Osceola

The Osceola Mine struck fortune with the discovery of the Osceola Amygdaloid lode in 1877, just to the southeast of C&H’s Hecla Mine. The three original shafts of the Osceola became big producers, and as such needed a stable work force to support them. The mine began to build worker housing near the mine and a permanent settlement took shape. Soon a school, stores, and post office followed, and the settlement became over 1500 strong.

With the discovery and development of the Osceola Amygdaloid lode, the fledging mining company of the same name quickly became successful. By 1880 the company had sunk four shafts, and a stable work force had become a necessity. Along the narrow dirt road leading to the mine, the company constructed a row of log houses that would be used to house workers and their families. As the mine grew, so did the number of houses. Soon a second and third street was laid across the location, and dozens of new houses were built, including more opulent houses for mine captains and agents. With families came children, and the company added a school. Within a generation, the mining location of Osceola had grown from a few houses and families, to a bustling village of over 1500.

The Osceola Mine began its illustrious life with a desperate attempt to reap the riches of the great Calumet Conglomerate Lode – a lode that had proved enormously successful for the neighboring Calumet and Hecla Mines. Osceola bought up property just to the south of C&H’s holdings and sunk its own shaft into the conglomerate in search of copper goodness. At first the outlook was promising, as a good deal of copper was initially discovered. The company moved to sink a second shaft nearby, but its fortunes quickly changed. It turned out that Osceola Mine was mining the Calumet lode’s southern terminus – and that all the copper that was to be found was sitting on a narrow stretch of land sitting between C&H lands to the north and the No.1 shaft. Lucky for the mine, however, the nearby Osceola Amygdaloid lode was discovered and the company transferred operations there.