Book Cliff mines
Encyclopedia
The Book Cliff Mines were coal mines located near Grand Junction, Colorado
. They closed in 1925.
twelve miles from town he found a huge body of coal. Smith and several other men developed the discovery into what became known as the Book Cliff Mine. Two years later another coal mine was opened a half a mile north of the Book Cliff coal mine; it was called the Grand Valley Mine. Both mines were purchased by William Thomas Carpenter in the summer of 1888 and under his Grand Valley Fuel Company they were improved and further developed. He built the Little Book Cliff Railway
to serve the mines. A small community of miners took root near the mines and the U.S. post office established a branch there during June 1890 officially dubbing the settlement Carpenter, Colorado
.
One of Carpenter’s first improvements was the installation of a gravity powered tramway (known as a funicular
) at each of the mines. Cars traveled the 1000 feet (304.8 m) incline between the mine adit
and tipple
on three rail tracks (except at the passing point where four rails were used). The mechanics of the trams were simple; one end of a wire rope
was attached to the car at the mine and the other end to the car at the tipple. Between the two cars the rope was wound around a drum and brake mechanism located above the mine adit. The weight of the loaded car traveling down was thus used to return an empty car from the tipple to the mine.
When Isaac Chauncy Wyman acquired the Book Cliff company in January 1899 he installed his nephew William Stanley Phillips as manager. Phillips proved to be as concerned and capable a lieutenant as Wyman could have hoped for.
Following the turn of the century the mines developed serious problems. The Grand Valley Mine was running out of coal and in the Book Cliff Mine the slope of the vein had become so steep that it was rapidly becoming impractical to work the mine. Phillips began a new mine, south of the Book Cliff Mine in Coal Mesa, which he hoped would produce a mine with unlimited potential. The prospect mine failed and the only choice was only choice he had was to tunnel through 700 feet (213.4 m) of sandstone (beneath the original Book Cliff Mine) into the vein at a lower, workable level. This was finally accomplished in 1905 and is today, the mine that has "Carpenter" cut into the stone over the adit. Production resumed and all went well until Phillips died in late 1915. Princeton University
then managed the mine in absentia but the life had gone out of the company and it began deteriorating slowly.
Early in July 1923 the mine caught fire. Princeton was forced to spend large sums of money in unsuccessful attempts to extinguish the fire. With coal usage falling off in favor of natural gas and paved highways for motor trucks creating competition form local farmer mines, Princeton decided that it wanted out of the coal business. The decision was made to abandon the mine, town, and railroad in 1925.
Three Grand Junction teenagers were suffocated to death while exploring the Book Cliff Mine on August 13, 1989. Following the incident the mine adit was permanently sealed.
Grand Junction, Colorado
The City of Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado. It is a city with a council–manager government form that is the county seat and the most populous city of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Grand Junction is situated west-southwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. As...
. They closed in 1925.
History and Description
By the time Grand Junction was three years old it had become apparent to its citizens that they needed a good coal supply if the town was to grow and prosper. Early in 1884 an experienced coal miner by the name of George W. Smith set out to locate a mine that would adequately supply the city’s needs. In a remote and unexplored canyon of the Book CliffsBook Cliffs
The Book Cliffs are a series of mountains and cliffs in western Colorado and eastern Utah, in the western United States. They are so named because many of them have the triangular appearance of a book that has been opened up, then turned on its sides and set to rest on the open sides of the book,...
twelve miles from town he found a huge body of coal. Smith and several other men developed the discovery into what became known as the Book Cliff Mine. Two years later another coal mine was opened a half a mile north of the Book Cliff coal mine; it was called the Grand Valley Mine. Both mines were purchased by William Thomas Carpenter in the summer of 1888 and under his Grand Valley Fuel Company they were improved and further developed. He built the Little Book Cliff Railway
Little Book Cliff Railway
The Little Book Cliff Railway was a narrow gauge railroad that operated in Colorado, United States, from 1889 to 1925.The LBC was incorporated on September 11, 1889, by William Thomas Carpenter and several other prominent Grand Junction, Colorado, business men...
to serve the mines. A small community of miners took root near the mines and the U.S. post office established a branch there during June 1890 officially dubbing the settlement Carpenter, Colorado
Carpenter, Colorado
Carpenter is a ghost town in Mesa County, Colorado, United States, twelve miles northeast of Grand Junction at the end of an extension to 27¼ Road. The settlement was established by William Thomas Carpenter early in 1890 to provide the miners who worked in his two Book Cliff mines with a place to...
.
One of Carpenter’s first improvements was the installation of a gravity powered tramway (known as a funicular
Funicular
A funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...
) at each of the mines. Cars traveled the 1000 feet (304.8 m) incline between the mine adit
Adit
An adit is an entrance to an underground mine which is horizontal or nearly horizontal, by which the mine can be entered, drained of water, and ventilated.-Construction:...
and tipple
Tipple
Tipple can mean:* Coal tipple, a structure used for loading coal into railroad cars* Tipple * Tipple a Welsh surname.* Slang term for alcoholic beverage* Tipple App is an iPhone app designed to help moderate drinking...
on three rail tracks (except at the passing point where four rails were used). The mechanics of the trams were simple; one end of a wire rope
Wire rope
thumb|Steel wire rope Wire rope is a type of rope which consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a helix. Initially wrought iron wires were used, but today steel is the main material used for wire ropes....
was attached to the car at the mine and the other end to the car at the tipple. Between the two cars the rope was wound around a drum and brake mechanism located above the mine adit. The weight of the loaded car traveling down was thus used to return an empty car from the tipple to the mine.
When Isaac Chauncy Wyman acquired the Book Cliff company in January 1899 he installed his nephew William Stanley Phillips as manager. Phillips proved to be as concerned and capable a lieutenant as Wyman could have hoped for.
Following the turn of the century the mines developed serious problems. The Grand Valley Mine was running out of coal and in the Book Cliff Mine the slope of the vein had become so steep that it was rapidly becoming impractical to work the mine. Phillips began a new mine, south of the Book Cliff Mine in Coal Mesa, which he hoped would produce a mine with unlimited potential. The prospect mine failed and the only choice was only choice he had was to tunnel through 700 feet (213.4 m) of sandstone (beneath the original Book Cliff Mine) into the vein at a lower, workable level. This was finally accomplished in 1905 and is today, the mine that has "Carpenter" cut into the stone over the adit. Production resumed and all went well until Phillips died in late 1915. Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
then managed the mine in absentia but the life had gone out of the company and it began deteriorating slowly.
Early in July 1923 the mine caught fire. Princeton was forced to spend large sums of money in unsuccessful attempts to extinguish the fire. With coal usage falling off in favor of natural gas and paved highways for motor trucks creating competition form local farmer mines, Princeton decided that it wanted out of the coal business. The decision was made to abandon the mine, town, and railroad in 1925.
Three Grand Junction teenagers were suffocated to death while exploring the Book Cliff Mine on August 13, 1989. Following the incident the mine adit was permanently sealed.