4. The Triumph of Technology
At the same time in the south-eastern corner of the territory, George Warren and four friends — grubstaked by a soldier at Fort Huachucha — discovered a rich copper deposit, the Copper Queen, and established the Warren Mining district in Bisbee. Warren lost his share betting he could outrun a horse over a 100 yard course, and his friends sold their interest to San Francisco investors. They soon hit 20 percent ore. Dr. James Douglas, invited to advise them about a smelting problem, persuaded PD to buy an adjoining claim. In 1885 the companies merged. Ore was apparently running out, but Wes Howell, disobeying orders, ran a tunnel and hit rich ore. After that success, several additional ore bodies were found, and Bisbee developed into one of the premier copper camps in the country.

As mining moved into the twentieth century, important changes were taking place. The rapid decline of the richness of the ore forced improvements in mining and refining processes. Economies of scale became the standard for production. Pneumatic drills, the Burleigh “widow-maker”, replaced the single and double jacking technique. New techniques, such as “block caving,” developed by Louis S. Cates at Ray, came into existence. This was quickly followed by open pit mining, the standard today for most Arizona copper mines.

Dramatic changes were also taking place in refining. At the Inspiration Consolidated Copper Company in Miami, experiments led to the development of the floatation process, the first use of this process in the United States. By 1910 Arizona was leading the country in copper production. Besides increased production from established mines, material that was previously too low grade to be profitable could now be developed by using the new processes.

One of the first open pit mines was at Ajo. First identified by Peter Brady in 1854, the mine was originally considered too low grade and isolated to be worked profitably. During the next fifty years several companies (including some of dubious character) worked the deposit, though none made a profit or survived. Ira Joralemon, a geologist for Calumet and Arizona Mining Company, encouraged John C. Greenway to assume the Ajo operation in 1907. Greenway brought in a brilliant mining engineer, Dr. Louis D. Ricketts, who developed a new method of refining low grade ore. The lack of water was resolved when underground wells were found seven miles north of the mine. A believer in the "City Beautiful" movement, Greenway created a carefully designed company town. By April, 1917 the New Cornelia mine, Ajo's open pit mine, was ready for operation.

During the same period an English corporation, Ray Copper Mines Ltd., began developing their operation north of Tucson. Machinery was updated, and steam tractors were used to freight the ore to Red Rock on the Southern Pacific line. Instead of the 4 percent copper the company expected, they only found 2 percent ore. Disappointed, they sold their interest to the Ray Consolidated Copper Company. In 1910 Louis Cates, who had developed the block caving technique first used at Ray, became manager. Using his technique to increase the ore content, he began mining in 1911.

Bagdad was initially identified in 1880 by John Lawler. Because of its isolated location and low grade, however, ore was not developed. Although the Giroux Syndicate gained rights to the mine in 1906, it was not able to do much. Between 1906 and 1927 a number of companies tried to work the mine with the greatest (yet still unsuccessful) effort being that of the Lewishon interests.

A typical group of underground miners in the 1880's. Note the absence of protective gear and the poor lighting. The normal week day for such miners was 10 to 12 hours, six days a week.

Photo Courtesy Sharlott Hall Museum Library/Archives. Prescott, Arizona

In 1927 the Bagdad Copper Company began operation. The beginning of the Great Depression in 1929, slowed but did not stop their efforts. The company managed to continue development through the 1930's and, in 1941 received a government loan that enabled them to add new equipment. Since the low grade ore made underground mining unprofitable, General Manager, Ernest R. Dickie, began converting to an open pit operation. Dickie used large trucks for haulage, and Bagdad became the testing ground for much of the change taking place in large ore trucks. All underground mining at Bagdad had ended by 1950.

These developments made mining the leading industry in Arizona and Arizona the leading copper producer in the United States. As Arizona approached statehood, gained in 1912, nine mining companies dominated the industry, employing nearly two-thirds of all wage earners in Arizona's copper business. More indicative of the industry's importance was the fact that, according to the 1910 census, mining employed 18,094 workers, nearly 25 percent of the wage earners in Arizona. Arizona still produces approximately 60 to 65 percent of the copper produced in this country.

