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Midvale Smelters

This page was last updated on May 31, 2026.

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Overview

Because of the growing production of the Bingham mines, along with other mines throughout the territory, and with the construction of the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd, the Galena Silver Mining Company began construction, in late 1872, of a smelter near the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd's crossing of the Jordan River. (Reeder, p. 152)

The earliest smelters at Midvale (known then as Bingham Junction) were the Galena, built in late 1872 to early 1873,

The United States smelter at Midvale processed copper from 1902 to 1907, and processed lead from 1905 to 1958. The plant continued milling and concentration of lead ore from 1958 until 1972 when the International lead smelter at Tooele was closed.

West Jordan, Bingham Junction, Midvale

All three names were used to describe the location of the smelter sites at what would officially be known as Midvale after 1909. The post office for West Jordan was in Archibald Gardner's mill on the west side of the Jordan River. The smelter sites were on the east side of the river, and mail was delivered to residents east of the river without restriction. Local residents casually called their area "East Jordan" to distinguish themselves from the folks on the west side of the river.

The settlement of Bingham Junction came into existence when the Denver & Rio Grande Western railroad completed its line north from Provo to Salt Lake City in mid-June 1882. At that time, the original line to Bingham, the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd railroad, became the Bingham Branch of the D&RGW. The line north from Provo reached the new station of Bingham Junction in early June 1882, where the new D&RGW line crossed the existing BC&CF line west from Sandy Station. New yard tracks were laid, a depot and engine house built and trains began operating east to Little Cottonwood Canyon and west to Bingham Canyon.

The transition from Bingham Junction to Midvale took place in 1909 when the community officially incorporated as a city. Before this change, the area suffered from a bit of an identity crisis. Local residents noted that if you talked about the town it was called East Jordan, if you mailed a letter it went to West Jordan, and if you bought a train ticket to come home, it was stamped Bingham Junction.

When the community decided to organize themselves as a formal city, they sought a fresh identity. The name "Midvale" (descriptive of its location in the middle of the Salt Lake Valley) was chosen from a pool of more than 200 suggestions from the public. The official shift was solidified in the autumn of 1909. The Salt Lake Herald reported on October 20, 1909, that the official United States post office guide for October had formally updated the local branch name from Bingham Junction to Midvale.

April 13, 1909
"Bingham Junction, April 13.—Midvale will be the next town placed on the map of Utah and it will stand on the present site of Bingham Junction. The committee of citizens will meet the county commissioners next Monday and present the petition for incorporation signed by nearly 200 citizens, and it is expected the incorporation will follow immediately. The name of the new corporation was selected by a mass meeting of citizens which filled Woodmen’s hall tonight. More than 200 names were presented in competition for the $25 prize. The prize was awarded to W. L. Smith for the name Midvale." (Salt Lake Herald, April 14, 1909)

May 26, 1909
"Bingham Junction, May 26. — All Bingham Junction is alight tonight and jubilant over the result of the election today, whereby the town was incorporated under the name "Midvale," by a vote of 273 to 85, with seventeen votes not counting. This is the third time an attempt has been made to incorporate the town. The first attempt was spoiled by the smelter people and the railroads, who thought they could see something in the movement detrimental to their interests. The second attempt was spoiled by the action of the citizens in refusing to permit the smelter people to arrange the boundaries of the town in such a way that the smelter properties were outside the town limits." (Salt Lake Tribune, May 27, 1909)

(The formal incorporation took place on June 30, 1909 when the incorporation papers were filed with the Secretary of State.)

Early Midvale Smelter Sites

From EPA documents describing the history of Midvale smelter sites:

The United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company was organized in 1906 to acquire the United States Mining Company, operating in Bingham, Tintic and California and to acquire other mining interests in Mexico and Nevada. The Company's first managing director Albert F. Holden.

United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company was also the parent company of Utah Railway, a coal-hauling railroad in Carbon and Utah counties, along with United States Fuel Company, which owned the coal mines in Carbon County served by Utah Railway.

(Read more about United States Smelting, Refining & Mining and their mines in Bingham Canyon)

(Read more about United States Fuel Company)

Sheridan Hill Smelter

Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company, incorporated in the State of New York.

(The Sheridan Hill smelter was owned by the same group as the Neptune and Kempton mines in upper Galena Gulch in Bingham Canyon. The two mining claims were situated adjacent to and immediately north of the Jordan and Galena claims.)

(Read more about the Neptune and Kempton mines)

The earliest record of a lead smelter built at Midvale was that of the Sheridan Hill smelter, which was constructed by J. W. Kerr and Isadore Morris in 1871 to treat ores from the Neptune mine at Bingham. The smelter was located just south of the Midvale site of the United States smelter. (Oquirrh Mountains Mining and the Environment by Eva J. Hoffman, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Denver, April 21, 2005)

(The EPA Superfund web site places the location of the Sheridan Hill smelter as 7500 South and 200 West. This would put it north of the Bingham Canyon rail line.)

(Billings shows that the Sheridan Hill smelter was built in 1873 and began operating with one of its three furnaces in September 1873.)

The following comes from "Department Of The Interior, Statistics And Technology Of The Precious Metals," 1885, page 409:

February 24, 1873
"The Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company was incorporated in the State of New York with an initial capital of $600,000 on February 24, 1873." "The company was established to mine ores found in the Sheridan Hill Mine and to smelt that ore and other purchased ores from nearby mines." (Charles Hughes, "The Development of the Smelting Industry in the Central Salt Lake Valley Communities of Midvale, Murray, and Sandy Prior to 1900," 1990, page 60)

April 26, 1873
Isaac Schoenberg was superintendent of the newly organized Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company, with Israel Schoenberg as President, Abraham Schoenberg as Treasurer, and Emanuel Schoenberg as General Manager. The Schoenbergs were a family-run metal brokerage business in New York City under the name of I. Shoenberg & Brothers. Simon Bamberger was Mining Superintendent at the Neptune and Kempton mine in Galena Gulch in Bingham Canyon. The Sheridan Hill smelter was situated near the Galena Works in West Jordan and was to be in running order within four weeks. (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, April 26, 1873)

