Mercur, After 1973
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This page was last updated on February 2, 2026.
Mercur Timeline
A timeline of major events in the Mercur mining district, originally known as the Camp Floyd mining district.
Interested researchers are directed to online newspapers, especially Newspapers.com. A search for "Camp Floyd Mining District" gives a wide variety of results.
Silver Era
April 16, 1870
The Camp Floyd Mining District was organized. (E&MJ, April 24, 1897)
April 20, 1870
The first mining claim, a
placer claim, was located and registered by L. Greeley. (E&MJ, April 24, 1897)
1871
"It was opened as a silver camp in 1871 by the development of the Sparrow Hawk and Carrie Steele mines., In the former a pocket of ore fifty feet wide in places was tapped and worked to a small depth. At that time the Carrie Steele turned out rich ore. It was claimed that the two mines produced all of one million dollars. (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1894)
November 1871
As part of the law suit of Marion Gold Mining company vs. Geyser Mining company: "Leandro Steele's Story - At this time court took a recess until 2 o'clock, at which hour Leandro Steele was called. Mr. Steele testified that he located the Carrie Steele claim, which he named after his daughter, in November, 1871, and remained in the locality for a number of years. He saw no work done on the west end of the Marion prior to 1875. In that year he and Higginson both did work on the Marion, which he believed was at a point between the present incline house at the head of No. 2 incline, and the south side line of the Marion. Mr. Steele was confident that there was no incline upon the property in 1872. Mr. Steele testified on cross-examination that he never owned an interest in the Marion. He had seen a monument or a stake on the southwestern part of the claim near post 4, in 1872." (Salt Lake Tribune, July 17, 1896)
1872
The Sparrow Hawk, Last Chance and Marion claims were among the first lode claims located, and were the first ones surveyed for patent, the surveys having been made early in 1872. (E&MJ, April 24, 1897)
May 16, 1872
The Sparrow Hawk mine had a force of nearly 100 men working under the supervision of Capt. Walker. The Queen of the West was not being worked. The General Lowe and the Mormon Chief were both producing large amounts of ore. The Eastern Hemisphere, also known as the Star of the West, was idle. The Excelsior, Bald Eagle, Carrie Steele, America, Ella, Maria and marrow mines were all looking well and were being developed. (Salt Lake Tribune, May 18, 1872, with many other comments about the growth of the district and the town of Lewiston)
November 22, 1872
The Camp Floyd Silver Mining company was incorporated "this past season." The Sparrow Hawk, Marian and last Chance mines were owned by an English company, and the bullion was being shipped direct to England. The company's mill had 20 stamps, and regularly runs out of water, hindering operations. Baxter and Hussey were building a mill at Fairfield, eight miles from camp. The Jenny Lind was the only cinnabar mine in Utah. (Salt Lake Herald, November 22, 1872, includes a long list of active mines)
February 26, 1874
A lengthy article providing a summary of the Camp Floyd district with a list of the mines in the district, and the town of Lewiston. The first mines mentioned by name, about halfway through the article, and therefore likely the most important and most active, were the Sparrow Hawk, Last Chance, and Marion mines. The three mines are shown as "owned and worked by the Camp Floyd Silver Mining company, a British corporation, who have erected a twenty-stamp mill a little south of Lewiston." (Salt Lake Herald, February 26, 1874)
July 23, 1879
The Carrie Steele Mining company was incorporated. (Silver Reef Miner, July 23, 1879)
January 1, 1884
From the Salt Lake Herald, January 1, 1884, "Geology of Utah."
Camp Floyd Mining District.
The principal mines are situated around Lewiston.
The principal mines are the Sparrow Hawk, London, Marion, Geyser, and others of the Camp Floyd Silver Mining Company. These mines are largely developed by numerous shafts, inclines, drifts and adits, and have produced a great amount of silver, which would have been made more profitable if the early management had been more judicious.
The Carrie Steele is largely developed, showing large quantities of rich ore.
The Queen of the West, Silver Cloud, Silver Shield, Antelope, Jenny Lind, Lewiston, Last Chance, Camp Douglas, Silver Star, Reno, Leopard, Silver Circle, Wandering Boy, Star of the West, Midway, Emery, Black Hawk, Gentile Belle, Mormon Chief, Grecian Bend, Mercur, Alexander and New Idria are all promising mines, having all been more or less extensively developed and ore-producing.
