USA > Michigan > Marquette County > Beard's directory and history of Marquette County with sketches of the early history of Lake Superior, its mines, furnaces, etc., etc > Part 13
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It is more than likely that before the tunnel is completed to
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MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
the shaft the black ore will be encountered, placed as it has been found in the other openings.
Explorations which have been made north-east of this open- ing, show a continuation of these veins of rich black and slate ores, while above them a leaner, second-class ore forms the bare face of the mountain.
Work has been going on at this mine but about a year. The time last winter was spent in surveys and test-pitting. A saw mill was erected, supplies had to be taken in, nine miles over a new wagon road. A railroad had to be constructed-by the M., H. & O. company-and all the work commenced in the most primitive style. Yet, on the second of October last, a train of ore cars was dispatched from the mine-docks, tramways, pock- ets, &c., had been constructed, and the mine was full-fledged for business.
Now there are thirteen houses on the location, a company store, a drug store, commodious barns, &c.
The shipping facilities are being so extended as to have a tram road from each opening to the railway, and the accommo- dations for loading from the docks and the pockets will be such as to enable the laborers to handle twenty cars at the same time.
In short it is intended to handle a thousand tons of ore every day during the shipping season of 1873.
The buildings are of a better class than those erected by any other mining company in the Marquette district, and con- siderably better than those in use by many of the old companies. During the present year a school house and church will be erect- ed, and every effort made to care for the positive as well as the temporal interest of the operatives.
.
BLAST FURNACES.
As might readily be inferred, the most important manufac- turing interest on Lake Superior is the smelting of iron ore in the blast furnace. The attempt to establish iron manufactures on Lake Superior was made under many disadvantages, and at a time when, if successful, those engaged in the enterprise could not hope for large returns on the amount of capital and labor invested. It was made, in fact, before anything had been done toward the development of the mines, and when it would have been next to impossible to get the iron to market, except at an immense expense for transportation. And, in fact, the first effort at iron making on these shores succeeded only in so far that it served to show the sterling qualities of the ores, and the readi- ness with which they could be converted into blooms or pig metal.
In the summer or fall of 1846, one year after the discovery of the Jackson mountain by Mr. Everett and his party, the Jack- son Company undertook the erection of a forge on the Carp river, about three miles east of Negaunee. The building of the forge was intrusted to Wm. McNair, who was sent here as agent for the company. He had never seen a forge, and did not suc- ceed in accomplishing anything toward its erection till the fol- lowing year. In July, 1847, Ariel N. Barney and his brother- in-law, Aaron K. Olds, arrived at the mouth of the Carp, having been sent up by the company. They were both practical iron makers, and expected to find the forge nearly ready for work. In this they were disappointed, as nothing had been done save that a few timbers had been hauled upon the ground ; they soon discovered that McNair knew absolutely nothing about the business he had undertaken, and it was not long until Mr. Bar- ney was empowered to go on and build the forge, and to him really belongs the credit of having built and put in operation the first iron manufacturing establishment on Lake Superior. The first bloom was made on the 10th day of February, 1848, by Mr. Olds, and was hammered into bar iron by Mr. Barney. This is the correct date of the first manufacture of iron on Lake Supe- rior.
In May, of the same year, Messrs. Barney, Olds, and one or two others, started in a small boat for the Sault, taking with them about 300 lbs. of bar iron, among it the first bar made at the forge. This iron was taken to Jackson, and there exhibited as a specimen of what could be done on Lake Superior.
228
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The forge continued in operation till sometime in 1850, when it was abandoned. It never paid the interest on the money in- vested, but, having served the purpose of a thorough test of the Jackson ore, the company very wisely concluded to abandon it, and devote the whole of their capital and energy to the develop- ment of their mines.
Another forge was built here at Marquette, just south of the shore end of the Cleveland dock, by a Worcester, (Mass.) com- pany, in 1849, under the direction and superintendence of A. R. Harlow, Esq. It was destroyed by fire the following winter, and was never rebuilt. Two other forges were subsequently built at Forestville and Collinsville.
