It’s no secret that mining has played an important role in Arizona’s history. It led to commerce boom and bust, brought in thousands upon thousands of American settlers, and has been the catalyst of some controversial history and legislature over the decades.
Here’s a peek at some historic photos from public and private collections that help illustrate what the job has looked like over the years.
First, let’s take a look at what some of the working sites looked like. Here’s a Globe copper mine from 1899.
Marion Doss/Flickr
Here’s one copper mine in the Grand Canyon near Horseshoe Mesa (ca. 1907). The guy in the suit and nice hat is probably a supervisor.
Grand Canyon National Park/Flickr
And here’s a gold mining operation happening near Lee’s Ferry, also in the Grand Canyon (ca. 1911).
Grand Canyon National Park/Flickr
Once that ore was dug up, the prime method of transportation in the early days was by mule, as you can see here somewhere in Pinal County (ca. 1897).
Marion Doss/Flickr You’ll see later on how that changed.
What did those miners look like? Almost exactly like you would expect from the movies.
Wikimedia Commons These were prospectors in 1900. If you have the time, check out the full resolution of this photo for a closer view of their faces and outfits.
Photos will show just the kind of rough life miners of the period knew: weathered faces, rough hands, and worn clothing.
Wikimedia Commons This miner from 1930 looks like he’d seen some rough days. In 1900, Jerome miners saw their wages increase to $2.50 per day.
As the years progressed and the work became more industrialized, the work outfit hanged to include hardhats and clothes worn specifically for work (1942).
Fritz Henle/Photogrammar He looks like he’s enjoying striking a pose for the camera.
These guys look like they enjoyed getting a brief moment to pose next to their container of explosives at a Morenci mine (1942).
Fritz Henle/Photogrammar
The work wasn’t all fun though; it was still a dirty job even as the decades progressed (ca. 1973).
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr
Here’s one miner in northern Arizona just completely coated in coal dust and whatever else may have kicked up during his shift (ca. 1973).
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr
Here are some miners sitting near processing equipment in Globe (ca. 1920).
David Flam/Flickr
This one shows two men at the pumping plant in Globe (1912).
David Flam/Flickr
Here, we get into some of the interesting history of mining in Arizona. This photo shows the Bisbee Deportation in action (1917).
Wikimedia Commons The deportation involved kidnapping approximately 1,300 miners and some of their supporters who were on strike for higher wages and better working conditions. They were immediately loaded into cattle cars with just the clothes on their backs and deported to New Mexico.
The fear of worker uprisings spread to other prominent mining towns, like Jerome and Globe, though on a smaller scale. This photo shows some men guarding the Old Dominion Mine in Globe (1917).
David Flam/Flickr
That fear probably lingered for decades, which you can catch a hint of in this 1942 photo. This copper mine guard looks like he means business.
Fritz Henle/Photogrammar
This last set of photos show how mining conditioned to develop in the twentieth century, with strip mining taking place at the Peabody coal mines near Kayenta and Black Mesa (ca. 1973).
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr
The process gained popularity in the last century by removing the top layers of soil to extract large amounts of ore without tunneling underground.
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr
Mining had always been a dirty job , producing obvious air pollution and water pollution during ore processing.
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr Peabody’s mines on the Navajo Nation gained controversy for using ground water in a pipeline slurry to transport the coal to Nevada.
If you want to get a better sense of what life in the mines was like, especially in the 1800s and early 1900s, you might want to check out a mining history museum, like the Mine Museum in Jerome or the Bisbee Mining and Historical Museum.
Marion Doss/Flickr
Grand Canyon National Park/Flickr
You’ll see later on how that changed.
Wikimedia Commons
These were prospectors in 1900. If you have the time, check out the full resolution of this photo for a closer view of their faces and outfits.
This miner from 1930 looks like he’d seen some rough days. In 1900, Jerome miners saw their wages increase to $2.50 per day.
Fritz Henle/Photogrammar
He looks like he’s enjoying striking a pose for the camera.
The U.S. National Archives/Flickr
David Flam/Flickr
The deportation involved kidnapping approximately 1,300 miners and some of their supporters who were on strike for higher wages and better working conditions. They were immediately loaded into cattle cars with just the clothes on their backs and deported to New Mexico.
Peabody’s mines on the Navajo Nation gained controversy for using ground water in a pipeline slurry to transport the coal to Nevada.
Since saloons were a ridiculously popular establishment to frequent during leisure time, you might be interested to see some that still exist today! Check out our article, A Visit To These 13 Saloons In Arizona Will Make You Feel Like You’ve Traveled Back In Time.
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.