November 26, 1894
"A contest over valuable mining property in the Camp Floyd mining district in Tooele county has reached the District Court. Matthew T. Gisborn, S. B. Milner and G. R. Bothwell commenced a suit yesterday against the Marion Gold Mining company, to enjoin the defendant from trespassing upon and extracting ores from the Florence No. 3 mining claim and a portion of the Geyser Lode mining claim, and for damages in the sum of $50,000 for ores heretofore taken from the claims. The plaintiffs are now working the property involved in the suit, while the defendant, which owns an adjoining mine, maintains that its claim extends into the property claimed by the plaintiffs." (Salt Lake Tribune, November 27, 1894)
(Gisborn, Bothwell and Milner were the majority stockholders and owners of the Geyser company.)
(In October 1896, the case was found in favor of the Marion company. The Geyser company's argument was that the Marion company had crossed the surveyed line of patent to extract the ore. The Marion company responded that it was following the vein and was entitled to extract the ore because of the "extra-territorial" rights under mining law, meaning that the vein had its apex within the Geyser company's surveyed patent. This was another case in which apex rights were reaffirmed by the courts. -- summarized in the October 15, 1896 issue of the Deseret News)
(In January 1897, the Marion company reversed to contest with another suit in January 1897, alleging that the Geyser company had extracted 3,500 tons of ore from the property of the Marion company, beginning in September 1894. In this suit, the Marion company held that it was entitled to the ore because the vein within its property had its apex on the Geyser's property. -- Deseret News, January 15, 1897)
February 8, 1897
The Geyser-Marion Gold Mining and Milling company filed its articles of incorporation with the county clerk. The incorporators were: Theodore Bruback (president); S. F. Pearson (first vice president); Matthew T. Gisborn (second vice president); Glenn R. Bothwell (secretary); Stanley B. Milner (treasurer); Edward H. Airis; and Joseph Smith. The company owned the Geyser, the Marion, the Florence No. 3, the Front No. 3, the West Geyser, and the North Geyser mining claims, all in the Camp Floyd mining district. (Salt Lake Tribune, February 9, 1897, "yesterday")
(As of November 1897, George H. Dern was a director of the new company.)
(The suit from January was settled in February 1897 and the two properties were combined. Then there was a controversy over 88,000 shares of the new company being held in trust by Glenn R. Bothwell, and a disagreement as to who the shares were held in trust for, either Matthew T. Gisborn, or the former Geyser Mining company. Gisborn argued that the shares were held in trust for him, and that he was entitled to the $9,680 in dividends paid by the new company. On February 12, 1905, the state supreme court on appeal found in favor of Bothwell and his co-defendant S. B. Milner, and their statement that the original trust and contract with Gisborn was that the dividends were to be paid to the former Geyser company, for the purpose of paying down the debt of the former Geyser company. The money had been paid to Bothwell and Milner as holders of the debt. -- Ogden Morning Examiner, February 12, 1905)
(As a side note, the new Geyser-Marion Gold Mining and Milling company levied an assessment on May 24, 1900 of x cents against the company stock, and in August 1900 Matthew T. Gisborn was shown as owning 80,525 shares that were delinquent in paying the assessment. The delinquent stock was to be sold at public auction on August 10, 1900.)
Gold Era
December 8, 1935
From the Salt Lake Tribune, December 8, 1935.
As 1935 draws to a close, the Geyser Marion Gold Mining company, operating an open-cut gold mine in the Mercur district, can look back with justifiable pride at what it has accomplished this year.
In May the company began erecting a 300-ton cyanide mill. Two months later the mill was completed and operating. Numerous difficulties have been encountered, but most of them have been remedied and the company expects to be able to remedy the others. Leakage in the tanks, for example, was overcome by lining them with steel and new thickeners and classifiers have improved the rate of recovery.
Late in the summer the company installed a refinery and the first batch of bullion was shipped in October.
F. B. Bothwell, general manager, reports that the company is employing 25 men and milling 350 tons of ore daily. The mill-heads average $3.25 a ton and the tailings 75 cents.
Operations will be suspended for the winter, Mr. Bothwell says, but a second shovel will be installed as soon as snow melts in the spring, and it is expected that the mill-heads will increase in value to $5 or $6 a ton as depth is gained.
