Patrice LeBlanc, Central City. The Coeur d’Alene Mine is one of the most iconic sights in Central City, Colorado. The huge, red mine shaft house sits alone on top of the hill at 101 Academy Street and was once referred to as the “Sentinel on the Hill.” 

The original owners of the mine were John and Catherine Cameron, who obtained a patent in 1884, started running the mine in 1894, then continued to operate the mine for 20 years. The Coeur d’Alene was known as an all-in-one operation as it produced gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. It is estimated the mine averaged two ounces of gold per ton. Cross tunnels were dug with the depths of 200-700 feet. Boilers were installed to create steam to operate the equipment. The engine room, working shaft, smith’s shop and furnace room were all located in the same area. There were two shafts; ladder-way and bucket-way. A bucket could carry a maximum of 1000 pounds to the foundry on Eureka Street owned by Peter McFarland. The average daily wage for an 8 hour shift was $3.50.

The Coeur D’Alene company merged with two other mining companies in 1913. William Jenks became president and began upgrading and developing the mine, however he died in 1917 before production resumed. William’s son, Henry Jenks, took over as president of the company and the mine reopened April 15, 2015. William died shortly after and ownership was transferred to Mrs. Effie Jenks. She requested the mine be shut down for good but was persuaded to believe that too much money had already been invested into the project to close. 

The mine suffered a terrible accident in 1940, when an explosion killed the superintendent, Charles Richards, who was also the Mayor of Central City at the time. Richards was trimming blasting caps in the mine while a nearby worker was sharpening a shovel. A spark fell into the box of caps and created an explosion. The mine had a respectable track record with no fatalities until this freak accident. 

Effie Jenks donated the mine to the Central City Opera in the 1940s. The opera conducted tours of the mine during the 1950s, but the mine fell in disrepair and the structure was vandalized. Many of the tools and equipment items were stolen. The roof collapsed in 1986 from a major snowstorm causing the building to be unsafe. The opera donated the mine to the Gilpin County Historical Society in 1986 with plans to make it a museum. The mine was restored with a $100,000 grant funded by the gambling taxes in 1994 and was reopened for tours and awarded the Restoration of the Year award by the Colorado Historical Society. 

Visitors can tour the mine during the summer months. The Coeur d’ Alene Mine is located off of the Central City Parkway. 

(Originally published in the August 22, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)