Ed Schieffelin
Encyclopedia
Edward Lawrence Schieffelin (ˈʃliːfən; 1847–1897) was an Indian scout
and prospector
who discovered silver
in the Arizona Territory
, which led to the founding of Tombstone, Arizona
. He partnered with his brother Al and mining engineer Richard Gird in a handshake deal
that produced millions of dollars in wealth for all three men. During the course of Tombstone's mining history, about US $85,000,000 in silver was produced from its mines.
, the son of a prominent New York and Pennsylvania family, in 1847. His second great-grandfather Jacob Schieffelin, Sr., born in 1757, joined the Loyalist army
and served as Henry Hamilton's secretary during the Revolutionary War
. Schieffelin was captured in 1779 and held prisoner in Williamsburg, Virginia
. He escaped to Canada where in 1780 he was appointed lieutenant in the Queen's Rangers
by Henry Clinton
. He spent time in Montreal and Detroit before returning to New York where in 1794 he founded a drug company with his brother Lawrence.
In January 1849, Jacob, Jr. traveled to California with his sons Alfred and Edward Girard on the ship Morrison. They arrived in September but almost immediately booked passage home via Panama in November. Jacob Schieffelin, Jr. traveled overland and joined his brother and Ed. Schieffelin's father Clinton Emanuel Del Pela Schieffelin in the Rogue Valley, Oregon Territory
, in the mid-1850s to raise cattle, grain and their children. There were also mining activities in the area that the family maintained an interest in.
, then searched across Nevada into Death Valley
, back into Colorado and then New Mexico.
In 1876, David P. Lansing of Phoenix, Arizona described Schieffelin as "about the strangest specimen of human flesh I ever saw. He was 6 in 2 in (1.88 m) tall and had black hair that hung several inches below his shoulder and a beard that had not been trimmed or combed for so long a time that it was a mass of unkempt knots and mats. He wore clothing pieced and patched from deerskins, corduroy and flannel, and his hat was originally a slouch hat that had been pieced with rabbit skin until very little of the original felt remained."
In 1877 at 30 years old Schieffelin moved to California
, looking for gold
. He surveyed the Grand Canyon
area as well. Unsuccessful, he heard that a group of Hualapai
Indians had enlisted as scouts for the U.S. Army, which was establishing a camp to counter the Chiricahua
threat and to secure the near-by border with Mexico. The Army established Camp Huachuca
at the foot of the Huachuca Mountains
in Pima County
, Arizona Territory
on March 3, 1877. Silver had already been discovered in some northern areas of Arizona Territory, but the southern portion had been under continued Apache attack.
Schieffelin accompanied the scouts on a few trips into the back country while prospecting part time. The hills east of the San Pedro River
where he prospected
could be dangerous. They were only about 12 miles (19.3 km) from the hostile Chiricahua
Apache Indians lead by Cochise
, Geronimo
and Victorio
. The soldiers at the fort told him, "The only rock you will find out there will be your own tombstone". He finally decided to stay put and explore the hills east full-time.
Frederick Brunckow, a Prussian-born mining engineer, discovered silver in the hills of Cochise County in 1858. He built a cabin near the San Pedro River after finding a small silver deposit nearby. He hired three other white men and about a dozen Mexican miners. In September 1860, two of the white men were robbed and murdered at the cabin and Brunchow was found dead in the mine with a rock drill through him. The German cook blamed the Mexican workers for the murders. Brunckow's San Pedro mine influenced Ed Schieffelin to prospect among the rocky outcropping northeast of the cabin. After Brunckow's death, ongoing conflict with native Indians prevented development. The cabin was the site of 22 murders during the frontier days.
In 1877, Schieffelin used Brunckow's cabin as a base of operations to survey the country. After many months, he finally found pieces of silver ore
in a dry wash. It took him several more months to find the source. When he located the vein, he estimated the vein to be fifty feet long and twelve inches wide. The vein of silver ore was near the San Pedro River
Valley, on a waterless plateau called Goose Flats. On September 21, 1877, Schieffelin filed his first claim and named it "Tombstone" in remembrance of the soldiers' jests.
Flat broke, Schieffelin persuaded William Griffith to pay for the legal paperwork required to file a mining claim on September 3, 1877. Tucson did not have an assay office and when they showed the sample ore to some local men, they thought they were worthless. Griffith quit the mining venture and started a ranch instead.
