See more from this Division: General Discipline Sessions
See more from this Session: History of Geology
Abstract:
The Anaconda Company focused on geological mine mapping as a direct result of disputes associated with the rich copper deposits at Butte. Court cases based on the Apex Law led to the shutdown of almost all mining in Butte in 1903, and underground warfare between rival groups of miners threatened many lives. Scientific mapping of the disputed orebodies proved the best way to resolve the disputes. The development of economic geology as a science is thus intimately linked to legal and economic pressures, and to the powerful personalities that dominated Butte, its politics, economy, and society, in the period between 1890 to 1910.
Using data from the Anaconda Collection at the University of Wyoming, field records from the U.S. Geological Survey, and published reports, this talk examines the origins of geological mine maps and places their development in a social and scientific context.
See more from this Division: General Discipline Sessions
See more from this Session: History of Geology