In addition to milling ore from the open-cut mine, the company expects to treat approximately 200,000 tons of tailings from earlier workings. These, it is said, carry values of about $2.50 a ton in gold.
The company's property consists of 200 acres across the canyon from the Lewiston Peak mine, operated by W. F. Snyder and Sons.
July 1936
The Geyser Marion Gold Mining company existed as late as July 1936, as shown in a law suit filed in Third District Court, in which the company sued the Camp Floyd Silver Mining company, and hundreds of associated stockholders, vendors and debtors, claiming ownership of a large number of mining claims in the Camp Floyd Mining District. (Numerous newspaper legal notices, January through July 1936)
1943
"Gold operations in Mercur continued fitfully through 1943 when they were curtailed by th? United States because of war needs. (Salt Lake Tribune, August 2, 1981)
1969
"The old mine mill and mine dumps were a great place for target plinking and dirt biking until 1969 when Newmont Mining Co. began tentative exploration in the area. (Salt Lake Tribune, August 2, 1981)
Revival (1973)
December 2, 1973
The bankruptcy court in Reno, Nevada, authorized the trustee of the Steen estate "to enter into lease and option to purchase agreement involving the sale of mining property near Mercur, Utah, to Getty Oil Co." (Provo Daily Herald, December 2, 1973)
(The above is the first reference of Getty Oil in relation to either Mercur or the Camp Floyd mining district.)
January 5, 1974
From the Salt Lake Tribune, January 5, 1974.
Gold Standard. Inc., Salt Lake City, has announced a joint venture program with Getty Oil Co. that would try to revive gold production at Mercur, Tooele County. Gold Standard president Scott Smith said that Getty and Gold Standard hold undivided interests of 75 percent and 25 percent respectively.
Getty is the operator and is responsible for all exploration, pre-development work and expenditures, he said. Getty crews are now drilling in the area, he said. Exploration is expected to take about two years.
The work is being carried out on properties acquired by purchase, by lease, or by options to lease or purchase within the Camp Floyd Mining District. Success of the venture presumes development of a low grade, disseminated ore body that could be mined by open pit methods, a sustained or increased price in gold, and the solving of metallurgical problems associated with the Mercur ores, he said.
Newmont Mining Co. did some drilling in the area three years ago with inconclusive results.
(Gold Standard, Inc., had been organized in 1971 by Scott Smith.)
February 8, 1974
From the Tooele Transcript, February 8, 1974.
It has been reported that Gold Standard Inc., a Salt Lake City based mining exploration company and Getty Oil Co. of California have agreed to a joint mining project in what is known as the Camp Floyd Mining District of Tooele County, which encompasses the town of Mercur.
A company spokesman said that Getty Oil will hold a 75 percent undivided interest in the project with Gold Standard holding the remaining 25 percent. Getty Oil will be the operator with responsibility for all exploration and pre-development work.
Preliminary drilling has already begun and extensive exploration is planned. The venture is an attempt to revive gold production in the area that saw the old mining town of Mercur gain world fame at the turn of the last century.
Gold was discovered in the Oquirrh Mountains in 1872 and the town of Mercur was founded soon after. But it was not until 1890 with the then new cyanide process that the problem of getting the gold out of the ores was solved.
The first gold cyanide plant in the U.S. was installed there in 1892 and the Golden Gate Mill began operations in 1899 for the Consolidated Mercur Gold Mines Company. During the 11 years that followed over three million tons of gold ore was processed by the mill. These tailings and the mill foundations are all that remain of the thriving town of Mercur today.
However gold mining operations were still profitable there as late as the early 1940s.
The company spokesman pointed out that over the past year the price of gold has tripled. Couple this with Mercur's impressive past history of gold production and you have the reason for the renewed interest in the area.
Geologists have indicated that the area has a very favorable geologic environment for wide spread gold deposits. And the companies hope that with modern techniques not only can past ore bodies be enlarged, but that totally new ones may be discovered and exploited.
The agreement between Getty Oil and Gold Standard required many months and resulted in the many mines and individual, properties in the area being gathered into one unit. This is the first time the entire gold district has been compiled into a unit and can be treated as a whole so mineral exploration may be undertaken on the entire camp. The camp is made up of hundreds of claims, some dating back to the 1880s. These are now held by the companies through leases and options to purchase.
