived and worked here. Chris invited her to visit. A few weeks ago she arrived on a Saturday morning with her grandson and shared her knowledge with us. More importantly, she also volunteered to take our list of residents who were on the rent rolls for the period of January 1979 through June of 1881 and identify those who may be natives. We may even learn from which of the many local tribes they may have come from. She has also indicated that she is willing to examine our other records as well. I also gave her a tour of New Almaden, especially the tollgate house. Thanks to the person living at the tollgate house, she was even able to enter her ancestors' home, which is standing near the Hacienda parking lot and opposite the creek from the La Foret restaurant. DOCUMENTING THE RESIDENTS OF NEW ALMADEN This leads me to ask for volunteers to assist in documenting all those we know lived and worked at New Almaden. We have several lists of workers, residents and voters throughout the 1850 through 1910 period. These include the payroll records as early as 1864, the census records of 1870, 1880, 1900 and 1910, various rent rolls, the county voting registers of 1877, 1884,the Thomas and West Historical Atlas of 1876, obituaries, individual archives and the court suit of 1887. Some years ago, Gage McKinney did an exhaustive research and listed the Cornish residents of New Almaden. His project is ongoing and encompasses about one-third of those who lived here during the mine era. His unpublished book is available in our archives and will be a valuable resource as we search for the rest of our ancestors, Some lists have already been transcribed into Excel spreadsheets. We thank Marilyn Comstock and Mary Berger for these. Others are waiting for one of us to step up and help. This can usually be done in your own home, working from copies (some are electronic copies). Please contact me at the museum at 323-1107 for the details. Dick Barrett New Almaden Vignette 1911-2005 From 1954 to 1977, Dick Barrett wrote in the Mercury News about local history The New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Museum has all of his articles about New Almaden in our archives. These are on display for all to read_ According to Pat Loomis, a writer for the Mercury during the time Dick was the managing editor " Dick was kind funny and the best city editor I ever had. He wrote a 'Share it with Barrett' column and these are published in book form. I will give these books to the Museum for display. To show you what a great boss he was he always knew I went on an annual vacation with my family and he made sure I got those weeks off. His death is a loss to local history PAINTING OF THE GUADULUPE MINE Artist: Albert De Rome Framed 171/2 by 22" Donated by Dick Wachs Albert De Rome was born in Cayucos California, in 1885. His art studies were at the Mark Hopkins institute in San Francisco. Following his studies, Dc Rome actively traveled, painting throughout California, Nevada and Arizona. In 1931 De Rome suffered a serious auto accident from which he eventually recovered. An insurance settlement stipulated that he could no longer work as a professional artist. DeRome continued to paint and exhibit as an amateur. and would frequently trade his paintings for goods and services in Pacific Grove, where he settled He died in Carmel on July 31 1959. Spain's Almaden has no plans to restart mercury mine 14 Jan 2005 12 58.14 GMT Source: Reuters (Adds details, quotes) By Emma Ross-Thomas MADRID; Jan 14 (Reuters) - Spain's Minas de Almaden, once the worlds biggest mercury producer, has no plans to restart its idle mine but has "tens of thousands of tonnes" of mercury mineral stored, the firm's commercial director said on Friday The mine still contains mercury but falling demand and environmental and regulatory issues led to the decision to close it Labour costs were also a factor "We're not going to produce more mineral," Commercial Director Manuel Ramos told Reuters. He added that the firm was working on a plan to turn the mine into a tourist attraction but said no decision was irreversible. He declined to be more precise about the company's stockpile but confirmed it was less than 100.000 tonnes and that it would last four or five years. Mineral from state-owned Almaden yields 3.5 kg of metal per 100 kg of mineral. Ramos said. The company. which is still converting stockpiled mercury mineral into metal, is supplying its clients only some 50 percent of what they order, and has been since last summer. "The demands ... have led us to, let's say, ration, not supply the total quantities they ask for but rather keep our regular clients supplied " "We're not giving them material so they can store it" Ramos also said he saw mercury, already at 20-year highs of $600-$700 a flask after soaring from around $200 in 12 months hitting $1,000 in the short-term. "I don't know where the ceiling could be. I do see in the short-term we'll be dealing with $1.000." However he did not expect current tightness in the market -- sharpened by below capacity production in Kyrgyzstan and an output halt in Algeria -- to continue long-term. "I personally do not have the impression that this extraordinary tension and these price levels are going to be permanent," Ramos said, adding he expected it to last at least a couple of years. DEMAND FALLING A metals trader said Almaden's decision was not a surprise. "The mine has been closed for some time, but this is a political decision, and it does confirm what we expected.' Mercury, which is mostly used in the production of caustic soda, batteries, thermometers and other products, has been linked to neurological problems and is especially harmful to young children. It enters the environment when toxic waste is burned and then builds up in the bodies of animals and fish that ingest contaminated pants and water. It will probably not be used in five years time in western Europe and the European Union has mandated that the chlor-alkali industry - which produces chlorine through electrolysis -- converts plants away from mercury Ramos said demand has been falling for 20 years and he saw no sign of that being reversed. Traders estimate the world market at around 100,000-120,000 flasks per year_ The company says the mine in Almaden, central Spain, has produced since Roman times and has provided a third of the world's mercury. It has produced an annual average of some 35,000 flasks in recent years Now the company focuses on transforming the mineral into metal and rescuing mercury from disused industrial installations which it then treats and resells. (Additional reporting by Martin Hayes) MONUMENTAL CELEBRATION ON MAY 15TH AT HIGH NOON Casa Grande Grounds 21350 Almaden Road Hot dogs, burgers and soft drinks will be provided by the E. Clampus Vitus Society beginning at 11:30AM at a nominal cost. On this very day, May 15, 2005, at High Noon, the E. Clampus Vitus Society, Mountain Charlie Chapter 1850, the New Almaden Community Club and the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association (NAQCPA) invite one and all to attend the dedication of two historical monuments. The dedication will include introductions of city, county and park officials. A marching band will lead all those present to Cottage 1 and Cottage 5 for the unveiling of the monuments. For those interested, the history of the E. Clampus Vitus Society is at their web site http://wwvv.sonnet.com/eqclir/clamper/whatis.html Excerpts from this history are, "The prime requisites to becoming a Clamper are a sense of humor, an interest in Western history, an open mind, and a cast iron stomach," and "They specialize now in putting up commemorative plaques at places like saloons, bawdy houses, and other sites that may have been overlooked by more serious historical societies." The homeowners of these cottages and the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association, in an attempt to be serious about our New Almaden History, have made financial contributions towards making these monuments possible. In addition, NAQCPA dug through the New Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum records in order to verify the facts on the plaques. We all are proud that these homes will have their own monuments as have Cottages 2, # 3 and # 4. The Randol Family Home Cottage 1 has been a mystery because, unlike the other cottages, little is known about its residents. A plaque on the cottage wall testifies that this cottage was the "Head Mining Engineer's House". While we have not found any head mining engineers known to have lived here, it's position next to the Casa Grande gives us thought that the closest advisors to the mine managers did live here. Our research led us to the county's archivist, who has recently updated knowledge of the cottage. We found that Dr. Frederick Vincent Hopkins, who replaced Dr. A. R. Randol as the mine fund doctor, lived here from 1876 to 1879 and paid no rent. Did Dr. Randol live there when he arrived in 1871? When Dr. Hopkins left, Robert Burnett Smith moved in, also rent-free, and served as the company's accountant. Through a descendant of J. B. Randol who lives in the United Kingdom, we found that Smith married Anne Terhune, the sister of Randol's wife Christiana. Descendants of the Randol family will help unveil this monument. Harry and Buffy Wellman live here. The Hauck House Cottage 5 has a long list of residents in the 1879 through 1881 period. All of them paid rent of $5.00 per month to the mining company. One had two jobs, schoolteacher and also Justice of the Peace. By 1915, after the bankruptcy of the mining company, Fred