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Tintic, Sioux Mine and Mill

This page was last updated on September 19, 2025.

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Overview

(The focus of this page is the surface workings of the Sioux 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.)

The following comes from "A Hand Book on the Mines, Miners, and Minerals of Utah," by Harry W. B. Kantner, published in 1896

Sioux Mine

The Sioux mine was on the east side of the Tintic mountains, across the Sioux Peak ridge from the Mammoth mine, which was on the west side. On the Mammoth side of Sioux Peak was the Ajax mine, near to the Mammoth mine.

C. E. Loose was manager of the Sioux group "from the grass roots down," meaning since the very first days when the mine was developed as an active mine.

Excerpted from the obituary of Charles Edwin (C. E.) Loose, "In 1885, he returned to Utah and has since been one of the prominent mine owners and operators of this state. As the years passed by his investments became more extensive, being one of the heavy stockholders and manager of the Grand Central and Gold Chain Mining companies, of this district, as well as owning large interests in other companies. He has likewise extended his efforts into banking circles, having been vice-president of the Provo Commercial and Savings Bank, of which Senator Reed Smoot is the president. Through his tenacity and almost wholly through his individual effort, he developed the Sioux, Utah Consolidated, Iron King and the old Ajax mining company until it was purchased by the Tintic Standard, in which he was a large shareholder at the time of his death." (Eureka Reporter, January 31, 1929)

(The first reference to the Sioux Consolidated Mining company was in September 1891 -- Salt Lake Tribune, September 13, 1891)

December 25, 1891
"The Sioux Group. -- This group of mines is owned by C. E. Loose, T. R. Cutler, S. S. Jones and others of Utah county. Work is being pushed with all the confidence that characterizes owners of a good mine, and there appears to be no chance for confidence being misplaced. The shipments reached 867,350 pounds, and will be greatly increased during the next twelve months. The owners are very anxious to erect leaching works to be run in connection with the mine, and it is quite possible construction will be commenced in the early spring." (Salt Lake Herald, December 25, 1891)

May 3, 1892
"Eureka. May 3, 1892. -- The Sioux group of mines is just now receiving particular attention from the owners. Manager C. E. Loose, with S. S. Jones, Reed Smoot and the Lehi owners have visited the property and are very confident of a bonanza in the future. Preparations are being made to work the low-grade ores with the cyanide process, but where the mill will be is not learned." (Salt Lake Tribune, May 4, 1892)

May 17, 1892
The Sioux Consolidated Mining company was making plans to erect a cyanide reduction plant on the Provo Bench. The company had negotiated for a favorable rate with the Rio Grande Western railroad form the company mine at Eureka. (Provo Daily Enquirer, May 17, 1892)

May 19, 1892
"The Sioux Consolidated Mining company have decided to erect works for the reduction of ores by the Cyanide process and will locate them on Provo bench near the city. The following are the officers of the company: S. S. Jones, president; T. R. Cutler, vice-president; Reed Smoot, Ira D. Wines and C. E. Loose, directors; Albert S. Jones, secretary and treasurer. James Sharp of Salt Lake is also an owner of stock in the corporation." (Salt Lake Herald, May 19, 1892)

(This planned cyanide reduction mill was not built. The site selected was on the Provo Bench, about five miles north of Provo city center, near today's 3700 North. But when Loose and associates bought the land from the recently created, in 1892, university lands board, the purchase was contested in the courts by a person who claimed previous ownership, having made improvements (i.e., plowing and removal of rocks) thereby taking it out of consideration as university, or school trust lands. The law suit failed and the sale to Loose and his partner was finalized. In 1898, Loose bought full ownership of the property, which was 750 acres and known as the "university tract.")

December 27, 1894
Franklin Farrell was shown in late December 1894 as, "Franklin Farrell, the multi-millionaire of Ansonia, Connecticut," when he and George H. Robinson paid $75,000 for 80,000 of the 100,000 total shares of the Sioux Consolidated Mining & Milling company group of mines. The purchase gave Farrell's group 80 percent ownership of the company. Franklin Farrell was the new president, and George H. Robinson the new general manager. The Utah group of mines, supposed a "twin" of the Sioux property, was originally to be part of the deal, but several minority shareholders held out for a better percentage and purchase of the Utah group was dropped. The sale contract stipulated that within six months, the new owners would put up a 20-stamp mill. (Salt Lake Herald, December 27, 1894, "today")

(Farrell was also the president of the successful Parrot Mining and Smelting company, located in Butte, Montana. He also had extensive plantation interests in Cuba and in the Southern states. -- Salt Lake Herald, December 28, 1894)

January 1, 1895
"The Sioux group, which made a good record in 1893, remained idle all year, the owners preferring to expend their energies on the Utah Consolidated. It is probable that a mill will be erected the coming season to work the low-grade ores of the Utah group, and also those of the Sioux, unless a combination of the two may be made." (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1895)

(George H. Robinson resigned as superintendent of the Mammoth mine and mill company on May 11, 1895. He had been in his position with the Mammoth company when it built its own mill, which opened on January 1, 1894.)

