History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT. 745
and was discovered by accident. 71
In 1882 it had
been opened to a depth of 500 feet, the ore being a
decomposed argentiferous galena, some 50 feet in
thickness, from which at the close of that year about
$6,000,000 worth of silver and lead had been extracted,
72 and $1,500,000 paid in dividends. The
Frisco Mining and Smelting Company, in the same
district, owned the Carbonate mine at the town of
Frisco, the Cave, Bigelow, and other locations in Gran-
ite Range, and a large tract of auriferous ground in
Osceola county, Nevada. The vein of the Carbonate
was found to be composed of one part of rich argentiferous
galena to three or four of trachyte, and it was
of course necessary to concentrate the ores. The
Cave mine, which was in the neighborhood of the Horn
Silver, and consisted of a series of limestone caves,
containing limonite ore near the surface and argentiferous
galena at greater depth, produced a considerable
amount of bullion, and in 1884 was capable of yielding
100 tons a day, but was not worked to its full capacity
pending the construction of a branch railroad. 73 The
mine in Osceola county covered an area of 700 acres,
and was believed to contain very rich deposits of gold,
but lay idle for lack of water, the nearest supply being
17 miles distant. During the year 1885 it was
expected that arrangements would be made for working
the ground by the hydraulic process. 74
The Harrisburg or Silver Reef district was in Wash-
71 The discovery of this mine is mentioned in the Silver Reef Miner, July
30, 1879.
72
J. E. Dooly, express agent at S. L. City, gives as the product for 1881,
1,259,903 oz. of silver and 16,343,995 lbs of lead, valued at $1,S07,092.20.
After losiDg his property, W. S. Godbe obtained a contract for smelting ore
from this mine, reducing in all some 20,000 tons. Godbe's Statement, M.S., 7.
73 The Cave mine originally belonged to Mr Godbe, who in 1885 was still
largely interested in it. Id., 7,9. In 18S4 there were 300 men employed by the
Frisco company. Rock was shipped to the reduction-works near Salt Lake
City, and most of the bullion to Chicago. Hill's Mines and Mg in Utah, MS.
In 1881 the company's mines at Frisco produced 221,846 oz. of silver and
2,023,213 lbs of lead, worth $330,329.38. For further particulars, see S. L.
Wkly Tribune, Jan. 3, 1880.
71 The owners of this mine were W. S. Godbe and three others, the former
being confident that the deposit was worth several millions of dollars. Godbe's
Statement, MS., 10-11.