Hauck moved from New York and became the company treasurer for the successor company. He lived here for a few months. It is here that his daughter Irene was born. He continued to be treasurer until 1930. Irene Hauck and some of her children will help to unveil this monument. Mike and Dorene Boulland live here. You may visit the museum and take the self-guided walking tour of New Almaden following the festivities. There will also be a no host celebration after the event at Almaden Feed and Fuel. LET'S CELEBRATE TOGETHER Elizabeth Hamilton Halleck-The First Lady of New Almaden R. Lawrence Comstock In previous articles in this newsletter I have discussed the life of the first General Manager of the New Almaden mines-Henry Wager Halleck. Halleck was General Manager from 1850-1861 and was responsible for developing the first reduction furnaces at the Hacienda as well as the Casa Grande building. He was also the principal partner in the law firm of Halleck, Peachy and Billings that represented the New Almaden firm in its litigation with the US government over the legality of the title to the mine. Halleck, a Captain in the US army even during the time that he held these positions, was a bachelor when he arrived in San Francisco in 1849 and in the mid 1850's at the age of 40 he determined to find a suitable wife in the east and received a six month leave-of absence starting on February 1, 1854. Halleck was successful in his search through the good offices of Schuyler Hamilton, a close friend and past roommate at West Point. Hamilton introduced Halleck to his younger sister-Elizabeth Hamilton-and they were secretly engaged while Halleck was in New York City. This article is primarily about Elizabeth's life. Most of the information on Elizabeth Hamilton is from the newly published biography of Henry Halleck: Commander of All Lincoln's Armies A Life of Henry W. Halleck, by John Marszalek (Belknap Press of Harvard Press, 2004). Elizabeth Hamilton was the daughter of John Church Hamilton an attorney and author and the granddaughter of Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury and author of most of The Federalist papers. Her mother was a Schuyler, another influential New York family. Elizabeth was born in 1831 and was seventeen years Henry Halleck's junior. No details of their courtship exist, but it must have been a whirlwind since Halleck left for California after three months. Halleck returned to New York in the spring of 1855 and he and Elizabeth were married on April 10, 1855 in New York City with Halleck's close friend George Washington Cullum as groomsman (more about George later). The couple traveled to San Francisco by ship via Panama and arrived on May,16, 1855 to live in Halleck's spacious home on Rincon Hill, a fashionable residential area in the 1850's, but now the approach to the Bay Bridge. A photograph of the twenty-four year old bride (Henry was fourty-one) is shown below. Halleck had resigned commission in the army, but had many business interests, including those at New Almaden to occupy him. He had built the Montgomery Block building in San Francisco in 1853, which was then the most prominent office building in The City and this served as a source of income for him and Elizabeth for the rest of their lives. Halleck was one of the most influential businessmen of this period in California. Elizabeth visited New Almaden many times in the anti bellum years and stayed in rooms in the Casa Grande. The Halleck's spent part of the summer of 1855 in New Almaden while her brother Schuyler was manager of the mine. She was a representative of one of the most influential families in American society and this justifies my sobriquet for her as "The First Lady of New Almaden". The Halleck's had one child-Henry (called Harry), born in January 1856. Elizabeth was busy raising her son, but also entertaining guests in their home in San Francisco. Neighbors included Albert Sidney Johnston (later a high-ranking Confederate general killed at Shiloh), Joseph Hooker and William Sherman, both Union Major Generals during the Civil War. The Henry Halleck family visited New York State in 1858 after the death of his father and Henry became the head of the large Halleck family by purchasing the family farm in Westernville. The Halleck's were strong members of the Democrat Party and were backers of the candidate Stephen Douglas in the election of 1860, in which Abraham Lincoln and the Republican's carried California. With the outbreak of Civil War Halleck volunteered his services to the Union and was made a major General in the Regular Army. This appointment was a major prize for Halleck since it assured that he would have an important role in the postwar army. Halleck's first job in the Civil War was as army commander in the west, stationed in Missouri. He was