Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1918-10-25
LOSTFORTUNES OF
OZARK MOUNTAINS
MISSOURI HIDES MANY RICH DE-
sz. POSTS OF METAL. .ash
Thousands of Dollars In Ore Have
Been taken From Veins Care
fully Concealed by Owners.

st. Louis, Mo.-Missouri tradition
is replete with stories of "lost" mines,
hidden treasures of silver, copper and
other metals, but there is one "lost"
mine in the state. the existence OF
which has been partly verified. 1t has
been the object of search more than
fifty years since it's >disgruntled oper-
ator buried" it to prevent it from
passing out of his possession.
In the search of fifty years hun
dreds of prospectors have "gophered"
it's supposed whereabouts and thou
sands of dollars have been spent in
trying to reclaim it, but 1t remains
concealed.
The mine is known as the Old Sla-
ter Mine and is supposed to be situated
on the Jacks Fork branch of the Cur
rent river, near Eminence, the coun-
ty seat of Shannon county. Years Of
litigation have been responsible to
some extent for the lack of more ex-
haustive search, but this has been set
tied, and j. w. Mcclellan, former
state legislator has begun the search
anew.
The history of the lost mine dates
from pre-Civil war days before the Gre
alton by the legislature of Shannon
county. The story of the lost mine
has been retold so often by the old
settlers of the Current river hills that
several versions have been evolved
from the original facts.
However divergent the stories, the
fact that the mine once produced cop
per in paying quantities to the sum of
more than 100000 Is history.
AS the story is related, Joseph Sla-
ter, an Englishman and practical
miner, explored the Current river in
1880, and some time thereafter short
distance from Eminence discovered
rich veins Of copper ore. He immedi-
ately sunk a shaft and set up mill.
operated by water power. His en-
ployes numbered six.
Slater shipped his ore overland to
the Iron Mountain railroad, some sixty
miles distant, or floated it down the
Current river and the Mississippi to
New Orleans.
About $50 square miles Of land en-
braced by Shannon county were re-
served by the government as copper
lands"
Slater is known to have been oper-
ating his mine at the time the land
was thrown open to entry. The story
is that one of the Chiltons-pioneers
of southeastern Missouri-went to the
land office and filed on the land which
embraced Slater's mine. Slater heard
of Chilton's plan and hurried off In
pursuit. Realizing that Chilton's ad
vantage could not be overcome, Sla'
ter returned and ordered his employees
to bury" the mine.
The shaft was filled with debris and
the veins, said to have run near the
surface, were covered with sod and
trees. The employees are said to have
taken oath that they would never re
veal the location of the ore deposits.
His mine "lost," Slater awaited Chill
tons action. The fight for possession
of the property followed and this liti
| CATION continued several years, wher
Slater died.
1t was during the Civil war that fats
came near removing Chiffon as an oh
stacle in Slater's path. Bands of guer
rillas overran the country, stealing
and numbering. They had destroyed
the town of Eminence and were moving
in the direction of Chilton's farm. The
latter saw them coming and tried tt
flee on horseback, but was detected.
He was pursued into dense forest
and there he abandoned his horse ant
concealed himself. in an UNCOVERED
tree. From his place of concealmen
he could hear the bandits planning hi
murder, but they failed, to find hin