Shaft No. 2 with the old hoist house, c1906Quincy Mine No. 2 Hoist House, 2006Quincy Mine No. 2 Hoist House, 1978
The Quincy Mining Company was first organized in 1846,[4] and incorporated two years later, to mine the then-recently discovered Portage Lake copper formations.[2] It wasn't until 1856 that the mine hit upon their most productive lode, and it took until 1862 before the first dividend was paid.[3] However, after that time, the Quincy Mine was a reliable investment, paying dividends every year from 1867 until 1921.[3]
In the early part of the twentieth century, the shafts at Quincy Mine were increasing in depth at a prodigious rate as the company pushed farther underground in search of copper. Between 1905 and 1920, the depth of the principal shafts increased from 5000 feet to over 7000.[5] The requirements to lift rock to the surface from ever-increasing depths severely strained the capabilities of the company's mine hoist equipment.[6] By 1916, the hoist servicing the number 2 shaft had reached its depth limit.[7] Rather than abandon the shaft or eke out a little more depth by retrofitting the existing hoist, Quincy hired the Nordberg Manufacturing Company and Bruno V. Nordberg[2] to design a new hoist engine[7] at a cost of $160,000.[8] It would be the largest mine hoist in the world.[3][7]
Quincy contracted for delivery of the Nordberg engine in early 1917, but World War I intervened, delaying receipt until late 1919.[7] In the meantime, a hoist house was designed by J. H. Hoff and built by the McLean Construction Company of Chicago[9] at a cost of $43,000 for the foundation and $53,000 for the superstructure.[9] The house was essentially finished in 1918.[8] Installation of the hoist began in December 1919; it took until November 1920 before the hoist was fully operational.[8] The additional cost for installing the hoist was $34,000;[9] the total cost of the project, including building, engine, installation, and ancillary structures, was $370,000.[10] The hoist operated from 1920 until the mine closed in 1931,[2] a victim of falling copper prices.[11]
The building and hoist were restored in 1968 and are open to the public.[2]
Description
The Quincy Mine No. 2 Shaft Hoist House is a rectangular structure, faced with red brick veneer,[9] measuring 72 by 76 feet (22 by 23 m) in plan[2] and rising to a height of almost five stories.[12] The building is particularly decorative for a hoist house, containing an inordinate number of windows[9] and, originally, a green glazed tile roof.[2] By 1978, the green tile had been removed.[9] The design of the building included large doors, open interior space with no columns, and an overhead crane to facilitate the installation of the hoist.[8] The reinforced concrete foundation supporting the building and the hoist engine is particularly notable: it contains 32,000 cubic yards (24,000 m3) of material and was reputedly the largest block of reinforced concrete ever poured for such a purpose.[9] It was one of the first very large reinforced concrete buildings ever built.[12]
The hoist inside measures 60 by 54 feet (18 by 16 m) weighs 1,765,000 pounds (801,000 kg), and could pull a skip with 20,000 pounds (9,100 kg) of rock at 36.4 miles per hour (58.6 km/h).[2]
^Quincy Mining Company, Hancock, Houghton County, MI, Historic American Engineering Record, Survey number HAER MI-2, Charles K Hyde, Larry D Lankton, Charles O'Connell, Sarah McNear, p. 7
