After hiking to the Kelly Mine and the cemetery, the box lunches and cold drinks were a welcome break.

Shade, glorious shade!

Tasty!

Terry Humble tells the MHAers about his experiences working in the mines at Kelly.

Relaxing in the shade was a perfect time to contemplate the wonders of Nature, organic and inorganic, that were seen during the morning.

An then, it was off for the afternoon segment of the tour: The Ozark Smelting and Mining/ASARCO millsite, Magdalena, and the Very Large Array.

The Graphic Mine and the Waldo Mine were located on claims to the north of and adjacent to the Kelly Mine.  They mined the same orebody.  The Graphic-Waldo group was the other major producer in the Magdalena Mining District.  These mines supplied ore to the Ozark Smelting and Mining Company (a subsidiary of Sherwin Williams) mill and smelter through the Waldo Tunnel.  These mines are closed to the public and were not visited on the MHA tour; however, the mill and smelter site was easily viewed along the highway between Magdalena and Kelly.

(Above) Historical view of the Graphic Mine, ca1905.  (USGS) 

(Right) The Waldo Mine ca1906. The photo shows ore bins being constructed for an aerial tramway to the mill. (Socorro County Historical Society)

The 1919 Sanborn Maps show the Ozark Smelting and Mining Company mill and smelter complex (left) and the surface plant at the mouth of the Waldo Tunnel (right).  These operations were later purchased by ASARCO (now Grupo Mexico).  Ore from the Waldo-Graphic Mine complex was hauled in mine cars to the crushing plant.  The crushed ore was carried by a tramway to the mill located one mile away.  The mill was closed in 1928 and dismantled in the 1930s.

Overview of the mill and smelter complex looking to the west.  Only the foundations remain after ASARCO transferred the ore processing to El Paso, TX.

All that remains of the smelter is the slag pile at the north end of the facility.