The first pig iron from Lake Superior ore was made by S. R. Gay, at the Collins forge. It was made as an experiment, in the forge chimney, which had been converted into a temporary stack. The result confirmed Mr. Gay in his determination to build a blast furnace, which he afterwards did.
There are now in the district sixteen blast furnaces, and one rolling mill.
THE MORGAN FURNACE,
Built and owned by the Morgan Iron Company, went into blast November 27, 1863, making in the first year 337 tons of iron. The Morgan has been, perhaps, the most successful enterprise of the kind in the district, having made, in the first ten months, a clear net profit of 220 per cent., thus enabling the company to pay back all the original outlay for land and machinery, leav- ing a dividend of 100 per cent. to be divided among the stock- holders. The Morgan is situated on the line of the M. & O R. R., eight miles west of Marquette. It was built under the im- mediate supervision of C. Donkersley, Esq., one of our most practical and efficient iron masters, who still occupies the posi- tion of general agent. The product of the Morgan for the seven years she has been in blast is given as follows :
Year.
Gross tons.
Year.
Gross tons.
1863
337
1870
5,952
1864
4,023
1871
4,792
1865
3,489
1872
4,356
1866
3,749
1867
5,057
Total,
35,352
1868
4,203
The furnace was out of blast for over a year previous to the last week in December, 1869, when she again commenced mak- ing iron. Her being out of blast for so long a time was occa- sion by the exhaustion of the fuel supply immediately about the furnace. This difficulty has been overcome by the building of a wooden railway to lands owned by the company, nine miles north of the furnace, where kilns were built during the summer of 1869. The coal used in the furnace, or, at least, a greater
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MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
part of it, is now being transported over this road. In the meantime, extensive repairs have been made on the furnace, and as the above figures for 1872 show, she is running under the most flattering auspices.
The officers of the company are :
L. H. MORGAN, President.
S. P. ELY, Secretary and Treasurer.
C. DONSKERLEY, General Agent.
About two years ago, the Fayette furnace wrested the " broom " (the emblem of victory) from the Champion furnace, and has held it ever since, on 211 tons of pig iron made in one week. In August, however, the Morgan furnace, with its nine foot bosh, made an unprecented run of 230 tons ! It may be of interest to charcoal iron men to know some of the details of the furnace and its working during the week, kindly furnished the writer at the works by Mr. J. E. Barnum, the superintendent, and Mr. Carrol, the founder. The present height of the stack is 45 feet ; height of bosh, 16 feet ; diameter of the hearth at bottom, 44 inches; diameter of bosh, 9 feet ; diameter tunnel- head, 52 inches. Using two tuyers five inches in diameter, and 32 iches from bottom of hearth. Pressure of blast, 25 pounds ; temperature of blast, 700 to 800 deg. (F.) Charcoal is two-thirds hard an .. one-third soft. Charge consists of
Lake Superior slate ore 197 lbs.
Lake Superior hematite 262 lbs.
Republic mine, ore. 591 lbs.
Native lime stone L. S. 40 lbs.
Charcoal 30 bus.
About an average sample of the Lake Superior slate ore gave by analysis :
Metalic iron
66 00
Oxygen combined with iron
28 29
Insoluble residue. 4 70
1 01
Undetermined ingredients and loss
100 00
Lake Superior hematite analysis :
Metallic iron
56 00
Oxygen combined with iron
24 00
Silica.
6 00
Water
9 50
Undetermined ingredients and loss
3 90
100 00
This ore contains small pieces of kaolinite, a soft, greasy- feeling mineral, usually white or a pinkish color, and composed of a hydrous silicate of alumina.
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ยท
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MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
A sample of the Republic mine ore gave by analysis :
Metallic iron 69 58
Oxygen combined with iron 29 82
Insoluble residue. 44
16
Undetermined ingredients and loss
100 00
This will give an average for the charge of 65x24 per cent. of metallic iron.