Some of the mines included in the agreement are: Golden Gate, Sacramento, Brickyard, Geyser, Marion and the Lulu.
The Mercur ores have always been beset with problems. The removal of gold from the host rock has plagued operators from the beginning. Because of this difficulty the U.S. Bureau of Mines has reported that the tailings from the Golden Gate alone contain perhaps 200,000 ounces of gold left by past operators who were unable to recover it.
Getty Oil and Gold Standard hope the new processes developed over the past 30 years will enable them to economically process the tailings. They also believe new ore can be deve1oped.
1976-1977
Beginning in late October 1976 and continuing through mid January 1977, Getty Oil Company, Combined Metals, and the heirs of Charles A. Steen filed a civil law suit against several property owners holding property within the Camp Floyd Mining District. (numerous legal notices during late October 1976 through early January 1977)
The defendants were as follows, in addition to "all persons known and unknown claiming any right, title, estate, lien or interest in the real property described" (the property was not described except in the original summons on file in the Tooele County courthouse).
DeLamar's Mercer Mines Company
Lewiston Peak Mining Company
Snyder Mines Incorporated
Mercur Gold Mining & Milling Company
Wonder Gold Mining Company
Salt Lake & Mercur Railroad Company
Geyser Marion Gold Mining Company
Sacramento Gold Mining Company
(In later notices, the individuals who were directors of the above companies were also listed as defendants. Except for two or three of the companies, all were defunct corporations and their directors deceased.)
(During August 1979, Getty Mineral Resources, the Getty Oil subsidiary that was developing the Mercur gold mine, was also in a joint venture with Coastal States Energy company to develop the new Skyline coal mine near Scofield, Utah.)
July 15, 1980
"Getty Oil Company may revive the silver and gold mining industry at Mercur, but operation will not begin until 1983 at the earliest." "The company is considering underground as well as open pit mining for silver and gold and possibly the recovery of other metals and minerals such as lead and zinc." There were discussions with Tooele County concerning Getty employing up to 120 person, and the impact it would have on Tooele County and Tooele City services and the few remaining residents of Mercur. With all the feasibility and environmental studies yet to be completed, and state and local reviews that have to be completed, it might be 1985 or later before mining starts at Mercur." (Tooele Bulletin, July 15, 1980)
December 11, 1980
"Getty Oil has resumed exploration drilling in the Mercur area after near a decade of inactivity, and may have enough information in a couple months or so to day whether it has a mine." "Getty, by far the largest of the potential operators, has merely indicated that it may file a mining and exploration plan." "The Mercur is a partnership venture with Gold Standard Co., Salt Lake City, which held the claims and brought them to Getty's attention several years ago." (Salt Lake Tribune, December 11, 1980)
March 10, 1981
"Getty Oil filed applications today for permits that could lead to gold mining in Mercur Canyon. The applications were filed with the Tooele County Commission, the state of Utah and the Bureau of Land Management by Getty Resources, a subsidiary of Getty Oil. Company officials emphasized that the proposed project is still under study and no decision has been made to actually begin operation. Initial development would involve less than 300 acres of sparsely vegetated, semi-arid land located in the southern Oquirrh Mountains, 25 miles southwest of Tooele. If the company proceeds with the project, construction could begin later this year and full operation of the mine could start by 1983." (Tooele Bulletin, March 10, 1981)
October 2, 1981
Davey McKee Corporation was awarded a contract by Getty Mineral Resources company to build the new Mercur gold mill. A photo in July 1982 showed the area to be cleared and mill construction well started. (Salt lake Tribune, October 2, 1981; July 25, 1982)
(In February 1982, the Getty Oil subsidiary developing the Mercur gold mining project was changed from Getty Mineral Resources, to Getty Mining Company. The last reference to Getty Mineral Resources Company was in January 1983.)
February 1982
There were law suits from heirs of the original mining claim owners, attacking a the condemnation action Getty Oil was using to gain ownership of the various mining claims in the Mercur area. The heirs were unhappy with what Getty was offering to pay for their mining claims; 19 acres in one case, and 90 acres in another. (Salt Lake Tribune, February 17, 1982; February 18, 1982; March 6, 1982)
(The story of two women from Las Vegas standing in the way of the big evil oil company in Utah was picked up by Associated Press and syndicated nationwide in many, many newspapers.)