With only 30 cents in his pocket, Schieffelin set out to find his brother Al who he had not seen in four years. He believed Al was working the Silver King mine, about 180 miles (289.7 km) to the north in central Arizona Territory
near present-day Globe
. But Al had moved on to the McCracken Mine in Signal City, Arizona, another 300 miles (482.8 km) north. Schieffelin had spent his 30 cents on tobacco and had to pause in his travels to earn enough money to go find his brother. He found a job as a hoist operator at the Champion silver mine and for fourteen days hauled up a dozen tons of ore every night by cranking a hand windlass.
Ed learned about the McCracken Mine's recently arrived assayer
, Richard Gird, who had a reputation as an expert. Taking his last three ore samples, Ed Schieffelin asked Gird if he thought they were worth assay
ing. Gird took a look and said he'd get back to Ed. Three days later, Al shook Ed out of his bunk and said Gird wanted to see him now. When they met, Gird told Ed that he valued the best of the ore samples at $2,000 a ton. Ed, Al Schieffelin and Richard Gird formed a partnership on the spot. Gird offered his expertise, connections, and a grubstake
. They shook hands on their three-way deal, a Gentlemen's agreement
that was never put down on paper but that resulted in millions of dollars of wealth for all three men. When Richard resigned, his employer offered to make him general superintendent of the mine, but he refused.
Gird bought a second-hand blue spring wagon and loaded it with supplies, his assay equipment, and also bought a second mule that with Ed's mule could haul the wagon. Gird wanted time to wind up his affairs and to wait for spring and better weather, but Ed insisted they depart immediately. Al hesitated to leave his well-paid, $4.00 a day job as a miner. Ed and Gird didn't wait for him, but left that day. Al reconsidered and joined them that night. Reaching Arizona Territory, and despite reports of continued Apache raids and the murder of miners and ranchers in the area, the three men returned to Cochise County and set up camp at the Brunckow cabin. The deaths of several locals at the hands of the Apache Indians were testified by the fresh graves near the cabin.
The three partners formed the Tombstone Gold and Silver Mining Company to hold title to their claims. Gird built a crude assay furnace in the cabin's fireplace. He found that Schieffelin's initial find of silver ore was valuable, but within a few weeks of mining the vein, Ed discovered it ended in a pinch about three feet deep. His brother Al and Gird were despondent but Ed was optimistic he could find more ore deposits. He continued his search for many more weeks until one day Al found Ed joyously exclaiming over another sample of float ore he had found. Indifferently, Al told Ed he was a "lucky cuss," and that became the name of one of the richest mining claims in the Tombstone District. The ore samples assayed at USD $15,000 a ton. Ed shortly afterward identified another claim, the "Tough Nut" lode, rich in horn silver.
On June 17, 1879, Schieffelin showed up in Tucson driving the blue spring wagon carrying the first load of silver bullion valued at $18,744 (about $ today), drawing crowds to the bank where the shiny bars were on display. When news of Ed's discovery spread, many others began to file claims.
While in Tucson fetching supplies, they drew the attention of Hank Williams and John Oliver. The two men began prospecting and found an ore vein but Gird contended it infringed on one of their existing claims. The disagreement grew heated until the parties agreed to divide the claim: Williams and Oliver filed a claim under the name "Grand Central", and because of the quarrel, the Schieffelins named theirs the "Contention". Those two mines became the most profitable during the entire mining era in Tombstone. Some of the ore from the "Lucky Cuss", "Tough Nut", and the "Contention" mines assayed at around $15,000 to the ton.
offered financial backing for a cut of the men's mining claims, and Ed Schieffelin, his brother Al, and their partner Richard Gird formed the Tombstone Mining and Milling Company and built a stamping mill. On March 5, 1879, U.S. Deputy Mineral Surveyor Solon M. Allis finished laying out a new town site on a mesa
named Goose Flats at 4539 feet (1,383.5 m), just above the Tough Nut mine, and large enough to hold a growing town. The town was named "Tombstone
" after Schieffelin's initial mining claim. The shelters at Watervale were relocated to the new town site and a scattering of cabins and tents were quickly built for about 100 residents.
During the first few months of mining the upper portion of the Tombstone mining district was accidentally discovered by Ed Williams and Jack Friday. Late one night, their mules broke loose and dragging their chain, left the miner's dry camp for water along an Indian trail. The men tracked the mules' chain trail all the way to the Schieffelin camp. Williams and Friday noticed a bright gleam where the iron had dragged across bare rock. They named their claim the Grand Central. Al and Ed Schieffelin and Richard Gird contested their claim, asserting it violated their earlier claims. When they finally resolved their arguments and counter-claims, the two parties divided the ground. Williams and Friday took the higher end which they called the Grand Central, and the Schieffelin company took the lower end, which they named the Contention in remembrance of the quarrel that led to its founding.