successful in this assignment by freeing Kentucky and northern Tennessee from the Confederates. In July of 1862 Henry Halleck was named as the General in Chief of the Union Army. Together with Elizabeth he moved to Washington D.C. to take up his new duties. I will not discuss Henry Halleck's role in the Civil War further since the essay is on Elizabeth Halleck. Little is known about Elizabeth during the war, but her husband's letters to her have survived. Elizabeth and her son spent much of the summer of 1862 away from the heat and humidity of Washington with family and friends in Newport, Rhode Island. She spent the next summer living with her husband in Georgetown. After U.S. Grant was promoted Lieutenant General (3 stars), Henry Halleck was made Chief-of Staff to Grant and finished the war in that assignment. In July 1865 Halleck was appointed Commanding General for the Western Department with headquarters in San Francisco and he, Elizabeth and their son left for California by boat. They again lived in their home on Rincon Hill and entertained as appropriate to his rank. He was not involved with New Almaden since the company he had represented and worked for was sold to the Quicksilver Mining Company. In 1869 Halleck was transferred to the Division of the South with headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky. Halleck died in this position in January 1872 at the age of 58. Elizabeth lived in New York and was advised on her finances by Frederick Billings, who had been a law partner of Henry Halleck. She was also befriended by George Cullum, even though Cullum was sixty-six. They were married in the fall of 1875. The Halleck son, Henry, died in 1884 in North Carolina at the age of twenty-seven. Elizabeth died from cancer in New York on September 15,1884 and was buried next to her first husband in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn and after Cullum's death in 1892, he was buried on the other side of Elizabeth. Big Almaden Mine Closed by Strike THE MERCURY 1866 [1966] By DANIEL K. STERN A strike at the Almaden mine shut down the great mercury diggings a century ago. "Those who were disposed to work were prevented by the strikers." the Mercury reported, "without, as far as we can learn, the exercise of any violence. "As a disturbance of the peace was anticipated, Sheriff Adams was sent for. He went up and made five arrests. He found the miners well-disposed to keep the peace. "On Tuesday about 150 miners came to town, mostly mounted, presenting quite a formidable appearance. They came as witnesses supposing the examination would come off on that day." The mine company contended that, there were "A number of Mexican squatters who have built small tenements in which gambling and every conceivable 'amusement' is carried on to the great demoralization of the district. The evils arising were very great. It was therefore determined to put an end to this state of things, and the people were notified that the company would pay them in full and liberally for their 'betterments,' but they must quit at once. "Editor J. J. Owen decided there was more to the dispute than charged by the company. Said he: "There is some complaint that no competition is allowed on the company's grounds in the sale of vegetables, groceries, etc., and that the miners are compelled to pay exorbitant prices for the necessaries of life." The company replied that the miners had the privilege "of making their purchases in San Jose and that the company's teams will haul their provisions to the Hacienda, at the foot of the hill, gratuitously, and that stringent regulations are necessary to prevent drinking, riots and blood-shed." The Mercury suggested that it would be in the best interest of all if the company could "compromise these matters in some way, and if possible prevent the recurrence of such outbreaks." "Among the 1,200 or more men employed at the mine, there are all the essential elements for a row of formidable proportions." Editor Owen echoed the uneasy feeling in San Jose by saying: "The company should see to it that no just cause of provocation is given for such disturbances as the present (one). There is no knowing to what extremes they may lead." San Jose probably had good cause to be apprehensive. Mercury mining in those days was no vocation for a sissy, and the mine's male population equaled that of San Jose. The city was also well aware of the almost weekly disturbances and frequent murders in the area. We promised last week to let you know how the San Jose city election came out. Editor Owen and the Mercury were happy to report that: "The election of the entire Union ticket was achieved by a majority ranging from 197 to 180. The total vote polled for mayor was 611, of which Mayor Quimby received 374 and P. 0. Minor, 237." The entire Union ticket