September 27, 1895
Farrell purchased control of both the Sioux Consolidated Mining and Milling company, and the Utah Mining and Milling company, and would soon be consolidating the two properties. The two properties were adjacent to each other with the Utah company being about one-half mile north of the Sioux company, both being on the east slope of Sioux Peak. A road was completed between the two properties in late October 1895. (Salt Lake Herald, September 27, 1895; October 19, 1895)

1898
The following comes from Geology and Mining Industry of the Tintic district, Utah, by G. W. Tower and G. O. Smith, USGS 19th Annual Report, 1897-1898.

April 28, 1898
The Sioux Consolidated Mining company was in receivership. (Deseret News, April 28, 1898)

December 19, 1908
"The Sioux Consolidated adjoins the Colorado upon the south and the ore body appears to be even richer in this mine than where it has been opened up in the Colorado. The mine is now shipping nearly two carloads of rich silver-lead ore daily. The property is equipped with good machinery; it is located upon the line of the new Eureka Hill railway. The Sioux Consolidated Mining company has passed through varied experiences during the past 20 years, and for eight years the property of the company lay idle. Considerable ore had been extracted from the upper workings years ago, but it was not until the Colorado uncovered ore in its lower levels that it was supposed any such ore bodies existed at depth. A re-organization was effected in July, 1007, and the company proceeded to sink a shaft on its Phebe S. claim, adjoining the Colorado, ore being found at a depth of 350 feet in the new shaft in August of the present year, since which time the production of the mine has steadily increased. The company owns the following claims in East Tintic: Ed Stokes, Sioux, Bill Schuler, Justice, Middle Man, and Phebe S. The Phebe S. claim, as already stated, adjoins the Colorado on the north and Iron Blossom on the south.. The officers are: Reed Smoot, president; Thomas H. Cutler, vice president; who, with John Y. Smith, C. E. Loose and George M. Smoot, are directors. J. T. Earner is secretary and treasurer, and C. E. Loose, manager. The office of the company is at Provo, Utah." (Deseret News, December 19, 1908)

January 1, 1911
"Although one of the oldest producing mines in the camp, it was not until the Sioux-Colorado-Iron Blossom vein was tapped in June 1908, that the property entered into is remarkable producing record." "During the past year smelter shipments approximate 660 carloads." "The main double compartment shaft is 500 feet in depth." "Production runs nearly two carloads daily." (Salt Lake Herald, January 1, 1911)

July 2, 1916
The Sioux Consolidated, Grand Central and Gold Chain mines are all owned by the same interests, C. E. Loose of Provo, and associates. (Salt Lake Herald, July 2, 1916)

(C. E. Loose sold his interest in the Sioux Consolidated to Jesse Knight in March 1919, and sold his interest in the Grand Central to the Chief Consolidated company in 1921. He apparently retained control of the Gold Chain mine until his death in 1929. In 1931 control of the Gold Chain passed to the Mammoth Mining company, which then leased the Gold Chain to itself in 1932.)

December 31, 1916
The following comes from the December 31, 1916 issue of the Salt Lake Tribune.

September 17, 1917
"Work has been suspended at the property of the Sioux Consolidated Mining company. The company's finances are at low ebb and it is understood that the management plans to amend the articles in order that it may be possible to raise money by the assessment of the stock. Shares of the Sioux are at present non- assessable." (Salt Lake Herald, September 17, 1917)

September 27, 1917
The Sioux mine was closed in early 1912, having run out of marketable ore. Since that time, parts of the mine had been worked by leasers, providing some funds through royalties. In late 1915 an attepmt was made to reach the same ore vein as the adjacent Iron Blossom mine, but after dropping the main shaft down from 500 feet to as deep as 1000 feet, and extending drifts in several directions, along with several crosscuts, the company was disappointed by the lack of a mineable vein. The reorganization in September 1917 was necessary because the receipts were the same as the disbursements. (Provo Daily Herald, September 27, 1917)

December 1, 1917
The Sioux Consolidated Mining company was reorganized as the Sioux Mines company. The purpose of the reorganization was to wipe out obligations, and to make the stock accessible, to make money available for development work. The officers and board of directors of the new company were essentially the same as the old company. (Deseret News, December 1, 1917)

(Articles of incorporation of the Sioux Mines Company were filed with the Utah county clerk on December 14, 1917)

(Although not covered in the local press at the time, research suggests that the sale of C. E. Loose's control of the Sioux Mines company to the Knight interests took place in March 1919, or very soon after.)