An analysis of the limestone (L. S.) afforded :
Carb. of lime. 49 10
43
Corb. of magnesia
41 00
Silica
3 80
Loss, etc.,
67
100 00
A portion of the iron should be estimated as a peroxide, as may be seen by a slight discoloration (reddish) of the limestone.
An analysis of the cinder gave :
Silica 54 40
Alumini 17 40
1 26
Lime
17 60
Magnesia
7 90
Alkalies, loss, etc
1 54
100 00
It will be seen that the ingredients of the cinder are very well proportioned for making foundry iron.
The quality of the iron produced was 179 tons of an opened grained No. 1 foundry, 33 tons of No. 2 foundry, and 18 tons of No. 3. The amount of charcoal used was a fraction over 100 bushels to the ton of iron made. The furnace worked very free, and did not act as if it was at all pushed. It required but very little "working out," except "breaking up" the fire after casting.
This is, for a charcoal furnace with a nine foot bosh, the best week's work on record in this country or abroad .- Mining Jour. THE BANCROFT FURNACE,
Now owned by the Bancroft Iron Company, is situated on Dead river, about four miles from Marquette, and was built in 1860 by S. R. Gay, Esq. The first account we have of it is in 1861, in which year the shipments were reported at 2,430 tons. We are able to give a statement of the product of the furnace for every year except 1864-5, of which the records were destroyed in the fire of 1868. The following is the table, estimating the years referred to :
Year.
Gross tons.
Year.
Gross tons.
1861
-5,430
1868
3,800
1862
2,802
1869
3,407
1863.
2,626
1870
3,710
1864 (estimated). -3,000
1871
3,850
1865 (estimated)
-2,700
1872
4,250
1866
.2,451
1867
3,245
Total 38,251
Carb. of iron
Protoxide of iron
1
231
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The product of this furnace for 1872 amounted to 4,250 tons, 4,006 tons of which were shipped.
In the fall of 1871, this furnace was rebuilt, and a 20-foot turret of iron put on the top A new casting and top-house was also constructed, the hot blast enlarged, and a new lining and hearth put into the stack, so that her product was increased 400 tons over any former year. She was very carefully managed, and will do still better, as the company have purchased consid- erable additional wood land, and added eight 45-cord charcoal kilns to their coal capacity, to avoid the contingency which too often occurs, of being short of fuel.
The officers of the Bancroft Iron Company are now as fol- lows : Peter White, of Marquette, President ; Samuel L. Mather, Cleveland, Ohio, Treasurer ; J. C. Morse, Marquette, Secretary and manager.
THE CHAMPION FURNACE
Is about thirty-two miles west of Marquette, near the east end of Lake Michigammi, and on the line of the M. & O. R. R. It was built by the Morgan Iron Company, and went into blast on the 4th of December, 1867. Made the first year, in a run of ten months, 4,282 gross tons of metal,
This furnace has made a splendid record for herself-the best, probably, of any in the district. Though out of blast two months during the time, she made in 1869, 5,560 tons of metal- an increase of 1,278 tons. Her average daily product during the year was 172 tons-though for the last four months it was very nearly 20 tons. She made during the time the largest week's work of any charcoal furnace of the same size on record, being no less than 171 tons of first-class metal-an average of 25 tons per day. Her last year's make was accomplished with a mixture of Lake Superior hematite and the other three-fifths Champion slate and magnetic ores, and an average of 70 lbs. of flux. The average yield of these mixed ores was 64 71 per cent. and the average amount of coal 103 bushels. The following is a summary of the product for the five years the furnace has been in operation :
Year.
Gross tons.
Year.
Gross tons.
1868
4,282
1872.
5,006
1869
5,560
1870
5,576
Total
25,518
1871
-5,094
The furnace is under the immediate supervision of J. R. Case, of whose efficiency sufficient evidence is found in the figures given.
