Mine: Balkan-Judson Mine, Alpha, MI

Various (see below) → Balkan Mine → Closed

Operated for 29 years.

From: 1913 (Judson) and 1915 (Balkan). Formally separate operations but connected later and all ore produced through Judson shaft.

Location: NE-NW, S ½-NW and N ½-SW Sec. 13 of T42N-R33W. Includes Alpha, NE-NW; Longyear, SE-NW; and McGovern, NE-SW Sec. 13. Formerly included Mastodon, NE Sec. 13.

Owned by: Balkan Mining Co. until 1935 when lease surrendered to fee owners. Interest by Inland Steel Co.

Produced: Iron Ore

Method: Underground, worked by stoping and slicing. Depth: 710 feet.

Railroad connection: C&NW to Escanaba dock. MILW to Escanaba dock (via E&LS).

Until: 1942

Lifetime Production: 4,441,799 tons between 1882-1942.

Image Info: Top, this is identified as the Judson Mine in Alpha, date unknown. [MINARC]. 2nd photo, a large excavator/shovel works at the Balkan open pit Judson Mine mine at Alpha in the early 1900's. [MINART]

Notes

Mines combined into the Balkan-Judson Mine:

• Alpha: NE-NW Sec. 13 T42N-R33W
  Longyear: SE-NW Sec. 13 T42N-R33W
  McGovern: NE-SW Sec. 13 T42N-R33W
  Mastodon: NE Sec. 13 T42N-R33W

The Balkan-Judson Mine was located in Alpha, Michigan in Iron County.

[LSIO-1950]

Time Line

1913. The Longyear property is going to be opened. That is the story that has been given currency about Crystal Falls in the last few days and it seems to come from pretty reliable sources. The property has been under exploration for two years and over a year ago there was a body of ore known to exist upon the property that contained 6 million tons. Much new ore has been added to the property by exploration on adjoining lands since that time. The Longyear people ordered in four more drills to be operated upon the property raising the number to ten.

The North-Western railroad serves the property already, the mine being reached from the old Mastodon branch while the Alpha mine branch runs right down through the heart of the mine location. The St. Paul has been keeping its eyes peeled for developments down in that quarter and has a gang of surveyors at work now on an extension of the Dunn mine branch of that system to the Longyear. It is said that for this purpose the Sawyer-Goodman logging road will be utilized as that company has graded a right of way from the Dunn mine right down to the Longyear property. The grade will have to be rebuilt in many places in order to make a railroad out of it but the nucleus of a railroad is there and it will save the St. Pal people a lot of money. The Sawyer-Goodman company will finish up its work in that section this year and the road would then be a dead letter to them. [DD-1912-0322]

1914. July 14. Balkan Mine, Palatka, Iron Co. - Water rush in rise causes 7 fatalities

1916. The new switching arrangement entered into last year between the Milwaukee and the North-Western roads is in effect in the Crystal Falls District. By virtue of this arrangement the MILW switches all of the cars for the Tobin, Dunn and Carpenter mines and the C&NW all cars for the Balkan and Judson mines (near Alpha). 

The MILW leaves the cars intended for the Balkan or Judson mine at the Dunn mine where they are picked up by the C&NW and handled to and from the mines. By this arrangement the roads escape the duplication of switch tracks and the danger of having crews of different roads operating over the same tracks.

The MILW is maintaining seven engines here to handle the business and the C&NW has fully as many. The arrangement on the MILW is somewhat different than on the C&NW. On the latter road, there is a yard master and switch men, but with the MILW all employees are in the train service, the crews shooting right out for Channing as soon as their trains are made up.

Alpha ore is hauled to Mastodon by the switch engines to be picked up by road trains. [DD-1916-0429]

1921. September. The steam shovel was started on the Balkan pile and has been kept continually at work since. The Balkan ore is being forwarded over the C&NW and that road now has four switch engines at work out of Crystal Falls. The ore trains are made up here and run direct to Escanaba.

The Judson shovel has about completed loading the pile of the Judson No. 1 which it has been working for a month or more. The Judson ore is given to the St. Paul. The Northwestern does the switching of this ore, delivering it to the St. Paul at the Dunn mine transfer. [DD-1921-0917]