May 17, 1873
"The Sheridan Hill Smelting Works. - Are now being constructed on ground adjoining the Galena works, Jordan river. The capacity will be two blast furnaces, with all modern improvements. The property is owned by the Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company of Utah, incorporated in New York. The superintendent is Mr. Isaac Schoenburg." (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, May 17, 1873)

September 1873
"The Sheridan Hill Smelter began smelting operations in September 1873. Only two furnaces were in operation on this date." (Charles Hughes, "The Development of the Smelting Industry in the Central Salt Lake Valley Communities of Midvale, Murray, and Sandy Prior to 1900," 1990, page 61)

October 19, 1873
"Salt Lake, October 18. -- The First National Bank has attached Saturn and Sheridan Hill Mining Co.'s furnaces and Camp Floyd mill. Work will be carried on as usual under the charge of officers. An immense quantity of bullion is locked up and in consequence there is a lack of currency. Silver is selling at less than 70 cents per ounce. General depression in mining circles. Trains are running on the Bingham Canon narrow gauge railway." (The Des Moines Register, October 19, 1873)

November 24, 1873
"Sheridan Hill Company -- Sheridan Hill Smelting Company, West Jordan, are having two additional large smelting furnaces constructed. Schoenberg brothers are the managers of this company." (Deseret Evening News, November 24, 1873)

March 1874
The Sheridan Hill Smelting Company began operations in March 1874. (Charles Hughes, "The Development of the Smelting Industry in the Central Salt Lake Valley Communities of Midvale, Murray, and Sandy Prior to 1900," 1990, page 60)

April 16, 1874
Morris & Evans, contractors, were set to build a reverberatory furnace for the Sheridan Hill company at West Jordan. The same company was already building a similar reverberatory furnace for the Winnamuck company in Bingham. (Deseret Evening news, April 16, 1874)

From the Utah Mining Gazette, May 2, 1874.

May 20, 1874
"Preparations are being made at the Sheridan Hill Smelting Works for the building of a new reverberatory furnace." (Deseret News, May 20, 1874)

June 26, 1874
"Neptune and Kempton. -- The company have just secured the services of one of the most experienced furnace-men in the country, Mr. A. Arents, to take charge of their smelter - the Sheridan Hill." (Salt Lake Herald, June 26, 1874)

January 19, 1875
"The Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company's Works at West Jordan, are working steadily on Neptune and other ore from Bingham. The production of bullion in 1874 was 4,823,000 pounds [2,411 tons], which contained $16,610 worth of gold, $297,285 of silver, and $184,341 of lead, making a total of $193,230." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 19, 1875)

July 1, 1875
"The Sheridan Hill smelters have started up, indicating immediate work on the Neptune and Kempton mines." (Real Estate and Mining Gazette [Salt Lake City], July 1, 1875)

The Sheridan Hill smelter was still in operation in October 1875, when a spontaneous strike took place by smelter workers. (George M. Addy, "The Economic and Social History of Bingham Canyon, Utah, Considered With Special Reference to Mormon-Gentile Synthesis", 1949, page 107, citing Deseret News, Weekly edition, October 25, 1875)

December 25, 1875
The Edward Balbachs, Sr. and Jr., operating as Edward Balbachs & Son, have commenced an action in Utah courts, against the Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company and others to foreclose a mortgage given to secure the payment of $100,000. (The Oregonian, December 25, 1875)

March 18, 1876
"A suit for foreclosure of mortgage brought by the creditors of the Sheridan Hill Mining Company, comes on in a fortnight. This involves the ownership of the Neptune and Kempton mine in Bingham, and the Sheridan Hill Smelting Works on the Jordan." (Engineering & Mining Journal, March 25, 1876, page 294)

October 21, 1876
Nine men were arrested for rioting at the Sheridan Hill smelter, in reaction to a new manager not agreeing to limit them to an eight-hour work shift due to the harmful effects of metallic fumes at the smelter. Each was fined $500. (Deseret News, October 21, 1876; November 1, 1876)

December 21, 1876
The Neptune and Kempton mines, and the associated Sheridan Hill smelter, were to return to production soon, following a decree by a chancery court in New York City against one of the Schoenberg Brothers, concerning a complaint by a silver and gold refiner in Newark, New Jersey, and bankers in New York and Salt Lake City. The decree was against Issac Schoenberg. (Salt Lake Tribune, December 21, 1876)

January 1, 1877
"The Sheridan Hill Smelter is situated at West Jordan on the Bingham Canyon railroad, and is built on one of the most eligible sites to be found in the country, with an ample and inexhaustible water-power privilege. It is understood to be the property of three Salt Lake gentlemen, it having fallen into their hands on a mortgage from the original owners. It is a good piece of property, and with some needed repairs and improvements in the style of the furnaces, it would rank among the best smelters of the country. Yet it has done, with its three stacks running only a portion of the time, a good year's work. Giving employment to an average of twenty men the entire twelve months, and it has turned out 173 car lots of base bullion of eleven tons to the car, worth, according to Superintendent Rumfield's calculation, $2,000 to the car load, or total value of $346,000." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1877)

August 21, 1877
"The Sheridan Hill has been idle for months." (The Inter-Ocean [Chicago], August 21, 1877)

November 3, 1877
"The Sheridan Hill Mining and Smelting Company, owners of the Neptune and Kempton mines in Bingham Canon, is another of the good properties which has become bankrupt by official mismanagement and incapacity. When a change was made in the direction, it was already too late, and last spring it "passed in its checks" to its creditors. The smelting works are idle, but the mine is being worked by Jackson & Co., lessees." (Engineering and Mining Journal, November 3, 1877, page 333)

(A review of available online newspapers shows few references to the Neptune and Kempton mines after late 1876.)

(A review of available online newspapers shows no more references to the Sheridan Hill smelter after November 1877.)

