The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1895-10-05
History Of oJo1ensvills. 9


is reached from Butte BY two routes,
leaving the railroad at Divide =
stage can be taken two or three
times a week for trip up Big Hole.
thence over the divide to the head
of the north fork Of Salmon river,
a journey to Gibbonsville of eighty
miles requiring two days. The other
is from Red Rock over daily stage
line to Salmon City, seventy miles,
thence by the six day stage to Glib
bonsvile, thirty.fve miles.
The distric: dates back eighteen
or twenty years to the time high
bar was washed for gold with not
very satisfactory results. Quartz
mining is more recent date and its
success has but just began. One
company has been operating here
for several years and made failure
with its process of introducing mer-
curry into the roasting pulp inside
of FIRE clay tubes. That property
after going into disuse has lately
gone into the hands of an Eastern
company, familiarly known here as
the "Cyanide," although it has not
been successful in working the pro-
cess the name would suggest. Late
ly the mill is undergoing a change
of machinery and construction so
as to use Huntington mills, van
ners, roasters, etc. The company
is in financial trouble and results
will have to be awaited.
Geo. D. Anderson, the pioneer of
the district, has had an arastra
working by water power many years
and he is doing fairly we'll in work
ing ores taken from some of his
good mines.
Gibbonsville is essentially gold
camp with assures running through
slate, the chief country rock, while
part of the formation is granite.
For eight years Charles ]. Barclay
worked on some of these lodes un-
til he proved them profitable, after
which it was easier to get capital to
work the ores and further develop
the mines. The American Develop
ing & Mining Company got hold
of the Barclay properties and has
since put in two years in develop
ing them. They have in that time
made cuttings to the extent of 5000
feet in the way of tunnels, drifts,
etc., opening up the veins to the
depth of 800 feet below the apex.
The lodges stand at an angle of
about 80 degrees, and have been
cut by number of adits through
which all work is done. The ore
is blush quartz carrying from $40
to $50 in gold, and ranging from
two to ten feet in thickness. On
their Sucker claim they have drift
ed 1900 feet through ore averaging
500 per ton, with a similar drift
1900 feet long on the Eureka
was through $40 to $50 ore. Near
the surface this ore was free milling
but with depth it changes to refrac-
tory ores, while the veins widen
out and the yield in gold is larger.
There is no hosting but instead the
ore is run out in cars, dumped into
the bins to be drawn into wagons
and hauled to the mill one mile
down the gulch. A covered ditch
5000 feet long furnishes 50-horse-
power to operate compressors and
thus the cost of running drills in
the mine is almost nominal. This
company did not do as too many
others have done, put up mill at
the very start. They waited two
years to make a mine, then put up
a most complete mill, having crush
ers, great cornish rolls, thirty
stamps, hydrometric sizers for each
battery, fifteen vanners and a mag
nifcent 3OO-horse-power water sup
ply. This mill was put in opera
ton on August Is, and the figures
show that Al per cent, of the gold
is saved on the plates while the van
ners save 46 per cent. thus bring
ing it up to SO per cent. To get
the gold into bullion the concen-
trates are to be roasted, chlorinated,
run through barrels and settlers,
for which purpose a special build
ing is now being put in for the van
ners and furnace. The mill reduces
from 100 to 125 tons of ore per
day and is so nearly automatic in
operation as to require only five
men to keep it going, three during
the day and two at night, the extra
day man looking after running the
ore through the crusher, rolls and
screens. The company has a pay
roll of 1875 men and its property is
we'll equipped in every respect.
The Cyanide Company owns good
group of mines which carry ore
milling from $12 to $40 per ton.
A group of mines up Anderson
gulch about II miles above town,
has been developed by Judge Pad
gen and associates till they have
about 1900 tons of ore assaying
from SIS to $40 per ton. Much
money was taken out of this prop
erty several years ago. It has no
mill but tramway is being built
and the mill will come later.