was swept into office on about the same basis although Mayor Quimby may have been slightly chagrined to find that he trailed John T. Colahan as a vote getter. Colahan. running for city clerk, piled up 391 votes. Owen pointed out the "lack of interest whereby hundreds of Union voters did not think it worth their while to come out and vote. "We shall be 'caught in the door' one of these days." the Mercury editor admonished. "through just such overweening confidence. William Caldwell and Marsh Young were being held by Justice Thomas for the killing of William Haun, reported last week. Charged was "murder in the second decree, with bail in each cash fixed at $8,000. Considering that the 1866 dollar was worth roughly several times the value of the present anemic one, the bail seemed pretty high. For those interested in agriculture, the Mercury said, "The prospect is now most encouraging for an immense crop of fruit in this valley the coming season. "We shall have apricots, peaches and all the smaller fruits in great abundance. The almond and olive trees also are loaded as we have never before seen them in this section." And for the benefit of all those currently struggling with their income tax forms, this note may he of interest. "The attention of all persons liable for income tax is directed to the notice of the assistant assessor in another column." The notice merely took another 200 words to inform the citizenry that they had up to May 1 to pay, and the usual ubiquitous forms were available on request. Nowadays, at least, most of us get the forms mailed to our homes.1886-1969 Newspaper Book HG FLASK WEIGHT The book, "Western Mining" by Otis Young, published by the University of Oklahoma Press, says the weight of mercury is traditional and it was believed that it was an approximation to the Phoenician talent. This relates to the drachma or shekel that were units of weight along with being a monetary unit. The conversions I found place the talent in the 60 -120 pound range which is close to the 76+ pounds for a flask of mercury. This unit goes back 3000 years or so and it isn't a surprise there is some variation. I haven't gone much beyond this point. Tom Innes, docent at the Gold Rush Museum at Auburn as told to: Mary and Dennis Moran Did Mercury in "Little Blue PilIs" Make Abraham Lincoln Erratic? Hillary Mayell for National Geographic News July 17, 2001 Tales of the melancholia that dogged U. S. President Abraham Lincoln at various times during his life have been documented by historians and biographers and in Lincoln's own correspondence. Whether he suffered from a full-blown case of what today is called clinical depression is unknown. What is known, however, is that for a while, Lincoln took little blue pills to treat his condition. Known as "blue mass," the little blue pills were a 19th-century staple. They were prescribed for a host of ailments, including apoplexy, worms, child-bearing, tuberculosis, toothaches, and constipation. The key ingredient was mercury-and the medication was well on its way to poisoning Lincoln when he stopped taking it in 1861, says a team of researchers in a study published in the Summer 2001 issue of Perspectives in Biology and Medicine. Cave of Gloom" Lincoln lived in what a friend called "a cave of gloom." His melancholy "was a matter of frequent discussion among his friends," wrote William H. Herndon, Lincoln's law partner and biographer. Norbert Hirschhorn, a medical historian and the lead author of the new study, said of Lincoln: "There seem to be clear, qualitative changes in his underlying behavior during the 1850's. The gloom becomes impenetrable. He becomes subject to towering rages and outbursts of bizarre behavior-jumping up suddenly and running out of the house for no reason, bursts of inappropriate laughter." To document the changes in Lincoln's behavior, the authors of the study cited numerous accounts of friends and fellow lawyers who traveled the legal circuit with the man who became the 16th U.S. President. Lincoln's leaps to rage could be terrifying. One contemporary described his face in anger as "lurid with majestic and terrifying wrath." Another described him as "so angry that he looked like Lucifer in an uncontrollable rage." 1 Hillary Mayell. National Geographic News. Did Mercury in "Little Blue Pills" Make Abraham Lincoln Erratic? 