There is a considerable village at and around the furnace, the company having a large store and warehouse, and about forty buildings for the use of employes. It is a point of consid- erable interest, being but a short distance from the east end of
232
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
Lake Michigammi, one of the most beautiful and picturesque of the sparkling, fresh water gems with which the Upper Peninsula is studded.
THE DEER LAKE FURNACE
Was commenced in the summer of 1868, and went into blast about the 1st of September of that year. It is owned by a num- ber of gentlemen who reside at Norwich, Connecticut, whose interests here are represented by Mr. Ward. The furnace is the smallest in the district, and consequently can not be expected to present the same array of figures as some of the older and larger ones. The furnace is run on a strictly moral plan, being "shut down" regularly on Saturday nights, making no iron on Sundays.
The total product of the furnace for the four years she has been in operation is given at 10,553 tons. About 450 tons of this was made during the last four months of 1868, showing the product for 1869 to have been a little over 2,500 tons, the same amount being reported for 1870.
Late in the summer of 1872 the iron broke out through the arch, onthe left side, under the tuyere, and set fire to the blowing house. The fire was soon communicated to the casting and top house, and consumed them, leaving the premises a complete wreck, with nothing but the stone stack and hot blast remaining. With characteristic energy, Mr. C. H. Hall, managing agent, com- menced clearing away the debris before the flames had ceased to act upon the larger timbers, and having succeeded in drawing the charge without permitting a salamander, he had the build- ings reconstructed and the furnace at work before the expiration of five weeks.
BAY FURNACE.
The quantity of iron produced at the Bay furnace last year was 4,900 tons, 4,339 tons of which were shipped.
A second stack was built during the season, and went into blast on the 1st of December. It is an iron shell, on columns, 10 feet in the boshes, and 46 feet high-the same size as No. 1. It is supplied with a steam hoist, as also a water hoist, either of which can be used, according to convenience. The boilers, blowers, and all the rest of the iron work of this furnace were made at the Bay foundry, Marquette, being the first furnace built entirely in this district-and it is regarded as good work in every particular.
Twenty-two new coal kilns were built to add sufficient sup- ply of fuel for No. 2. About 4,700 tons of ore is on the docks for the joint use of both furnaces during the winter.
The shipping accommodations are very good, there being a dock 1,000 feet long, with a front of 400 feet on 11} feet of water, which is not disturbed by rough weather, except in cases of the most severe nor'-westers.
The company own 20,000 acres of land in the neighborhood
.
233
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
of the furnaces, on .Grand Island Bay, which is valuable alike for its timber, for coal and lumber. A State road has been worked toward Marquette, which will be completed the coming season. The distance is 40 miles.
The following is the product of this location ;
Year.
Tons.
1871
3,597
1872
4,900
Total,
8,497
The officers and management of the company remain as be- fore.
The company has 52 brick and stone kilns, of size ensuring constant supply of charcoal for both furnaces. Both furnaces are run on the red specular ores, and make a speciality of iron adapted to steel rails and car wheels.
The entire machinery-boilers, hot blasts and shell stack for these furnaces was built by the Iron Bay Foundry, of Marquette, D. H. Merritt proprietor, and are in every department equal to the best eastern work.
WHERE THE ORES GO.
The largest portion of our ores go to Cleveland, whence they are re-shipped to the coal fields of the Mahoning and Shenango valleys, by railroad. The freight from Cleveland to Youngs- town is about $1, to Pittsburg, $2. About one hundred furnaces in Ohio and Pennsylvania use Lake Superior ore, while nearly all the charcoal furnaces in the Northwest are supplied from our mines. The number of furnaces is rapidly multiplying-the new ones built in 1869 increasing the demand for Lake Superior ore by at least 100,000 tons.
THE MARKET
For our ore is not confined to the Lake Erie ports, though they have hitherto taken the great bulk of the product. Our market place is the entire great West.