The development of square set timbers in the 1860's for the Ophir Mine in Nevada by Philip Deideshheimer, a graduate of the Freiberg School of Mines in Germany, shown here at the Copper Queen mine in Bisbee, made timbering much more economical and revolutionalized mining in large underground areas.

Photo Courtesy Sharlot Hall Museum Library/Archives, Prescott, Arizona

5. The People Behind the Process
The history of mining is more than the identification of ore deposits and the evolution of technology for extracting and refining those deposits. Essential to a complete understanding of mining history is knowledge of the role played by thousands of nameless, faceless miners struggling to succeed in a harsh, unforgiving environment. In this section we'll look at the people who drove the process and helped develop the potential of mining in Arizona.

The Hispanic Influence
Since Arizona was originally the northern frontier of New Spain, the region's early history was dominated by the Spanish. When the Anglos began to filter into the region, they quickly adopted the Spanish techniques, equipment and law.

Within a few years, however, Anglos brought social concepts, racial beliefs and ideas of government that quickly pushed the Hispanics of the region out of the camps completely or into inferior positions. (See the earlier account of the Walker District By-Laws.) With the shift to lode mining with its massive labor demands, control and regulation of the camps became even more Anglicized. While the Mexican was tolerated in most camps and even eagerly sought out in some camps, (Morenci is a good example), it was only because, to quote a turn of the century report, they were considered ". . . docile, fairly efficient, and used to low pay at home."3

The European Influence
After the Civil War the make-up of the work force changed dramatically with the arrival of Cornishmen, the "Cousin Jack." These skilled, clannish miners from the deep mines of Cornwall soon set the standard for hardrock miners in the American West. Later, at the turn of the century, other groups would become important elements in many camps. Among them were Slovaks, Croatians, Montenegrins, Italians, and Austrians, all fleeing political unrest in southeastern Europe.

Since most lode mines were located in isolated, rugged, mountainous terrain, the camps' facilities were usually as harsh and forbidding as the environment. Financed and controlled by Eastern or foreign corporations, whose main interests were profits and dividends to the stockholders, the initial developments made little effort to improve the poor living conditions. With wages the most controllable expense, corporations viewed the workers as expendable pieces of equipment to be utilized only as long as they were producing. Moving rock was the dominant concern. A dual wage system with a different scale for Anglos and Mexicans performing the same work was standard in most camps. Often "Boletas" or company script was used to pay workers. Because of their isolated location, most camps were run by the company, which provided housing, food and recreation.

These conditions soon generated significant characteristics in the work force. Ethnic groups tended to live near their own kind. In most camps, segregated enclaves evolved; "Barrio Mexicano," "Sonora," "Little Italy," "Tintown," or more commonly, "Mexican Camp." Superintendents and other officials were also segregated, as in Warren in the Bisbee district or "Company Hill" in Jerome. As each of these groups struggled to retain its culture, the religious and social life of the community became a rich mosaic. Major holidays such as the 4th of July or Cinco de Mayo provided the entire camp with festivities including sports or demonstrations of mining skills, especially baseball or drilling contests. At the same time the work force was fluid, especially among Anglo-Americans. The "ten-day" miner was also becoming a common element.

Social Conditions
Although companies, and later the unions, provided libraries and reading rooms, saloons and bordellos were a prominent part of the social life of all camps. This began to change with camp permanence and the arrival of the railroad. Families began to be a part of the community, and the wives would not accept nor tolerate the earlier, rougher living and social conditions.

By the turn of the century the more progressive corporations recognized the wisdom of providing better living conditions, especially in isolated areas where they had complete control of the camp. Company towns of the period are excellent examples of well designed and regulated mining communities. Possibly the best example of this is Ajo. Designed by John C. Greenway, an ardent supporter of the "City Beautiful" movement, Ajo remains an outstanding example of a town developed to support the welfare of employees.