The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1912-10-25
% YEARS OLD.
MGsaba Range Celebrates Birthday
Oct. IS


from the Mesaba iron range was
shipped to Duluth over the then
new Duluth, Missabe & Northern
road. The following is what APP
peared in Duluth newspaper tel
ling of the arrival of the train.
The first car of ore from the
Mesaba iron range reached Duluth
at HAS o'clock this morning over
the Duluth, Missabe & Northern
railroad. The engineers of the
switch engines in the yards between
the Union depot and Rice's Point
greeted the car with succession of
whistles. There was large crowd
at the Union depot and the train
was welcomed with big cheer,
the waving of hats and a unanimous
wish to secure souvenir specimens.
The ore car was placarded Mount
ain Iron Ore, By Duluth Missabe &
Northern Railway" and from the
center of the car a young pine tree
waved and nodded a welcome to
the crowd. There was twenty tons
of dark brownish purple soft ore
from the famous Mountain Iron
mine, which will go into history as
the first shipper of ore from the
new range. The ore assays trife
better than 65 per cent iron and
was consigned to Leonidas Merritt. F."
The first ore of good quality dis
covered on the Mesaba range was
found in 1890 on the upturned roots
of tree on the Mountain Iron mine
by the Merritts of Duluth, who
were then engaged in surveying a
line of railroad from Duluth to
Winnipeg via Rat Portage, which
is now called Kenora. John Nc
Kinley soon after found ore North
of the present village of Mckinley.
After all efforts had failed to induce
railroad men to build road to the
Mesaba range John Mckinley was
the first to put a crew of surveyors
in the field in the hope of finding
pass over the Highland range
from the mouth of the Sucker river
between Duluth and Tive Harbors.
In this effort the engineers failed
to find a passage of sufficiently low
grade, and it remained for the
Merritts to find a way to surmount
the hill back of Duluth. They or
ganized the Duluth, Missabe &
Northern Railway company, as
ISOLATED with the well-known con-
tracing firm of Foley & Grant and
built road on easy grade fran
Stony Brook junction, about thirty
miles north of Duluth, to the
Mountain Iron mine, in the sum-
mer of 1892. They entered into a
traffic arrangement with the Eastern
Minnesota railway, a logging road
to take their ore at Stony Brook
junction and convey it to Allouez
bay at Superior. But they were
not content with this arrangement
and wanted to build through tc
Duluth and build ore docks al
lOneota. In opposition to the
advice of Foley & Grant, who Their
withdrew from the enterprise, they
went ahead with the project, anc
this led to their downfall financially
They were compelled to borrow
heavily in order to do this work
and as the money market had be
come strigent they were forced Il
go to John d, Rockefeller to pro
cure the wherewithal. The OF
king drove hard bargain, and il
order that he might be given salts
factory security the Merritts wer'
set to work to consolidate all tn
known mines on the range in on
company, known as the Lake au
perior Consolidated Iron Mines
and mortgage On the whole out
fit was given TO Rockefeller.
Befafe the road was completes
1.-The panic of 1898 came on, and
needing more money, the Merritt
were compelled to pledge a majorit
of ownership in hath road and min
to John p Rockefeller. He fore
closed az the opportune time an
lsecured properties which he the
valued at $50, 200, 900 aud whie
was actually worth more thai
$4,000 900 for IA investment {
about s., oo8 900,
In the spring of 1892 there we
commenced the construction of til
line of the Duluth & Iron Rans
road from Allen Junction to B
wabik district, where the Hiwabil
Cincinnati, Hale aud Canton mine
were being developed. The lir
was flashed to the Biwabik regio
that summer.
This in brief is the story Of Il
activities that commended twent
years ago, which have been contil
ued and which have made d
Mesaha faAge the greatest iron o
mirng region in the wexld at Il