Three kids mine unfger/RJ photo
Manganese mine – In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, manganese, an important metal needed to strengthen steel, was supplied to Untied States manufacturers mostly by foreign mines. With the onset of World War I, these sources of manganese were cut-off, and an intense search for domestic sources was undertaken. In Nevada, this prospecting effort led to the discovery of the Three Kids manganese deposit in 1917. This mine provided most of Nevada’s manganese production during the last two years of WWI and operated intermittently until 1961. This is the largest manganese mine in Nevada and, during the 44 years of operation, more than 2,225,000 tons of ore ranging from 15 percent to 40 percent manganese was mined and treated here. Small amounts of lead, copper, silver and gold were also recovered by the mining operation.
The Three Kids Mine is on private land and access is strictly controlled. This and any other abandoned mines you might come across can be extremely dangerous. Resist any temptation you may have to explore these workings – ” Stay Out and stay alive!”
(Material provided by Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, Special Publication #16)
Three Kids Mine pit – Google Earth 1-20-10
For more history and stories about Three Kids Mine see relate BLOG article including what movie was filmed on location here….rmltman…:)
