Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 1 86 MONTANA HISTORY IS MINING. All three of Montana Territory's capitals got their start as gold rush towns. In 1862, when John White found gold on Grasshopper Creek, he was prospecting in Dakota Territory. A year earlier he would have been in Nebraska Territory, without changing position. A year later, the new town of Bannack was in Idaho Territory, and a year after that, Sidney Edgerton successfully lobbied President Lincoln to divide that area, creating Mon- tana as we know it today. Thus, from its very beginning, Montana has been linked to mining, as can be seen on the state's Great Seal (which also appears on the state flag). Front and center are a miner's shovel and pick and the state motto, "Oro Y Plata" ('Gold and Silver' in Spanish). There is barely a corner of Montana that has not been touched by mining. By 1911, the Richest Hill on Earth and the town on that hill was home to fully one quarter of Montana's population. One reason why Butte-Silver Bow shows number 1 on their license plates. But what about mining in Montana today? The worldwide industry research firm IBISWorld claims that in 2018, Montana mining produced almost $2 billion in GDP and employed over 12,000 Montanans. Both figures represent a five-year decline of 6.6% and 3.9% respectively. It is difficult to extrapolate mining's importance, as almost all sources combine mining with oil and gas extraction. Nor does this article look at coal. Active mining takes place in 29 of Montana's counties, and 26 minerals are mined in the Treasure State, the five most common of which are gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. The sixth is uranium, with mines in 11 different Mon- tana counties, although today none are active in Montana. Fifteen minerals are mined in one or two counties only, and platinum in only three. (see Figure 1) Gold, of course, is what brought prospectors to Montana in the first place. In 2021, it still plays a role in the state's mining industry. The Bureau of Land Management counts 4,913 gold mines across the state, and in the 10 counties with the most mines, gold is first in five. It is being mined, or has been mined, in 30 of Montana's 56 counties. (see Figure 2) And while there are large companies involved, there are a great many individuals still living like 21st-century prospectors. I had the good fortune of meeting a couple who spent their life mining gold in Mineral County. In 1975, I was scouting a route for a cross-country bicycle tour when I stopped at the Gildersleeve Mine south of Superior. George and Fern Gildersleeve had been mining claims most of their married life at that point. Recently while passing through Superior, I pulled off the interstate and drove 17 miles up into the mountains where I found the Gildersleeve Mine still in place. Fern and George are long gone, but the mine holdings are jointly owned by their descendents, and I had the great pleasure of talking MINING IN TODAY'S words, photos, and graphs by BRYAN SPELLMAN

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