(By July 31, 1881, the Neptune and Kempton mines were shown as being part of Holden's Jordan group. -- Salt Lake Herald, July 31, 1881)

Galena Smelter

The location of the Galena smelter on the Jordan River was where, in late 1872, the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd crossed the Jordan river, and continued eastward to connect with the north-south line of the Utah Southern railroad at Sandy. In 1881, the point was where the north-south line of D&RGW crossed the east-west line of BC&CF, and it then became known as Bingham Junction, and later as Midvale.

Kerr & Morris (1872-1873)

December 1872
Work started in December 1872 on the smelting works of the Galena Silver Mining Company, located where the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd Railroad was to cross the Jordan River on its way between a connection with Utah Southern at Sandy, and the mines in Bingham Canyon. Surveying work for the railroad had begun one month previously in November 1872. (Salt Lake Tribune, November 22, 1872)

A standard gauge track was planned from Sandy Station to the smelter in order to make the transportation of coke and other materials possible without changing cars from the Utah Southern Railroad. A third track of three-foot gauge was also laid in this portion, making it possible to use either standard or narrow gauge equipment. From the smelter to Bingham Canyon the road was three-foot gauge. (Salt Lake Tribune, January 6, 1873)

1872
"The Jordan mine is the oldest in the canyon and was purchased by J. W. Kerr & Company, who, in 1872, erected the Galena Smelter. Later the property in Bingham and Midvale was bought by Carson and Buzzo who constructed a 12-mile-long wooden flume, at a cost of $120,000, to furnish water power. After the Galena Silver Mining Company became the owners, they built the Galena Smelter on the Jordan River and, in 1877, sold the property to the Jordan Mining and Milling Company." (Daughters of Utah Pioneers, Our Pioneer Heritage, Vol. 7, p.88)

April 21, 1873
"The Myers Smelting Works. - On the Jordan River, at the crossing of the Bingham Canyon railroad, under general superintendence of Mr. F. Myers, are doing a good business, making successful runs, and thus far have proved a perfect success. The ores treated by these furnaces are from the mines of Bingham Canyon." (Salt Lake Tribune, April 21, 1873)

May 3, 1873
A lengthy article in the May 3, 1873 issue of the Salt Lake Weekly Tribune laid out the the details of the selection and advantages of the site chosen for the Galena Smelting works at Bingham Junction (Midvale after 1909). Selected by superintendent F. H. Myers after months of deliberation, the location near Salt Lake City was chosen for its ideal proximity to mining districts and key advantages for the logistics of receiving re from nearby mines, and shipping finished bullion to market.

The location offers several distinct benefits crucial for successful operations:

• Topographical Advantages: The land featured a gradual 75-degree decline, creating a 150-foot elevation difference between the top bench land and the river lands of the Jordan River. This terrace-like geological structure provided the necessary space for constructing multiple floors, allowing for economic, labor-saving, and efficient smelting operation.
• Abundant Water Power: Because the highest point of the smelter site lay below the level of the nearby Jordan River further to the south, construction a ditch or canal tapping into the river three-and-a half miles to the south will generate an immense water power equivalent to 2,000 horsepower, creating significant economic value.
• Direct Railroad Connectivity: The smelter site lay immediately alongside of the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd Railroad, from which spur tracks were made to the furnaces and various departments of the smelter to bring in ore and fuel, and to ship the finished bullion.
• The Bingham Canyon railroad ran three rails from the initial point connecting with the Utah Southern Railroad to the Jordan River, combining the broad gauge and narrow gauge on the same line, and laying aside the necessity of transferring material to and from between the cars of each of the two gauge systems. A three-rail line between the smelter and the Utah Southern station at Sandy also secured direct service that benefited both the broad gauge Utah Southern and the smelting company.

Galena Silver Mining Company (1873-1875)

(Carson & Buzzo)

May 17, 1873
"The Galena Smelting Works. - Are situated on the banks of the Jordan river, about ten miles south of Salt Lake City. They are owned by John W. Kerr, Esq., and under the superintendence of Mr. Frederick H. Meyers. The present capacity is one blast furnace, which turns out from eight to nine tons of bullion daily. Three more furnaces are to be added before long. The ores treated are from the Galena mine, Bingham canyon." (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, May 17, 1873)

July 1873
"The Galena Smelting Works owned by Carson & Buzzo, which are situated on the east side of the Jordan river on the line of the Bingham Canyon Railroad. These works were purchased by the present owners last July in connection with the Jordan and Galena mines." (Utah Mining Gazette, April 25, 1974)

(There are news items from August and September 1873 indicating that Carson & Buzzo took possession of the Jordan and Galena mines in the first or second week of August 1873. Recall that since late 1871, the Jordan and Galena claims were being worked as a single property.)

"The Jordan and Galena is also located on Jordan Hill. These mines are now owned by Carson and Buzzo, who bought them during the year [1873], in order to have a regular supply for their smelting-works at West Jordan, a small settlement on the banks of the Jordan River, near where the Bingham Canyon Rail-road crosses the stream." (Raymond, "Statistics Of Mines And Mining In The States And Territories, West Of The Rocky Mountains," Sixth Annual Report, 1874, page 266)

November 26, 1873
"Extensive Works. -- Carson & Buzzo are making some very extensive improvements at their smelting works, near West Jordan Bridge. Buildings are in course of erection there 290 feet long by 40 feet wide, for storing fuel and for reverberators for calcining the ores. Another building is also being put up which will be 160 feet long by 36 feet wide, and in which there will be six smelting furnaces. A flue 150 feet long and chimney stack over sixty feet high are already completed. The other additions and improvements will probably be finished within two or three weeks. These are the largest smelting works in Utah. Morris & Evans are the contractors who are putting up the buildings. Carson & Buzzo are the proprietors of very rich mines in Bingham." (Deseret News, Weekly edition, November 26, 1873)

(A lengthy item in the November 29, 1873 issue of the Utah Mining Gazette described the improvements being done to the smelter. It specifically noted that the new furnaces were being built north of the railroad line, "The B. C. track passes between the old Galena Works and those in course of construction.")

