1921 Duluth & St Louis County MN, Van Brunt.pdf - Garon.us

DULUTH AND ST. LOUIS COUNTY 577
the largest operator on the range. (See Chapter XVIII, reviewing the
main epochs of Alesabi mining history.)
One record states that the Missabe Mountain mine was found
"a few months after the Biwabik discovery." The Biwabik mine was
proved in August, 1891, by Captain Cohoe, who also sank the proving
testpit at Missabe ^Mountain mine. Missabe Mountain Iron Company
was incorporated by the Merritts on January 27, 1892, the capital
being $3,000,000, and the incorporators Leonidas and John E. Merritt
and K. D. Chase. On March 2, 1892, the company was granted a
state lease, No. 59, on the usual royalty basis presumably. It has been
stated that the Merritts expected "to spend $150,000 in exploration"
on the Missabe Mountain property, but that "they actually spent only
$41." How it happened that Henry W. Oliver, a steel manufacturer
of Pittsburgh, made the journey to the Mesabi range at all, at a time
when only local speculators were "grubbing around," must it seems
be attributed to his interest in national politics. He happened to be
"present at the nomination of Harrison (for the presidency) in 1892,
and as he was in Minneapolis he made a side trip to the new Mesabi
range, the fame of which was being noised among ore men. From
the nearest railroad station on the Duluth and Iron Range it was thirty
miles across country to the new field, a fearful trip, to be made in a
buckboard, through swampy woods, over corduroy roads, churned
I:ui)-(lee]) vvilh the hauling of many teams. With Mr. Oliver were
George T. Tener and C. D. Fraser, also of Pittsburgh, among the
ablest of his lieutenants whom he was even then gathering about him.
They visited the Cincinnati mine, at that time the nearest to a mine
on tne Mesabi. * * * They lodged at the Cincinnati location, and
then Tener and Fraser, in their misery, refused to go another foot.
Oliver went next day to the Missabe Mountain Iron, and was so
impressed with its possibilities, that he leased it forthwith on a 65 cent
royalty." The leasing agreement was a good one for the Merritts ; it
gave them a little ready cash, with more soon to follow, thejease of
August 1, 1892, calling for an advance cash payment of $75,000 by
Oliver to the Missabe Mountain Iron Company, $5,000 upon signing
of lease, $45,000 in equal monthly installments over the next three
months, and the balance before operations began in 1893, in which
year Oliver was to mine 200,000 tons. The lease was to run to
Januarv 1. 1903. Oliver was not a wealthy man, but he "caught the
"fever" when he reached the range, and risked the future. He was a
good business man but somewhat speculative. A mutual acquaint-
"Is he rich
ance, meeting a friend of his while traveling, once asked :
or poor this vear?" Oliver had. experienced many vicissitudes in the
course of his business career ; "he had made and lost fortunes." When
he invaded the Mesabi, it is said he was "fairly rich." A year later,
_
when the mine was shipping, he was "desperately poor." And in the
"Pittsburgh group are men today who remember hc^w the Missabe
IMountain shipped 300,000 tons in' 1893 without a cent." Still in that
year nobody seemed to have money, and men on the mining range considered
themselves fortunate if they were '"grub-staked."
After securing the Merritt lease to the Missabe Mountain mine,
in August, 1892, Oliver went on c|uickly with his i)lans, and on
Septeniber'30, 1892, the Oliver Mining Company, with an authorized
capital of $1,200,000, was incorporated, the principal promoters being
H. W. Oliver, 11. R. Rca, < i. F. Tener, F. D. Reis. C. D. Fraser and
Edward Florada, the last-named having been given charge of mniing
operations. How Oliver drew into co-operation with him the most
powerful steel men of America is told in the Mesabi general chapter.