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Silver Mines at Forest City - Yankee Hill near Leadville, Colorado

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Identifier SixMoisChronological.xml
Title 1885 and 1886 : Images from Albert Tissandier's trips to North America during 1885 and 1886, in the approximate order of their creation.
Type Text
Format application/pdf
ARK ark:/87278/s6bk1cds
Setname uu_umfa_at
ID 415994
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6bk1cds

Page Metadata

Identifier 1978_286_silverMines.jpg
Title Silver Mines at Forest City - Yankee Hill near Leadville, Colorado
Alternate Title Mines d' argent à Forest city - Yankee hill près de Leadville Colorado
Creator Tissandier, Albert 1839-1906
Subject Silver mining--Colorado--Yankee Hill (Lake County)--1880-1890; Mine buildings--Colorado--Yankee Hill (Lake County)--1880-1890; Views--1880-1890
Published Location Reproduced in the exhibition catalog, Albert Tissandier : Drawings of nature and industry in the United States, 1885, by Mary F. Francey ([Salt Lake City, UT] : Utah Museum of Fine Arts, 2001), p. 29.
Short Essay Located in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado, Leadville was settled in the mid-nineteenth century. In the 1870's carbonates of lead with high silver content were discovered, and in 1877 the community became a mining center. In spring of 1879 throngs of fortune seekers converged on the sleepy mining town dreaming of easily acquired wealth and creating one of the richest histories of the American west. Mining in the area began in 1859 and continues today with an acquired history of a series of boom and bust periods. As a result of the explosive population growth created by the discovery of silver, Leadville was incorporated in 1878. Because of its elevation of 10,200 feet above sea level, it is still the highest incorporated city in the United States. By late 1870 the population numbered 18,000, and by 1893 it had grown to 60,000. Great fortunes were easily made and just as easily lost throughout the vicinity. By 1881 there were 14 smelters and reduction plants operating in the Leadville district. The leading mining properties included the Matchless, Morning Star, Iron Silver, Catalpa, Chrysolite and Little Pittsburgh. Silver production reached a peak of over eleven million dollars in 1880, leveled out at ten million for several years, then began a steady decline. Tissandier's drawing is an eloquent statement about the impact of vigorous mining activity on the environment. His genuine admiration for American technological achievements did not deter him from noting the scarred landscape surrounding a mining community. After silver was demonitized in 1893 most mines and all except one of the smelters around Leadville were shut down. The Arkansas Valley Smelter, the largest in Colorado, survived and remained operational into the 1960's.
Publisher Utah Museum of Fine Arts
Contributors Mary F. Francey
Date 1885-05-17
Type Image
Format application/pdf
Source Albert Tissandier: Drawings of Nature and Industry in the United States
Language fra
Rights Management Digital image c2001 Utah Museum of Fine Arts, University of Utah
Source Physical Dimensions 34.29 cm High x 41.28 cm Wide
Source Characteristics Graphite and brush applied ink on paper
Light Source Kaiser Softlite ProVision 6x55W flourescent 5400K daylight
Archival Resolution TIFF: 5026 x 4242 pixels
Display Resolution JPEG: 900 x 779 pixels
Bit Depth 36-bit color
Scanning Device Leica S1 Pro scanning camera; Hasselblad CFi 50mm F/4 lens; f/11
Exhibit Catalog ISBN: 0-9657215-0-7; Library of Congress Catalog Number: 2001094211
Setname uu_umfa_at
ID 415813
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6bk1cds/415813
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