Ed preferred prospecting to running a mine and he left Tombstone to find more ore. When he returned four months later, Gird had lined up buyers for their interest in the Contention, which they sold for $10,000 to J.H. White and S. Denson, who represented W.D. Dean of San Francisco. The sellers thought the $10,000 price was exorbitant. The Grand Central and Contention claims turned out to be the richest claims in the district, producing millions of dollars in bullion. The Schieffelin company also soon sold a half-interest in the Lucky Cuss, and the other half turned into a steady stream of money.
On March 13, 1879, Al and Ed Schieffelin sold their two-thirds interest in the Tombstone Mining and Milling Company, which owned the Tough Nut mine, for US$1 million each to the Corbin brothers, Hamilton Distin of Philadelphia, and Simmons Squire of Boston. Safford became president of the new Tombstone Gold and Silver Milling and Mining Company with Richard Gird as superintendent. Ed moved on, but Al remained in Tombstone for sometime longer. Gird later sold off his one-third interest for US$1 million, doubling what the Schieffelins had been paid. Gird remained in the territory but Ed Schieffelin left to pursue other interests.
When Cochise County
was formed in January 1891, Tombstone became the county seat. In 1881, early in Tombstone's rapid growth, Ed's brother Al built Schieffelin Hall
as a theater, recital hall, and a meeting place for Tombstone citizens. His great-niece Mary Schieffelin Brady reopened it in 1964 and it remains an attraction in Tombstone. It is the largest standing adobe structure in the southwest United States.
At its height in the mid 1880s, Tombstone's population was officially about 7,000 miners, but some estimates figure in an additional 5–7,000 women and children, Chinese, Mexican, and whores. In the late 1880s the silver mines reached the water table and the mines were eventually filled with water. Tombstone's population faded until tourism became its main attraction.
Schieffelin had made a practice of studying maps and believed there was a great "continental belt" of mineral wealth that extended from South America through Mexico, the United States, and British Columbia. During 1882, Ed prepared for what he planned to be a three-year survey of mineral wealth. He began the expedition with his brother Al and three others on a trip up the Yukon River
. They commissioned construction of and fitted out a small, shallow-draft sternwheel steamer
which they named the New Racket. Schieffelin prospected during the trip in Alaska and found some specks of gold. He was for a while convinced he had found the continental belt he had been searching for. But he was extremely discouraged by the Arctic cold he experienced, up to 50 F below zero (-46 C). He decided that mining in Alaska was a lost cause and he returned to the lower 48 states.
In 1883 he returned to San Francisco where he met Mrs. Mary E. Brown. They were married the same year in La Junta, Colorado
and they spent part of the winter in Salt Lake City, Utah
. In the spring of 1884, they returned to California where Ed built a mansion for Mary across the bay from San Francisco in Alameda
. They bought a home in Los Angeles that they shared with Ed's brother Al until Al died of consumption
in 1885.
In 1897 Schieffelin bought a ranch near his brothers Effingham (Eff) and Jacob (Jay) outside Woodville, now Rogue River, Oregon
. He continued prospecting in the Canyonville
area, where he searched for gold and silver. On May 12, 1897, after he had not shown up in town for supplies for several days, his neighbor checked on him and found him face down on the floor of his miner's cabin. The coroner ruled that he had died of a heart attack. The ore samples found in his cabin were later reported to have assayed at more than $2,000 to the ton. Other reports from his family said it was only valued at $7 per ton. Schieffelin did not leave a map or directions behind pointing to the origins of his discovery. He was initially buried near his cabin about 20 miles (32.2 km) East of Canyonville.
It was shortly afterward learned that he had requested to be buried in Tombstone. "It is my wish, if convenient, to be buried in the dress of a prospector, my old pick and canteen with me, on top of the granite hills, about three miles westerly from the City of Tombstone, Arizona, and that a monument, such as prospectors build when locating a mining claim, be built over my grave." Schieffelin was interred about 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Tombstone, Arizona
, near the dry wash in which he originally found silver ore and the later location of the Grand Central Mine. He was buried as his will specified: in mining clothes, with pick, shovel, and his old canteen. He divided his estate between his wife and his brother Jay. "I give my wife, Mary E. Schieffelin, all interests, both real and personal properties—in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties, California—also fifteen $1,000 University of Arizona Bonds. All other properties, both real and personal, I give to my brother, Jay L. Schieffelin." Mary Schieffelin moved to New York City after her husband's death.
