Saturn Smelter, Sandy

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Saturn Mine and Smelter, Bingham and Sandy

(Saturn Mining & Smelting Company, located on the north side of today's 9000 South, on the west side the Union Pacific tracks. The disposal and slag area was on the west side of the East Jordan Canal, immediately to the west. Closed in 1877.)

(This Saturn smelter was the successor to the Buel & Bateman smelter at Bingham, which was closed by the company's new English investors.)

"The Saturn Mining Company built a plant with three blast furnaces of total capacity of sixty tons per day at Sandy in 1872." (Early History of Lead Smelting in the West, AX-I-DENT-AX, Volume 14, Number 5, May 1929, page 8)

"The Saturn Silver Mining Co., Ltd., started a smelter in May 1872 at Sandy, on Little Cottonwood Creek west of the base of the mountains. It adjoined the site of the Mountain Chief or Mingo works, half a mile south of the Utah Southern Railway station, and was afterward the property of the Mingo Co. The equipment consisted of three vertical blast furnaces with a capacity of 20 tons daily. The ores treated at the smelters at Sandy came mostly from Little Cottonwood and Bingham, though small lots came from the Big Cottonwood, Tintic, and other districts." (Geology And Ore Deposits Of The Cottonwood-American Fork Area, Utah, USGS Professional Paper 201, published in 1943, page 74, citing Utah Mining Gazette, April 11, 1874)

Saturn Silver Mining Co. (1871-1877)

May 6, 1871
Mr. Bateman sold his interest in his mine to the newly organized Utah Silver Mining Company (Limited), in exchange for a certain number of shares in the new company. On or about March 3, 1973, Issac Bateman (of Buel & Bateman) was elected as president of the Utah Silver Mining Company (Limited). (Salt Lake Tribune, July 22, 1871; March 3, 1873)

(This Utah Silver mine was in Bingham Canyon. After purchasing the Buel & Bateman mine in Bingham Canyon, the British company closed Buel & Bateman's pioneering Utah smelter adjacent to the mine, and opened the Saturn smelter at Sandy, to take advantage of the better logistics of being served by the Utah Southern, which would very soon be completed to Sandy in September 1871.)

July 22, 1871
The Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah (Limited) has been introduced, for the purpose of acquiring a mining property in the territory of Utah. (London Daily News, July 22, 1871)

March 25, 1872.
Saturn mine, Bingham. "This fine mine is owned by the Saturn Silver Mining Company, is in full working order, has several hundred tons of fine ore on the dump and is looking splendidly. A tunnel has been driven 270 feet, and 150 feet from the mouth of it a shaft five feet square and 60 feet deep has been sunk in the foot wall from which splendid galena is being taken in large quantities which, I am told, assays $70 silver and 70 per cent. lead. This lode is supposed to be, at least, 12 feet wide at the bottom of the shaft, where they are now working, which, although but 60 feet deep, is 170 feet from the surface. It is, by far, the best mine in Bingham and bids fair to rival any in the Territory." The elevation of the mine, which he finds to be 900 feet above Bingham City, 2,600 feet above Salt Lake City and 7,000 feet above the level of the sea. (Salt Lake Tribune, March 25, 1872)

Saturn Smelter, Sandy (1871-1877)

Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah (Limited) was organized in London, England, in mid-July 1871 specifically to acquire the Saturn Lode and the Idaho mining claim in Carr Fork in Bingham Canyon. The company announced plans at the time of its organization to build a two-stack smelter in the vicinity of a direct connection to the Utah Central railroad to provide the best logistics for importing of fuel and heavy machinery to build and operate the smelter, and to ship the finished processed metals at the best available price. Utilizing a railroad link from Sandy to the Utah Central railroad at Salt Lake City would provide lower transportation costs compared to using wagons to haul the ore the smelter, and hauling the inbound fuel and machinery as needed. (Prospectus of the Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah, Limited, as published in the London Daily News, July 22, 1871)

(Sandy was selected as the site of the smelter to take advantage of soon to be completed, in September 1871, Utah Southern railroad which was completed between Sandy and Salt Lake City and the important connection with the Utah Central railroad, which in-turn connected directly with transcontinental lines of Union Pacific and Central Pacific at Ogden. The wagon haul to Sandy was necessary because the Bingham Canyon & Camp Floyd was not completed between Sandy and Bingham Canyon until November 1873.)

