The Ely miner., 1930-12-19
MINING HISTORY
BY DR.. FOLWELL
LAST BOOK OF MINNESOTA HIS
TORY BY DR.. FOLWELL DE-
VOTES CONSIDERABLE SPACE
TO THE BEGINNING OF MINING
ON THE RANGES.

The last work of Dr. William Watts
Folwen who died, Sept. 18, 1929 con-
tains an interesting chapter given over
to the mining industry on the ranges,
particularly the early events which led
to the discovery of ore, the coming of
the Merritts and the opening up of
various ore fields
The six essays that comprise the
volume tell the story of development
Of iron mining in Minnesota.
According to Ray Swanson in the
ST. Paul Pioneer Press the essay on
Minnesota Iron Mines" could stand
alone as notable contribution to
Minnesota history.
Swanson's article on mines follow:
The essay on Minnesota Iron
Mines" could stand alone as a notable
contribution to Minnesota history
Here for the first time appears the
story in a comprehensive scale of their
development In it DR.. FolWen has
traced the history of the metallic
wealth of the North Shore region from
the days of the French explorers down
to the living present.
The early settlers of Minnesota, fired
by the precedent of the California gold
rush, had the belief that the triangle
contained a fabulous wealth of preci-
Gus metals. In fact, the first wide
spread interest in that region arose
from wild rumorS of gold. In the late
COS there was Vermilion Lake gold
rush" In the early season of 1866 there
sp1ang up at Vermilion lake a typical
mining camp. Shafts were sunk into
quartz veins and mining works con-
Structed, stamp mills were erected and
saloons opened. The craze was short
lved,of course, since the findings were
not worth working.
The region was to wait over twenty
years before permanent mining in
dustry grew up, and then it was to
be founded on baser metal, the world
famous iron ore of the Vermilion and
Mesabi ranges. The term gold rush"
has uSurped all the romance and
glamour of mining history, but still
the discovery and development of the
iron ore OF northern Minnesota is the
most dramatic chapter in the history
OF the state
The struggle for the possession of
this enormous wealth is battle of
titans and ths revolutionary changes
the region produced in mining opera
tions is intensely absorbing.
DR.. Folwel recountS without fear or
favor the underhand methods by which
Eastern interests obtained enormous
tracts of ore lands, particularly how
the Rockefeller interests got control of
the fortune built up by the Merritt
brothers of Duluth who were the dis
covererS OF the Mesabi Iron Range.
Their discovery Of the fabulouSly rich
Mesabi ore beds near the present site
OF Virginia is doubtless the most DRAM
attic episode in the annals of Minnesota
mining. The so-called Biwablk for
nation revolutionized iron mining.
The ore in the Vermilion range could
be reached only by shafting nearly
vertically. In contrast, the Mesabi ore
bodies were found in the horizontal
and in detached masses. 1t was nee
eSSary only to strip off the glacial
drift to reach great masses of ore.
Furthermore, the presence of soft ores
in the MeSabi Range led to the intro
duction of new ways of mining, the
open pitt method. This simply in
volved steam shovel both for strip
ping the top soil and scooping up the
ore into convenient cars waiting on
tracks which could be moved from
time to time as the work progressed.
The iron ore mining industry, be-
ginning in 1884 in the Verrnilion dis
trict and greatly increased after 1892
by the Mesabi developments, rose in
the years thereafter to be the third
in Importance in the state In value
of iron ore produced Minnesota ranks
first of all other states
The effects of the mining develop
ment, DR.. Folwen points out upon the
settlement and population of st. Louis
county had no precedent in Minnesota
history. Its population, which was
under 5000 in 1880, grew by leaps and
bounds. Mining towns grew at a
rapid rate. and acquired the comforts
and luxuries of older places with as
tonishing quickness because the mines
were source of large revenue for
public improvements without burden
to the average citizen Expenditures
for schools alone were lavish beyond
comparison. Few college buildings
anywhere compared favorably with the
high schools of Virginia and Hibbing.