February 27, 1874
"Another Furnace. - Messrs. Carson & Buzzo, proprietors of the Galena Smelting Works, West Jordan, are about to have erected another smelter, which will make the fourth. Messrs. Morris & Evans have contracted to do the work. Messrs. Carson & Buzzo own some very valuable mines in Bingham, and it is reliably reported that a very rich strike has recently been made in one of them. It is stated that the newly discovered body of ore assays 70 percent of lead, and 90 ounces of silver to the ton." (Deseret News, February 27, 1874)

March 5, 1874
"Carson & Buzzo, owners of the Galena and Jordan mines in Bingham Canyon, and smelting furnaces on Jordan, have let a contract to Bishop A. Gardner, of Cottonwood, to dig a canal to their furnaces from a point on Jordan nine miles south of them. The canal will give the company water power equal to 500 horse power, with which to run the machinery for their thirteen furnaces, to be erected immediately. The canal is to be constructed under the supervision of Mr. J. F. Smith, engineer, of this city, and is to be completed by the 20th of June next. The work will cost about $35,000 and we understand, will make Carson & Buzzo's smelter the most extensive on the Coast." (Provo Daily Times, March 5, 1874; edited version in Salt Lake Herald, March 5, 1874)

March 14, 1874
The water power from the canal, 9-1/2 miles, would be sufficient to smelt 200 tons per day. (Salt Lake Tribune, March 14, 1874)

April 8, 1874
"From the Deseret News, April 8, 1874 - Carson & Buzzo have suspended the working of all of their furnaces, at West Jordan, for the purpose of making still further improvements at their works, among which are the fitting up of a new forty-horse power steam engine, new blowers, blast pipes, etc. As soon as these matters are completed the furnaces will be in full blast again. These gentlemen are doing a large and profitable business." (Utah Mining Gazette, April 11, 1874)

The following excerpts are taken from a lengthy article in the Utah Mining Gazette, April 25, 1874.

May 20, 1874
"Carson & Buzzo have just had the foundation laid for a new furnace stack. All the other furnaces are in active operation and bullion is being turned out by the car load daily." (Deseret News, May 20, 1874)

January 19, 1875
"This morning I visited the Galena Smelter, located at West Jordan. I was informed by Capt. T. H. Low, that owing to the cold weather, and consequent difficulty of getting water through the canal, they are compelled to let their 12-horse power double-turbine wheel remain idle. This throws all the work on the engine, which is only able to furnish power for four furnaces, out of the seven. They are working from seventy-five to one hundred tons of ore a day and employ sixty men. They are producing eighteen tons of bullion, assaying from seventy to two hundred ounces in silver, and from one-half to one and one quarter ounces in gold, per day." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 19, 1875)

March 15, 1875
"Carson & Buzzo's smelter, the leading one of the Territory, and which is said to be one of the largest in the world, has been compelled to shut down owing to pecuniary difficulties. It is said they will be able to resume again in a few days. The stoppage casts a sort of shadow upon the interests of this fair valley, for they were considered to be doing a good business, and were looked upon as the backbone of the Territory. They also own and work a valuable mine which has been closed." (Omaha Evening Bee, March 15, 1875)

March 16, 1875
"The temporary suspension of Carson & Buzzo, the largest miners and smelters in the Territory, has depressed this market, and will affect the production of bullion for this month. Their troubles arose from some differences existing among their associates, which will no doubt be very soon adjusted." (Chicago Inter-Ocean, March 16, 1875)

March 22, 1875
"The Carson & Buzzo smelter, which suspended a few days since, will soon resume." (Omaha Evening Bee, March 22, 1875)

From the Utah Mining Gazette, April 25, 1874.

(In July 1875, James Carson, of the firm Carson & Buzzo, owners of the Galena Silver Mining company, and the smelter in Midvale, died of injuries after being struck by a street car in Oakland, California, as reported in the Salt Lake Herald, July 28, 1875.)

(The activity and location of Thomas Buzzo after the death of his partner was not covered in the newspapers.)

(Read more about Carson & Buzzo, active in Utah mining and smelting from 1873 to 1875)

(The Salt Lake Herald of July 28, 1875 reported, "But finally, last autumn [1874], the concern [Carson & Buzzo's smelter at West Jordan] succumbed to the pressure of the times, and collapsed." This statement has been found to be untrue. Possibly the smelter had been temporarily shut down due to low amounts of ore arriving.)

Jordan Mining and Smelting company (1875-1880)

September 2, 1875
"Jordan Mining and Smelting Company. - Parties from the East will be here in a few days for the purpose of starting up the old Galena smelting works (formerly the property of the Galena Silver Mining Co.), under the title of the Jordan Mining and Smelting Co. The Jordan mines, Bingham, which is included in the property of this new company, was opened out yesterday preparatory to notice work. Mr. J. T. Gore, well-known to the miners of Utah, is acting for the company. (Salt Lake Tribune, September 2, 1875)

September 6, 1875
The stockholders of the Galena Silver Mining Company met in Boston "to act on the question of the formal conveyance of all its property, legal or equitable, to the Jordan Mining and Smelting Company." (Boston Post, August 30, 1875)

(Also in September 1875, Liberty Holden had organized the Old Telegraph Mining company to take over the Nez Perces claims.)

October 1, 1875
The Jordan Mining and Smelting company took out a $350,000 mortgage, which it later failed to repay, with the resulting auction on April 9, 1877. (Boston Globe, February 27, 1877)

(Research suggests that this was when Thomas Buzzo sold his interest in the mine and smelter following the death of his partner, James Carson. The $350,000 mortgage was taken out by the mine's new owners after taking control of the the company by buying out the Carson & Buzzo partnership.)

October 9, 1875
"Geo. K. Sutton of Oxley & Co. left last evening for Salt Lake City to put up a fume box at the Jordan Silver Mining and Smelting works, 12 miles distant. Sixteen thousand pounds galvanized iron has been forwarded by Oxley & Co. for the works. Mr. Sutton will be gone about three weeks. He put up the fume at Cheltenham, St. Louis county." (St. Louis Republic, October 9, 1875)

April 16, 1876
The Jordan mine was producing 400 tons of ore per month. The Jordan (former Galena) smelter at Bingham Junction was running with three furnaces. (Salt Lake Herald, April 16, 1876)

(Note that the newspapers continue to refer the Jordan smelter at Bingham Junction as the "Galena" smelter, although it had been sold to the Jordan Mining and Smelting company six months before.)

