Davenport Mine and Smelter
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Davenport Mine and Smelter
The Davenport mine was located in Little Cottonwood Canyon, southeast of Salt Lake City. It was one of the early mines in the Little Cottonwood district, dating from June 1870. In 1872, the mine was sold to a group of British investors, but the mine failed in year's time. The mine, and its affiliated smelter failed along with so many other mines and smelters in Utah due to changes in the silver market during the early 1870s.
(The Davenport Smelter was located at mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon, on the south side of Little Cottonwood Creek.)
The British connection to the Davenport operations follows the classic pattern of the 1870s Utah silver boom: a wildly productive local operation, an injection of speculative capital from London, corporate reorganization, and an ultimate collapse driven by a shifting global silver market and the toxic fallout of the neighboring Emma Mine scandal.
Like its immediate neighbors in Little Cottonwood Canyon, the Flagstaff and the Emma, the Davenport mine caught the attention of British promoters looking to sell "sure-thing" American silver properties to English investors. To facilitate British ownership, the original claim-holders negotiated a sale of the property to a group of British investors. This led to the formal organization of a British joint-stock company, officially incorporated in London as the Davenport Mining Co. (Limited) in June 1872.
British capital investments were used to transition the Davenport from a high-grade but primitive "pick-and-shovel" basic mine into a then-modern industrial enterprise. This capital directly funded the expansion of the underground workings to a total of 4,800 feet by 1873. To handle reduction locally, the company constructed the Davenport Smelter at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon, situated on the south side of Little Cottonwood Creek.
British managers successfully built an operation that matched the technology of the period, proven by the fact that for a brief period, the Davenport was one of the top producers of base bullion (lead-silver blocks) in all of Utah Territory. But by mid 1873 the company was severely overextended. Having invested heavily in deep mine development and building its own local smelter, it relied entirely on market stability and high silver prices to clear its massive startup debts.
When the London market turned hostile and silver prices began to slip following the Coinage Act of 1873, the company hit a wall. The operation could not outrun the combined weight of underground water issues (suffered by many of the mines in the canyon), the high costs of deep pumping, and the ruined reputation of "Utah schemes" on the London Stock Exchange.
(Read more about the collapse of the silver maerket in 1873)
Davenport Mine
"The Davenport mining claim was located in June, 1870, and is situated across the dividing ridge between Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons. It contains 1,800 by 100 feet, and has been continually worked since its discovery. The developments consist of several shafts, inclines and drifts, and a tunnel 600 feet long, which improvements are said to have cost about $50,000. The lode consists of rich deposits of carbonate ores, the vein averaging about five feet in width. About 1,400 tons of this ore has been worked by smelting, and yielded an average of $150 per ton in silver. There is a steam saw mill attached to the property, and timber is abundant in the vicinity, and there is a good wagon road to within a short distance of the mine." (Utah Mining Gazette, November 15, 1873)
D. B. Huntley, in "Appendix I. The Mining Industries Of Utah," page 426, published in 1885, noted that the Davenport mine had 4,800 feet of openings; had produced $600,000 in total product; and was idle at the close of the Census year of 1880.
Davenport Smelter
"The Davenport smelter was the name of one built especially to handle the output of the Davenport mine, one of the producers in Alta during its early history. This plant was built by Buell & Bateman, and was located about five miles east of the present town of Sandy, near the mouth of the Little Cottonwood canyon. It was about 1876 that Mather & Geist obtained a lease on the smelter, increased its capacity to over 200 tons per day, and operated it successfully for a number of years." (Deseret News, December 19, 1903)
The Davenport smelter, treating Davenport ore in two vertical blast furnaces, occupied a site nearby in 1872 and operated until 1875. Water was used as motive power for the machinery. (USGS Professional Paper 201, Geology And Ore Deposits Of The Cottonwood-American Fork Area, Utah, 1943, page 74)
From USGS Professional Paper 201, Geology And Ore Deposits Of The Cottonwood-American Fork Area, Utah, 1943, page 130.
The Davenport claim, which extends about north-northeast across Davenport Hill, is 1,800 feet long and 100 feet wide. It was located by Tim Sullivan on June 17, 1870, and later patented as lot 45. To the end of 1871 fully 2,500 feet of development work, consisting of several inclined shafts and drifts and a tunnel 600 feet long, had been done, and considerable ore was exposed on the lower levels. About 3,000 tons of ore had then been shipped.
Smelting works are said to have been then in course of construction near the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon, where most of the ore was smelted, and some lots are supposed to have been reduced at Tanners Flat, below the village of Central.
Because of this poverty in lead it could not be smelted without great loss. The new manager therefore arranged to buy rich lead ore to mix with the Davenport ore, but before these arrangements could be carried through the eastern financial panic of 1873 caused the mine to be closed.
No records of production after 1880 have been found, and since 1901 no production has been reported to the Geological Survey.
