Publications
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Have you ever found yourself examining an abandoned mine and wondered how it operated? Or what old pieces of equipment, artifacts, and foundations were for? You will find complete explanations in Riches to Rust, written for the general public in an easy-to-read and accessible fashion. The book offers a detailed insight into the surface facilities at mines and deep prospects, how they evolved over time, and the archaeological remnants that visitors are likely to encounter today.
The process of blasting was one of the most fundamental aspects of mining and quarrying. Further, the use of explosives revolutionized mining and quarrying, allowing these industries to supply the immense volumes of natural resources that made the United States an economic powerhouse. But how did miners actually carry out the process of blasting? What were the explosives like, and how did they change the miners' workplace? Blown to Bits in the Mine discusses the hazards that miners faced with explosives, as well as the benefits, charting the evolution of the entire blasting process from early hand-drilling and black powder to power drills and specialized explosive agents in coal, hardrock, and open-pit mines, and quarries.
Pikes Peak Gold Rush prospector Charles Baker was decades ahead of his time when, before the far reaches of Colorado had been explored, he postulated that a great mineral belt stretched through the territory. Baker convinced other prospectors that more gold lay in the southwest portion of Colorado, and they became the first to penetrate the imposing San Juan Mountains. Baker and partners labored for a few gold flecks in a land phenomenally rich with silver, undiscovered until more than a decade later. The Las Animas district became the cradle of hardrock mining in the San Juans when prospectors realized that the snowy peaks offered a treasure trove for those physically fit and daring enough to try and win the ore from the cold ground. Over time, the district hosted a rich and powerful mining industry colored by grouchy engineers, cunning investors, psychics, outspoken women, and generally tough individuals. To overcome the severe winters rife with avalanches, hurricane force winds, and impossible terrain, mining men used the Las Animas district as a proving ground for amazing technological innovations, some of which we enjoy today.