Liberty Holden Leased Smelter (1876)

Fall 1876
L. E. Holden "leased a portion of the Galena smelter on Jordan, and engaged Mr. Longmaid to put up three new wrought iron water jacket furnaces, which have recently been fired up on Old Telegraph ore, with sufficiency of flux, and it is found to work admirably. The great difficulty in smelting Utah ores has been to avoid blowing the profits out of the stack, which has been done in the form of dust carrying about twenty per cent of the value contained in the ores. High blast and lack of fume condensers have caused the ruin of quite a number who have engaged in the smelting enterprise in this Territory." Holden had determined that "many furnaces with a low blast, little dust and less waste" was better than a single smoke stack. Holden then "leased the entire Galena smelter and will immediately commence the erection of three more furnaces, all for the reduction of ore from the Old Telegraph." (Salt Lake Tribune, March 7, 1877, "last Autumn")

January 1, 1877
L. E. Holden leased three of the seven furnaces of the Bingham Junction smelter on the Jordan river, and was remodeling the stacks with a new design. In the last year, the Bingham Junction smelter had processed 235 carloads with 2,470 tons from the Jordan mine. (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1877)

(By this time, and since September 1875, the Galena smelter was owned by the Jordan Mining and Smelting company.)

"The Galena Smelter is situated at the same place as the Sheridan Hill and almost joins it on the north. This smelter, which is now in the hands of Captain Selfridge, has seven furnaces. Three of them have been leased to L. E. Holden, who has torn out the old stacks and is replacing them with others of an improved pattern. They will be ready to fire up early in the spring. Of the four remaining stacks, two , and some of the time, only one is kept running, but they are large and of sufficient capacity to reduce all the ores the company may desire to handle during the coming season. In the last year 235 carloads of base bullion, or 2,470 tons, of an average value of $1,600 per car load, have been produced from the yield of the Jordan mine and custom ores from the Cottonwoods and Bingham." "The Jordan company have in connection with the smelter, a sampling mill, where they have sampled every fifth sack of the 12,0350 tons of ore ran through their smelter in the past year, as well as having much work of the same character for other parties. At present they sample about 300 tons each month, including that which they purchase for their own use. The business is under the able supervision of Captain Selfridge, who is running the concern to win, while Mr. G. P. Lockwood is in charge of the smelter and the gang of workmen, some thirty in number." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1877)

(In Fall 1876 the Holden leased from the "Galena smelting company" 100 feet of land south of and adjoining the Galena company, for the purposes of building three furnaces and necessary ore houses. In January or February 1877 Holden leased another 40 feet of land directly north of its previous parcel, and where the old Galena works had been. These old Galena buildings were demolished and new engine house and boiler house for Holden's company was erected on the same site.)

(The Galena Silver Mining company had been sold to the Jordan Mining and Smelting company in September 1875.)

March 7, 1877
"Hundreds of tons of ore rolling out of this mine [Telegraph] to the smelters on the Jordan." "Last fall he [Holden] leased a portion of the Galena smelter on Jordan, and engaged Mr. Longmaid to put up three new wrought iron water jacket furnaces, which have recently been fired up on Old Telegraph ore, with sufficiency of flux, and it is found to work admirably." (Salt Lake Tribune, March 7, 1877)

March 28, 1877
"The [Galena] furnaces are at present running by water power, fed from the Galena canal, but will be put under steam power as soon as the engine which is already in position shall be in running order." (Salt Lake Herald, March 28, 1877)

"In March last the Jordan Silver Mining Company (sic: Jordan Mining and Smelting company) was wound up on petition of the bondholders. The mines in Bingham Canon and the works on the Jordan River, including the long water power canal, were sold and bought in by L. E. Holden, the principal creditor. Holden immediately tore down the old furnaces and replaced them by three new ones, remodeled and improved the works generally, and is now building two new furnaces. In addition to these improvements, he is also erecting concentration works immediately adjoining. The remodeled and improved works are designed more especially for working ores from the Old Telegraph Company's mines. The Jordan and Galena mines are now being worked, and it remains to be seen what this much-abused property will prove under good management. This property, when put upon the market, had a future second to none in Utah, but the selection of managers without proper business qualifications has brought it to bankruptcy." (Engineering and Mining Journal, November 3, 1877, page 333)

(This is when the confusion concerning the ownership of the Bingham Junction smelter begins. Liberty Holden and his associates owned and controlled the Telegraph mine, since December 1875, and April 1877 he and his associates purchased the Jordan Mining and Smelting company. The Bingham Junction smelter was not a property of the Old Telegraph Mining company, but they did share common owners. Also, there was possibly a joint ownership of the Galena Canal.)

April 9, 1877
The Jordan Mining and Smelting company was sold at auction on the Salt Lake County court house steps. On October 1, 1875, the Jordan Mining and Smelting company had issued bonds to repay a $350,000 mortgage to George W. Long, Charles H. Hempstead, and George F. Bemis, all of Boston. A year later, October 1876, the Jordan company failed to pay the first installment of $60,000 when it came due, and failed to pay the follow-on $50,000 due on January 1, 1877. The bondholders asked for the sale with knowledge that the next installment of $60,000 due on October 1, 1877 would not be paid, as well as the final $180,000 due on on October 1, 1878. In February 1877, the bondholders foreclosed on the property due to the Jordan company defaulting on the entire mortgage and bond amount. The property to be sold at public auction was made up of the following: Two riverfront parcels along the Jordan River totaling roughly 13.5 acres, located adjacent to the Bingham Canyon Railroad and its bridge over the Jordan River; the famous Galena Lode and the Jordan Mine (West Jordan Mine) in the West Mountain Mining District (Bingham Canyon), totaling 5,200 linear feet, along with the Jordan Tunnel; along with all associated smelting works, machinery, tenements, and buildings; and finally, a dedicated canal (the Galena Canal) and associated water privileges running from the Jordan River to within 400 feet of the Bingham Canon and Camp Floyd Railroad. (Boston Globe, February 27, 1877)

(Research suggests that the sale resulted in the Jordan Mining and Smelting company being reorganized with new financing, and that Liberty Holden arranged to lease the properties, including the smelter and the Jordan and Galena mines. Holden already owned the majority of the stock of the nearby Telegraph mine, and was that mine's general manager.)

