From the Ground up : the History of Mining in Utah / Edited by Colleen Whitley
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Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All USU Press Publications USU Press 2006 From the Ground Up Colleen K. Whitley Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/usupress_pubs Part of the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Whitley, C. (2006). From the ground up: The history of mining in Utah. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press. This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the USU Press at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All USU Press Publications by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. From the Ground Up The History of Mining in Utah Edited by Colleen Whitley From the Ground Up From the Ground Up The History of Mining in Utah Edited by Colleen Whitley Foreword by Philip F. Notarianni Utah State University Press Logan, UT Copyright © 2006 Utah State University Press All rights reserved Utah State University Press Logan, Utah 84322–7800 www.usu.edu/usupress/ Maps of Utah counties printed herein are reproduced from the Utah Centennial County History Series, courtesy of the series editor, Allan Kent Powell, and copublisher, the Utah State Historical Society. All illustrations unless otherwise credited were provided by the author of the chapter they illustrate. Publication of this book was supported by subventions from the following organizations: The Charles Redd Center for Western Studies Utah Mining Association Andalex Resources, Inc. Brush Resources, Inc. Weyher Construction Company Wheeler Machinery Company Manufactured in the United States of America Printed on acid-free paper Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data From the ground up : the history of mining in Utah / edited by Colleen Whitley. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-87421-639-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-87421-639-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Mines and mineral resources--Utah--History. 2. Mining engineering--Utah--History. I. Whitley, Colleen, 1940- TN24.U8F76 2006 338.209792--dc22 2006020257 Contents Foreword xi Philip F. Notarianni Preface xiii Part I The Ground of Utah Mining 1 Geology and Utah’s Mineral Treasures 3 William T. Parry 2 Generating Wealth from the Earth, 1847–2000 37 Thomas G. Alexander 3 General Patrick Edward Connor, Father of Utah Mining 58 Brigham D. Madsen 4 The Stories They Tell 81 Carma Wadley Part II Some Mineral Industries 5 Saline Minerals 101 J. Wallace Gwynn 6 Coal Industry 126 Allan Kent Powell 7 Uranium Boom 142 Raye C. Ringholz 8 Beryllium Mining 166 Debra Wagner Part III Major Mining Regions 9 Iron County 197 Janet Burton Seegmiller 10 Bingham Canyon 220 Bruce D. Whitehead and Robert E. Rampton 11 Silver Reef and Southwestern Utah’s Shifting Frontier 250 W. Paul Reeve 12 Alta, the Cottonwoods, and American Fork 272 Laurence P. James and James E. Fell, Jr. 13 Park City 318 Hal Compton and David Hampshire 14 Tintic Mining District 342 Philip F. Notarianni 15 San Francisco Mining District 359 Martha Sonntag Bradley-Evans 16 Uinta Basin 378 John Barton Glossary of Geologic and Mining Terms 392 Notes 418 Resources and Bibliography 456 About the Authors 483 Index 490 Illustrations Geologic Figures Plate tectonic system 4 Normal fault 7 Thrust fault 7 Kinds of folds 9 Early Paleozoic western North America 12 Pennsylvanian time, western North America 13 Utah in early Jurassic time 16 Utah in mid Jurassic time 18 Alluvial plain and coal swamps 19 Three dominant trends 21 Hydrograph of Lake Bonneville 23 Schematic of volcano 26 Beryllium mining 169 Maps Faults and physiography of Utah 8 Dry Canyon, Ophir Mining District 97 Great Salt Lake 103 Components of the West Desert Pumping Project 114 Saline resource areas of Utah 116 Carbon County 127 Southeastern Utah, setting for uranium boom 143 Iron County 198 Bingham Canyon 221 Washington County 251 Big Cottonwood Mining District 273 Cottonwoods and American Fork Mining Districts 274 Topographic map of Park City District 319 Juab County 343 San Francisco Mining District 360–61 Duchesne County 380 Uintah County 381 Photos View of Zion Canyon 17 Patrick Edward Connor 94 Johanna Connor 95 Miners in Stockton 96 Steamboat on Great Salt Lake 96 Stockton 98 Joe Hill 98 Mining camp home, Sunnyside 171 Miners loading coal 171 Coal miners 172 Huntington Canyon mine 172 Winter Quarters disaster at Scofi eld 173 Scofi eld disaster burial service 173 Castle Valley Coal Company store and offi ce 174 Interior, Castle Valley Coal Company store 174 Castle Valley Coal Company tram 175 Independent Coal and Coke Company offi cials 175 Independent Coal and Coke Company housing 176 Independent Coal and Coke Company hotel 176 Independent Coal and Coke Company store 177 Lion Coal Company workers, Wattis 177 Independent Coal and Coke Company tram 178 Uranium prospector 179 Charlie Steen and companions