The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1902-01-11
SALT LAKE CITY TO BE
A GREAT COPPER CENTER

The future of copper and the pros
pective railroad development of the
region tributary to Salt Lake are close
ly linked. If the present plans for rail-
road extension are carried out Salt
Lake will soon become the greatest
copper center in the world.
This does not mean that the copper
will necessarily be mined and smelted
in the immediate vicinity of Salt Lake.
1t means that from this city to the
north, northwest, west and southwest
will stretch railroad arms connecting
the intermountain metropolis with diff
ferent mining camps which, according
to the opinions of experts, will in time
be the greatest factors in the copper
markets of the world. Whether the
ores are smelted on the ground or are
shipped to Salt Lake valley. this city
will remain the financial center and
will reap the greatest benefit.
The regions which are counted upon
to become immense copper producers
are Beaver and Washington counties,
Utah. northwestern Arizona. southern
Nevada, Deep Creek and central Idaho.
Butte might be included in the list, as
the Oregon Short Line reaches the city
by direct route, and Salt Lake has for
years been reaping some benefit from
this connection. The roads which will
tap the new regions are the Short Line
and the San Pedro.
Indications are strong that the great
Beaver county region WrfI eventually be
tapped by at least two roadside Short
Line and the San Pedro. There is a
prospect also that the Rio Grande will
extend in that direction, provided the
district develops the enormous tonnage
which is expected The Short Line al
ready reaches Milford and Frisco, and
it is expected that the San Pedro will
swing down that way to take in the
copper district of Beaver and the coal
and iron of Iron county.
Farther south, in the mountains of
southern Nevada, near the line of both
the San Pedro and the Short Line, are
many promising copper prospects that
are likely to become important, while
near st. George, Utah, ana in north
western Arizona, are better known
quantities IN the way of copper mines.
Already the Savannic, Grand Gulch
and Copper Mountain mines are ship
ping ore sixty miles and more by wag-
on to railroad, while the country is
filed with copper deposits that await
only the advent of railroad to make
them profitable. While neither road
has surveyed routes into these regions,
no doubt is felt that eventually
branches will be built by the Short
Line or the San Pedro to tap these
promising mining districts and put
them into rail communication with
Salt Lake.
The Deep Creek country has long
been known as a region which gave
much promise as soon as it could be
reached by a railroad. Copper is de-
clared to exist there in Quantities, al
though it is by no means the only val
liable mineral there. The San Pedro
has for some time contemplated build
ing to Deep Creek. and it viii not be
great while before the riches of this
immense region will be headed toward
Salt Lake.
In Idaho, the Oregon Short Line has
so far a monopoly of the field, and it
is preparing to make the most of its
opportunity. The branch recently COM
because of the great White Knob cop
per mine there. and now the road is
an extension of this branch
which it is expected will tap other cop
per districts, as well as regions bear
ing other minerals
Copper Basin is named from the rich
deposits of copper it contains, and
there are other districts rich in this
With the Lake Superior
mines on the wane, the Butte produc-
ton showing signs of falling off, the
copper production for the United States
decreasing $500 tons last year, and the
worlds demand increasing so that the
for. good prices for the pro-
duct are good i'll the long run, Utah
roads are figuring on deriving an i'm
mense revenue from the copper indus
try within a few years-a revenue
which implies similar benefit for Salt |
Lake