The Baltic Lode – which makes up the majority of the southern range – became one of the last lodes to be worked in the Keweenaw. Its death was slow and drawn out, spanning almost 30 years. After Atlantic’s collapse at the turn of the century, the Baltic and Trimountain mines produced copper until the great depression killed them off. Only the Champion was able to survive into the wars, living off of generous government contracts and price controls. After the Korean war ended (as did those contracts and price controls) the Champion’s production dropped dramatically. Shaft after shaft closed down, leaving only the lonely No. 4 holding the reigns. It was only the subsidization from the White Pine mine to the south that even allowed the No. 4 to hold on as long as it did, but it too closed for good finally in 1967.

Today we take a look at what remains of that lost Copper Range empire today, with our second installment in the Industrial Footprints series. Once again I have compiles a detailed map of the entire southern range region – from Atlantic Mine to Painesdale and all points in between. Like the Torch Lake Valley, the Copper Empire has left it’s mark along these hills and valleys as well. But instead of sprawling stamp sands and massive concrete foundations, we find poor rock piles and obscure buildings. Before taking a look at the big map, lets take a quick tour of the sites.

Railroads

The Copper Range Railroad was the last of its kind – the final remnant of the great Copper Empire. The railroad outlived all else along not just the southern range, but the entire Keweenaw as well. The line was finally abandoned in 1973, its rails torn up and its right of way allowed to degrade. Most of the line today survives as recreational corridors – snowmobile trails in the winter and ATV trails in the summer. Along the southern range there were three distinct branches of the line: the main line, the Lake Shore Branch, and the Painesdale Branch.

Copper Range’s mainline ran some 45 miles from Mass City to Houghton, striking right through the center of the southern range. The line unfortunately missed the Baltic Lode by a few miles, requiring the addition of a branch line to serve it: the Painesdale Branch. The Painesdale Branch was built originally to service the Champion Mine at Painesdale, passing by the Baltic and Trimountain mines along the way. As Copper Range gained control of these mines in later years, spurs were added to the line to service them as well. Copper Range’s Lake Shore branch was built to bring copper from the mines to their perspective mills along the Lake Superior Shore. This line ran as far as Freda, stopping along the way at Redridge, Edgemeer and Beacon Hill.

As traffic increased along the Painesdale Branch a decision was made to convert the Painesdale Branch into the Copper Range’s new main line around 1911. A three mile extension of the line at Painesdale managed to join the branch line up with the main line at Milepost 30, essentially bypassing a good length of the original mainline. This bypassed section was abandoned and all traffic was diverted along the Painesdale Branch from that point forward.

At the point where Copper Range’s original main line crossed the Painesdale and Lake Shore branches is known as Mill Mine Junction. This was easily one of the busiest junctions along the Keweenaw, second only to perhaps the Calumet Junction to the north. Copper Range built a large coal handling facility here to supplement its main facility at Houghton. The wooden structure could hold 16,000 tons of coal and was used to supply the mines and mills along the southern range. There was also a collection of other buildings here including a depot, section house, repair buildings, and shelter sheds.

Today Mill Mine Jct is just a crossing of two dirt paths, with little else remaining from its glory days. You can still make out the foundations to the old coal bins and approach trestle, as well as the remains of what might have been a section house, but very little else.

Besides the Copper Range Railroad, there was a second railroad with a prominent place along the southern range: the Atlantic and Lake Superior. This railroad was built by the Atlantic Mine to connect its mine to its original mill along the Portage Canal. When the mill was forced to close, it added a new branch line to it’s new mill at Redridge. When the Baltic Mill was built, a line was added to it as well, which was also used to service the Atlantic Mining Company’s newest ventures at the Section Sixteen and Superior Mines. When the mine closed, the railroad was abandoned and later absorbed by the Copper Range Railroad.

Mines

Very little is left of the Atlantic Mine today, even the poor rock piles have been long since removed. There was a total of six shafts lettered A-F which start in the north-east and run down the center of the town of Atlantic Mine. We have never explored any of the ruins that exist today and can’t be sure of any of the shaft’s locations.

The Baltic Mine has five shafts, numbered from the southwest to the northeast. The No. 2 is actually the first shaft, with the No. 1 sitting between the No. 2 and the No. 3. This was due to the fact that the No. 1 was sunk at the wrong angle missing the lode and was quickly abandoned. The No. 2 was the mines second – and more successful – attempt. The mine sits along the southern edge of the town of Baltic. We explored the ruins last winter, finding quite a bit of the buildings still standings along with a good sized rock pile at the No. 2 shaft.

The Trimountain Mine has four shafts, numbered from the south to the north. There is a good deal of ruins left of this mine as well, stretching along the hillside next to the town of Trimountain. Most notable is the towering stack of the mines central boiler plant which still stands. We explored the No. 2 ruins last fall, finding a good amount of foundations and structures. We also found that the cap on the No. 2 shaft is failing, so be warned.

The Champion Mine consists of 5 shafts labeled B-F from the north to the south. The F shaft was never completed, and consists only of a compressor house ruin today. The foundations of all the shafts are still standing, with the E Shaft – better known as the No. 4 – completely intact. It is currently being restored by the non-profit group Painesdale Mine and Shaft. We explored the ruins this last summer, and created a DVD about the mine and the No. 4 shaft.

The Section 16 Mine was a later effort by the Atlantic Mining Company to take advantage of the rich Baltic Lode. The mine was acquired in part from a land deal with the Baltic Mine, which traded partial mineral rights under Section 16 to the Baltic (to allow them to expand the No. 5 shaft) in return for surface rights allowing for the surface plant to be built for the Section 16 mine. Only one shaft was ever sunk, just outside of Baltic. It was quickly abandoned in favor for the Superior Mine to the north.