Tintic District History

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This page was last updated on November 19, 2025.

Overview

(The focus of this information is to describe the general history of the Tintic Mining District, using sources not previously readily available.)

The Tintic Mining District in central Utah was the home of some of the richest silver mines in the West. The first silver ore was discovered in 1869 by George Rust, a cowboy herding cattle in Ruby Hollow, three miles south of what would later be the town of Eureka. Word soon spread and many other mines were very soon being developed. Those early miners organized the Tintic Mining District in December 1869, taking its name from the large open valley to the west. The valley got its name in 1856, from a local Ute chief who participated in the brief "Tintic War."

(Read more about the "Tintic War")

The name of the valley to the west of the mountains where these mineral riches were discovered was officially recognized as early as November 1856 by the U. S. Land Office in Salt Lake City:

"Public Lands In Utah -- Returns of the surveys of public lands in Utah Territory have been received by the Commissioner of the General Land Office from the Surveyor General of that Territory. These returns embrace the valleys of Salt Lake, Cache, Malade, Blue Springs, aud Hansel, north of the base line; the valleys of Tuilla and Bush, west of the meridian; and the valleys of Jordan, Utah, Cellar, Tintic, and Yonab, to the south, exhibiting surveys of one hundred and thirty sectional townships." (The Daily Delta, New Orleans, November 21, 1856)

The valley was already known as the "Tintic Valley" in late 1858. It was well established at its northern end as the grazing grounds for the livestock of the more than 2,400 U. S. Army troops at Camp Floyd. Although Tintic himself is not mentioned, the local Indians were reported as threatening to steal all the Army's horses and make off with them. The herds of horses and cattle would have been significant, as well as the men growing and harvesting hay for the camp. A troop of soldiers from Camp Floyd was dispatched to the area as far south as the Sevier River, near today's Lynndyl, to protect the men and herds. (New York Tribune, December 16, 1858, citing an Army order of November 11th.)

"Prospecting commenced in this District in December 1869, and on the 13th day of said month the first lode, viz: The Sunbeam, was discovered and located by Joseph Hyde, S. B. Moore, L. J. Whitney, S. W. Worseley, E. M. Peck and W. J. Harris, and the above named gentlemen proceeded to organize a Mining District, giving it the name of Tintic, after an old Indian war chief. S. B. Moore was elected Recorder for one year, and has been re-elected for a second term." (Salt Lake Daily Review, August 24, 1871)

(This original Tintic mining district from 1871 had its boundaries from the Sunbeam claim, east 10 miles, south 15 miles, west 10 miles, then north 15 miles and back to the Sunbeam. It did not include the later Mammoth or Eureka districts.)

The first successful Tintic mines came in 1869 and 1870, and included mines all along the western slopes of the East Tintic Mountains, from north to south, mines in Eureka, Mammoth Hollow, Ruby Hollow, and Diamond Gulch. Eureka came into being as the area surrounding the Eureka Hill mine was developed.

The Sunbeam claim at Diamond Gulch was reported as the first mineral discovery in the district, being recorded on December 13, 1869. The next recorded claim was the original Eureka claim (later known as the Eureka Hill), recorded on February 4, 1870. "On this claim the ground was covered with with rich float, wagon loads of which were gathered up and hauled by team to Santaquin, then the nearest railroad station." (Salt Lake Mining Review, September 15, 1899) (More research is needed for this "first" event, since there was no railroad south of Salt Lake City in February 1870.)

Quoting D&RGW's 1938 summary of branchlines, "This camp has been a steady producer and, even during the years when silver prices were low, production has been relatively continuous at some of the properties. Notable among producing mines of this district are the Mammoth, Grand Central, Eagle and Blue Bell, Chief Consolidated, Bullion, Beck, and others."

Tintic, After World War II

1947
"The Tintic district has long been one of the most productive in Utah [as of 1947]. Owing to poor transportation facilities, development of the district was not rapid until 1878, when the railroad from Salt Lake City reached Ironton, five miles from Eureka. Prior to that time, however, there was considerable mining of rich ores found near the surface which were shipped to San Francisco, California, to Reno, Nevada, Baltimore, Maryland, and even to Swansea, Wales. Later, most of the ores were shipped to Argo and Pueblo, Colorado, and to Salt Lake valley smelters." (The Mining Industry of Utah, published by the Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce, 1947)

1949
From "A Brief History of Mining in Utah" by Burt B. Brewster, E. M., part of "Utah: A Centennial History," ed. Wain Sutton, 1949, Volume II.

Copper in The Tintic District -- The mining of copper ore in appreciable amount in the Tintic District originated in 1869, mostly in the Copperopolis and Mammoth properties at Mammoth but the metal caused trouble due to the metallurgical difficulties of the times. Later contributors to the district’s copper output were the Centennial-Eureka, Eagle & Blue Bell and Bullion-Beck, all since acquired at different times by the United States Smelting Refining & Mining Company; the Iron Blossom (now Tintic Standard); the Eureka Hill (now Chief Consolidated); the Grand Central (acquired later from Chief Consolidated by the American Smelting & Refining Company); and the Dragon mines.

In 1900 the value of annual copper output from the Tintic District reached a million dollars, in 1912 more than two million and again exceeded that value in 1917. In recent years the principal copper producers in the Tintic District have been the Chief Consolidated Mining Company; Tintic Standard Mining Company; Eureka Lilly Consolidated and Colorado Consolidated Mines (Tintic Standard).

From 1869 through 1947 the Tintic District has produced 121,321 tons of copper metal.