(The two law suits were settled in early May 1982, with Getty paying a slightly higher purchase price.)
March 23, 1982
"Initial production is scheduled to begin in July 1983, according to a Getty news release." (Tooele Bulletin, March 23, 1982)
August 19, 1982
The following summary of electric service to Mercur comes from the Lehi Free Press, August 19, 1982.
Today, Utah Power and Light Company crews are building a new power line with a refined technique, from Tooele to Mercur to provide electricity for a new major Getty Oil Company gold mining operation.
Twice devastated by fire; twice rising from the ashes, Mercur was pretty much abandoned with the dismantling of the mill in 1918 Then, again in the early 1930s, the camp was revived by Combined Metals Company gold mining operations that lasted until the early days of World War II when the federal government took gold out of production.
With its latest rebirth, Mercur is in the midst of Getty Oil's engineering and construction activities. Mining and milling operation will begin early next year. The operation is expected to recover 80,000 to 85,000 ounces of gold yearly; upwards of a third a billion dollars.
The electrification of Mercur began in early 1898 after electric industry pioneer Lucien L. Nunn was attracted to Utah because of the potential electrification of Utah mines. Nunn built a small hydro plant near the mouth of Provo Canyon and proposed his plan to bring power to the mining camp to Captain Joseph DeLamar, owner of the mining properties in Mercur.
The line was successfully completed and on January 7, 1898, was energized. It was one of the first 40,000-volt transmission lines in the world and, at the time, was by far the longest. It led to Mercur being recorded as the first completely electric mine and mill in the history of the industry. Even the insulators on the line made history. They were glass insulators designed especially for the 40,000-volt line and, since they were used near Provo, became known as the Provo-type.
That first transmission line was built by the Telluride Power Company and was, at least in part, responsible for the birth of Mercur. Utah Power and Light Company is a direct corporate descendant of the Telluride Company, and its new 44,000 volt transmission line will, at least in part, be responsible for Mercur's rebirth.
March 30, 1983
The mill of the Getty gold mining operation at Mercur began production on Wednesday March 30, 1983. Using about 90 employees, the mine had been stockpiling ore since November 1982. As testing and training at the mill began, 100 more employees were added to work at the mill. "The mill, which is run by latest state-of-the-art equipment is responsible for the crushing of the usable 10 percent of the mined rock into a minute 200-mesh particle mixture. The gold is not visible at this point but the thick mud-looking liquid is quite valuable. Carbon leach is added to the mixture, which acts as a magnet to attract the gold. The 'pregnant' carbon is sprayed into screens of steel wool from which the gold is stripped off and melted. It is then poured into 500-ounce bullions. These leave the plant with a gold purity of 95.5 percent to be further refined elsewhere." (Tooele Transcript, March 31, 1983)
June 16, 1983
Getty Oil Company announced that it would formally merge its 10 mining operations in the United States, Chile and Australia, including the Mercur gold project, into a formal subsidiary to be called Getty Mining company. The merged company was active in the exploration and mining of coal, gold, lignite, copper, uranium and oil-bearing dichotomous earth. (Tooele Transcript, June 16, 1983)
August 4, 1984
From the Salt Lake Tribune, August 4, 1984.
It was Gold Standard, Inc., and its founder, Scott Smith, who put together the 9,000-acre package in 1972 that is now the Mercur Gold Mine 40 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. Getty Mining spent more than $100 million on exploration, engineering, building and development. The first gold was poured in April 1983.
And while Getty moved boldly ahead, it could not have dreamed that the parent Getty Oil Co., would get in a internecine struggle last year that was to eventually result in its acquisition by Texaco Inc.
Texaco, unlike some petroleum companies, has not gotten into owning mining companies and on Friday, Mr. Smith noted that Texaco now has appointed First Boston Corp, to find a buyer for Getty Mining.
(The acquisition of Getty Oil by Texaco was announced on January 7, 1984, when Getty directors agreed to the sale, and the transaction took place on February 17, 1984. Texaco paid $4.07 billion in cash for 35.1 million publicly held shares submitted during its tender offer, and $5.68 billion for the 9.3 million Getty shares held by the J. Paul Getty Museum, with Texaco offering to buy 3 million outstanding Getty shares at $128 per share, or $384 million. -- Salt Lake Tribune, January 7, 1984; February 18, 1984)
(Getty Mining company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Texaco, Inc.)
