Special Sub-Topic: "Miner" History Click Here To Play: "Miner" History

In 1859, the Comstock Lode drew thousands of miners to western Nevada. What mineral was the 'big bonanza'?

silver. In 1857, Ethan and Hosea Grosh searched for gold in western Nevada. They both died before their claims could be recorded. In 1859, Henry T.P. Comstock (also known as 'Old Pancake') took possession of the brother's cabin to search for gold. He was not very sucessful until the bluish sand found in the area was discovered to be silver. The bonanza boomed but declined in the 1870's due to wasteful mining methods and the demonitization of silver. By 1898 the Comstock was almost totally abandoned.

In 1859, Colonel Edwin L. Drake figured out how to ecomonically extract this substance in Titusville, Pennsylvania. What was it?

oil. An event that changed the world was the first commercially viable oil well. Although oil was known in the area, there was no practical way to extract it. Many oil related business quickly came upon the scene. Eight refineries were built between 1862 and 1868. At that time one of the main uses of oil was for the production of industrial lubricants. Titusville quickly grew from 250 residents to over 10,000 and incorporated as a city in 1866. In 1881, the first oil exchange in the United States was established there. Early refineries produced mostly kerosene which was used for lamps and heaters. In the 1870's other products such as gasoline were considered waste and dumped. Whale oil was used in lamps but the whaling industry was unable to provide enough to meet the demand. Petroleum oil met the needs and became the fuel of choice driving the early the growth of the oil industry.

South Africa is known for producing this mineral. It was the home of the richest mines until the biggest mine for this opened in a neighboring country in 1978. Which of these is it?

diamond. Discovered in 1972, the Jwaneng Mine in Botswana produces 15 percent of the world's diamonds. Annual production exceeds 12 million carats. The mine is owned by the Debswana Diamond Company and became fully operational in 1978 as an agreement between the Government of Botswana and De Beers who are equal partners in the venture.

Where was the largest silver nugget discovered? (Hint: it is no longer in the country it was discovered.)

Sonora, Mexico. The nugget we was found in about 1736 at Rancho Esmeralda, Sonora, Mexico and weighs 2,750 lbs. troy. It was appropriated by the Spanish government in 1821. The Indians called the place 'Alishonac'. The Spanish turned the name into 'Arizonac'. In 1742, Matias Angel de la Mota Padilla was writing a history of the area and left out the 'c' on his report. Thus, the area became known as Arizona. At the time of the discovery, Arizona was part of Mexico. The largest nugget found in the United States weighs 1,840 lbs. and was discovered near Aspen, Colorado in 1894. I just made up Gooliecrag (I think). Those Australians sure have a way with nifty names. Chickaloon, Alaska is a town on the Matanuska River.

This region, in the British Isles, was world famous for its coal mining industry. (hint: 'How Green Was My Valley')

South Wales. The Rhondda Valley employed over 40,000 miners during the first half of the 18th century. At its peak, more than 250,000 miners worked in South Wales. World War I caused a great decline in coal sales and foreign markets. France imported much of the coal from this area until the Treaty of Versailles when the French took over the Saar Basin coalfields in Germany. In 1923, France and Belqium occupied the Ruhr coal region in response to an alleged German default on reparation payments. With post war depression, unemployment rose and production fell. By 1929, the area only produced 3 percent of the world's coal output.

Aluminum (or Aluminium) has a facinating history. It was, at one time, worth more than gold because of the difficulty of refining it. What is a major ore of aluminum?

bauxite. Bauxite was named by P. Berthier in 1821, after his discovery of the reddish, clay-like material containing 52 percent aluminum oxide, near the village of Les Baux in southern France. Borax is used in detergents, soaps, pesticides, disinfectants and water softeners. It is chemically sodium borate or sodium tetraborate. It is the main ingredient in 'Borateem', the sponsor of the old television show 'Death Valley Days', starring Ronald Reagan as the commentator. Cinnabar is an ore of mercury. Alumilite is a plastic polymer casting resin manufactured by the Alumilite Corporation.

This opaque mineral is highly prized for jewelry. It is commonly used by the Indians of Colorado, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico for ornaments, inlays and carvings. What is it?

turquoise. Turquoise is known to have been mined by the Egyptians on the Sinai Penninsula as early as 6000 BCE. It was transported to Europe through Turkey. Turquoise means 'Turkish' in French. It occurs naturally in northern Africa, Australia, Siberia, China and Europe as well as the southwest deserts of the U.S.

In the late 17th century, the Spanish Conquistabors discovered this metal while panning for gold in the Choco region of modern Columbia. They considered it worthless and a nuisance because it hindered their gold mining efforts. Today it is worth more than gold. What is it?

platinum. In 1751 a Swedish assayer named Sceffer recognized platinum as the seventh element. He was the first to successfully melt it. Platinum will not corrode with gases or chemicals. If was often used in laboratory instruments and glass by 1780. In the 19th century, silver was used to set diamonds in jewelry but it was relatively soft so the settings were quite heavy. Platinum took the place of silver due to its hardness and qualities of not taking away from the brilliance of the stone.

This mineral is one of the most important in history. It is commonly found in homes. The chemical name for it is sodium chloride. What is it?

salt. The importance of salt cannot be overstated. It has been used as money, had wars fought over it, is an object of ettiquette in many cultures and has religeous significance. Here are some highlights: In ancient Greece, salt was used in exchange for slaves. This is where the expression "not worth his salt" originated. The Romans built many salt works and salt rations were given to their soldiers. The Latin phrase "salarium argentum" is the forerunner of the word "salary". There are more than thirty references to salt in the Bible. Some religions use salt on their alters to represent purity. India has a rich history of salt. One of the castes was that of the "salt-diggers". In modern times, Mahatma Ghandi defied the British salt laws as a means to popularize self rule. It was a protest against the British salt starvation policy. One of the British strategies during the American Revolution was to deny the rebels access to salt. In 1777, British Lord Howe celebrated when he captured General Washington's salt supply. Saltville, Virginia was the site of the Confederacy's last important salt processing plant. The Union and Confederate forces fought a 36 hour battle over it. Thousands of Napoleon's troops died during the retreat from Moscow because their injuries would not heal due to a lack of salt in their diet. The Chinese created a governmental salt monopoly and heavily taxed it. They used it in medicines as well as the the culinary arts. In Russia, salt taxes were an important revenue source for the Czars. The Siberian salt mines are famous for punishment and forced labor.

In 1848 gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill on the American River in Coloma, California. This spurred the famous gold rush of 1849. Who is credited with the discovery?

James Marshall. In 1847, John Sutter hired James Marshall to build a saw mill in Coloma. On January 24, 1848 Marshall found a piece of yellow metal and took it to Sutter. They tested it and confirmed that it was gold. Sutter, afraid that the discovery would take his workers away, asked Marshall and the others working on the mill to keep it a secret. Word got out and on December 5, 1848, President James Polk confirmed the find to Congress. It became national news and the California gold rush began. Here's how James Marshall described the discovery (in his own words): "I went down as usual, and after shutting off the water from the race I stepped into it, near the lower end, and there, upon the rock, about six inches beneath the surface of the water, I discovered the gold. I then collected four or five pieces and went up to Mr. Scott (who was working at the carpenter's bench making the mill wheel) and the pieces in my hand and said, 'I have found it.' 'What is it?' inquired Scott. 'Gold,' I answered. 'Oh! No,' returned Scott, 'that can't be!' I replied positively, 'I know it to be nothing else.'"