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Show FAMOUS MINING STRIKES By THOMAS E. STEWARD !-: -fr:-:- Discovery of Big Deposits in Minnesota BEGINNING In the late Sixties there was Intermittent prospecting prospect-ing for Iron ore In northern Minnesota. Minne-sota. . Geologists considered the formations for-mations to be more than likely to contain con-tain large deposits. Exploration went ahead chiefly between Embarrass lake and Birch lake, on the eastern end of the range. Yet not a single deposit of j Iron ore of such size and character aa to warrant mining had been turned In, 1 according to Lelth. In fact, the range I had been rejected by many mining men who had examined it. This was largely due to the fact that they paid most attention to the eastern end, which contains "magnetite," an ore In such close association with other rocks that it is extremely difficult to work. ! Among the most persistent of the Mesabi prospectors were the celebrated celebrat-ed Merrltt family of Duluth. These were eight brothers Lon. perhaps the best known ; Alfred. L. J., C. C, T. B., A. It., J. E., and W. J. Merritt. Their faith In the range was the first to be rewarded in 1S00, although the biggest strikes came In the year following. On November 10, 1S00, one of their test pit crews, in charge of Capt. J. A, Nichols of Duluth, struck ore just north of what is now the famous Mountain Iron mine. This was followed fol-lowed in 1S91 by the discovery of ore In what is now the territory of the Bi-wabik Bi-wabik and Cincinnati mines. John McCaskill, an explorer, observed ob-served iron ore clinging to the roots of an upturned tree on what is now the BIwabik property. This led to test pitting, and test pitting by the Merritts on the area of the Biwabik mine, under charge of W. J. Merritt, led to the discovery of this mine in August, 1S91. The Cincinnati mine was opened the same fall and several others followed in 1S92. The discovery of ore near what are now known as the towns of Virginia, Eveleth and Hibbing followed In rapid rap-id succession. The excitement that followed the original strike at Mountain Moun-tain Iron was greatly Increased by each succeeding find and in 1S92 there came the Inevitable rush of prospectors prospec-tors and adventurers. The. old days of western mining camps were re-enacted in northern Minnesota. The hardships of early prospectors who followed the big strikes on the Mesabi range were those of travel rather than of hardship in far distant dis-tant regions. Leaving the railroad at what was called Mesabi Station, they were compelled to travel 12 to 50 miles along "tote" roads that were all but Impassable. And when they plunged Into the wilderness they were confronted by a succession of fallen trees, huge boulders nnd deep swamps that made their lives wretched. Notwithstanding Not-withstanding these hardships they covered the area and with the explorers ex-plorers of rich mining companies discovered dis-covered most of the famous deposits of iron ore in northern Minnesota. The sum that these discoveries have added to the national wealth must be measured meas-ured in billions. |