Utah Fuels the West
Utah's coal industry and the railroads that served it
By Don Strack
This page was last updated on July 18, 2002
(Incomplete… research continues)
Black Hawk Mine
U. S. Fuel's Black Hawk Mine — The mine that later became known as Hiawatha, or King Mine.
George Heiner, James A. Anderson, and Daniel Nephi Heiner each received land patents for 160 acres from the United States government between June through November 1910. (Emery County Book A-1, p. 106) Ownership of those patents was sold to Black Hawk Coal Company on April 28, 1911. (Emery County Book B-5, p. 504) A $200,000.00 mortgage to Ogden Savings Bank was filed on June 1, 1911. (Emery County Book F-5, p. 103) The Black Coal Company mortgage was released on December 7, 1917. (Emery County Book C, p. 206)
The Black Hawk mine was opened in 1910 by Ogden interests. (Coal Index: The Sun, February 24, 1922, p. 8)
The Black Hawk Coal Company was organized on February 13, 1911. The corporation filed in Nevada on March 14, 1911, and in Utah on March 31, 1911. The organizers included Daniel Heiner, John Heiner, and James Anderson, all of Morgan, and David Eccles, Matthew S. Browning, Joseph Scowcroft, John Pingree, E. S. Rolapp, and George H. Tribe, all of Ogden — each holding one hundred shares of the stock. Daniel Heiner was the majority shareholder, as president and trustee, holding 23,100 shares of the original 30,000 shares. By December 28, 1911, the stock had been redistributed, giving George S. Tribe the largest block, 2,808 shares; David Eccles held 2,708 shares; James Anderson held 1,942 shares; Matthew S. and John M. Browning holding 1,840 shares together. These majority shareholders, along with six others accounted for fifty-two percent ownership of the company. When first organized, the coal lands controlled by the company represented 1,040 acres. The original lands consisted of just over 1,050 acres. (Utah corporation, index number 9026)
Black Hawk mine was incorporated by the Black Hawk Coal Company on May 31, 1911. (Utah Railway: Coal Mines)
Matthew S. Browning, and fourteen others, called "Ogden interests", each filed on 160 acres of coal lands, making for 2,400 acres owned by one body. (Coal Index: Eastern Utah Advocate, May 8, 1913, p. 1, article states 3,000 acres)
During early July 1911 the grading for Black Hawk Coal Company's railroad was being done by the Fullmer Brothers of Price and Orangeville, which had forty teams working on the job. The coal company planned to begin shipping coal within ninety days, by the end of September 1911. (Eastern Utah Advocate, July 6, 1911)
In September 1911 Black Hawk was called Eccles and had only ten homes, with thirty-five others under construction. (Zehnder, p. 35)
In January 1912, David Eccles announced he would build a 12-mile railroad line from the Black Hawk District to a connection with the D&RGW at Wellington, Utah. (Railway Age, January 19, 1912, p. 133)
(COMMENT: The mine was located a thousand feet above the southern side of the mouth of Miller Creek canyon, and required a one-mile tramway to get the coal down to the railroad, at the townsite of Black Hawk. When first opened, the mine employed 125 men.)
The Black Hawk company contracted with Sam C. Sherrill of Salt Lake City to construct fifty cottages for the mine workers. (Coal Index: Eastern Utah Advocate, May 23, 1912, p. 5)
The first houses at Black Hawk were built in 1911, located east of the railroad tracks. In 1912 and 1913, other houses were located along the tramway between the mine and the tipple. (Madsen, p. 40)
"Coal Deal Consummated", news item about the United States Smelting, Refining & Mining paying $1.2 million for controlling interest in Consolidated Fuel on June 1, 1912, along with half interest in Southern Utah Railroad. USSRMCO purchased 800,000 shares of Consolidated Fuel at $1.50 each. Properties controlled by USSRMCO ("the Sharp interests") included Consolidated Fuel (the Hiawatha mine), the Black Hawk mine, and Castle Valley Coal Company. (Salt Lake Mining Review, Volume 14, number 5, June 15, 1912, pp. 19,20)
In June 1912 the Black Hawk Coal Company was sold to William G. Sharp and reorganized as a unit of the United States Smelting Company. At the same time, the new company announced that they would be spending $150,000 to double production. (Coal Index: Eastern Utah Advocate, June 27, 1912, p. 1, "Move Headquarters")
Sharp purchased the company from David Eccles and his associates. (Eccles, p. 267)
David Eccles died unexpectedly on December 5, 1912. (Eccles, p. 172)
In January 1913, Consolidated Fuel bought 160 acres at Black Hawk for $11,000.00. (Coal Index: Eastern Utah Advocate, January 3, 1913, p. 5)
The Black Hawk mine caught fire in October 1913, and was still burning by February 1915. (Zehnder, p. 35, from Eastern Utah Advocate, February 26, 1915)
During mid 1914, the coal from the Black Hawk mine was referred to as both "Black Hawk" and as "Hiawatha" coal. In July 1914: Black Hawk coal. (Salt Lake Mining Review, July 30, 1914, p. 32) In August 1914: The Black Hawk Coal Company…at its Hiawatha mine at Black Hawk. (Salt Lake Mining Review, August 15, 1914, p. 28)
The tipple at Black Hawk was built by Heyl & Patterson of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and was projected to go into production by October 1, 1914. (Salt Lake Mining Review, July 30, 1914, p. 32)
News item saying that the new steel tipple for the Black Hawk Coal Company at Black Hawk was to be put into commission on October 20, 1914. Its stated capacity was 3,000 tons every eight hours. (Salt Lake Mining Review, Volume 16, number 13, October 15, 1914, p. 22, "Coal Notes & Personals")
The new tipple construction included a new terminal and yard at Black Hawk, along with an increased water supply and a large number of new cottages for the miners. (Salt Lake Mining Review, October 30, 1914, p. 21)
News item about the tipple of the Black Hawk Coal Company having been put into commission. (Salt Lake Mining Review, Volume 16, number 16, November 30, 1914, p. 17, "Coal Notes & Personals")
News item about the town of Black Hawk changing its name to Hiawatha "about a month to six weeks ago." (September 1915). (Salt Lake Mining Review, Volume 17, number 12, October 15, 1915, p. 21, "Coal Notes & personals")