2 February 2005 As President during the U.S. Civil War, Lincoln was known for his steady hand, patience, and wisdom. The authors believe the difference between Lincoln the statesman and the earlier Lincoln lies in the "blue mass" pills. "Mercury poisoning certainly could explain Lincoln's known neurological symptoms: insomnia, tremor, and the rage attacks," said Robert G. Feldman, a professor of neurology, pharmacology, and environmental health at Boston University's School of Medicine and Public Health, who was a co-author of the scientific report. Hirschhorn said: "In the absence of a hair sample from 1855 to 1861, which I don't think exists, we can't absolutely prove mercury poisoning. But it's a very good clinical suspicion." Reconstructed Formula A few months after his presidential inauguration in 1861, Lincoln told his good friend John T. Stuart that he had quit taking the little blue pills because they made him "cross." It's no wonder. Ian A. Greaves, an associate dean at the University of Minnesota's School of Public Health, reformulated "blue mass" using a 19th-century recipe, which included mercury, liquorice [sic] root, rosewater, honey, sugar, and dead rose petals. The ingredients were combined using a traditional mortar and pestle, and then shaped into the early pill's typical size. The reconstructed "blue pill" was a round gray pellet the size of a peppercorn. If taken at the normally prescribed dose of the time-one pill two or three times a day-it would deliver nearly 9,000 times the amount of mercury that is deemed safe for people by current health standards. Because the effects of mercury poisoning are reversible, Lincoln's decision to quit taking the little blue pills had extremely important consequences, said Hirschhorn. "Faced with as great stresses as any President, Lincoln demonstrated incredible maturity, calm, and steadiness at the helm," Hirschhorn said. "He might not have had that capacity if he had continued taking blue mass. That insight may have been crucial to the outcome of the Civil War." Mine Yields Rich Trove of Quicksilver Two San Jose weekend prospectors yesterday disclosed they have apparently stumbled on a rich body of cinnabar, the red ore from which quick-silver comes in an old Mt. Hamilton range mine that was last worked about 1904 by mulepower. Mory Showalter of 2874 Kauai Dr., and Leroy Moulton of 5401 Mary Jo Wy., both countermen with Western Plumbing Supply Co. at 90 Notre Dame Ave. are quick to admit the sky-rocketing price for quicksilver - now about $480 for a 90-pound flask-was what set them probing into the barren hillsides. Lest anyone get ideas about their apparently remarkable find - a fluke such as fills the exciting pages of mining -- they are quite happy to report they have a firm lease on 640 acres of remote property "and the mine's right in the middle of it, too!" If you were to draw a line across the map running due east of San Jose to Patterson in Stanislaus County, you could drop a pin on their mine property 65 miles east of San Jose and 25 miles west of Patterson. Showalter is an old hand at "quick" mining, spent eight years at it including about five years full time, and "retired" in 1960 with a case of mercury poisoning from breathing retort fumes. His partner, Moulton, is a raw beginner who "got interested" and developed the itch to cruise remote mountain areas as a weekend prospector. "It was something to do on week ends," he commented, "and it's lots of fun." Showalter, with a library of materials on cinnabar locations in California, knew about the remote mines and the old Phoenix Mine astride the Santa Clara-Stanislaus Counties boundary. A farmer told them about the old mine that a man named Heywood had worked. It was a good mine, too, but he died-and the project died with him. Investigation showed the old mine to be in fine condition, with a 300-foot tunnel and a 150-footer leading directly to "pretty good quality" ore. In the old days, only the best ore was taken by mule to the Phoenix retort. "Even the dumps are high-grade ore by today's standards." Showalter said. "It's possible four or five bulldozer operators could work there without bothering our mine a hit!' He added, "There's probably several thousand tons of good ore right on the surface." The two weekend miners set about nine sticks of dynamite after drilling as many five-foot charge holes into the face of the silica carbonate and serpentine mine working face. Each "shot" brings down about 12 tons of ore. "We did 14 tons one day," Moulton said. "I found out what muscles can do - and how they complain!" They have a small retort, but how much "quick" they cook out is their own business. "Things look very good, however," Showalter said. "It's a funny thing. In the 1950's, one of the state's most eminent mining engineers surveyed the old mine and reported "It's a very, very good prospect." Moulton chimed in, "He was right, too!" |
People |
Barrett, Dick Benson, George Caldwell, William Colahan, John T. De Rome, Albert Escobar, Lorraine Halleck, Elizabeth Hamilton Haun, William Hopkins, Frederick Vincent (Dr.) Lincoln, Abraham Moulton, Leroy Showalter, M. C. Soto, Antonio Wachs, Richard Young, Marsh |
Cataloged by |
Meyer, Bob |
Collection |
Perham 2 |
Credit line |
Donated by Richard "Dick" Wachs |