December 20, 1919
"Control of the Sioux Co. passed during the year from C. E. Loose to the Knights, who announced the upper levels of the old workings would be thrown open to leasers and development at depth undertaken by the company. Following this announcement the stock became active and two succeeding, April and May, each totaled sales in excess of 100,000 shares, although there was no great market chnage in the price at any single period." (Deseret News, December 20, 1919)

(The sale of 200,000 shares in two months indicates that the Knight and his associates took full control of the company by May 1919.)

March 31, 1920
"Since the organization of the Sioux Mines company in the latter part of the year 1917 the only work done on the property was the mining of a small amount of ore by lessees until a few months ago, when control of the company passed into the hands of the Knight interests, according to the company's report. At that time a new campaign of development work was started, which consisted of driving a drift from the 1700-foot level of the Iron Blosson property, which adjoins to the south. This gives a depth of from six to seven hundred feet below the workings of the Sioux shaft and is prospecting entirely new territory." (Salt Lake Tribune, March 31, 1920)

September 29, 1922
The Sioux Mines company was sold to a group of Eureka investors, including E. F. Birch, former manager of the Knight properties at Tintic. The Knight interests had held control of the Sioux Mines company after Jesse Knight had purchased control of the company from C. E. Loose "several years ago." Birch planned on developing the previous undeveloped parts of the mine. (Eureka Reporter, September 29, 1922)

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Utah Consolidated Mining and Milling Co.

The Utah Consolidated Mining and Milling company was an enterprise of C. E. Loose and associates, and encompassed mining properties immediately north of the Sioux properties. Franklin Farrell purchased control of both companies at the same time by buying the stock shares held by C. E. Loose in September 1895.)

August 9, 1892
"New Mining Company. -- Articles of incorporation of the Utah Consolidated Mining and Milling company were filed with Territorial Secretary Sells today. The general office of the company is at Provo. S. S. Jones, president (69,000 shares); T. R. Cutler, vice president (15,000 shares); John R. Twelves, secretary-treasurer (1,000 shares). Directors include above officers, plus C. E. Loose (100,000 shares); Reed Smoot (100,000 shares); Ira D. Wines (15,000 shares); A. M. Cannon (15,000 shares). (Deseret News, August 9, 1892)

August 9, 1892
The Utah Consolidated Mining and Milling company was incorporated, with offices in Provo. The directors and officers were the same as the later Utah Mining and Milling company that was controlled by Farrell and Robinson in September 1895. (Salt Lake Herald, August 10, 1892, "yesterday")

January 1, 1895
The Utah Consolidated was owned by the same persons that owned the adjacent Sioux mine, with the Utah mine being accessed through the Sioux property. When the Sioux mine was sold to Franklin Farrell and his associates in December 1894, the Utah company drove a new tunnel from Pine Canyon, at a point about the the middle of the Utah property. (Salt Lake Tribune, January 1, 1895)

(Newspaper references in early 1895 giving legal notice of an annual meeting of the company used the Utah Consolidated Mining and Milling name.)

September 18, 1895
C. E. "Ed" Loose resigned as director and general manager of the Utah Mining and Milling company, and was replaced in those positions by George H. Robinson. (Provo Daily Enquirer, September 18, 1895)

September 19, 1895
C. E. Loose resigned as a director of the Utah Consolidated company. (Salt Lake Tribune, September 19, 1895)

September 23, 1895
"Another changing of great importance has just taken place in the affairs of the Utah Mining company. It is nothing more nor less than the passing of the control of the company from the hands of C. E. Loose to those Franklin Farrell, of Ansonia, Conn., the owner of the control of the Sioux, the neighbor of the Utah. Out of a possible 250,000 shares of stock, Mr. Loose held something like 130,000 shares and these have been transferred to Mr. Farrell. It is not known upon exactly what basis the sale was effected, but it is known that Mr. Loose has just received a cash payment of $25,000 on the purchase price, which is supposed to be in the neighborhood of 50 cents a share." (Provo Evening Dispatch, September 23, 1895, citing the Eureka Democrat)

(There were no further references to the Utah Mining and Milling company in available online newspapers. The name was reused in April 1896 by a new corporation with gold mines in Kingman, Mojave County, Arizona.)