There are widely varying estimates of the value of gold and silver mined during the course of Tombstone's history. In 1883, writer Patrick Hamilton
estimated that during the first four years of activity the mines produced about USD $25,000,000 (approximately $ today). Other estimates include USD $40 to USD $85 million (about $ to $ today). Renewed mining is planned for the area.
U.S. Army Indian Scouts
Native Americans have made up an integral part of U.S. military conflicts since America's beginning. Colonists recruited Indian allies during such instances as the Pequot War from 1634–1638, the Revolutionary War, as well as in War of 1812...
and prospector
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
who discovered silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
in the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
, which led to the founding of Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
. He partnered with his brother Al and mining engineer Richard Gird in a handshake deal
Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...
that produced millions of dollars in wealth for all three men. During the course of Tombstone's mining history, about US $85,000,000 in silver was produced from its mines.
Early life
Ed Schieffelin was born in a coal-mining region of Wellsboro, PennsylvaniaWellsboro, Pennsylvania
Wellsboro is a borough in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, 52 miles northwest of Williamsport. Early in the twentieth century, Wellsboro was the shipping point and trade center for a large area...
, the son of a prominent New York and Pennsylvania family, in 1847. His second great-grandfather Jacob Schieffelin, Sr., born in 1757, joined the Loyalist army
Loyalist (American Revolution)
Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the Kingdom of Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. At the time they were often called Tories, Royalists, or King's Men. They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the revolution...
and served as Henry Hamilton's secretary during the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. Schieffelin was captured in 1779 and held prisoner in Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg is an independent city located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 Census, the city had an estimated population of 14,068. It is bordered by James City County and York County, and is an independent city...
. He escaped to Canada where in 1780 he was appointed lieutenant in the Queen's Rangers
Queen's Rangers
The Queen's Rangers was a military unit who fought on the Loyalist side during the American War of Independence. After the war they moved to Nova Scotia and disbanded, but were reformed again in Upper Canada before disbanding again, in 1802, a decade prior to the War of 1812.-French and Indian...
by Henry Clinton
Henry Clinton
Henry Clinton may refer to:*Henry Clinton, 2nd Earl of Lincoln , English peer, styled Lord Clinton from 1572 to 1585*Henry Clinton, 7th Earl of Lincoln , uncle of Sir Henry Clinton...
. He spent time in Montreal and Detroit before returning to New York where in 1794 he founded a drug company with his brother Lawrence.
In January 1849, Jacob, Jr. traveled to California with his sons Alfred and Edward Girard on the ship Morrison. They arrived in September but almost immediately booked passage home via Panama in November. Jacob Schieffelin, Jr. traveled overland and joined his brother and Ed. Schieffelin's father Clinton Emanuel Del Pela Schieffelin in the Rogue Valley, Oregon Territory
Oregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...
, in the mid-1850s to raise cattle, grain and their children. There were also mining activities in the area that the family maintained an interest in.
Hunt for gold and silver
At age 17 he set out on his own as a prospector and miner. Schieffelin began looking for gold and silver in about 1865. From Oregon, he went east to Coeur d'AleneCoeur d'Alene, Idaho
Coeur d'Alene is the largest city and county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolitan Statistical Area. Coeur d'Alene has the second largest metropolitan area in the state of Idaho. As of the 2010 census the population of Coeur...
, then searched across Nevada into Death Valley
Death Valley
Death Valley is a desert valley located in Eastern California. Situated within the Mojave Desert, it features the lowest, driest, and hottest locations in North America. Badwater, a basin located in Death Valley, is the specific location of the lowest elevation in North America at 282 feet below...
, back into Colorado and then New Mexico.
In 1876, David P. Lansing of Phoenix, Arizona described Schieffelin as "about the strangest specimen of human flesh I ever saw. He was 6 in 2 in (1.88 m) tall and had black hair that hung several inches below his shoulder and a beard that had not been trimmed or combed for so long a time that it was a mass of unkempt knots and mats. He wore clothing pieced and patched from deerskins, corduroy and flannel, and his hat was originally a slouch hat that had been pieced with rabbit skin until very little of the original felt remained."
