White Pine news. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1920-1923, 1921-08-14
(By Il. r. MILLERD
PART TWENTY-SN

In 1897 BY Charles ID. Lane. who
turned over the management OF MS
interests TO his son, Thomas 7. Lane,
who expended about $170.000 in the
construction of mill water bitches
and power plant. Mr.. Lane was the
first 10 place Ely in communication
with the outside world by building
the Ely and Eureka telephone line
However, the Lane operations. which
had been expected TO restore the old
time prosperity and mark a new era
of development in the history of the
camp. were far from successful and
were finally abandoned
The Ely Mining and Milling Com
pany. financed by a group OF salt
NJsake City capitalists. purchased the
V1iobust group of mines from Dick
Reipe. his brother Henry and General
Thomas paying $4,000 for the prop
erty. The company erected "a cyanide
plant but the ores were not suscepti-
BILE To the treatment provided and the
mill closed after "A brief run, which
proved a failure. The excitement in
cident to the Lane operations had by
this time subsidized and for the next
three years the camp was virtually
dead.
In 1900 another attempt was made
10 operate the Chairman. which was
taken. over by a number of capital
lists from New York and Pennsylvania
for a cash price OF S150.000, | be
lieve About 100000 more was ex,
pended in new mill construction. but
the plant was found TO be useless
owing 10 the fact that when a little
depth had been reached copper values
were encountered. which interfered
with the cyanide process used. While
the camp was dull during these years
claims were located and abandoned
many times.
The first attempt 10 prospect for
copper. which was made after the
unsuccessful smelling experience of
Mr.. Long in the early SOS. was by
Joe Brey. samples of ore having been
sent to him by ID G. Mcdonald from
the Star of the West claim. where
the steam shovel pit is now located.
After examination of the copper
mines he purchased a group OF claims
from Newt Boyd. Thomas RockhilI
and Thomas Johnson This purchase
was made in 1899 and was on behalf
- New York capitalist named Mar
h. The venture. however. like
many others. failed of success.
About this time Frank Paul had
induced Joseph l.. Giroux to invest
quent Giroux operations were due TO
the untirng efforts of Mr.. Paul.
The first actual development of a
copper property on an extensive scale
was performed by Edward Gray and
David =. BARLEY on the Ruth claims,
which they had purchased from ID. c
Mcdonald and Walter Rynearson for
approximately $4,000 Mark Requa
was also interested in the Ruth op.
erations at the time the writer left
the county. and | understand that 1t
was through the efforts of Mr.. Requa
that the consolidation OF the New
York and Nevada Copper Company
was effected
Successive mining failures. which
left the town dull and spelled ruin
for many of the business men,
dampened but could not quenrh the
fires OF hope that burned i'm the
breasts OF the old-timers Seeing
success in each mine which opened
they refused to be cast down when
operations were halted. but always
held to the belief that the camp would
ultimately prove its worth. These
intermittent spells OF prosperity and
poverty continued up until 1904
when the writer left. and at that time
there were lying idle number of
properties which had at one time
been promising. among these being
the Chairman MILL the Robust prop.
erty, the Rob Roy, the Keystone mill
the old Mckinley furnace and the old
Yhainman mill just west of town.
How the faith of the old-timers
was justified is better known to the
present Ely residents than to the
writer, who has learned only part of
the story as told In the columns of
the White Pine News during the last
seventeen years. However. the sue
cess Of the hopeful old-timers has
been we'll deserved, as they passed
through many dark years before the
lawn OF prosperity. The lean years
OF Ely were many. and after the clos
ing OF the mines many of the resi-
dents were left lighting hard for O
mere existence
II is doubtful IL any other Nevada
mining camp has experienced the vi
cissitudes which fell to the lot of Ely.
In these lean years often dollar
looked as big as the moon-and
about as far out of reach. However.
gloom was not allowed to settle for
long within the limits of the camp.
as the open-hearted pioneers who had
anything were always more than will
ing 10 share with their less fortunate
helghDors and unselfsh acts OF char
ity were the common currency of the
country
Ely's place as a town was more or
less precarious until 1885. when the
courthouse at Hamilton burned and
TWO years later the county seat was
moved to Ely, which thereafter was
assured OF permanent place on the
map. The history OF the cid town
would, however. be incomplete with
out mention OF at least few of the
early-day residents whose faith in its
e Iuture survived all disappointments
ana who were largely responsible for
its upbuilding
The first house built on the present
site OF Ely was erected by Harry
Featherston In the latter '7Os. Mr.
Featherston. who married Mrs. Rut.
lodge of Mlneral CIIv sottIod ~ MILF