Sioux (Farrell) Mill

The Sioux mill at Mammoth (or Robinson) was first announced in mid-February 1895, and was to be built on property already owned by the Sioux Consolidated Mining and Milling company. The mill itself was built 200 yards east of the existing Mammoth mill at Robinson. The spur (or "switch") was built east from the New East Tintic line. In later years, the Sioux mill was known as the Farrell mill, named for Franklin Farrell, the largest investor, who lived in Ansonia, Connecticut, and visited Utah to oversee the construction of the mill. Farrell had purchased the rights to the milling process that was to be used. (Salt Lake Herald, February 19, 1895)

The Sioux mill had 20 stamps and a daily capacity of 60 tons, compared to the Mammoth mill, which had 60 stamps and a daily capacity of 180 tons. (Salt Lake Herald, May 9, 1895)

Construction of the Sioux mill began in late June 1895. Frazer & Chalmers had the contract for the mill machinery, and the building to house it, with a completion set for 90 days. Trent & Company had the contract for the boilers and other power equipment. The retaining walls and building frame was completed by late August, but there were delays in the delivery of the machinery. Carloads of machinery began arriving in late September, with the final delivery coming in mid-October. By the first of December, ore was being stockpiled in the ore bins, and the crusher had been running for "over a week" passing crushed ore to its own ore bin. By the third week of December, the Sioux mill was in production and was shipping three carloads of concentrates per week to the smelter. (Salt Lake Tribune, June 29, 1895; Salt Lake Herald, July 14, 1895; August 24, 1895)

(The new Sioux mill reached an agreement with the nearby Mammoth mill to use that mill's water supply, from the Cherry Creek Aqueduct completed in December 1894.)

August-September 1895
By late August 1895, the Sioux mill building was essentially complete, and the company was waiting for the delivery of the mill machinery. By late September, the mill building was being painted and made ready for the installation of the mill machinery, which was not yet delivered. Throughout October, the machinery was delivered in several separate shipments in a large number of car loads. (Salt Lake Herald, August 24, 1895; September 27, 1895; October 11, 1895; October 23, 1895)

January 28, 1896
"L. C. Trent visited Mammoth during the week. He reports the new Sioux mill doing splendid service and handling about eighty tons per day. This plant was designed by L. C. Trent & Co., who also furnished a portion of the machinery." (Inter-Mountain Mining Review, January 28, 1896)

December 26, 1897
"One of the long-felt wants of the district has been a custom mill. Messrs. Peyton and Snyder appreciated this fact and leased the Farrell combination mill at Robinson, which was erected by the Sioux Consolidated Mining company. For several months they have kept its 20 stamps dropping constantly on ores from all parts of the district, and have successfully treated ores from the Bullion-Beck and Mammoth dumps, and from the Humbug, Swansea and North Star mines. The average weekly shipments are one bar of bullion and three carloads of concentrate." (Salt Lake Herald, December 26, 1897)

(By mid 1899, ore from the Mammoth mine was being milled at the Sioux mill, with the Mammoth mill being idle due to needed repairs. After a recent breakdown of its concentrating tables, the Mammoth company had shut down the Mammoth mill, and laid off its master mechanic, who promptly took a similar position with the Sioux mill, which was being run as a custom mill by leasers.)

The Sioux mill shipped its last carload of concentrates in mid January 1900. It sat idle until November 1901 when it was sold by Franklin Farrell to a group headed by Robert Grant, the former general manager of the Sioux mine, with plans to restart it as a custom mill. But the plans never took shape and the mill remained inactive. The sale price was reported as $30,000, for the purchase of the mill in which the machinery alone was worth $80,000.

By May 1903, the Sioux mill was no longer in operation and its machinery was to be sold. In July 1903, the building and machinery were sold to a salvage dealer. By early September, all of the timber framework had been removed. The last of the timbers were moved to Santaquin in mid November.

Sioux-Ajax Tunnel

The Sioux-Ajax Tunnel company was a separate enterprise; completely separate from both the Sioux Mining company, and the Ajax Mining company.

The Sioux-Ajax tunnel was a project of the Tintic Mining & Development company. The tunnel had its starting point between the Mammoth and Ajax properties on the west side of Sioux Peak, and was headed for the Sioux-Utah possessions on the east side of the mountain.

When finished, tunnel was meant to enable the companies to unload their ore by means of an underground tramway, into cars of the New East Tintic railway, on the Mammoth side of the mountain. From there it is a short haul to the Oregon Short Line and Rio Grande Western at Mammoth, so that the ore is handled but once from the mine to the smelter.

(Read more about the Sioux-Ajax Tunnel)

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