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Mining History Association VIRTUAL Annual Conference June 10-12, 2021 
Elko, Nevada – Gold Mining Country, USA
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New on the Web
MHA NUGGETS RESUMES FOR THE FALL 2021. The “MHA Nuggets” on-line programs are starting for the Fall 2021. ZOOM in and visit with your MHA friends and hear some interesting mining history presentations. Save these dates: August 17 September 21 October 19 November 16 Contact Eric Nystrom or Barb Clements for access links and more information. Check the MHA Facebook page for up-to-the-minute program additions and changes. Past "Nuggets" sessions and presentations are on YouTube under Mining History Association.
Seeing Coal: Time, Material, Scale. From May 1 – August 28, 2021, the Library Company of Philadelphia is presenting a special free exhibit, Seeing Coal. It looks at Pennsylvania anthracite coal and raises questions about the significance of its visible and invisible presence in our world. Through historic images, material specimens, poetry, and visual art, coal is presented as a material that can help us rethink our relationship with Nature and Time. Can’t get to Philadelphia? There is a digital exposition on-line waiting for your visit.
 AIME Celebrates its 150th Anniversary in 2021. On May 16, 1871, 23 prominent mining engineers met in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania and formed the American Institute of Mining Engineers. In the years that followed, they were joined by colleagues in the ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgical, geological, and petroleum disciplines. Now called the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, AIME has grown to over 200,000 members globally. Learn more about the history of the Institute and its constituent societies on the 150th Anniversary Website. Also check out the AIME YouTube Video.
On May 16, 2021, a commemorative plaque will be unveiled on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre. It will join an existing plaque and Pennsylvania historical marker on AIME’s founding in the city. On October 2, 2021, a plaque will be dedicated on the campus of Lehigh University marking the long relationship among the school, the AIME, and the mining and metallurgical industries.
AIME's publications are a treasure trove for historians. They chronicle the evolution of the technological side of the exploration, mining, metals, oil, and natural gas industries. From past to present, they cover the early anthracite coal miners in the northeast, the lace boot brigades in the west and Alaska, the wildcatters in the Oil Patch, and everything in between. The publications are available through libraries nationwide and two online databases OneMine.org and OnePetro.org.
MHA NUGGETS PROGRAM. The “Nuggets” on-line program which started in 2020 is going strong in 2021. ZOOM in and visit with your MHA friends and hear some interesting mining history presentations. Contact Eric Nystrom or Barb Clements for access links and more information. Check the MHA Facebook page for up-to-the-minute program additions and changes.
January 19, 2021, "Leadville Members of the Denver Club," Barbara Clements, 8:00pm EST, 7:00pm CST. February 16, 2021, “Henry Dodge: Early Conflicts in the Wisconsin Lead Mines,” Tracey Lee Roberts,8:00pm EST, 7:00pm CST. March 16, 2021, “Evolution of the Bingham Canyon Copper Mine,” Jack Crawford, 8:00pm EST, 7:00pm CST. April 20, 2021, “The Cornish Mining World Heritage Site, Above and Below Ground,” Mike Kaas and Keith Russ, 8:00pm EST, 7:00pm CST.
May 18, 2021, "A Persistent Prospector - A Little Man in a Big Hurry and the 'Big Z'," Mark Langenfeld, 8:00pm EDT, 8:00pm, 7:00pm CST.
You can also livestream “Nuggets” on the YouTube Mining History Association Channel. Past Nuggets sessions have been recorded and are available on YouTube, including the 2020 session on “Favorite Historic Mine Tours,“ and “Visits to Operating Mines".
Following Summer Break, Nuggets will resume in August 2021.
Upper Mississippi Valley Mining History (Illinois-Iowa-Wisconsin). A new and well-illustrated book, “Mining in the Driftless” by Steve Bussan, combines the mining history and mineralogy of this lead-zinc mining district visited during the 2013 MHA Conference in Galena, IL.
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The Death of Clark Spence. Clark C. Spence, one of the Mining History Association's founding members and its first President, passed away on October 24, 2020. Clark was an Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, from 1961-1990. He authored of several books on mining history and related topics including "Mining Engineers and the American West: The Lace-Boot Brigade 1849-1933" (1965), "A History of Gold Dredging in Idaho" (2016), and "Montana: A Bicentennial History" (1978). He was known as the dean of mining historians. The Clark Spence Award is given bi-annually to the author(s) of the best book on mining history published during the previous two years.
Massachusetts Marble Industry Video. The Astore Quarry Restoration Project recently completed a 15-minute video about the historic Freedley Marble Quarry in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The Freedley Quarry began operations in 1838 and continued into the early 20th century. The prized white marble that came out of this quarry and other nearby quarries was used in the construction of historic buildings in New York, Washington D.C., Boston, and Philadelphia. The video, it is available for viewing online. The Astore Quarry Restoration Project and The Freedley Quarry video were recently featured in The Berkshire Edge on-line magazine.
Are You Itching to Travel Again? If you are thinking about Europe, you will get plenty of trip planning ideas by visiting the websites for European Route of Industrial Heritage (ERIH). Jump right into the ERIH Mining Theme Route or download a comprehensive brochure. While you are in planning mode, check out the German Ruhr Industrial Heritage Route and explore the dramatic transformation of this extensive mining and metals producing district and its many heritage sites. Another excellent brochure is available for download.
New MHA Photo Galleries. Did you miss the 1998 MHA Annual Conference in Rossland, British Columbia? It was the only MHA conference held outside the USA. How about Butte in 2001? Thanks to more photos unearthed by Mark Langenfeld, never-before-seen photo galleries are now on-line for the Rossland conference. Plus, new and improved galleries are online for the Butte conference. If you have some “historic” MHA photos of your own, join our “quaranteam” and send them to Mike Kaas. Mining History Trails. Here are four mining heritage trails that you may want to explore:
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