(Holden's 1877 lease of the Jordan and Galena mine, and a portion of the Galena smelter at Bingham Junction, was the basis for the later confusion about the smelter's actual ownership.)

(The newspapers confused Holden's lease of the Jordan and Galena mine, and the Galena smelter as becoming part of his Telegraph properties. Nothing in available source material supports this confusion.)

(Holden's Telegraph mine was the leading lead mine in America. By June 1877, and again by March 1878, the Galena smelter on the Jordan river was referred to as "the Old Telegraph smelters." -- Salt Lake Tribune, June 3, 1877; Deseret News, March 16, 1878) (Technically, the smelter was still, until 1879, part of the Jordan Mining and Smelting company.)

(It was reported in June 1890 that during Holden's ownership of the Telegraph mine from 1874 to 1879, "This company owned the largest smelters at the time in Utah, located at Bingham Junction; the five stacks of which were run almost entirely on the Telegraph ore." -- Salt Lake Times, June 14, 1890)

(This is the only report saying that the Telegraph company ever owned the Bingham Junction smelter, although numerous reports in the 1920s to the 1940s continued to say that the current USSR&M smelter was built on the site of the "Old Telegraph" smelter. Holden had leased portions of the smelter in late 1876 and purchased the smelter in March 1877 to process ore from his Telegraph mine.)

(Research has not yet found any legal notice or company communication that confirms that the Old Telegraph company, including its years owned by the French company, ever owned the smelter at Bingham Junction.)

Smelter Shut Down (1878)

March 10, 1878
"The Old Telegraph smelter closed down last Sunday. The stamp concentrating works are running. The company are shipping ore to Omaha." (Deseret News, March 20, 1878; "From Saturday's daily, Mar. 16")

(This was when the Bingham Junction smelter was closed, and never re-opened. The nearby Sheridan Hill smelter and the associated Neptune and Kempton mines, were already bankrupt and inactive by this time. Holden built a reduction mill on the site of the smelter.)

(In May 1879, Holden sold the Telegraph mine to a French company, "Societe des Mines d'Argent et Fonderies de Bingham," for a reported $3 million.)

August 20, 1879
The stockholders of the Jordan Mining and Smelting company met in Boston "to take action as to whether the company will increase its capital stock, erect concentrating and reduction works; purchase other property; sell all its property, or any part thereof; borrow money and mortgage its property, or disincorporate the company; and to do and transact any other business which the stockholders may deem to be to their interest." (Boston Globe, August 16, 1879)

Old Jordan Mining and Milling Company (1880-1891)

(Liberty Holden)

(The 1885 edition of the "Statistics and Technology of the Precious Metals," published by the Census Office, Department of the Interior, noted that the French company held the Telegraph property, including "mines and furnaces." This was when the smelter at Bingham Junction, inactive at the time, reportedly became property of the Old Telegraph company.)

(More research is needed to determine if the smelter site was held jointly with the Holden's newly organized Old Jordan Mining and Milling company. The two companies, Old Telegraph and Old Jordan, shared ownership of the Galena Canal, which was an important source of water rights.)

September 26, 1878
The stockholders of the Old Jordan Mining and Smelting Company met in Salt Lake City "to take action on the following subjects: 1. To authorize the President and Secretary to execute deeds for joint use of certain portions of surface ground, in pursuance of existing contracts. 2. To make provisions for the payment of the indebtedness of the company. 3. To transact any other business pertaining to the interest of said company." (Boston Globe, September 7, 1878)

(This is the first reference to the "Old Jordan Mining and Smelting company" in online newspapers.)

(Research suggests that this company, Old Jordan Mining and Smelting company, was organized by Liberty Holden and his financial backers to operate the Jordan Mining and Smelting company under the lease that was likely dated to April 1877. This is the first use of the "Old Jordan" name to describe the Jordan and Galena mine.)

April 26, 1880
The articles of incorporation of the Old Jordan Mining and Milling Company were filed in Salt Lake County. The company was to work the Jordan Silver mine and the American Flag mine, both in Bingham Canyon. Liberty E. Holden was shown as an incorporator, president and treasurer of the new company. (Salt Lake Herald, May 1, 1880)

June 16, 1880
Liberty Holden's "Old Jordan" mill was under construction on the site of the "Old Jordan" smelter. The new building was to be 143 feet by 43 feet. The mill was to be powered by two boilers of 230-horsepower each, located on foundations made up of 200,000 pounds of granite from the quarries of Little Cottonwood canyon. (Salt Lake Herald, June 17, 1880)

(Unknown is whether Holden was leasing the smelter site from the French-owned Old Telegraph company, or if he purchased only sufficient land to build the reducing mill, and the Old Telegraph company retained the remaining land, and sold in as the 50-acre plot in 1896.)

Old Jordan and Galena Mining Company (1891-1899)

(Bert Holden)

(There was a law suit, Societe des Mines de Lexington vs. Old Jordan Mining and Smelting company" to be heard on March 9, 1891. -- Salt Lake Herald, February 24, 1891)

(In October 1896, the surviving French company, Societe Anonyme des Mines de Lexington, conveyed all of its property in Utah to the to the Conglomerate Mining company, including the mining claims in Bingham Canyon, an undivided half interest in the Galena Canal, and 50 acres of land in West Jordan. This 50 acres in West Jordan was likely the site of the former Bingham Junction "Galena" smelter, which had closed in 1878, and been replaced in 1880 by Holden's reducing mill.)

