http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:55:55 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/a-hoist-of-unknown-origins/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/a-hoist-of-unknown-origins/#comments Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:55:55 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4609 After the oddity that was the "A" hoist down at the west end of the Michigan's Hoist complex, we were ready to expect about anything as we made our way to the opposite end of the building to check out the "B" hoist which also shared the space. Even then, however, we weren't quite compared to what we found down there. While we were confident it was indeed the foundation to a hoist, the exact type and nature of that mystery machine was unknown to us. That was because its foundation was something we had never seen before. Read More... ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/a-hoist-of-unknown-origins/feed/ 4 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-compressed-air-is-made/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-compressed-air-is-made/#comments Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:07:59 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4608 Leaving the "A" Hoist behind, we continue further along the Michigan Mine's sprawling hoist complex and to yet another set of massive concrete foundations. Unlike those found previously, these pedestals most likely belong to a large air compressor. Like a hoist, these machines comprised of two steam cylinders set upon parallel foundations. While these foundations are set wide apart in a hoist foundation - an arrangement made necessary by the size of the hoisting drum that sits between them - compressor foundations are set far closer together. This is because all that is required to fit between an air compressor's cylinders is the engine's spinning flywheel.]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-compressed-air-is-made/feed/ 1 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-hoist-from-another-world/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-hoist-from-another-world/#comments Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:40:28 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4607 While last week we may have given the impression that we had stumbled across the Michigan Mine's hoist complex after exploring its boiler complex, there's no way that could have happened. The hoist complex was immense, and the concrete wall that made up its southern foundation seemed to stretch on forever through the woods. We walked around its rather impressive footprint to find an easy way in, or at least a scalable section from which we could get a better look inside. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-hoist-from-another-world/feed/ 0 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-insurance-map-edition/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-insurance-map-edition/#comments Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:34:17 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4605 We return once again to the Painesdale Mine and Shaft archives to take a look at the Champion Mine in all its former glory. One of the more important artifacts I uncovered during my search was a large fire insurance map of the Champion Mine, drawn primarily to show the mine's water services. But in addition to the mine's water lines, reservoirs, tanks, and hydrants the map also provides a detail view of the mine's surface structures and rail lines. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-insurance-map-edition/feed/ 1 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/more-stacks-and-boilers/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/more-stacks-and-boilers/#comments Thu, 16 Feb 2012 02:22:39 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4604 While it may have been rather diminutive, we were able to find ourselves a small smoke stack base just a small distance from what we thought was the coal spur (you can see the railroad grade up on the upper part of the picture). The base was made of concrete, and featured a small arched ash door on its front facade. It also featured a small opening on its left side, an opening that probably led to some underground flue tunnels for the neighboring boilers. And talk about boilers. Just past the stack base was yet another collection of those concrete "boiler sockets", similar to what we had already discovered up on the hill. There was a good deal more here, probably a half dozen or more. Some were intact while others were in a bit more disarray. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/more-stacks-and-boilers/feed/ 7 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/c-shaft-terraces/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/c-shaft-terraces/#comments Tue, 14 Feb 2012 16:34:34 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4602 After our discovery down at the bast of the hill, it was readily apparent to us that the Michigan Mine's "C" shaft was something altogether different then anything we have seen before. Instead of just one large rock house/ shaft house structure we were confronted instead with a bizarre world where the rock house's rock bin has been ripped out and placed separately from the rest of the structure. No doubt this unique arrangement was due to the nature of the neighboring topography, which made accessing the actual rock house with a rail spur difficult if not impossible. Instead of bringing the rail spur to the shaft, the rock bin was instead brought down to the rail spur. An ingenious solution, if not something that confused seasoned CC explorers like ourselves at first. But now knowing what we were up against, we took the laborious task of scaling the steep hillside to look for the remains of the rest of the rock / shaft house that sat up atop the cliff. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/c-shaft-terraces/feed/ 4 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-man-has-left-his-mark/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-man-has-left-his-mark/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:03:26 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4600 It didn't look like much from the old railroad grade, that was for sure. Just a mass of concrete shrouded in the trees alongside the trail. But as we approached the scale of the situation quickly became clear. The closer we got to the concrete monstrosity the small we began to feel, until we were right up against its base and craning our necks skyward towards its top. For awhile we were simply just in awe of the monolith before us and stood silent in the melting snow to admire it. When it came to industrial prowess, there's nothing more impressive then massive concrete walls that simply appear in the middle of the rugged wilderness. Man has left his mark here, and without him to remove it that mark will continue to stand for centuries. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/where-man-has-left-his-mark/feed/ 10 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-paycheck-edition/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-paycheck-edition/#comments Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:57:36 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4598 Today there is often a great deal of talk about a "living wage", a minimum amount of hourly pay necessary for a person to meet his or her basic needs (housing, food, etc). This wage is calculated regionally, based on an area's relative cost of living. The average calculation for such a wage in the US is about 11-13 dollars an hour, which for a standard 40 hour work week you're talking about a base pay of about $480 a week. I bring this up as an interesting counterpoint to today's scrapbook subject - Champion Mine pay checks. Once again we have the fine folks at Painesdale Mine and Shaft to thank for today's materials, as they have a rather large and substantial collection of these checks in their archives. These were the cancelled checks returned to the company after workers had cashed them at local banks, endorsed on their reverse by the people they were made out to. For my DVD I picked out a selection of these checks to feature as hidden bonus items, checks spanning a good portion of the company's life from 1919 to 1944. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/scrapbook-friday-paycheck-edition/feed/ 3 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/boiler-house-in-c/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/boiler-house-in-c/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:29:22 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4596 Approaching the town of Rockland from the east you find yourself traveling between a pair of parallel rugged hills. The hill to the south is marked on maps as South Bluff, while its neighbor to the north was known during the Minesota's time fittingly as the North Bluff. At the turn of the century the North Bluff inherited a new name, thanks to the Michigan Mine's sinking of a shaft into its top - a shaft labeled by the mine as "C" shaft. From that point on North Bluff, would become known as "C Shaft Hill" - a designation it continues to be marked on maps to this day. After leaving the "B" shaft behind, we headed westward towards that very same hill, hoping its "C Shaft" designation meant we would find that very same shaft along its length. For awhile we were doubtful, as a long cold walk along the old railroad grade provided no evidence of any shaft. Finally, however, we caught something off to our right that gave us some hope. ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/boiler-house-in-c/feed/ 2 http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-b-shaft/ http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-b-shaft/#comments Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:38:38 +0000 ccexplorer http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/?p=4595 The Minesoata was typical of early fissure copper mines in the region. Scattered and seemingly chaotic, the mine sunk nearly a dozen shafts along its holdings atop the north bluff. With such a rich mine precision and efficiency weren't so important; when the copper was literally lying about your feet you could sink a hole just about anywhere and expect results. But as time went on and that rich lode began to evaporate, such a modus operandi became a liability. As the region matured at the turn of the century, companies could not be so careless. The new century brought with it a much leaner and rarer metal, and mine companies had to adapt to a more efficient and targeted approach or suffer the consequences. Read More... ]]> http://www.coppercountryexplorer.com/2012/02/the-b-shaft/feed/ 6