(The above report relied heavily on Raymond for coverage in the 1870s. See specific references below.)
Timeline
June 17, 1870
The Davenport mine in Little Cottonwood Canyon was located as a registered mining claim on June 17, 1870.
(Utah Mining Gazette, August 30, 1873)
January 1872
"In January, 1872, John W. Harker, acting as the agent of John H. Ely, went to London and effected the sale of the Davenport Mine, situated in Little Cottonwood district, Utah, for £110,000, payable as follows: £80,000 in shares of the company, and £30,000 in cash." (San Francisco Chronicle, February 5, 1875, in a lawsuit Joseph W. Clark vs. John W. Harker, et al, claiming $25,984 in unpaid judgment dated August 28, 1872, stating that Harker received 8,000 shares of the new London company, but then transferred the shares to his wife to avoid paying Clark the judgment.)
March 20, 1872
"The Davenport mine is one of the most notable of the district, and has produced a large amount of ore during this summer. The claim is nearly upon the dividing line of the two districts at the top of the hill. It is opened by an incline shaft following the dip of the vein. The ore is similar to that from the principal claims of Little Cottonwood, and is excellent for smelting." (Raymond, "Statistics Of Mines And Mining In The States And Territories, West Of The Rocky Mountains," Fourth Annual Report, for the year ending December 31, 1871. Cover letter dated March 20, 1872. Published in 1873. Page 319.)
April 1, 1872
"Paid On The Davenport. — Thirty thousand dollars, coin, was paid on the Davenport mine last Saturday in this city. Mr. John Ely is the present owner. The Davenport is considered one of the best mines in the Territory." (Salt Lake Tribune, April 1, 1872)
June 1872
The Davenport Mining Company (Limited) was registered in London. (Birmingham Daily Post, June 10, 1872, "this week")
February 8, 1873
"The Davenport and a mine near it, the Matilda, have been sold to an English company, and smelting works are in the course of construction near the mouth of the canyon, not far from the Flagstaff works. Both mines contain large bodies of rich ore." (Raymond, "Statistics Of Mines And Mining In The States And Territories, West Of The Rocky Mountains," Fifth Annual Report. Cover letter dated February 8, 1873. Published in 1873. Page 248.)
May 2, 1873
"Little Cottonwood’s ore shipment for last week was 600 tons. The Flagstaff is shipping thirty tons of ore daily to the Davenport Smelter. This mine has just shipped seven tons and $1,100 worth of bullion. Fifty tons are to follow." (San Francisco Examiner, May 2, 1873)
May 6, 1873
"The first bullion shipped over the Wasatch and Jordan Valley railroad came down from the Davenport smelter, in the shape of a car load of $1,100 metal. Not bad that; and there are fifty tons more of the same kind on hand, and plenty more to make." (Pioche Record, May 6, 1873, citing the Salt Lake Herald of May 1, 1873)
December 18, 1873
"About sixty thousand dollars of attachments have been put on the Davenport Mine, Little Cottonwood. Nearly all the principal mines are in trouble and want capital to move the bullion." (San Francisco Examiner,December 18, 1873)
January 10, 1874
"The Davenport Silver Mining Company is still in statu quo, and no settlement has yet been made, beyond an arrangement entered into between parties of the first attachment who sold the ore to parties here, thereby securing the amounts due them. We are also informed that the connections of Mr. Phillpotts, as manager, terminated on the 1st, of January. We have been informed that a gentleman of business ability, and a thorough miner, is to supersede Mr. Phillpotts, but we are compelled to withhold the name. We can safely say from personal acquaintance with the gentlemen, that the property of the company will be in safe hands, and will no doubt, through his energy, prove a financial success to its stockholders in England." (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, January 10, 1874)
January 31, 1874
"The Davenport Mine. - Shows up well, an immense body of ore, over twenty feet in width, having been opened. This ore is of high grade, and in the best possible condition to be mined and reduced. It has, however, been virtually closed for the winter, not on account of the scarcity of ore, but because parties are quarreling in England as to who shall have possession of one of the best pieces of property in the country. The last returns from the mine show as follows: Output of ore, 3,000 tons; bullion, 575 tons; realizing $187,000; value of ore $200,00; average assay, eighty to ninety ounces silver." (Utah Mining Gazette, January 31, 1874, page 181)
February 18, 1874
From Raymond, "Statistics Of Mines And Mining In The States And Territories, West Of The Rocky Mountains," Sixth Annual Report, 1874. Cover letter dated February 18, 1874, for 1873, page 261.
