River Mountains Loop Trail

Three Kids Manganese Mine

Three kids mine unfger/RJ photo

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

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…:)

Volcanoes in the River Mountains

Volcanoes in the River Mountains ? – This phrase will certainly get the attention of locals who live in the area, particularly if you are not into the geology of the area.  This information certainly explains why the River Mountains are so rugged.  Since it has been 40 years since I took geology I’m going to reference material from Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology Special Publication #16 ” Geologic tours in the Las Vegas area”.  

 

The River Mountains are composed of tilted and faulted mid-Miocene (15 to 12 million years old) andesite and dacite lava flows.  Two volcanoes, the source of most of the lava, have been identified in the River Mountains.  The first, located just north of Boulder city, is a stratovolcano surrounded by numerous domes.  Stratovolcanoes are cone-shaped features composed of lava flows interbedded with abundant agglomerate and breccia that formed from explosive eruptions.  The surrounding domes formed by the eruption of very sticky lava such as dacite, which erupted to the surface but did not flow.   Lava formed a low spine or a dome that quickly crumbled to a ring of debris about the dome.  

Stratovolcanoecross section - USGS file photo

The second volcano, located in the northern part of the River Mountains, is a shield volcano – a broad volcano composed of basaltic and andesitic lavas similar to those erupting today on the island of Hawaii.  

Both volcanos have been tilted, cut by numerous faults, and broken into numerous parts producing a jigsaw pattern of rocks that is now very difficult to recognize.  

This could have been River Mountains 14-million years ago. birth of a Mtn. range.

The following photo is of a cinder cone just a mile north and east of the River Mountains and can be seen from the trail between MM 12 and MM 14.  Locally it is called “Lava Butte”.

Volcano cine cone North of trail 102409

Three Kids Mine site along Trail

Jan.29th, 2009   Three Kids Mine is part of Southern Nevada’s mining history. It is locate near Lake Las Vegas at trail mile marker 9.0 to 10.5.  There are several deep open pit mines where manganese ore was mined then processed in a mill on site. Mining was activity from around 1917 until the plant was closed in 1961. The site has sat idle for 48 years. It was used in two movies over the years and has been an eyesore for most of the 48-yrs.  Plans are now afoot to clean up the area and turn it into a master planned development of some 1250+ acres.  The development is currently known as “Lakemoor Canyons”.  The project is in the planning, review, approval stage and will require many permits. The actual clean up of the site is about 12 months out if all goes well.

Three kids mine unger/RJ photo

Three kids Mine Unger/RJ photo

History:

The following is an except out of the Review Journal dated May 12, 2005. The article is written by A.D. Hopkins and talks about the Merle Frehner family history….
During World War I the Three Kids Mine, the remains of which are visible southeast of Sunrise Mountain, was producing manganese ore. Harry (Frehner) hauled the ore to the Las Vegas rail yards behind a 10-horse team pulling three heavy-duty freight wagons and a feed cart, hooked one behind the other. “When reaching the east end of Fremont Street, Harry drove straight up the center to the depot, then south to an unloading platform. Crowds of people would line the sidewalks to watch the long outfit go up the street.”  This would have been between 1914 and 1918.

 
 
 

Three Kids mine site today RJ Photo 11-08-09

The following notes and statements come from an article printed in the “MINING CONGRESS JOURNAL dated October 1944….”The three Kids Mine near Las Vegas, owned by the Manganese Ore Company, wholly-owned subsidiary of The M.A. Hanna Company, has proved to be the largest open pit deposit of good grade manganese ore available in America, Vice President M.C. Lake of the ore company said in a recent statement.”

The millling plant next to the mine was owned and operated by the Defense Plant Corporation and as of this writing had produced several thousand tons of high grade manganese nodules. The plant had not yet reached full production according to the article.

Other items of interest from the article are: 1.) Part of the process involved leaching a processing pulp …”in a series of seven thickeners, the first two of which are acid-proof construction and 250 feet in diameter, thus making them the largest acid-proof thickeners ever constructed.” 2.)The “manganese sulphate salt which is roasted in a rotary kiln 360-ft. long and 11ft 3 inches in diameter, to yield a calcine of Manganese oxide and sulpher dioxide gas.”
The article from the Mining Congress Journal also had multiple photos of operations at the mine….Steam shovel loading dump trucks;beginning of the open pit mine operation; Drilling being done by churn drills and rock drills; mining pit with stock piles of ore and mill.

Movies:
Do you know the names of the two Hollywood Movie productions that took place at Three Kids Mine????

The first one I’m still researching. It was filmed after 1961 and involved the blowing up of the mill/plant during filming. I’m told it was in the early 1970’s? Does anyone know…please help me out.

The second film/movie was released February 5, 1987. It was shot entirely on location in southern Nevada. A major battle scene and shoot out occured at the Three Kids Mine site. The name of the movie is “CHERRY 2000” – a 1987 science fiction cult film starring Melanie Griffith and David Andrews. My personal review of movie would make it a “B” movie, acting was not so hot, plot was ?; but the scenery of Southern Nevada was great. The Three Kids Mine shots show some of the remaining structures from the mining days. The big 250-ft concrete thickeners look like alien structures in the film. The movie pops up every now and again on HBO, don’t waste your money renting a DVD.

 
 
 
 
 

Cherry 2000 Movie Poster 1987

Cherry 2000 Movie Poster 1987

The River Mountains Loop Trail:

The trail will front the Three Kids Mine site along the south side of Lake Mead Parkway from the tunnel underpass east to the commercial buildings. At this location the trail will cross to the north side via a tunnel and then follow the BMI waterline right-of-way east for about one mile. The trail will pass under Lake Mead Parkway at the far eastern edge of the Lake moor Canyons development.  This trail alignment is currently under design. We expect completion by end of 2009 2010.

THREE KIDS MINE PHOTO GALLERY:

 
 

 

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