McArthur Mining Company facts for kids
The McArthur Mining Company was an old company that dug for coal. It was also known as the Corunna Coal Company. This company had Michigan's very first coal mine, and the first coal was dug there in 1839.
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How Michigan's First Coal Mine Started
The story of the McArthur Mining Company began in 1836. At that time, Alexander McArthur lived in the only log house in Shiawassee County, Michigan. His home was along the Shiawassee River in Caledonia Township, Shiawassee County, Michigan.
In the same year, a study of Michigan's rocks and land was done. Douglass Houghton was in charge of this study. They visited Corunna, Michigan and Caledonia Township in Shiawassee County. During their visit, they checked specific areas along the Shiawassee River. These checks showed signs that coal, shale, and fire clay might be there. However, they didn't actually find any at that time.
In 1839, Alexander McArthur found coal on his own land. He found it near a clearing where Native Americans used to dig clay for their pottery. This spot was on the bank of a stream that later became known as Coal Creek. This creek flowed into the Shiawassee River.
At first, McArthur only dug out small amounts of coal for himself. Later, he started selling it, mostly to blacksmiths. These blacksmiths traveled long distances to get his coal because it was very good quality. The layers of coal he found were rich and high-quality. It was even said that from one area, McArthur dug up a lot of coal and shale in one year.
Even in 1841, this was the only mine in Michigan that dug coal to sell. His coal-selling business grew very quickly. He delivered his coal in wagons pulled by horses. He sold it for ten cents a bushel, which was a good price then.
The Company's Middle Years
In 1864, McArthur got help from B. Brisco. Brisco was a chief engineer for the Detroit and Milwaukee Railroad. He helped McArthur study his coal deposits to see how valuable they were for mining. Some business people from New York City became interested in McArthur's coal reports.
They decided to officially start a company to mine the coal. They raised $100,000 to begin. On April 22, 1865, McArthur sold 120 acres of his land to this new company. The new company was named McArthur's Mining Company.
Besides Alexander McArthur, the investors in the company were Dr. G. M. Peck, Samuel Daskham, and Edward W. Lockwood from New York City. Dr. Peck was chosen as president, and Alexander McArthur became the local agent. The new company built an engine room, a coalhouse, an office, and special tracks called tramways. They also used their money for machinery and other buildings at the mines.
They even built a very large dock on the Detroit River where the coal was taken. From Detroit, the coal was carried by large boats called steamers to New York City. However, the cost of moving the coal was much higher than they expected. Soon, it became too expensive to run the company. The company closed down just one year after it started.
From 1869 to 1870, the Briar Hill Iron and Coal Company from Ohio sent their expert, Charles Gilbert. He was a geologist, someone who studies rocks and the earth. He came to check the coal area around Corunna, Michigan and the old McArthur's Mining Company site. He started testing for coal by drilling test holes. Gilbert drilled 56 test holes, and 46 of them showed coal deposits in Caledonia Township.
On April 1, 1871, Henry P. Gilbert bought about 66 acres of land where these tests were done. In December of that year, he sold part of his ownership in this land to other investors. These investors included George F. Perkins and John Stambaugh from Akron, Ohio, and George Todd from Youngstown, Ohio. In 1872, these investors opened a mine to dig for coal. They invested over $90,000 to make the business successful, but they went out of business within a year.
One important improvement this company left behind was a railroad track. This track went from the mine to the Corunna Depot. This was a huge step forward! Before this, coal had been moved by wagons pulled by horses or oxen for about 38 years.
The Final Years of Coal Mining
The Corunna Coal Company was formed on February 26, 1873. Its purpose was to mine coal, fire clay, and other materials. They mined from the same coal layer that Alexander McArthur had started digging from back in 1839. The investors put $150,000 into this new business.
The investors included George F. Perkins from Akron, Ohio; George Todd from Youngstown, Ohio; and Henry P. Gilbert, Harry R. Gilbert, Thomas Struthers, and John Stambaugh, all from Ohio. George Todd was the President, and Todd Kincaid was the Secretary and Treasurer. This new company, started in 1873, had offices in both Youngstown, Ohio, and Corunna, Michigan.
On December 5, 1874, the Corunna Coal Company bought the lands in Caledonia Township that the Briar Hill Iron and Coal Company had worked on. They had already been renting these lands. The Corunna Coal Company carefully checked the properties they owned. They found that there were large amounts of coal deep underground. In 1877, they opened a new mine shaft that was 75 feet deep. They found a very rich layer of coal there. It was about two to almost four feet thick.
The company then set up everything needed to mine and ship the coal. It was fully ready to go by June 1877. Local workers were not skilled in coal mining, so the company hired about 100 coal workers from Ohio. Seventy-five of these workers were skilled miners.
In the winter months, they mined 75 to 100 tons of coal every day. The summer months had less production. Moving the coal was a challenge. It had to travel about 2.5 miles from the mines to the Detroit and Milwaukee Railroad depot. This task became easier when a special branch road was built from Corunna to the mine.
Tod Kincaid, the Secretary and Treasurer, bought a share in the mines in 1877. By 1891, Kincaid bought out his partners and became the general manager. A special railroad track, called a spur track, was built to the mine by the Detroit, Milwaukee and Western Railroad in 1885. The Kincaid Mine officially closed in the early 1900s. However, people continued to mine coal from that same layer from time to time, even until shortly after World War II.
Images for kids
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Michigan Historical Marker
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