In 1877 at 30 years old Schieffelin moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, looking for gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
. He surveyed the Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in the United States in the state of Arizona. It is largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park, the 15th national park in the United States...
area as well. Unsuccessful, he heard that a group of Hualapai
Hualapai
The Hualapai or Walapai are a tribe of Native Americans who live in the mountains of northwestern Arizona, United States. The name is derived from "hwa:l," the Hualapai word for ponderosa pine, "Hualapai" meaning "people of the ponderosa pine"...
Indians had enlisted as scouts for the U.S. Army, which was establishing a camp to counter the Chiricahua
Chiricahua
Chiricahua are a group of Apache Native Americans who live in the Southwest United States. At the time of European encounter, they were living in 15 million acres of territory in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona in the United States, and in northern Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico...
threat and to secure the near-by border with Mexico. The Army established Camp Huachuca
Fort Huachuca
Fort Huachuca is a United States Army installation under the command of the United States Army Installation Management Command. It is located in Cochise County, in southeast Arizona, about north of the border with Mexico. Beginning in 1913, for 20 years the fort was the base for the "Buffalo...
at the foot of the Huachuca Mountains
Huachuca Mountains
The Huachuca Mountain range is part of the Sierra Vista Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest. The Huachuca Mountains are located in Cochise County, Arizona approximately south-southeast of Tucson and southwest of the city of Sierra Vista, Arizona...
in Pima County
Pima County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*74.3% White*3.5% Black*3.3% Native American*2.6% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.7% Two or more races*12.4% Other races*34.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
on March 3, 1877. Silver had already been discovered in some northern areas of Arizona Territory, but the southern portion had been under continued Apache attack.
Schieffelin accompanied the scouts on a few trips into the back country while prospecting part time. The hills east of the San Pedro River
San Pedro River (Arizona)
San Pedro River is a northward-flowing stream originating about ten miles south of Sierra Vista, Arizona near Cananea, Sonora, Mexico. It is one of only two rivers which flow north from Mexico into the United States. The river flows north through Cochise County, Pima County, Graham County, and...
where he prospected
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
could be dangerous. They were only about 12 miles (19.3 km) from the hostile Chiricahua
Chiricahua
Chiricahua are a group of Apache Native Americans who live in the Southwest United States. At the time of European encounter, they were living in 15 million acres of territory in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona in the United States, and in northern Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico...
Apache Indians lead by Cochise
Cochise
Cochise was a chief of the Chokonen band of the Chiricahua Apache and the leader of an uprising that began in 1861. Cochise County, Arizona is named after him.-Biography:...
, Geronimo
Geronimo
Geronimo was a prominent Native American leader of the Chiricahua Apache who fought against Mexico and the United States for their expansion into Apache tribal lands for several decades during the Apache Wars. Allegedly, "Geronimo" was the name given to him during a Mexican incident...
and Victorio
Victorio
Victorio was a warrior and chief of the Chihenne band of the Chiricahua Apaches in what is now the American states of New Mexico, Arizona, Texas and the Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua....
. The soldiers at the fort told him, "The only rock you will find out there will be your own tombstone". He finally decided to stay put and explore the hills east full-time.
Ore discovery
In 1877, Schieffelin used Brunckow's cabin as a base of operations to survey the country. After many months, he finally found pieces of silver ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
in a dry wash. It took him several more months to find the source. When he located the vein, he estimated the vein to be fifty feet long and twelve inches wide. The vein of silver ore was near the San Pedro River
San Pedro River (Arizona)
San Pedro River is a northward-flowing stream originating about ten miles south of Sierra Vista, Arizona near Cananea, Sonora, Mexico. It is one of only two rivers which flow north from Mexico into the United States. The river flows north through Cochise County, Pima County, Graham County, and...
Valley, on a waterless plateau called Goose Flats. On September 21, 1877, Schieffelin filed his first claim and named it "Tombstone" in remembrance of the soldiers' jests.
Flat broke, Schieffelin persuaded William Griffith to pay for the legal paperwork required to file a mining claim on September 3, 1877. Tucson did not have an assay office and when they showed the sample ore to some local men, they thought they were worthless. Griffith quit the mining venture and started a ranch instead.
With only 30 cents in his pocket, Schieffelin set out to find his brother Al who he had not seen in four years. He believed Al was working the Silver King mine, about 180 miles (289.7 km) to the north in central Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
near present-day Globe
Globe, Arizona
Globe has an arid climate, characterized by hot summers and moderate to warm winters. Globe's arid climate is somewhat tempered by its elevation, however, leading to slightly cooler temperatures and slightly more precipitation than Phoenix or Yuma....
