Mining Operations
By the
spring of 1889, just a few short months after the smelter opened, 200 ton of ore
per day was coming from Coeur d' Alene, Idaho. Once the Belt Mountain
Branch line, which was built by James Hill, was completed in about 1890, ore
came from the Neihart and the Hughesville/Barker
areas, which were located about 50 miles south of Great Falls. In the
beginning, the train ran daily to Neihart, hauling ore to Great Falls, but by
1892, the train ran only three times a week.
Belt Mountain Branch Line
This trestle was located two miles north of Belt. It was 147' high and contained 1,499,000' of lumber.
Stockett
Sand Coulee
In
the early days, the roasters were fired with coal primarily from Sand Coulee;
however, during most of the life of the plant, coal was supplied from the
Livingston Coke and Coal Company.
The charcoal used for for the blast furnaces was burned at a small group of
kilns on Prickly Pear Creek, near Wolf Creek.
In
the beginning, the coke came from Connellsville, Pennsylvania, but was later
supplied by the Livingston Coke and Coal Company.
Limestone
came form the vicinity of Albright and Riceville, which were located about halfway between
Belt and Neihart.
Click
to learn about the significance of the Sluice Boxes area
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