2577

Kroeber Assay Ingot, Owyhee, Idaho Territory, 1873. Thi

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:2,000.00 USD Estimated At:8,000.00 - 12,000.00 USD
Kroeber Assay Ingot, Owyhee, Idaho Territory, 1873. Thi
<B>Kroeber Assay Ingot, Owyhee, Idaho Territory, 1873.</B></I> This is clearly an exhibition ingot, commemorating the Poorman Mine in Silver City, and is dated 1873. One edge states that it is from P. J. Moore's Cabinet.<BR> Silver City is located in southwestern Idaho, very close to the Nevada and Oregon borders. It was named after three Hawaiian trappers sent to explore the region by the Northwest Fur Company in 1818, who were probably killed by Indians.<BR> There are two ingots known from the Poorman, which was a high grade silver mine in Silver City. The mine was discovered in the 1860s, and by about 1870 had begun to be worked out. During its productive period, it was always published as one of the best mines in the district, though many of the good mines there were gold. As noted on page 27 of <I>Owyhee Trails,</B></I> by Hanley & Lucia (1973):<BR><BR> The ore was beyond belief. Silver's Poorman Mine became legendary, assaying from four thousand to five thousand dollars a ton after the initial strike was made in 1865. At about a five hundred foot depth, the famous Poorman nugget was uncovered, weighing five hundred pounds. Its solid mass of ruby and silver crystals was so spectacular that the giant nugget created a sensation at the...Paris Exposition, and was awarded a gold medal.<BR><BR> In 1871 to 1873 the dumps at the Poorman were processed and worked at the Owyhee Mill. During the period 1871to 1872, 567 tons of ore were worked yielding $21.24 per ton, and the next year nearly twice as much ore was run at about half the yield ($12.76/ton), as reported by Ross Raymond in various annual reports of the U.S. Mineral Commissioner known as Mineral Resources West of the Rocky Mountains. Wells Fargo reported silver bullion shipments of 10-19 silver bars per week in February 1871 alone, valued at $26,000-$39,000 each. Raymond did not report on Idaho in 1874, and the next year