. But Al had moved on to the McCracken Mine in Signal City, Arizona, another 300 miles (482.8 km) north. Schieffelin had spent his 30 cents on tobacco and had to pause in his travels to earn enough money to go find his brother. He found a job as a hoist operator at the Champion silver mine and for fourteen days hauled up a dozen tons of ore every night by cranking a hand windlass.
Partnership formed
When Ed finally located his brother in February 1878, Al asked the foreman at the McCraken mine to look at brother Ed's ore specimens. The foreman thought the samples were mostly lead. Unconvinced, Schieffelin showed the samples to 20 or 30 others who had some expertise, and they all thought the ore worthless. Frustrated, Schieffelin threw his ore specimens out his brother's cabin door, as far as he could throw, but at the last minute held on to three of them. For the next four weeks he worked in the McCracken Mine, wielding a pick and shovel.Ed learned about the McCracken Mine's recently arrived assayer
Assayer
An assayer is a person who tests ores and minerals and analyzes them to determine their composition and value. They may use spectrographic analysis, chemical solutions, and chemical or laboratory equipment, such as furnaces, beakers, graduates, pipettes, and crucibles.An assayer separates metals...
, Richard Gird, who had a reputation as an expert. Taking his last three ore samples, Ed Schieffelin asked Gird if he thought they were worth assay
Assay
An assay is a procedure in molecular biology for testing or measuring the activity of a drug or biochemical in an organism or organic sample. A quantitative assay may also measure the amount of a substance in a sample. Bioassays and immunoassays are among the many varieties of specialized...
ing. Gird took a look and said he'd get back to Ed. Three days later, Al shook Ed out of his bunk and said Gird wanted to see him now. When they met, Gird told Ed that he valued the best of the ore samples at $2,000 a ton. Ed, Al Schieffelin and Richard Gird formed a partnership on the spot. Gird offered his expertise, connections, and a grubstake
Advance payment
An advance payment, or simply an advance, is the part of a contractually due sum that is paid in advance for goods or services, while the balance included in the invoice will only follow the delivery. It is called a prepaid expense in accrual accounting.-See also:*Advance against royalties*Pay or...
. They shook hands on their three-way deal, a Gentlemen's agreement
Gentlemen's agreement
A gentlemen's agreement is an informal agreement between two or more parties. It may be written, oral, or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or through mutually beneficial etiquette. The essence of a gentlemen's agreement is that it relies upon the honor of the parties...
that was never put down on paper but that resulted in millions of dollars of wealth for all three men. When Richard resigned, his employer offered to make him general superintendent of the mine, but he refused.
Gird bought a second-hand blue spring wagon and loaded it with supplies, his assay equipment, and also bought a second mule that with Ed's mule could haul the wagon. Gird wanted time to wind up his affairs and to wait for spring and better weather, but Ed insisted they depart immediately. Al hesitated to leave his well-paid, $4.00 a day job as a miner. Ed and Gird didn't wait for him, but left that day. Al reconsidered and joined them that night. Reaching Arizona Territory, and despite reports of continued Apache raids and the murder of miners and ranchers in the area, the three men returned to Cochise County and set up camp at the Brunckow cabin. The deaths of several locals at the hands of the Apache Indians were testified by the fresh graves near the cabin.
The three partners formed the Tombstone Gold and Silver Mining Company to hold title to their claims. Gird built a crude assay furnace in the cabin's fireplace. He found that Schieffelin's initial find of silver ore was valuable, but within a few weeks of mining the vein, Ed discovered it ended in a pinch about three feet deep. His brother Al and Gird were despondent but Ed was optimistic he could find more ore deposits. He continued his search for many more weeks until one day Al found Ed joyously exclaiming over another sample of float ore he had found. Indifferently, Al told Ed he was a "lucky cuss," and that became the name of one of the richest mining claims in the Tombstone District. The ore samples assayed at USD $15,000 a ton. Ed shortly afterward identified another claim, the "Tough Nut" lode, rich in horn silver.
On June 17, 1879, Schieffelin showed up in Tucson driving the blue spring wagon carrying the first load of silver bullion valued at $18,744 (about $ today), drawing crowds to the bank where the shiny bars were on display. When news of Ed's discovery spread, many others began to file claims.
