Fluorspar Mining Collection

Title

Fluorspar Mining Collection

Subject

Miners
Mines and mineral resources
Fluorspar industry
Fluorspar
Mineral industries
Illinois--Rosiclare

Description

The fluorspar-rich region of southeastern Illinois served as a home for several mines, making Illinois the leading producer of fluorspar in the United States from the 1940s until the 1990s. The mineral is used to smelt metals such as aluminum, creade hydrofluoric acid, and in items containing fluoride chemicals. Fluorspar mines existed in southern Illinois until the mid-1990s when the last mine closed due to increased availability of fluorspar from international locations.

Photographs in this collection include images of miners at work, mining machinery and factories, and Aluminum Company of America factories.

Collection Items

Twenty-Five Year Club
Members of the 25 Year Club, (from left to right) John Jennings, George Shelter, Raleigh Stacey, Lawrence Lanham, and W. T. Davis, stand in front of a wall.

Aluminum Company of America Mine Supervisors
Mine supervision personnel at the Aluminum Company of America plant in Rosiclare pose in front of the safety bulletin board for a group photograph. Standing (l-r): Ronald Schaefer, J. Roy Carr, Rudell Hoover, J. G. Bennett, and Charles Millikan.…

Football Team
An unidentified football team poses for a team photo.

Bell Ringing
A man rings a bell fixed on the front of a truck.

Aluminum Ore Company Plant
An exterior view shows the Aluminum Ore Company's buildings in Rosiclare. On verso: "General view of east side of Plant area. Left to right - Machine, electrical and Carpenter Shop Building, small portion of east end of Storeroom showing between…

Alcoa Mining Company Pump Station
Three men walk along a set of tracks next to the pump station inside an Alcoa Mining Company mine in Rosiclare. On verso: "Top view of pump station on 800' level."

Mill Parking Lot
Several cars fill the parking lot in front of a mill.

Mill Buildings
A view looking east from the Crusher building at the Drying and Grinding buildings shows two railroad cars outside the buildings.

Mill Machinery
Several types of mining machinery sit inside the mill. On verso: "Photo taken in Mill from north end. Classifiers in center with Ball Mill showing on right and left."

Workers
Two workers smoking cigars lift a large bag while posing for a photo.

Fairview Mine Diamond Drill
Two workers operate a diamond drill underground at 300 feet.

Loading Tram Car
A Blue Diggings Mine employee operates a mucking machine loading muck into a tram car.

Blue Diggings Change Room
Several pieces of the miners' clothing hang from the ceiling to dry.On verso: "Clothes are suspended from the ceiling to permit more rapid drying."

Fairview Mine Skips
Two miners use a railroad mining car to aid in excavation. On verso: "In the Fairview Mine the muck is dumped into skip pockets and raised by skips to the storage bins on the surface."

Fairview Mine Hoist Room
Operator George Rankin sits at the cage hoist controls in the Fairview Mine hoist room.

George Sutton at Fairview Shaft
Geologist George Sutton poses for a photo at the edge of the mine shaft. On verso: "Blue Diggings No. 2 South Drift joins the new Fairview Shaft."

Ashland Oil, Incorporated, Barge
An Ashland Oil, Incorporated, barge travels along an unidentified river.

Rosiclare Hospital
A small group of people stand on the sidewalk in front of the Rosiclare Hospital as several automobiles line the street.
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