March 1898
Absalom W. Smith sued the Old Jordan & Galena Mining company, and the Conglomerate Mining company over the water rights of the Galena canal. Under the previous mining company, Jordan Mining & Smelting company, when the canal was built, in return for allowing the canal to pass over his land, Smith was promised a certain flow from the canal. But during 1897, he had not received the measured flow as promised and he sued for lost crop value, $685. An additional suit was filed in April 1898 by two additional land owners, with the same argument. (Salt Lake Herald, March 22, 1898; April 17, 1898)

(This suggests that the smelter company was inactive during the 1897 growing season, and possibly since 1878, and not using the canal, indicating that the water was not being let into the canal at the headgate, eight miles south of the smelter site.)

(The April 1898 news item mentioned above is the last reference to the "Jordan Mining and Smelting company" in online newspapers.)

United States Mining (1899-1903)

April 12, 1899
Four deeds were filed with the Salt Lake County Recorder on April 12, 1899. The concluding act in the transfer of the Old Jordan & Galena and Old Telegraph properties in Bingham, to the United States Mining company, a corporation recently organized under the laws of the state of Maine, was completed when deeds of conveyance were executed. One was by G. Lavagnino, president of the Conglomerate Mining company, and conveyed all the real estate and improvements embraced within the Old Telegraph group of forty-three mining claims, "including the old smelter site at West Jordan." (Salt Lake Herald, April 13, 1899, "yesterday")

United States Smelting (1903-1906)

March 7, 1903
The United States Smelting Company incorporated on March 7, 1903 and was absorbed into USSR&M in January 1918. (Utah corporation, index number 4172)

May 21, 1901
The board of directors of the United States Mining Company voted to begin construction of a 1,000-ton smelter. (Salt Lake Mining Review, May 30, 1901)

November 1902
United States Mining Company completed its smelter in Midvale in November 1902. (Hansen, p. 274)

March 7, 1903
The United States Smelting Company was incorporated in Maine on March 7, 1903. The corporation was "revoked" in Utah on January 30, 1920 after the assets of the smelting company were absorbed into USSR&M in January 1918. (Utah corporation, index number 4172)

January 1, 1905
"In addition to this copper smelter, which has been in operation for over two years, a lead smelter, with a capacity of handling nearly 400 tons of lead ores daily, is now nearing completion, and will probably be blown in within the coming month. It is composed of three stacks of an estimated capacity of 125 tons of ore a day each. The arrangement for handling ores, fluxes and slags and the feeding is by an electric system. This equipment also includes ten roasters." (Salt Lake Herald, January 1, 1905)

United States Smelting, Refining and Mining (1906-1971)

March 9, 1906
United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company, incorporated in Maine, was filed as a corporation in Utah on March 9, 1906. (Salt Lake Tribune, February 23, 1907; Deseret News March 9, 1906, "today")

1907
At Salt Lake City the company owns a plant of eight furnaces for the reduction of copper ores and six furnaces for the reduction of lead ores. At Bingham, the company owns all the extensive holdings usually designated as the United States Mining properties. At Tintic is the Centennial-Eureka mine, the ores of which are about equal parts gold, silver and copper, and in which it is estimated there are blocked out ores of a net value of $10,000,000. (Salt Lake Tribune, February 23, 1907)

1907
After the settlement of the smelter suit in 1907, in which several area farmers sued the smelters at Midvale and Murray over crop damage from sulfuric acid emissions, the smelters either closed  or changed their operations. United States Mining Company closed the copper portion of its Midvale smelter and Bingham Consolidated closed its Midvale smelter completely due to smoke litigation (sulfur fumes from smelting of copper sulfide ores). (Hansen, p. 274; Kennecott Historical Index)

March 7, 1907
For the United States company, the changes were so extensive that they organized a new company to fund the changes in its Midvale smelter. The new company, named United States Smelting Company, was organized on March 7, 1907 as a new subsidiary of the larger United States Smelting, Refining & Mining Company. (Utah corporation files, index 4172)

January 28, 1908
The copper smelter of the United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company at Midvale ceased operation on January 28, 1908. It was the last of three smelters affected by smoke litigation in Salt Lake Valley. Ore for the smelter was being furnished by the Centennial-Eureka mine at Tintic at the rate of 250 tons per day. With the closure of the copper smelter at Midvale, 200 tons per day would be sent to the United States smelter at Kennett, California, and 50 tons per day would be sent to the Yampa smelter in Bingham Canyon. (Deseret News, January 28, 1908, "tonight")

March 23, 1916
USSR&M was listed on the New York Stock Exchange for the first time "Today." USSR&M was the second largest smelting company in the United States, and was organized in 1906. (New York Times, March 23, 1916)

September 1931
During 1931, the Midvale smelter of United States Smelting, Refining and Mining company received 750 tons per day from the company mines at Bingham, including 400 to 450 tons per day from the U. S. mine, 100 to 150 tons per day from several leasers of U. S properties, and more than 200 tons per day from the Lark mine. The smelter also received tonnage from mines at Park City and Tintic, as well as mines in Colorado, Idaho and Nevada. The total amount of ore received at the smelter was between 900 and 1000 tons daily. (Ax-I-Dent-Ax, September 1931, page 27)

1946
Utah's three big smelters at Murray, Midvale, and Garfield were closed by a 150-day strike that was settled on June 30, 1946. (Murray Eagle, June 20, 1946)

June 25, 1952
United States Smelting, Refining and Mining Company celebrated the 50th anniversary of its Midvale smelter:

June 1958
U. S. Smelting closed its lead smelter at Midvale and contracted all of its lead smelting operations to Anaconda's International Smelting Company at Tooele. At the same time, International stopped milling and concentrating lead-zinc ore at its Tooele plant. The United States company continued the milling and concentrating of lead-zinc ores at Midvale along with those of the International company. The announcement was made on Monday June 16, 1958. (Deseret News, June 17, 1958; December 10, 1958; November 5, 1971)

October 1958
By late 1958 there were only three lead-zinc-silver (known as galena) mines active in Utah: the United States mine at Lark, and the United Park City and New Park City mines at Park City. There was no mention of Anaconda's Carr Fork mine which shipped the ore from its underground mine in Bingham Canyon, to the International smelter at Tooele by way of the Elton Tunnel. (New York Times, October 12, 1958)

July 4, 1960
The stacks of the Midvale smelter were brought down by the use of explosives at their bases, making the stacks collapse to the ground.