While in Tucson fetching supplies, they drew the attention of Hank Williams and John Oliver. The two men began prospecting and found an ore vein but Gird contended it infringed on one of their existing claims. The disagreement grew heated until the parties agreed to divide the claim: Williams and Oliver filed a claim under the name "Grand Central", and because of the quarrel, the Schieffelins named theirs the "Contention". Those two mines became the most profitable during the entire mining era in Tombstone. Some of the ore from the "Lucky Cuss", "Tough Nut", and the "Contention" mines assayed at around $15,000 to the ton.
Tombstone founded
When the first claims were filed, the initial settlement of tents and cabins was located at Watervale near the Lucky Cuss mine. By March 1879, about 100 residents occupied tents and shacks at Watervale. Former Territorial Governor Anson P.K. SaffordAnson P.K. Safford
Anson Pacely Killen SaffordVarious sources give multiple variations for the spelling of Safford's two middle names. Among these are Peasley, Peacely, Keeler, and Killen. was the third Governor of Arizona Territory...
offered financial backing for a cut of the men's mining claims, and Ed Schieffelin, his brother Al, and their partner Richard Gird formed the Tombstone Mining and Milling Company and built a stamping mill. On March 5, 1879, U.S. Deputy Mineral Surveyor Solon M. Allis finished laying out a new town site on a mesa
Mesa
A mesa or table mountain is an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs. It takes its name from its characteristic table-top shape....
named Goose Flats at 4539 feet (1,383.5 m), just above the Tough Nut mine, and large enough to hold a growing town. The town was named "Tombstone
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
" after Schieffelin's initial mining claim. The shelters at Watervale were relocated to the new town site and a scattering of cabins and tents were quickly built for about 100 residents.
During the first few months of mining the upper portion of the Tombstone mining district was accidentally discovered by Ed Williams and Jack Friday. Late one night, their mules broke loose and dragging their chain, left the miner's dry camp for water along an Indian trail. The men tracked the mules' chain trail all the way to the Schieffelin camp. Williams and Friday noticed a bright gleam where the iron had dragged across bare rock. They named their claim the Grand Central. Al and Ed Schieffelin and Richard Gird contested their claim, asserting it violated their earlier claims. When they finally resolved their arguments and counter-claims, the two parties divided the ground. Williams and Friday took the higher end which they called the Grand Central, and the Schieffelin company took the lower end, which they named the Contention in remembrance of the quarrel that led to its founding.
Ed preferred prospecting to running a mine and he left Tombstone to find more ore. When he returned four months later, Gird had lined up buyers for their interest in the Contention, which they sold for $10,000 to J.H. White and S. Denson, who represented W.D. Dean of San Francisco. The sellers thought the $10,000 price was exorbitant. The Grand Central and Contention claims turned out to be the richest claims in the district, producing millions of dollars in bullion. The Schieffelin company also soon sold a half-interest in the Lucky Cuss, and the other half turned into a steady stream of money.
On March 13, 1879, Al and Ed Schieffelin sold their two-thirds interest in the Tombstone Mining and Milling Company, which owned the Tough Nut mine, for US$1 million each to the Corbin brothers, Hamilton Distin of Philadelphia, and Simmons Squire of Boston. Safford became president of the new Tombstone Gold and Silver Milling and Mining Company with Richard Gird as superintendent. Ed moved on, but Al remained in Tombstone for sometime longer. Gird later sold off his one-third interest for US$1 million, doubling what the Schieffelins had been paid. Gird remained in the territory but Ed Schieffelin left to pursue other interests.
When Cochise County
Cochise County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*78.5% White*4.2% Black*1.2% Native American*1.9% Asian*0.3% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*4.0% Two or more races*9.6% Other races*32.4% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
was formed in January 1891, Tombstone became the county seat. In 1881, early in Tombstone's rapid growth, Ed's brother Al built Schieffelin Hall
Schieffelin Hall
Schieffelin Hall is a building from the American Old West in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, the largest standing adobe structure still existent in the United States southwest...
as a theater, recital hall, and a meeting place for Tombstone citizens. His great-niece Mary Schieffelin Brady reopened it in 1964 and it remains an attraction in Tombstone. It is the largest standing adobe structure in the southwest United States.
At its height in the mid 1880s, Tombstone's population was officially about 7,000 miners, but some estimates figure in an additional 5–7,000 women and children, Chinese, Mexican, and whores. In the late 1880s the silver mines reached the water table and the mines were eventually filled with water. Tombstone's population faded until tourism became its main attraction.