(During 1983, the Mercur mine produced 30,000 ounces of gold. During 1984, the production was 80,000 ounces of gold. -- Salt Lake Tribune, March 16, 1985)
May 16, 1985
"Texaco Inc., Thursday announced the conditional sale, pending governmental approvals, of Getty Gold Mine Co. to a wholly owned U. S. subsidiary of Barrick Resources Corp., Toronto, Canada." (Salt Lake Tribune, May 17, 1985)
("American Barrick was formed in July 1984 by the combination of three mining companies, including Barrick Resources Corp., itself an amalgamation of other mining interests. The company currently [1987] owns all or part of six producing gold mines in Ontario, Quebec, Utah, Nevada and Alaska. It also has interests in gold exploration and development projects." -- St. Louis Post Dispatch, April 19, 1987)
June 1985
In 1984, Texaco acquired the properties of Getty Oil company in a deal valued at $10.1 billion. Texaco sold its interest in the Mercur gold project in June 1985 to Barrick. At the time of the purchase of Getty by Texaco, there were 240 people employed at the Mercur mine.
June 7, 1985
Barrick Resources Corp. of Toronto, announced its intention to acquire Getty Gold Mining Co. from Texaco, Inc. (Salt Lake Tribune, June 7, 1985)
June 18, 1985
"Barrick's latest acquisition is the Mercur gold mine in Utah, being bought for an undisclosed sum from Getty Mining Co., an indirect subsidiary of Texaco Inc. of White Plains, N.Y. The sale is part of a Texaco program to sell non-oil and gas assets acquired with the purchase of Getty Oil Co. The Mercur purchase will close June 28 — when details will be disclosed — and Barrick will take possession of the property July 1." (Toronto Globe and Mail, June 18, 1985)
July 12, 1985
From the Salt Lake Tribune, July 12, 1985.
Frank D. Wicks, former U.S. operations manager for Getty Mining Co., has been appointed vice president and general manager of the newly formed Barrick Mercur Gold Mines Inc., a subsidiary of the Toronto-based Barrick Resources Corp. Barrick established Barrick Mercur Gold Mines to operate the Mercur gold mine at the south end of the Oquirrh Mountains in Tooele County.
On May 16, Barrick conditionally purchased from Texaco Inc. the Getty Gold Mine Co., which owned and operated the mine. The sale was part of Texaco's plan to dispose of assets it acquired last year in the $10.1 billion purchase of Getty Oil Co that did not fit with its long-term strategy. On Wednesday, Texaco announced the sale of four coal properties in Utah and Colorado it acquired from Getty.
Mr. Wicks was the project manager for the construction of the Mercur mine during 1982. He was promoted to general manager for the mine in 1983. In 1984, he was promoted U.S. operations manager for Getty Mining.
Besides his new duties at the Mercur operation, Mr. Wicks will coordinate all of Barrick’s domestic U S. activities.
(The formal name of the new company was Barrick Mercur Gold Mines, Inc.)
October 1985
Barrick began its heap leaching program at the Mercur gold mine. The process was expected to add 15,000 ounces of gold to the annual production. (Salt Lake Tribune, October 1, 1985)
(After buying the Mercur gold mine in 1985, Barrick entered into a massive expansion of its holdings, including the Goldstrike mine near Carlin, Nevada, and the Holt-McDermott mine in Ontario, expanding its gold production capability from 115,000 ounces from just the Mercur mine in 1985, to a projected 344,000 ounces from all properties in 1989. The expansion was funded by selling gold futures, which stockholders objected to, fearing that any profits would first go to retiring the debt instead of dividends.)
(In 1987, a legal battle began between Barrick and Gold Standard, Inc., the Salt Lake City exploration company that had in the early 1970s assembled the group of mineral land parcels that became the Mercur mine. Barrick had leveraged its gold production to fund its expansion program, ignoring the fact that the Mercur project was in fact a joint venture with Gold Standard, with Gold Standard being entitled to 25 percent of all proceeds from the Mercur project. In December 1986, Gold Standard started legal action against both Barrick and Texaco, seeking to take full ownership of the Mercur mine, and all gold production since the startup in 1983. Barrick offered a minimal settlement that Gold Standard refused. Any legal action against Texaco included navigating the roadblocks of Texaco's then-current bankruptcy.)