underground 179 Vernon Pick 180 Duncan Holaday and Dr. W. F. Bale in uranium mine 180 Shot Harry nuclear test 181 Lindsey Hill Pit near Iron Springs 182 Blowout Pit on Iron Mountain 182 Frame scaffolding at Jennie Mine 183 Corry Mine on Lone Tree Mountain 183 Enos Wall 184 Daniel Cowen Jackling 184 Bingham, 1903 185 Smelter near Great Salt Lake 185 White Elephant Saloon, Bingham 186 Shay steam engines moving copper 186 Steam shovels in Bingham Canyon 187 Main Street, Magna, 1915 187 Dinkey engine, Bingham Mine 188 Bingham, 1919 188 Carr Fork, 1925 189 Mallet “110” engine 189 Dry Fork railroad viaduct 190 Stack at Kennecott’s smelter 190 Kennecott’s power plant, 1944 191 Diesel-electric ore truck 191 Daniel C. Jackling statue 192 Kennecott Utah Copper mine 193 Women working at Kennecott during WWII 194 Wells Fargo building, Silver Reef 299 Silver Reef ruin, 1976 300 Main Street, Silver Reef 301 Savage shaft, Stormont Mine 301 Margaret Grambo, Cosmopolitan Restaurant 302 Mining equipment remains, Cardiff Fork 303 Ruins of Wasatch Power Company plant 303 Remnants of Davis horse whim, Cardiff Mine 304 Charles H. Malmborg 305 Terminal of Michigan–Utah aerial tramway 306 Cornish pump, Ontario Mine 307 Mill, Ontario Canyon 307 Machine shop, Park City 308 R. C. Chambers 308 Ontario Mine workers 309 Track bikes to travel inside mines 309 Tipple, Park City 310 Miners in Mayfl ower Mine 310 Silver King Mine, Park City 311 Hard-rock miners, Park City 311 Emil J. Raddatz 312 Eagle and Blue Bell surface plant near Eureka 312 Head frame of Bullion Beck Mine 313 San Francisco Mining District beehivee kilns 313 Cowboy vein of gilsonite, Dragon 314 Hauling gilsonite from Bonanza 314 Gilsonite mining crew, Bonanza, 1906 315 Gilsonite explosion 315 Black Diamond Mine, Fort Duchesne 316 Dyer Mine above Vernal 317 Tables Geological ages and events in Utah 10 Statistics of Utah’s bituminous coal production, 1880–1945 40 Percent of national production and total value of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc produced in Utah, 1865–1945 40 Coal mine fatalities in Utah and relevant statistics relating to them, 1913–19 45 Fatalities per 1,000 workers in metal mines of Utah, other western states, and the United States, 1915–19 45 Utah and United States workforce, percent engaged in mining and number of Utahns engaged in mining, 1850–2000 47 Number of establishments and average nonagricultural monthly wages in Utah and mining industries, 1960–2000 48 Percent of gross state product accounted for by major industries, 1963–2000 49 Utah gross state product and its mining components, selected years, 1963–2000 50 Average monthly wages for selected nonagricultural industries, 1960–2000 51 Foreword Philip F. Notarianni Director, Utah State Historical Society Mining played a vital role in diversifying both the economy and population of Utah. These factors in turn exerted an impact upon geography, architecture, business activity, and social movements. The tandem industries of mining and railroading combined to change the face of Utah—changes that remain evident in all aspects of the state’s history. The ethnic and geographical landscapes of Utah continue to be profoundly infl uenced by these forces. Mormons relied on an agrarian economy for survival. Ironically, prospectors en route to the gold-rush fi elds of California and Nevada provided needed monies to support the fl edgling Mormon community. Yet Mormon efforts at mining concen- trated on coal and iron, industries that proved ephemeral in nature. Brigham Young discouraged mining precious metals as a forerunner of moral and spiritual decay. The onslaught of the United States Civil War ushered in the era of the “soldier prospector” in Utah Territory. Colonel Patrick Connor and the Third California Vol- unteers entered Salt Lake Valley in 1862, established Fort Douglas high on the east bench, and led the vanguard of miners who prospected and discovered outcroppings of precious ores mainly in the Wasatch and Oquirrh Mountains. The West Mountain Quartz Mining District, established in 1863, became the area’s fi rst one, but trans- porting ore proved expensive to these soldiers, still serving in the military. Commer- cial mining of these resources, therefore, awaited the coming of the railroad in 1869. With the joining of the rails on 10 May 1869, mining in Utah began to emerge as a vital industry. Changes in the economy, the physical environment, business, and the peopling of the area intensifi ed. Geographical changes appeared quickly. Railroad spur lines raced to the bur- geoning mining towns cropping up in many areas. These towns—Alta, Park City, Ophir, Mercur, Rush Valley, Tintic, Bingham Canyon, and others—altered a land- scape dominated by orderly Mormon villages into one where towns curved, rose, and dipped due to the geography of mineralization. Ore bodies mined close to the ground surface by individuals gave way to massive plants operated by large mining companies chasing veins of ore down thousands of feet.