November 27, 1871
"The Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah, have in the process of erection at Sandy station, three smelting furnaces, and when completed will be able to smelt 50 tons of ore daily. The company are composed of English stockholders, and are preparing to go into the reduction of base ores on an extensive scale. The point selected for their furnaces is one of the very best in the Territory, accessible at all times by railroad, and convenient to the several mining districts, will be in successful operation about the middle of next month. S. C. Raymond is their general superintendent in the Territory." (Utah Mining Gazette, November 27, 1871)

February 17, 1872
"Salt Lake Iron Works -- About fifty hundred (5000) pounds of castings were turned out at these works Thursday afternoon for the Utah Central Milling Company. This is the English company that bought out Buel & Bateman's works and mines at Bingham. The castings are mainly for three furnaces, which the company are erecting at Sandy station." (Salt Lake Tribune, February 17, 1872)

March 25, 1872.
"The fine smelting works, erected by the Saturn Silver Mining Co. at Sandy, are now ready for work and will commence as soon as they can get fuel." (Salt Lake Tribune, March 25, 1872)

February 15, 1873
"Saturn Smelting Works. - At Sandy Station, have been shut down for repairs. A new engine of eighty-horse power will be substituted for the one lately in use. The engine and boiler are on the ground, and will be in place by the 1st of March. It is the intention to erect three more smelters in the Spring." (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, February 15, 1873)

April 26, 1873
"The Saturn Furnaces. We found in full blast and turning out all the bullion which the two furnaces now in operation can be made to do in a working day of twenty-four hours. It was reported that the company proposes to increase the capacity of their works by the erection of additional furnaces, but the report requires confirmation." (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, April 26, 1873)

December 21, 1873
"Saturn Smelter -- It is rumored that the Saturn smelter at Sandy station, now under attachment, is about to be fired up again. It is to be hoped the rumor is correct, as every smelter that is kept running will put money into circulation, give employment to men and aid in developing the mines. Both the Mountain Chief [Mingo] and Saturn works have been closed for weeks, and it would be good news if both were again started up." (Salt Lake Herald, December 21, 1873)

(Beginning in November 1873, there were a series of law suits that attached the Saturn smelter and its property for unpaid smelter returns owed to mines. The Saturn and Mountain Chief (Mingo) were both affected and research suggests they were both shut down while under attachment.)

February 14, 1874
The Saturn smelter had been idle from September to January, but had been restarted. (Helena Independent, February 14, 1874)

February 14, 1874
"At a special meeting of the Saturn Company, it was decided to wind-up the present company with a view to its re-construction upon a more extended basis. The latest advices state that the smelting works at Sandy, then under attachment, were about to be 'fired-up' again. It appears that the Mountain Chief and Saturn Works had been closed for some time." (Utah Mining Gazette, February 14, 1874)

March 17, 1874
"The Saturn Smelter, which has been closed for repairs, is about ready to recommence operations." (Salt Lake Tribune, March 17, 1874)

By April 1874, there were three cases against the Saturn company: Wells, Fargo & Co. vs. Saturn Silver Mining Co.; First National Bank vs. Saturn Silver Mining Co.; and L. N. Colbath vs. Saturn Silver Mining Co. (Salt Lake Weekly Tribune, April 25, 1874)

May 2, 1874
From the Utah Mining Gazette, May 2, 1874.

The Saturn Furnaces, the property of the Saturn Silver Mining Co., (Limited) were erected early in 1872, and consist of three cupola blast furnaces, using steam as a motive power for their machinery. The basis of this organization consisted in the purchase of the Saturn Mine of Bingham Canyon, which proved upon development to contain a high percentage of iron pyrites, totally unfitted for reduction by the smelting process without concentration.

The company has occasionally smelted ores obtained by purchase, and has lately leased their works to Hollihan & Co., of Chicago, who have thoroughly repaired and started them up within the past month, using Bingham and Big Cottonwood ores. Their daily product in bullion is six tons each, and are managed by S. M. Wessels, who superintended their construction.

January 1, 1877
"The Saturn is situated at Sandy station, and is one of the oldest smelters in the country. It is running only one stack, but since it as been under the control and management of Mr. John W. Kerr and other Salt Lake parties, it has been well conducted. One hundred and sixty car lots of $42,000 to the car, is its product of base bullion for the last year. The old dump of slag is being overhauled for the [unreadable] in it, and will be put through the furnace with ore [as flux]. At present the works are shut down for repairs and improvements, but they will be started up again in the course of a few days. This smelter is under the immediate supervision of Mr. A. A. Gauschat, who is a capable and energetic gentleman." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1877)

(Research suggests that the Saturn smelter was on a few occasions leased to persons to treat and process their ore on a very limited basis, at times attempting new processes. But the cost of operating a separate smelter far exceeded the so-called "pain" being inflicted on mine owners by the large smelting companies.)

