Yerington times. [volume] (Yerington, Nev.) 1907-1932, 1912-07-06
SOME COPPER BELT
HISTORY OF INTEREST

q NJ 4 seven or eight years
ID ago a coterIe of mining men,
~ engaged i'll the mining of cop
~ per, having operated extensive
" heretofore in Utah and other
parts of the west, had their attention
called to, at that time, the unknown re-
sources of copper deposits in the Yer
ington and Mason mining district. At
that time little was known of the ire
mendous proportions of that section, ex-
cept that the Ludwig, Bluestone and
some other properties had been, in days
gone by (some thirty or forty years ago.
shippers of high grade copper ore. The
calling of the attention of these men re-
suited in one of the best properties be-
ing taken over, and rapid development
started.
Among those at first active were Capt
]. K. DeLamar (who now owns the Blue
stone) The Gum Thompson Company
of New York and Salt Lake City (who
SoItIOi WHAT 10 kuOWIl d. tuC MdSOIi
Valley Mines Company, which embraces
what is known as the Spragg group and
A. J. Orem & Co. and their associates of
Salt Lake City and Boston (who control
and operate the Nevada Douglas Copper
Co., whose holdings comprise the Doug
las, Ludwig and amalgamated groups,
D.,1.
road
Active development work had been
carried on in these properties, and 9TH
ers of lesser importance, for four or FIVE
years prior to January 1st, 1912, until
large tonnages were developed and
blocked out, demonstrating conclusively
necessity for, both transportation facili-
ties connecting the copper district with
the outside world, and production facili
ties for reducing the ore to matte OF
blister copper, i'll the district without
having to figure against long haul to
the then nearest smelling plant. Both
the Nevada Douglas Copper Co. and the
Mason Valley Mines Co., having reached
point in their careers where, i'll order
that some adequate return Tor the large
amount of money and energy expended
might be obtained, it seemed necessary
that each of those companies provide it
self with both transportation and pro-
Il, Il ~ ~, he
came common ground, resulting in an
understanding that one should build a
smelling plant and the other a railroad,
and eacn i'll turn would patronize the
other. The agreement resulted i'll tive
beginning of construction of the Mason
Valley Mines Company's new, modern.
l000-ton smelling plant, located at the
town of Thompson, Nevada, some three
miles from Wabuska, a station on the S
p. Co s line.
This plant is now in successful opera
ton, and at this time is handling in one
furnace, very successfully as much ore
as had been originally intended to han
die with two furnaces.
The Nevada Copper Belt Railroad Co.,
controlled by the Nevada Douglas Cop
per Co. s interests, as indicated above,
tarted construction of their railroad,
traversing not only the entire mineral
lied area of this section, but a large ag
ricultural territory as well, known as
Mason and Smith Valleys. The build
ing of this forty-two miles of road, i'll
augnrated in the fall of 1909, was sue
cessfullv completed and in full operation
September, 1911. The line is we'll
equipped and standard guage, fully pre-
pared to handle two thousand tons of ore
or more, and other productions daily.
Has forty-ive steel ore cars, of S0ton
capacity, battleship type, which have
been provided exclusively for ore haul
ing from the various mines to the smelt
ing plant at Thompson,
The first p miles of the road are in
Mason Valley, one of the largest and
most fertile sections of the state of Ne
vada and beyond all doubt, the best wa
tered. The line then runs through what
is known as Walker River Canyon into
Smith Valley near the California Dor
der This valley is equal in area and
agricultural development to Mason Val
ley. Both valleys are watered by the
Walker river. one of the best streams i'll
the state In these valleys there now
are approximately l40, 900 acres under
cultivation, while there are in the neigh
borhood of 200. 600 acres still INDICATED,
which is unexcelled in quality by any
land in the United States. So. 900 acres
Of this land will soon be under water
and opened to the public under the Ca
rey Act. A storage system is now Being
arranged for, the dam for which will be
located near Bridgeport, California.