The day is forever past when iron manufacturers east of the Alleghanies will furnish the west with iron. They have ceased to do so. Henceforth 75,000 out of every 100,000 tons of iron ore that goes to the coal fields west of the Alleghanies for man- ufacture will be from Lake Superior, while 90,000 out of every 100,000 tons of iron used in the West will have been produced west of them. Then consider the present population of the West-some 15,000,000-the rate at which it is being augment- ed-the commercial facilities which exist to foster and encour- age manufactures and the mechanic arts-the numerous rail- roads that must still be constructed, and the ten thousand other improvements that are rapidly developing, and which require vast amounts of iron. Another year will give us a new outlet
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MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
throngh the western extremity of Lake Superior, and the con- struction of the Northern Pacific Railroad, which is sure to come, will lead to the building of hundreds of furnaces in the heavily timbered country that will thus be opened up to trade and commerce. When we look at these facts, the question of market is forever settled. Then, in the course of human events, Lake Superior iron is going to Europe. With some this may ex- cite a smile, but ere long the fact will be realized, since, for cer- tain important uses, it has no equal in the world.
STOCKS AND DIVIDENDS.
The stocks of the iron mining and smelting companies are not offered in the market, the owners being perfectly satisfied to keep them ; nor are their profits and disbursements officially made public. Unlike most other Lake Superior stocks, those of our iron mines have never been heard of in the stock markets, from which facts the uninitiated infer they are barren of re- sults. The contrary, however, is the fact. They are so highly appreciated by those who hold them, that they are not only kept from stock boards, but are seldom heard of on the streets even. Such is the faith of those who hold them, that they are not dis- posed to part with them under any circumstances, having no- thing as a permanent investment that can and will bring them so sure and safe a return This being the case, the holders do not care to brag on their dividends abroad, but prefer rather to quietly share them. All the mines now working will pay divi- dends the present year.
We doubt whether, in view of all these facts, there is an in- terest in the United States that promises better and surer returns for a long series of years, than the mining and smelting of iron ores in this district. And, in conclusion, we may safely add, that, considering the magnitude of its mineral wealth, the time is near at hand when the iron district of Lake Superior will as- sume a front rank in the sublime destiny of the great and grow- ing West.
We are indebted to Swineford's History of the "Lake Superior Iron District for 1870-71-72," for the foregoing short sketches of some of the principal Iron mines of this region, and also the following statistics re- garding the shipments of ore, etc. The above history, with appendixes, contain a very full and correct account of all the mines, as published by Mining Journal, Marquette, Mich. Price, $1,00 .- Compiler of Beards Di- rectory.
235
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The following table exhibits in gross and net tons the amount of iron oreshipped from the Lake Superior mines during the season of 1872, together with its total value at $6 per ton, gross :
MINES.
Gross tons.
Net tons.
Value.
Jackson.
118,842
133,103 $ 712,052
New York
68,050
77.224
413,700
Cleveland.
152,607
170,919
914,442
Lake Superior
185,070
207.279
1,110,420
Champion
68,405
76,613
410,430
Lake Angeline-
35 221
39 407
211,326
Barnum
38,381
42,992
230,186
Washington
38,841
43,506
233,046
Edwards
26,026
29,149
216,026
Saginaw.
19,160
21,461
114,960
New England.
17,465
19,560
104,790
Cascade
35,069
39,278
210,414
Silas C. Smith
13,445
15,058
80,670
McComber
24,153
27,051
144,918
Foster.
18,139
20,316
108,834
Winthrop
14,239
15 946
85,434
Negaunee
6,897
7,725
41,382
Marquette
11,924
13,355
71,544
Republic.
11,025
12,348
66,150
Marquette and Pacific Rolling Mill
6,772
7,583
40,632
Allen
8,707
9,751
52,242
Grand Central
9,925
11,616
59,950
Wilcox & Bagaley
4,426
4,957
26,556
Mather
2,288
2,512
13,368
Green Bay
7,633
8,548
45,798
Franklin
t.