July 6, 1889
"The old Saturn smelter at Sandy was destroyed by fire yesterday [July 5]. The cause is unknown." (Salt Lake Herald, July 5, 1889)

Collapse and Reorganization (1876-1888)

March 4, 1876
"Upon the petition of a debenture holder of £1,000, Vice-Chancellor Malins today made an order for the compulsory winding-up of the Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah." (London Daily News, March 4, 1876)

(The petition had been presented to the Chancery Division on January 11, 1876. - London Times, January 11, 1876)

May 9, 1876
"Vice-Chancellor Malins has appointed Mr. Lovelock official liquidator of the Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah." (London Post, June 23, 1876)

August 23, 1877
"The Saturn, at Sandy, the first smelter, we believe, erected in Utah, is sufficiently dilapidated to look as if it had been struck by lightning or shaken by an earthquake, having been in disuse for a long time. If we recollect aright, the Saturn was erected in 1871." (Deseret News, August 23, 1877)

June 11, 1879
The final hearing concerning the insolvency of the Saturn Silver Mining company was heard by the Vice Chancery. (London Times, June 11, 1879)

Chancery Division

By June 1879, appearing before a Vice-Chancellor was a strong indication that the Saturn company was undergoing severe internal friction or external pressure from its creditors.

In British business history of this era—very similar to what happened with neighboring operations like the Flagstaff Silver Mining Company—promoters often floated these companies on the London market with inflated capital. When the mines failed to produce the spectacular dividends promised to British investors, or when expensive local infrastructure (like Saturn's large early smelter built at Sandy) became a financial drain, disgruntled stakeholders took the company to the Chancery Division. The Chancery Division did not deal with criminal trials or straightforward breach-of-contract suits for fixed damages (which went to Common Law courts). Instead, the Chancery Division handled matters of equity, corporate administration, and trust disputes.

A series of hearings before a Vice-Chancellor of the Chancery Division on July 12, 1877, February 3, May 2, and June 11, 1879 were likely to argue over one or all of three things: a petition to wind up the company (liquidate it); an injunction to stop directors from making unauthorized calls on shares; or an attempt by debt-holders to appoint a receiver. This legal battle in Chancery laid the groundwork for the eventual corporate collapse that forced the debenture trustees to step in by 1888, ultimately leading to the sale of the physical properties to the Nast Mining and Milling Company in 1891.

1880
"Saturn Smelter. — Situated half a mile south of Sandy, near the Mingo works. It consists of three very dilapidated stacks, and has been idle for several years." (D. B. Huntley, Mining Industries of Utah, Appendix I, Reports of the Tenth Census, 1880, page 435)

March 22, 1888
"Saturn Silver Mining Company Of Utah, Limited. — The Debentureholders of this Company are requested to send their names and addresses to Mr. Hugh C. Godfray, 60, Finsbury-pavement, London, E.C., the solicitor for the Debenture trustees." (London Times, March 22, 1888)

(When a 19th-century British joint-stock company reached out to its debenture holders through a formal solicitor's notice, such as the one in the London Times above, it was almost always a sign of severe financial distress, insolvency, or an impending corporate restructuring, often forced by those very same creditors. Because debentures were debt instruments, the "Debenture trustees" were responsible for protecting the investors' capital when a company failed to pay its required interest.)

The Timeline of Collapse and Reorganization

May 1876: The company is declared insolvent. Mr. Lovelock is appointed to liquidate the asset.

1877 through 1879: Hearings held in the Chancery Division. The multiple hearings before the Vice-Chancellor were almost certainly an ongoing battle within the liquidation process. It may have involved a dispute over how Lovelock was distributing assets, a fight by shareholders resisting his "calls" for unpaid capital, or a formal scheme of arrangement to reconstruct the company.

March 1888: The Saturn Silver Mining Company of Utah, Limited, is insolvent. In a public notice, the solicitor for the debenture trustees calls for a registry of all creditors. This was typically the first phase of liquidating the company's British corporate structure or foreclosing on its assets to satisfy the debt.

October 1888 (The Pivot):
Just seven months after that notice, the Nast Mining and Milling Company is incorporated. This newly organized entity was almost certainly positioned to absorb the faltering Saturn assets once the legal and financial wreckage in London was cleared away.

October 20, 1888
The Nast Mining and Milling company was incorporated in Utah. (Salt Lake Herald, December 25, 1888)

July 1891 (The Sale):
The property is finally cleared of its British legal entanglements and sold, together with the Nast, Benton, Mayberry and one other claim, to the Nast company, representing the final resolution of Saturn's business life-cycle. The old British corporate shell was discarded, and the physical mining property in Muddy Gulch in Bingham Canyon was legally consolidated under the new management.

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