The Davenport Company, like nearly all the other English companies in Utah, experienced great financial difficulties in the fall. Its mines, the Davenport and Matilda, are situated on the dividing ridge between Big and Little Cottonwood Cañons, about a mile east of the Emma. Both mines were continuously worked up to the time of the financial panic in the East. The developments on the Davenport consist of several inclined shafts and drifts, and a tunnel 600 feet long. Through the latter nearly all the ore has been transported to a platform, whence it is sent down for 700 feet on a tramway toward the valley. From here to the furnaces, ten miles distant, at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Cañon, it is hauled by wagons. The deposit of ore in the Davenport has averaged so far about 5 feet in width. It is very ferruginous [high iron content], and rarely contains less than sixty or seventy ounces of silver to the ton, but only twelve to eighteen per cent. of lead.
The Matilda deposit is connected with that of the Davenport; but while the latter has an inclined position, the ore in the former stands nearly vertical. Its width is very variable, and has changed from 4 to 20 feet. Both locations are covered by United States patent.
In May, 1873, a new manager, Mr. Philpotts, was sent out from London. On his arrival he found the company’s affairs in a very unsatisfactory state. It was in debt in Utah to the amount of $75,000, on which it had to pay a very high interest. About 1,000 tons of ore were then in sight in the two mines. During Mr. Philpotts's brief management he succeeded in reducing the debts of the company to $40,000. At that time 765 tons of ore were stored up at the furnaces, and 200 tons at the mine.
Mr. George J. Johnson, a graduate of the Freiberg School of Mines, and the owner of one of the sampling works at Salt Lake City, then took charge, and employed Mr. Weberling, a well-known metallurgist of the West, as manager of his smelting works. Mr. Johnson at once saw that the ores of the Davenport could not be smelted without great loss, on account of the small percentage of lead contained in them. He tried, therefore, to purchase ores rich in lead, in order to mix them with those from the Davenport; but before he could finish his first campaign, the panic broke out in the East, and the creditors of the company demanded the money due them.
As none had been earned yet, and no help was forthcoming from England, the result was that the works and ores of the company were attached, and the latter were sold under the sheriff's hammer at extremely low prices. The latest information in regard to the affairs of the company, is that the Davenport Company intends to re-organize in London and to furnish £15,000 [$73,500] of new capital. This, together with the ore and bullion yet on hand, is thought to be sufficient to overcome all difficulties.
(The author of this report was Rossiter W. Raymond, United States Commissioner Of Mining Statistics. The cover letter which accompanied the report, which covers the year 1873, is dated February 18, 1874.)
April 18, 1874
"The Davenport mine, which has been lying idle since last October [1873], through financial obstacles, is about to commence work again, and a thousand tons of its ore were sold yesterday." (Daily Ogden Junction, April 18, 1874)
November 21, 1875
From the Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, November 21, 1875.
Condition of the Davenport Mine. - The directors of the Davenport mine publish in the London Mining World the following statement of the condition of the mine: The company owes in Utah £13,000, and in London £6,500, total £21,500. Of the London debt, £7,000 is payable in respect of the Matilda purchase. The assets of the company, estimated on the 21st November, comprised 500 tons of Davenport ore, estimated at £4,035; and fluxing ores, fuel, and supplies, £650; the furnaces, land, buildings, tram road, saw mill, wood and other supplies have cost the company £12,500; total assets, exclusive of the value of the mine, £17,185. All the local assets are now under attachment by creditors, and the sum of at least £12,500 is required to enable the company to regain possession of its property and resume its business.
Whether the company's mine is now in such a state of development as to justify (commercially speaking) the shareholders in providing the money necessary to pay the debts of the company. From official sources, fully borne out by private advices of late date, it appears that the mine is in an advanced state of development; extensive and well directed underground works having demonstrated the existence of a large and rich body of ore.
(In 1875, the standard rate of exchange was $4.9 U.S. dollars to one British pound sterling (£); British pounds x 4.9 = U. S. dollars.)
In March 1874, the Davenport smelter was not shown as being active in a list of reduction works in Utah, but the Flagstaff smelter was, along with the Last Chance smelter at Sandy. (Utah Mining Gazette, March 21, 1874)
July 14, 1875
"We understand that the Davenport Smelter, Little Cottonwood, will start up on Saturday. Mr. A. W. Geist, having leased the smelter, will, we are informed, continue to run it through the season." (Salt Lake Tribune, July 14, 1875)
October 1, 1875
"The Davenport Smelter, at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon, has been running successfully for the last two months. Mr. Geist is the man who has infused energy and life into this dormant institution, and has made it one of the bullion producing properties of the Territory." (Real Estate and Mining Gazette, October 1, 1875)
January 1, 1877
"The Davenport, at the mouth of Little Cottonwood canyon, is at present shut down. It was run by Mather & Geist the first nine months of the year, on Flagstaff and other Cottonwood ores, and during this time 200 car loads of bullion was produced, worth about $100,000, but when the firm leased the Flagstaff smelter, they closed down the Davenport." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1877)
The Davenport smelter site was removed from the EPA Superfund list on July 2018. After being added to the list in 1992, cleanup of the site began in 2004, and was completed in in 2012.
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