2,007
2,248
12,042
Albion
1,100
1,232
6,600
Pittsburgh and Lake Superior
1,160
1,298
6,960
Michigan
1,227
1,374
7,362
Quartz
718
804
4,308
Excelsior
756
846
4,536
Williams.
447
555
2,682
Iron Cliff Red Ore
545
610
3,270
Shenango
197
217
1,182
Pendill
127
142
762
Michigammi
141
158
846
Carr
18
21
108
Shelden
7
8
42
Total
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1
1
1
1
L
1
952,055 1,066,297 $5,712,330
1
1
236
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The following table shows the total product of the Lake Su- perior furnaces from 1858 to 1872, inclusive:
Furnace.
Gross tons.
Pioneer
_64,597
Northern
15,068
Collins
40,949
Michigan
27,345
Greenwood
29,352
Morgan
35,991
Bancroft.
38,251
Champion
25,566
Jackson
34,242
Schoolcraft
10,057
Deer Lake
10,553
Bay
11,995
Marquette and Pacific (pig metal).
5,942
Marquette and Pacific (muck bar and merchant iron)
999
Lake Superior Co.'s Peat furnace.
200
Total
357,880
The following is a statement in gross tons of the production of ore and pig iron in this district from 1856 to 1872, inclusive, together with the aggregate value :
YEAR.
Iron Ore.
Pig Iron.
Ore and l'ig Iron.
Value.
1856
7,000
7,000
$ 28,000
1857
21,000
21,000
60,000
1858
31,035
1,629
32,661
249,202
1859
65,679
7,258
72,937
575 529
1860
116,908
5,660
122,658
736,496
1861
45,430
7,970
53,400
419,501
1862
115,721
8,590
124,311
984 977
1863
185,257
9,813
195,070
1,416,935
1864
235,123
13,832
248,955
1,867,215
1865
196,256
12,283
207,539
1,590,430
1866
296,972
18.437
315,309
2,405,960
1867
466,076
30,911
496,987
3,475,820
1868
507,813
38,246
546,059
3,992,413
1869
633,238
39,003
672,241
4,968,435
1870
856,471
49,298
904,319
6,300,170
1871
813,379
51,225
864,604
6,115,895
1862
972,055
63,195
1,015,250
9,188,055
Total
5,537,373 357,880 5,903,803
44,373,833
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237
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The following table exhibits the total product of the several furnaces for the year 1872, together with the value :
FURNACES.
Gross tons.
Value.
Pioneer
6,985
$ 384,175
Collins
3,431
188,705
Michigan
4,001
220,055
Greenwood
4,212
231,660
Bancroft
4,250
233,750
Morgan
4,356
239,580
Champion
5,006
275,330
Jackson
10,080
554,400
Bay
4,900
269,500
Marquette & Pacific Rolling Mill (Pig)
4,332
238,260
Marquette & Pacific Rolling Mill (Muck Bar)
622
49,760
Lake Superior Company's Peat Furnace
200
11,000
Total
63,195 $ 3,475,725
The iron traffic for 1872, was divided between two railways as follows :
IRON ORE.
Over M., H. & O. R. R
454,912
Over C. & N. W. R. R
488,686
Difference in favor of C. & N. W. R. R.
33,774
PIG IRON.
Over M., H. & O. R. R.
28,991
Over C. & N. W. R. R.
9,166
Difference in favor of M., H. & O. R. R
19,825
Total ore and pig iron over C. & N. W. R. R.
497,852
Total ore and pig iron over M., H. & O. R. R.
483,903
Total shipments
981,7,55
1
1
Deer Lake
2,720
149,600
Schoolcraft
2,500
137,500
With a difference of 13,949 tons in favor of the C. & N. W. R. R.
238
MINES AND FURNACES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.
The following table exhibits in gross tons the total product of each mine from 1856 to 1862, inclusive :
Mines.
Gross tons.
Jackson
1,197,225
Cleveland
1,025,261
Marquette.
52,998
Lake Superior
1,275,919
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