Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1882-03-31
COPPER MINING AND SMELLING,

COPPER MINING AND SMELLING.
Il is thought by those having expe-
rience in smelling copper ores tia
something ought 10 be done towards
establishing a reverberatoFy furnace
at this place, by which our copper ores
may be reduced TO seyenty-fve or
eighty per cent. Furnaces of this
kind are operated in Baltimore, Md.
and other places, and are built at
very small cost. Men who have full
knowledge Of our copper mines think
that copper furnace could be success
fully carried on here.
1t is a fact worthy of mention thai
copper mining has paid as we'll in pro
portion to the amount of labor and
money expended, as any branch OF
mining which has been pursued here.
According to assays made, our fint
copper ores will yield from seven t.
ten per cent and our prill. or stone.
ores from twenty to thirty-five per
cent. The average yield of ores from
the great copper mines OF Cornwall.
England, We understand, does not ex-
coed seven per cent. And now that
coal for smelling purposes can be
shipped here at such low rates, it is
believed by many that the smelling of
our copper ores can be probably en-
gagged in. The cost of shipping the
ores to Baltimore and other places
where furnaces are operated has here
tofore been ten dollars. or over, per
ton. It is said by those who know
whereof they speak, that the cost of
building and operating small reyer-
beratory furnace would not be great.
Miners would at once begin work on
the copper mines of this section We're
they satisfied that they could sell the
ore at fair price which would be as
sured to them should copper furnace
be established here. Enough ore has
been taken from our mines to have
paid well for the labor and expense of
smelling here. Mr.. Jas. Toay, fur
nished the following statement to the
late Moses Strong, assistant state geol-
ogist. for his report of the Lead
Region, which gives the main facts in
regard to the past history Of copper
mining and smelling, at Mineral Point !:
Sometime in the year 1887 or 1888, copper
was first discovered on the S. +. or. of Sec. 81
T. 5, X. 3 E., one mile northeast of the Mineral
Point court house. The ereNice had course $.
So f., and had been traced for over one-third
of a milo. This locality has not been worked
since 1872. A great amount OF copper was OBJ
tanned
8. 1t is reported that over one and a half mil
lion pounds of copper were taken out which
would include all kinds of ore: smalls, which
would not yield more than ten TO fifteen per
cent of copper; and the stone or Prill ore,
yielding twenty-five to thirty per cent.
some of the ore was smelted at the old fur
mace owned by William Kendall 4 Co., and
some at the new Baltimore furnace, owned by
Ansley & Co. About 5000 pounds was sent TO
England or Wales for reduction, which indicates
that parties here did not at that time understand
the proper method of smelling copper.
Sometime in 1914, S. p. Preston came here.
and went into partnership with Kendall & Co.,
and after that they had no trouble in smelling
copper successfully.
The amount of copper sold from Kendall &
Co.'S furnace from 1871 TO 1916 was ,702 fhs.
This was about ninety-tive per cent. pure copper
and sold for fourteen cents per cent
1.-Two other furnaces have been worked: one
by Charles Bracken. 10 what extent have no
knowledge. but know he smelted considerable
copper ore from his own land. The other was
owned by Curtiss Beach. Here great amount
of copper ore was smelted taken from the
Beach diggings. The greatest amount of ore
that Kendall y Co. smelted was taken from the
Kendall diggingS.
1t is probable that with the increased advan-
tages in the present price of copper in obtaining
coke instead of charcoal for smelling, and iu
shipping facilities, That copper mining may now
be made profitable business at this place if
properly managed.
The report contains the following
statement relative to copper mining
and smelling in this place MP to 1874:
During the years 1873, 1871 and 1879 about 300
tons Of copper ore were produced by Mr.. Toay
from the mines near Mineral Point. An attempt
was also made to smelt it in 1874. No very
large amount was smelted, as the common blast
furnace was not exactly adapted to its reduction
The ore is sulphuret of copper. The exact
amount produced could not be learned.
The DodgeEille representative Of the
DEMOCRAT last week called attention
TO 4 recent discovery Of rich copper
ore near Sparta, in this state, and 1t is
well known that copper abonnds in
large quantities in various portions of
Wisconsin and Michigan. If a copper
furnace were put in operation here an
unlimited supply Of ore could easily
be obtained.
Now that the establishment of zinc
factory i'll Mineral Point is an assured
fact it will be well for US to thought
fully consider whether the smelling Of
the copper ole Of which this region is
SO productive cannot be carried on
to good advantage.