January 1, 1965
The property where the lead smelter had been was sold. "Purchaser was Valley Materials Corp., a new Utah corporation owned by Beloit Pipe & Dredge, Inc., Beloit. Wis. The smelting company sold slightly less than 500 acres of land in the transaction. The price of the property was reported as a little over half a million dollars. The smelter was closed down July 1, 1958, when smelting operations were combined with the smelter at Tooele as an economy measure. Neither plant could be kept running full time and it was found to be more economical to operate one plant than two. Following the closing of the plant, most of the buildings were razed and three huge smokestacks were toppled as the site was cleared for future development by a new business. Since then, the property has been up for sale as a unit, and USSR&M gave no consideration to offers to purchase small portions of the acreage. (Midvale Sentinel, January 1, 1965, "this week")

1967
By the year 1967, the concentrator section at the International smelter had been shut down. The United States company had been shipping concentrates from its mill at Midvale to the International smelter for smelting. By that time, the International smelter was the only lead smelter in the state. (Utah Mining Industry, Utah Mining Association, 1967, page 81)

November 1971
USSR&M closed its Lark mine, and its Midvale mill and concentrator. The concentrate was being shipped to the International smelter near Tooele. (Deseret News, November 12, 1971)

(Read more about the end of lead, zinc, and silver smelting in Utah)

May 2, 1972
United States Smelting, Refining & Mining Company announced that it would change its name to UV Industries, Inc., its symbol on the New York Stock Exchange. The company was becoming more diversified and the name no longer reflected its "principle interests and direction." (New York Times, May 3, 1972, "yesterday")

November 1979
The United States smelter site at Midvale, along with the United States Fuel mine at Hiawatha, and the Utah Railway, along with other assets, were sold by UV Industries to Sharon Steel Company. UV Industries had been holding talks earlier with Reliance Group, but those talks broke down. A group of railroad employees had hoped to be able to buy the railroad. The announced sale brought those hopes to an end. (Deseret News, November 27, 1979)

June 1986
EPA proposed adding the Midvale smelter site to its National Priorities List (Superfund).

April 17, 1987
United States brought suit against Sharon Steel for it to clean up the Midvale smelter site. Opening arguments were heard on April 10, 1987. A week later, Sharon Steel filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. (United States v. Sharon Steel; Deseret News, April 18, 1987, "yesterday")

April 17, 1987
Sharon Steel declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy. (Mueller Industries, SEC Form 10K, 1993; Wall Street Journal, July 19, 1988, p. 10)

The bankruptcy of Sharon Steel was intended to shield the company's assets from the liability of the Midvale smelter site being designated as an EPA Superfund (National Priorities List) site.

1990
The Midvale smelter site was completely fenced as a restricted zone, to prevent public access due to health concerns.

February 14, 1991
EPA added the Midvale smelter site to its National Priorities List (Superfund).

October 1991
Work began to clean up the Midvale smelter site, and adjacent slag disposal areas.

July 14, 1992
The federal EPA approved the demolition of the smelter buildings, situated on 270 acres of land. Work to start by the end of July. The site had been sold to Mining Remedial Recovery Company. (Deseret News, July 14, 1992)

Additional research finds that Mining Remedial Recovery Company had its corporate offices in an agent/broker office in Tucson, Arizona, but the Arizona Corporation Commission, a state agency, showed its street address as Martin, Utah. The same address held the local offices of Mueller Industries, the corporate remains of Sharon Steel, which itself had been United States Smelting, Refining & Mining, the smelter's original owner. Mueller Industries was the parent company of Utah Railway, and what was formally United States Fuel Company, owner of the coal mines served by Utah Railway.

June 2001
Midvale City annexed a portion of the smelter site as part of redevelopment efforts. Over the following years, other annexations took place as developers presented their plans for successful redevelopment.

January 2004
The 262-acre former USSR&M site at Midvale, most recently known as the Sharon Steel smelter site, was set to be sold to a developer in February 2004. That developer was planning on building 1600 homes, condominiums and apartments, with possible some office buildings on the site. The Sharon Steel site was noted as being bounded by 7800 South Street on the north and 8400 South Street on the south, and by the Jordan River on the west and Midvale's 700 West Street on the east. The adjacent slag dumping site, located across 7800 South to the north, and extending further north to 6800 South, had been renamed Bingham Junction. The 300-acre Bingham Junction site was set to be developed with a combination of retail, residential, commercial, office, and mixed-use development. (Deseret News, January 31, 2004)

August 29, 2006
The cleanup of the Midvale smelter site was removed from the EPA National Priorities List. It was added to the list in 1991, and after 17 months and $17 millions, on August 28th, at a ceremony attended by state, county and city officials, a ribbon cutting was held to mark the removal from the list in July 2006.(Deseret News, August 29, 2006)

April 2012
The former Midvale smelter site is former EPA Superfund site that has been successfully cleaned up, and is in the midst of extensive development as an important residential and commercial center, right in the center of Salt Lake Valley.

Bingham Consolidated Smelter (1899-1907)

The Bingham Consolidated smelter at Bingham Junction (later Midvale) was built by its predecessor company, Bingham Copper & Gold Mining Company. The company was reorganized in 1901 as the Bingham Consolidated Mining & Smelting Company. The smelter was closed in 1907.

April 1, 1900
"The Bingham Copper & Gold Mining company's smelter will be located at Bingham Junction, on the east side of the Jordan river and north of the Old Jordan & Galena site, owned by the United States company." (Salt Lake Herald, April 1, 1900)

(Read more about the Bingham Copper & Gold Mining Company)

(Read more about the Bingham Consolidated Mining & Smelting Company)

(Read more about the Bingham Consolidated smelter at Bingham Junction/Midvale)

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