Our trip to the Soudan Mine was amazing! The oldest and deepest mine in Minnesota was closed in 1962 (still a bunch of iron ore there, but modern technology stepped in and found more economical ways to mine the ore...in other parts of the country.)It all started for us in the caged towers...as we crowded 10-12 people in each elevator. During mining times, 20-25 would go down in each elevator car. (Hard to imagine - we thought it was a bit crowded with 10.) And down we went.
1/2 mile down at a 10 degree angle. We ended up under the hill across the valley from the site. Got in the people-moving cars and headed back into the mine 3/4 mile.
A couple who rode in our cart on the 3/4 mile ride with us took the pic. She said "Say cheese"...but we should have said "Whee"....as we rumbled back into the mine.
Several of the mining functions were staged in the open mining area. Setting charges, airhammers, poling (knocking loose rocks down to clear the areas after a charge making it safe for the miners to come back into the mine.) It was mighty dark down there. Difficult to imagine how they worked 10-12 hours a day with (initially) only a candle...and until it closed in '62 with only the light on the hardhat. Although electricity was plentiful in the later years...there was no way to protect the wires and fixtures from the blasts.
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