Wm. John Jack Foster Collection

A bird's eye view of the Calumet area in 1881 (click on photo for larger version)

Douglass Houghton

If it wasn't for us, you wouldn't have pennies. OK, so pennies are no longer made of copper, but a lot of other thing are and copper helped fuel industrial change in the U.S.

If you Google "Copper Country History," you will get about a gazillion hits. Try "Keweenaw History" and you get 20 percent of a gazillion — still a lot.

So we'll be brief. After you read about the history, take a ride on the Copper Country Trail to make it come to life.

It all began in 1841. That's when Douglass Houghton, Michigan's first state geologist, filed surveys and reports demonstrating an abundance of copper in the region. You'll find his portrait and a large display of local mineral, at Michigan Tech's Seaman Mineral Museum in Houghton. You'll find the Douglass Houghton Memorial in Eagle River, where he lost his life at the hands of Lake Superior.

The area's copper mining heritage actually goes back several millennia. Archaeological evidence suggests that Native Americans mined copper continuously from about 3000 B.C. through the 16th century A.D. Some of these prehistoric mines formed the basis for latter-day mines developed by the first prospectors to arrive in the 1840s. You can see the remnants of one such mine at Ft. Wilkins State Park in Copper Harbor.

The dark area represents the Keweenaw copper lode. (Click on map for a larger version.)

The geologic forces that made all of this possible started working 1.6 billion years ago, when basalt exposed by natural pressues formed a wide ridge down the center of the Keweenaw Peninsula. Even today, despite glacial forces and erosion, the backbone is clearly evident as visitors drive north from Calumet to Copper Harbor.

The Calumet and Hecla Mining Company (C&H) and the Quincy Mining Company came to dominate the Michigan copper industry. From 1867-1882, the companies represented the greatest longevity, production and technical innovation in the world. During this time, C&H alone accounted for more than half of the nation's copper. As late as 1882, C&H accounted for 63 percent of the total U.S. copper production.

Starting the C&H #18 shaft. (Click on photo for larger version.)

During the early 1900s, Copper Country mines started to decline, as companies had to dig deeper, at much greater expense, to extract the copper. Meanwhile, open pit mines in Montana and Arizona produced copper at much lower costs. A surge in production accompanied World War I, but the boom had ended. Production continued at much smaller quantities, until the last mine closed in the mid-1960s.

The mining boom also changed the region's geopolitical history, as well. Immigrants from all over Europe provided a rich cultural diversity, with major influxes from Cornwall, Ireland, Italy, Finland, France, Germany and the Slavic nations. Each group brought its own culture, traditions, skills and religion.

The copper boom left behind many related attractions, including huge homes and a number of historical museums. The need to transport copper from the Keweenaw's rugged shores resulted in 10 lighthouses, some of which now provide tours, one that has become a museum, and one that is a bed and breakfast.

The Keweenaw Underwater Preserve is a protected area encompassing many shipwrecks dating to the mid-1800s. Nearby Isle Royale National Park also has a historic shipwreck preserve. These provide popular attractions for scuba divers.