07.04.2024 (13:39:34)
Battle Mountain Mines From Southeast
Unknown
To me this view here is informative and nice. Sadly, the original image is quite faded, but I been able to work around most of that and got some details better visible. Dating this image is helped by lack of the Short Line grade into Victor from east; making this photographed from before latter half of 1901 as by November that year, some of what is seen in this image would have had to give way make room for the Short Line and new High Line grade. And being the original High Line trestle is seen near upper right on Battle Mountain, this view has been taken after December 1, 1897, as that is the date the rails and catenary was in place on the route to Victor. This gives a near 4-year span on when this image was photographed by someone unknown.
Against the sky at about 1/3 in from right-hand side is an earlier edition of the later more famous large Portland No.2 Shafthouse, only dumps are seen up there so the large orehouse often seen in images are yet to come, as those seems linked to the still to come Short Line branchline, also a late 1901 happening.
Further downhill the quite familiar shafthouse of the Portland No.1 Burns Shaft is seen, with 5-smokestacks, long orehouse, and various larger structures linked to that mine. Looking at high-resolution scans I see three large round watertanks linked to the Portland mines, and I see the Scranton shafthouse on the hillside above and to the right of the Portland No.1 shafthouse.
I also see the lower tunnel opening of the famous Golden Circle Steel Tunnel that was built to be covered by the Portland dump, an article in a journal named 'Engineering' was published September 17, 1898 talking about that tunnel and showing images that would suggest this image to be from after that time, taking us down to a 3-year span in the dating department.
To the left of the Portland No.1 dumps on the high-resolution scans I can pick out the upper Granite Mine structures, but at my 2400dpi scan I still can't say for sure if I see structures along a long dump on the hillside above the Granite, structures that if I read my maps, like the 1903ish topographic USGS one, is mostly on the Lowell lode claim, there seems to be some structures but to far away to tell for sure.
The Ajax mine is seen against the sky near upper left side of the image, with the north, or upper, shafthouse structures of the Dead Pine mine operations to the right of the Ajax, with what appears to be a string of boxcars parked on the 3-foot Golden Circle railroad just to the right of those structures.
Further downhill and to the left of the easy to spot old shafhouse of the Strong Mine a smaller headframe with hoisthouse to the right of it is seen, I often wonder about it, and this might be the location of the W. C. Dillon lode claim discovery shaft, but I have no good maps to tell me for certain as the only possible marking on the 1903ish topo-map is also close to the Strong lode sideline, but most likely it is just a shaft operation on the W. C. Dillon.
Strong Mine has been mentioned, it is the older tower-like easy to spot shafthouse, with its still standing today ore-house seen in front of and somewhat to the left of the shafthouse.
Going to the right from the Strong one passes the Stratton's Independence dump and what might still be some left-over structures of the original Discovery Shaft of the Independence lode claim, not easy to tell for certain.
Also not easy to tell for sure, but just to the lower left of the easy to spot orehouse of the Independence mine there is a small dump and some structures on that dump that fits with the location of the Discovery Shaft of the Washington lode claim, but the structure fail to fit the only known image of the Washington mine, so I can't compare views and verify through that.
Talking about the Stratton's Independence, that mine has three larger ore-houses spread out along the M.T. grade, and the large Shafthouse of the Independence No.2 is seen in the background left of the large Independence Orehouse and the huge belching smoke smokestack of the Independence.
The old Taylor-Brunton Sampler that was along the M.T. mainline below the Portland Mine is also seen near right-hand side of the image about halfway up from bottom right.
In addition to those mining-based structures, the roadbed of the Florence & Cripple Creek is seen here and there, with some boxcars parked alongside a longer structure just where the Golden Circle trackage has melted into the F. & C. C. tracks, possible a coal shed and storage area for many products, but to be gone later as it is not seen on the 1903ish topo-map.
There is a dump on the hillside below that before mention shed and boxcars string, about 1/3 up from bottom and 2/5 in from right-hand side, this I believe was around the Discovery Shaft, most likely on a secondary shaft south of it, on the Corrigan Chief lode claim, with what feels like some sort of mining structures type small mill below that again, being two structures at two levels being connected and having some smokestacks. This structure also does not seem to appear on the 1903ish topo-map so could have been gone by the time that map was prepared. For now, this would be one of many unknowns, unless it is the Robert McCools Foundry, that is shown on Sheet11 of the Victor 1900 Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, as that fits the image somewhat well!
I did procure the colored version of this image, if that is what you see, as I think it is nicer. Source is gray-toned, or in common speech black & white. Used an online service and tweaked and worked with image to get what looks best to my eyes for the moment.
My Collection; Photographs.

• My Website: ⊞ Battle Mountain Mines From Southeast
• My Website; Cropped Photolink: ⊞ Battle Mountain Mines From Southeast [Enhanced; Colored]

P-04750
Photograph/Image [#544]
www.cripplecreekrailroads.com/01main/all_known_entities/pics_list-evry1_sort-newtop.php#54427.10.2021 (14:37:07)
Washington Mine
Unknown
This is the only known photo type of the Washington Mine as per today (October 1, 2021) that I know about. Found on the Denver Public Library site (Call Number: X-62461). I just worked over the image to create this view. Photo is of a vertical board cabin with two double-hung windows and a doorway, said to be on Bull Mountain, but Battle Mountain it should be, as it shows the early Washington mine. Silhouettes of two men can be seen inside the cabin.
I did procure the colored version of this image. Source was grayish, or in common speech black & white. Used an online service and tweaked and worked with image to get what looks best to my eyes at the moment.
View is Straightened, Enhanced, Colored, Cropped, Scaled from the DPL image X-62461. I did procure the colored version of this image. Source was grayish, or in common speech black & white. Used an online service and tweaked and worked with image to get what looks best to my eyes at the moment.
Copyright restrictions applying to use or reproduction of this image available from the Western History and Genealogy Dept., Denver Public Library, at photosales@denverlibrary.org.

• Denver Public Library: ⊞ Call Number: X-62461

I-01182
Photograph/Image [#387]
www.cripplecreekrailroads.com/01main/all_known_entities/pics_list-evry1_sort-newtop.php#387

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