Later life
Ed had accumulated more than USD $1 million in wealth as a result of the silver boom. While he had maintained a casual appearance, including long hair and beard, he cleaned himself up. He traveled to New York City, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and other cities. He met many distinguished people. Ever restless, over the next 20 years Ed showed up at nearly every boom town in the west.Schieffelin had made a practice of studying maps and believed there was a great "continental belt" of mineral wealth that extended from South America through Mexico, the United States, and British Columbia. During 1882, Ed prepared for what he planned to be a three-year survey of mineral wealth. He began the expedition with his brother Al and three others on a trip up the Yukon River
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
. They commissioned construction of and fitted out a small, shallow-draft sternwheel steamer
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
which they named the New Racket. Schieffelin prospected during the trip in Alaska and found some specks of gold. He was for a while convinced he had found the continental belt he had been searching for. But he was extremely discouraged by the Arctic cold he experienced, up to 50 F below zero (-46 C). He decided that mining in Alaska was a lost cause and he returned to the lower 48 states.
In 1883 he returned to San Francisco where he met Mrs. Mary E. Brown. They were married the same year in La Junta, Colorado
La Junta, Colorado
The City of La Junta is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Otero County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,568 at the U.S. Census 2000. La Junta is located on the Arkansas River in southeastern Colorado east of Pueblo.-History:During...
and they spent part of the winter in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
. In the spring of 1884, they returned to California where Ed built a mansion for Mary across the bay from San Francisco in Alameda
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
. They bought a home in Los Angeles that they shared with Ed's brother Al until Al died of consumption
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
in 1885.
Early death
Rogue River, Oregon
Rogue River is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,131.-History:The settlement was known as Woodville for many years, but was changed to Rogue River about 1912...
. He continued prospecting in the Canyonville
Canyonville, Oregon
Canyonville is a city in Douglas County, Oregon, United States. The population was 1,293 at the 2000 census, while the 2007 estimate is 1,640 residents...
area, where he searched for gold and silver. On May 12, 1897, after he had not shown up in town for supplies for several days, his neighbor checked on him and found him face down on the floor of his miner's cabin. The coroner ruled that he had died of a heart attack. The ore samples found in his cabin were later reported to have assayed at more than $2,000 to the ton. Other reports from his family said it was only valued at $7 per ton. Schieffelin did not leave a map or directions behind pointing to the origins of his discovery. He was initially buried near his cabin about 20 miles (32.2 km) East of Canyonville.
It was shortly afterward learned that he had requested to be buried in Tombstone. "It is my wish, if convenient, to be buried in the dress of a prospector, my old pick and canteen with me, on top of the granite hills, about three miles westerly from the City of Tombstone, Arizona, and that a monument, such as prospectors build when locating a mining claim, be built over my grave." Schieffelin was interred about 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
, near the dry wash in which he originally found silver ore and the later location of the Grand Central Mine. He was buried as his will specified: in mining clothes, with pick, shovel, and his old canteen. He divided his estate between his wife and his brother Jay. "I give my wife, Mary E. Schieffelin, all interests, both real and personal properties—in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties, California—also fifteen $1,000 University of Arizona Bonds. All other properties, both real and personal, I give to my brother, Jay L. Schieffelin." Mary Schieffelin moved to New York City after her husband's death.
Legacy
A 25 feet (7.6 m) tall monument representing the type of marker a miner makes in claiming a strike was erected near the spot of his original claim. The plaque on it reads, "Ed Shieffelin, died May 12, 1897, aged 49 years, 8 months. A dutiful son, a faithful husband, a kind brother, and a true friend." Years before, Schieffelin had written, "I never wanted to be rich, I just wanted to get close to the earth and see mother nature's gold." Schieffelin Gulch Road in the Rouge Valley, Oregon is named after the family who homesteaded there.There are widely varying estimates of the value of gold and silver mined during the course of Tombstone's history. In 1883, writer Patrick Hamilton
Patrick Hamilton
Patrick Hamilton is the name of:*Patrick Hamilton of Kincavil , Scottish nobleman*Patrick Hamilton , Scottish Protestant reformer and son of the above*Patrick Hamilton , Church of Scotland minister and poet...
estimated that during the first four years of activity the mines produced about USD $25,000,000 (approximately $ today). Other estimates include USD $40 to USD $85 million (about $ to $ today). Renewed mining is planned for the area.