(The focus of this page is the surface workings of the Plutus mine, as visible in photographs, as well as a general description of the mine, with minimal coverage of the geology and financial returns. Also to establish a timeline using sources not previously readily available.)
Plutus Consolidated Mining Company
The Plutus Consolidated Mining company had been incorporated in August 1901. By August 1907, the group was seen as one of the "dead soldiers" of Tintic and was reported as being for sale. The Plutus group was put together in August 1901 by R. G. Anderson, and was sold to Jesse Knight and his associates in August 1907. In November 1907, the group was sold to the Plutus Mining company, jointly owned by Jesse Knight and David Evans. While Jesse Knight was president of the new company, David Evans was general manager, and had been the one who had put the sale together. Evans was the president of the adjacent Juab Mining company, which was included in the formation of the new Plutus Mining company.
The Plutus group was located immediately south of the city limits of Eureka City, and immediately east of the Eagle & Blue Bell properties, and north of the Mammoth group. At that time the Plutus group included the James G. Blair, Marion, Mahogany, November, Silver Alec, and Stonewall Jackson claims. The Chief Consolidated Mining company's No. 2 Shaft was located on the northern edge of the Plutus group, within the boundaries of the adjacent Crusader claim.
July 19, 1907
"R. G. Wilson, B. Christensen and others have sold to David Evans the Plutus and other adjoining claims in this district. This ground is located to the southeast of Eureka and takes in a strip of country between the Tetro and the Victoria. There are three claims in the group for which Mr. Evans is reported to have paid $45,000. Messrs. Wilson and Christensen still own other ground in the same locality." (Eureka Reporter, July 19, 1907)
"R. G. Wilson and David Evans were in town this week. Both of the gentlemen are now residents of Los Angeles and are here for the purpose of looking over some of the new and old bonanzas." (Eureka Reporter, July 19, 1907)
The Crusader Consolidated Mining company had gone into receivership in May 1914, at which time the property was purchased by the Chief Consolidated Mining company.
In August 1908, the Plutus company purchased the interests and assets of the adjacent North Mammoth Mining company, which included the Jason and Medea claims, located southwest of the existing Plutus group. In January 1909, the Plutus group purchased the interests and assets of the Tetro Mining company, located immediately to the north of the Plutus, and adjacent to the south limits of Eureka City. The Plutus group, previously undeveloped, would then be worked by way of the Tetro mine's existing shaft and the mine's electric hoist and compressor. The combined group encompassed 14 patented claims. Evans stated that it had taken over two years to get the Plutus group and the Tetro group together, adding that he had believed that combining the two group would make for a successful mining company. The drift of the Tetro 500-foot level would be extended 500 feet to reach the Plutus ground 700 feet below the surface. The existing Tetro 400-foot level would be reopened and developed to restart production of first-class ore that could be shipped direct to the smelter.
December 18, 1908
The Knight companies included the following: the Colorado; the Crown Point; the Iron Blossom; the Opex Consolidated mines company; the Black Jack Consolidated; the Beck Tunnel; the East Tintic Consolidated; and the Plutus. (Eureka Reporter, December 18, 1908)
In May 1909, the assessments of stockholders started, to clear out to minority stockholders and place the company into the hands of the majority stockholders who were furnishing the funds for development.
July 23, 1909
"The control of the Crusader Consolidated company which owns several fractional claims comprising about twenty acres, adjoining the Plutus group has been taken over by David Evans, who also owns control of the Plutus company. Mr. Evans purchased outright 270,000 of the 300,000 shares of capital stock of Crusader Consolidated. Among the large owners who disposed of their holdings having been William H. Tibbals, H. C. Edwards and Mrs. Ernest Williams. The company has not been active for some time. In the ground is a shaft 180 feet deep but the property itself has not been regarded of great value as a mining prospect. The price paid for it was not made public, but it is understood to have been not a large sum." (Eureka Reporter, July 23, 1909)
The Plutus property became mired in a court case concerning an old prospector who had been one of its original locators. The law suits had started in mid 1908, and were not resolved until late 1911. By April 1912, due to the low stock value on account of the law suits, Evans had taken control of the company, with Jesse Knight remaining as president. But the Plutus property remained idle, until Spring 1916 when the Chief Consolidated company announced that it was drifting in the direction of the Plutus ground, at the very north end of the Jason claim.