Lead in the Tintic District -- History credits Steven Moore with having made the first lead discovery, the Sunbeam claim in the Tintic District in 1870. According to the records about $500,000 covered the value of lead shipped during the period 1870 to 1886. From then until 1894 the reported annual value of lead output did not reach $50,000. It reached a little more than a million dollars in 1898, and except for “off” years has continued to be of major importance to the district.

From 1870 through 1947 the Tintic District has produced 932,382 tons of lead metal.

For many years the mines that shipped lead most steadily were the Bullion Beck, Centennial-Eureka, and Eagle & Blue Bell, nowT all owned by the United States Smelting Refining & Mining Company; the Chief, Eureka Hill, Gemini, Plutus and Ridge & Valley, currently owned by the Chief Consolidated Mining Company; the Grand Central, lately owned by the American Smelting & Refining Company; the Colorado Cons, Iron Blossom, and Tintic Standard, of which the first two listed were acquired later by the Tintic Standard Mining Company; the Godiva; the Dragon, May Day, Mountain View, Uncle Sam and Yankee Cons, all of which later became the property of or under the control of the International Smelting & Refining Company; Sioux; Bowers, Gold Chain; South Swansea; Crown Point; and Lower Mammoth.

The North Lily mine, owned by International Smelting & Refining Company, which started shipping in the mid-1920s, is the only really major new lead producer in the district. Other new shippers of lead are the Eureka Lilly and Eureka Bullion mines.

Silver in the Tintic District -- From 1869 through 1947 silver has been the most important metal produced in the matter of value in the Tintic District. During that period the output of the district has totaled 260,773,729 ounces.

Early silver producing mines were the Scotia, Swansea, Showers, Crimson-Mammoth, Sunbeam, and Eagle. After 1900 important additional producers included the Eagle & Blue Bell, Centennial-Eureka, Victoria (all now owned by the United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company), the Grand Central (now owned by the American Smelting & Refining Company), the Chief Cons., Iron Blossom, Iron King (both now part of Tintic Standard). Later came the Tintic Standard and North Lily (International Smelting & Refining Company) mines.

Today consolidations in the Tintic District have reduced the number of major operating companies to the Chief Consolidated Mining Company, Tintic Standard Mining Company, the United States Smelting Refining and Mining Company, Mammoth Mining Company and the North Lily Mining Company.

Gold in the Tintic District -- Although the Mammoth and Wyoming (Eagle & Blue Bell) mines produced gold in the early 1870s, gold did not take on major importance in the Tintic District until the late 1890s, reaching its first annual value of more than a million dollars in 1900 when production totaled 75,355 ounces valued at $1,557,726.

The principal gold producing mines in the Tintic District, with the Mammoth leading, have been the Mammoth, Grand Central, Eureka Hill, Eagle & Blue Bell, Chief, Centennial-Eureka, Victoria, Dragon, Iron Blossom, Swansea, South Swansea, and Iron King.

Most of the other mines hereinbefore listed under silver and lead producers have contributed gold because of its presence in the ores of the district.

Of later vintage in gold shipments are the Eureka-Standard (Tintic Standard controlled), now idle; the North Lily mine of the International Smelting & Refining Company; the Eureka Bullion and Eureka Lily mines.

The Tintic District’s recorded gold production through 1947 has been 2,603,698 ounces.

Zinc in the Tintic District -- It was 1912 before any zinc production was recorded for the Tintic District—3,709,737 pounds, valued at $255,972. Early shippers of zinc ores were the Bullion Beck, Colorado, Chief, Empire, Gemini, Godiva, Iron Blossom, Lower Mammoth, May Day, Ridge & Valley, Sioux, and Uncle Sam mines. Lead-zinc ores have come principally from the Chief, May Day, North Lily, Ridge & Valley, Tintic Standard, and Uncle Sam mines. During World War II, below water level operations in the Chief mine contributed much needed zinc, and operations at still lower levels are now in progress.

From 1912 through 1947 the Tintic District produced 37,788 tons of zinc metal.

The Tintic Standard, once the world’s largest silver producer, ceased production soon after World War II when the mine encountered a large quantity of hot water on the 1400 level.

Tintic After 1956

In 1956, the Chief Consolidated mine turned off its pumps, although some production by leasors continued on the upper levels for a while.

In the late 1950s, Kennecott started exploration in the eastern part of the district that led to development of the high-grade Burgin mine. But the constant expense of fighting the soft ground and the hot and caustic water, and low metal prices, forced Kennecott to shut down its operations in 1980, despite good reserves of high-grade silver-lead-zinc ore.

(Read more about the Kennecott Lease)

After the Kennecott lease, the property owners, mostly Chief Consolidated, found other companies willing to attempt their own operations. Sunshine Mining triedOperations continued at the nearby Trixie mine, a silver-gold-silica flux producer. This mine, now operated by Sunshine Mining Company, is still in operation, having produced about 750,000 tons of ore.

1967
"In the Tintic district, leasers, selecting the high grade ores, have operated occasionally during the last 15 years since most of the mining firms discontinued company operations. Until the late 1950s, a number of siliceous mines in the Tintic area had shipped substantial quantities of fluxing ore to the Garfield copper smelter, but after Kennecott took over the smelter in the late 1950s and began using materials from its own Bingham open cut mine for fluxing material, very few shipments were made from Utah County. Among the mines producing small tonnages of lead-zinc and siliceous ores from the Utah County side of the Tintic district are: Iron Blossom, Colorado Consolidated, Tintic Standard, North Lily and Eureka Standard Consolidated. Bear Creek Mining Co. is continuing its search for commercial ores in the Tintic district." (Utah's Mining Industry, published by the Utah Mining Association, 1967, pages 89-90)

Tintic After 1980

North Lily Mining Company installed a cyanide heap leaching plant, recovering gold and silver from area mine-dump material hauled to its leach pad.

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