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Rare separately published map of the East Coeur D'Alene Mining District.
The map is centered on Saltese, Montana, on the Idaho Montana border, 100 miles west of Spokane, Washington.
In addition to the mining information and topographical details, the route of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad is shown, following the course of the St. Regis River.
Coeur D'Alene
Coeur D'Alene's mining history is one of the most fascinating, violent and enduring in the American West. The Coeur D'Alene Mining District was the richest silver district ever discovered in America and major mining operations continued for over 100 years. It is also the site of one of the biggest Superfund clean up projects in modern American history.
The history of mining in the region began with the discovery of galena (lead ore) region by Noah Kellogg in September 1885, which became the Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mines. The discovery spawned a strong and sustaining industry in the area. By 1887, as a result of a pay cut by the Bunker Hill Mining Company, the miner's organized the first union in November 1887 and the ultimate formation of the Western Federation of Miners in 1888. In 1892, the miner's declared a strike, with the mine owners hiring the Pinkertons and the Thiel Detective Agency to break the strike. The resulting confrontation led to a declaration of marshall law by the Governor which lasted 4 months.
In 1899, a second confrontation occurred, when the Bunker Hill Mining Company hired the Pinkertons to spy on the miners and fired 17 union members. In response, the miners dynamited one of the Bunker Hill mining mills. At the request of the Governor, President McKinley sent the US Army to Wardner, Idaho and over 1,000 miners were held captive for an extended period of time. It was later claimed that Governor Frank Steuenberg had received a $35,000 bribe from the mine operators to intervene on their behalf.
Rarity
The map is of the utmost rarity. We have located no recorded examples of this map.