April 5, 1912
"Plutus May Resume Work. - Some time next month there will be a meeting of the shareholders of the Plutus mining company and it is generally understood here that immediately thereafter preparations will he made for the resumption of work upon this very valuable piece of mineral ground. The Plutus territory is about in the heart of the producing mineral belt of Tintic and it is hardly probable that the ground will be allowed to remain in the inactive list for any great length of time. David Evans of Provo [sic: Los Angeles] is one of the heaviest shareholders in the Plutus and no doubt has the control of the ground." (Eureka Reporter, April 5, 1912; April 26, 1912)
May 3, 1912
"David Evans of Los Angles and George Havercamp of Provo, both of whom are heavily interested in the Plutus property, were in Tintic the early part of the week. Mr. Evans, who is really in control of this company's affairs, informed the Reporter that his visit to Eureka was for the purpose of looking things over and that there is a possibility of work being resumed upon this ground. He said he is now in consultation with some of the largest shareholders and that most of them seem to be willing to put the mine back in the list of active properties. Evans has been connected with mining operations in Tintic ever since the early days of the district and has a great deal of faith in the Plutus property which is almost surrounded by paying mines. There has been some talk of the Plutus working through the Godiva or some other neighboring mine but this matter has not been discussed to any extent. The Plutus shaft is deep enough and the present machinery is good enough to develop the ground to very good depth." (Eureka Reporter, May 3, 1912)
May 10, 1912
Prior to departing for California, David Evans announced that the Tetro claim of the Plutus property was put under lease to John H. McChrystal and W. Lester Mangum. "It is their intention to handle this ore through the Godiva workings" which lay immediately east of the Tetro, and north of the Plutus claim. The ore would be hoisted through the Godiva shaft. "Before the consolidation of the Tetro and Plutus properties" the Tetro produced considerable ore. The royalty on the ore from the Tetro claim would be placed in the Plutus treasury. (Eureka Reporter, May 10, 1912)
(The lease of the Tetro claim to the adjacent Godiva company, had been criticized by minority stockholders of the Plutus company, but David Evans issued a statement that the ore was close to the Godiva workings and could not be reached from the Plutus shaft and workings without considerable expense. -- Eureka Reporter, May 24, 1912)
September 5, 1912
Shareholders of the Plutus company met at Provo in annual session on Tuesday, electing officers and transacting some other routine business. The Plutus property is now idle, the lessees who went to work there recently having forfeited their lease. The Plutus officers elected were as follows: Jesse Knight, president; Jacob Evans, vice president; David Evans, director and general manager; W. Lester Mangum, secretary and treasurer; J. William Knight and George Havercamp, additional directors. (Eureka Reporter, September 5, 1912)
July 31, 1914
The Plutus property, owned by Jesse Knight and David Evans, was to be leased for two years to the Fairbairn Leasing company. The Fairbairn company had been leasing the adjacent Godiva property for the past few months, and the development of the Plutus property would be handled through the Godiva shaft, which was down to 1200 feet. The Plutus property consisted of 145 acres of mineral ground, and adjoined the Godiva, the Grand Central, the Chief Consolidated, and the Victoria. (Eureka Reporter, July 31, 1914)
December 17, 1915
There were rumors of possible sale of the Plutus and Godiva properties, with "considerable activity" in the sale and increasing price of the Plutus company stock, although very little was available on the market. In the past week, the price had increased four times its usual price, 4 cents vs. 16 cents. The stock of the Plutus company was closely held by David Evans, of Los Angeles, and Jesse Knight, of Provo. (Eureka Reporter, December 17, 1915)
In April 1916, Walter Fitch of the Chief Consolidated company was elected as a director of the Plutus company. The other directors included Jesse Knight, president and David Evans, vice president and general manager. Work on the Plutus was to be resumed.