(The suit and subsequent counter-suit, and an add-on suit, progressed through the court system until Barrick settled with Gold Standard in April 1993, buying the company's 15 percent interest in the profits from the mine, paying a reported $5 million. Gold Standard continued its suit against Getty Oil and Texaco, claiming fraud. In September 1993, a Tooele County jury found in favor of Gold Standard, but the jury's verdict was overruled by the court judge. Gold Standard appealed the judges decision to the Utah Supreme Court, and in January 1996, the state supreme court found in favor of Getty and Texaco, canceling the $404 million in damages awarded by the jury to Gold Standard. -- sources include a wide variety of Salt Lake City, Tooele, and Toronto newspaper stories from April 1987 to January 1996)
November 3, 1987
Barrick Installs Autoclave For Refractory Ore -- From the Salt Lake Tribune, November 3, 1987.
American Barrick Resources Corp, Toronto, will begin treating refractory ore in an autoclave to be installed at its Mercur gold mine at the southern tip of the Oquirrh Mountains. The 12-foot-diameter, 50-foot-long, 1,500-ton steel vessel, looking like a giant propane tank, was built in Canada. "The autoclave operates like kitchen pressure cooker," says Frank Wicks, vice president and general manager of Barrick Resources USA, the company's U.S. subsidiary.
Refractory ore has a high content of sulfur and carbon that holds the gold in a tight molecular bond that makes it unusable in the normal cyanidation processes. The refractory ore, now stockpiled, will be subjected to pressures of 460 pounds per square inch and temperatures of 225 degrees Centigrade. The pressure and temperature will break the sulfur and carbon bond, freeing the gold to be passed into the regular cyanidation process. The sulphur is oxidized to become sulfuric acid, which in turn is neutralized in the naturally occurring limestone of the ore.
"We expect to have 90 percent gold recovery from treated refractory material compared to 20 percent if it were untreated," Mr. Wicks said. Most of the mill feed is oxide ore which needs no treatment. However, the oxide ore gold grade is thinning. The addition of capacity to treat the refractory ores will enable Mercur to maintain its gold production at a 116,000 ounce annual rate, he said.
Mercur currently treats 4,250 tons of oxide ore daily. Some 750 tons of refractory ore daily will be treated in the autoclave, bringing total ore processed to 5,000 tons daily. The mine and mill employ 200.
The Mercur gold project was developed by Getty Oil Co. at estimated cost of $100 million on land principally packaged in the early 1970s by Gold Standard Co., Salt Lake City. Operations began in 1983. Getty was later acquired by Texaco Inc., which later sold off the mine and mill operation to American Barrick. American Barrick operates gold mines in Canada as well as the United States. Gold Standard has begun litigation against American Barrick as well as previous operators in dispute over contracts.
The autoclave was made by Victoria Machine Depot, an old-line Victoria, B.C., company whose products range from pressure vessels for the mining and forestry industries to submarine hulls for military and civilian use. The autoclave cost $750,000. Transport and installation, however, will bring total investment to $7 million, according to Mr. Wicks.
The autoclave was shipped by barge from Victoria to railhead in Washington state, then hauled by special railcar to the St. John's rail siding west of Mercur. It is to be transferred by a special 96-wheel truck rig eight miles up Mercur Canyon, an elevation gain of 1,000 feet to the 7,000-foot mill site. Addition of the autoclave effectively increases reserves, and job security, at Mercur. So far, some 10 years of oxide ore reserves have been blocked out at the mine, Mr. Wicks said. But with addition of the autoclave as well as processes to deal with old tailings, "we see reserves increased to 14 to 15 years."
March 27, 1997
Barrick announced that it would excavate the last remaining gold ore at the Mercur mine on March 27, 1997. Processing at the mill will continue through the end of 1998. After mill is closed, reclamation of the mine, mill and other facilities will begin. (Tooele Transcript Bulletin, March 11, 1997)
(The closure of the Mercur gold mine in 1997-1998 was only given minimal coverage in the local, regional and national newspapers, in almost every case tying the closure with the collapse of gold prices. The majority of coverage was for the last truck-load of ore being hauled in late March 1997, putting 20 men out of work, most of whom were retirement age, with no reference to the closing of the mill over 18 months later, putting over 100 men out of work.)
(For additional coverage of the Mercur mine after 1998, see the Mercur, Today page.)
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