Mine: Carp Lake Mine and Mill, Silver City, MI

Began → Carp Lake Mine → Became

Operated for 70 years (including closed years)

From: 1859

Owned by: Carp Lake Mining Company, later Carp Lake Copper Co., then Porcupine Copper Co. in 1906.

Produced: Mainly copper ore

Method: Shaft mining, 2 shafts.

Railroad connection:

Stamp Mill/Smelter: On site.

Until: 1929 (opened and closed last ten years)

Lifetime Production: 3,400 pounds of copper.

Notes

In Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, Ontonagon County. Off Highway M-107 west of Silver City.

Carp Lake Mine and mil was located in the Porcupine Mountains about 1/2 mile south of Lake Superior. The mine operated between 1858 and 1862. [MPN]

Time Line

1900. A deed has been filed in the office of the register of deeds of Ontonagon county transferring the holdings and mineral rights of the Carp Lake Copper Company to a newly organized company, mainly Cleveland capitalists, known as the Porcupine Copper company, of which the president of the Dime Savings bank of Cleveland, is the president. 

The lands conveyed are the SE ¼ of Section 15; S ½ of Section 14; the NE ¼ of the NW ¼ of Section 23; all in T51N-R43W, together with several lots on the shore of Lake Superior some distance west of Ontonagon for a stamp mill site. [LAS-1900-1215]

1906. A crew of ten men is employed cleaning out and unwatering some of the old openings on the Carp Lake property in the Porcupine mountain district of Ontonagon county. It is planned to conduct some exploratory work. A mass of native copper weighing three tons was uncovered. a few days ago. The Carp Lake mine is in the same section as the Nonsuch, which is being explored by the Calumet & Hecla Co. and work there is of considerable interest. [DFP-1906-0618]

1906. August. New York capitalists are negotiating for the purchase of the Carp Lake mine in the Porcupine mountain district. Officials are at Ontonagon accompanied by H.L. Payne and they left Saturday morning on a gasoline launch for the mine. For the past several weeks a crew has been employed under the direction of Mr. Payne in cleaning out the property and getting it in shape for inspection. [DD-1906-0804]