June 16, 1916
"It is stated on good authority that work is to be taken up at the property of the Plutus Mining company and that operations are to be carried on either through the Chief Consolidated or the Eagle & Blue Bell shaft. General Manager David Evans of the Plutus company was in Tintic this week from his home in California and it is stated that he is quite anxious to commence work, being of the opinion that the expenditure of a few thousand dollars will place the property in the list of regular shippers. At a meeting of the Plutus directors, held in Provo during the early part of the week, Hopes and McCabe of Eureka were granted a lease on the old workings of the Plutus." (Eureka Reporter, June 16, 1916)
June 23, 1916
"Recently Manager David Evans of the Plutus Mining company was in the Tintic District and in company with Manager Walter Fitch made a trip through the workings of the Chief Consolidated mine with a view of determining the moat likely place for a campaign of work in behalf of the Plutus. This week the directors of the Plutus held a meeting at Provo and at this meeting they entered into an arrangement whereby development work can be handled from the Chief Consolidated mine. Manager Fitch of the Chief Consolidated is one of the heavy shareholders and a director in the Plutus company. It is sated that the Chief Consolidated Mining Company’s officers have agreed to extend one of the drifts, located on the 1000 foot level, up to the ground of the Plutus company without any expense to the Plutus. After the drift reaches the line dividing the Chief Consolidated and the Plutus the work will be carried forward into the Plutus claims at the expense of the Plutus company." (Eureka Reporter, June 23, 1916)
October 9, 1916
Walter Fitch of the Chief Consolidated company, purchased control of the Plutus Mining company from David Evans and the Knight interests. The November 1916 annual report for the Chief Consolidated company included the following, "During the year your company [Chief Consolidated] has purchased numerous additional mining claims and also a majority of the shares of the Plutus Mining company, which it now controls. The lands of that company adjoin those of yours and it will be explored by the extension of the mine's workings." (Provo Daily Herald, October 9, 1916; Salt Lake Herald, November 7, 1916)
March 9, 1917
By early March 1917, it was reported, "The Victoria shaft [of the Eagle & Blue Bell company] was being used for the development of the Plutus and officials of the Chief Consolidated company are anxious to continue the prospecting of that section of the big estate owned by the Plutus, which they now control." The driving of the drift from the Victoria shaft into the Plutus ground, passing through Eagle & Blue Bell and Victoria ground, was started in November 1916. Any ore values found would be paid to the Eagle & Blue Bell company, which also controlled the Victoria company. (Salt Lake Herald, November 12, 1916; Eureka Reporter, March 9, 1917)
Assessments started in April 1917, to reduce the number of minority stockholders.
November 26, 1925
The Chief Consolidated Mining company owned 29 separately organized companies, which the company owned 100 percent and without any restrictions, also known as "fee simple." The exceptions were following companies, which the Chief Consolidated company controlled by large majority ownership of shares: East Tintic Consolidated Mining company; Eureka Lily Mining company; Eureka Mines company; Eureka Bullion Mining company; Apex Standard company; and the Plutus Mining company. (Salt Lake Tribune, November 26, 1925)
(Although the Chief Consolidated company controlled the Plutus company after 1916 through ownership of a majority of the stock, the company remained separate due to its minority shareholders.)
March 4, 1931
"Operate Five Mines -- The [Chief Consolidated] company had the following mines in operation during the past year: No. 1 mine; Plutus mine; Eureka Lily mine; Grand Central mine; and Eureka Hill mine. In addition to these, it has given over on short term leases the following properties owned or controlled by the Chief Consolidated company: Eureka Bullion Mining company; part of Eureka Lily Mining company; part of East Tintic Consolidated Mining company; the Baltimore property; and the Tintic Bullion property." (Salt Lake Telegram, March 4, 1931)