Black Hawk

 

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Black Hawk owes its existence to John H. Gregory’s gold discovery on May 6, 1859. The discovery was made near the western boundary of Black hawk. Black Hawk, with its abundant supply of water from the North Fork of Clear Creek, evolved into a mill town for processing the ore from the numerous area mines.

Black Hawk got its name from an early mining manufacturing company in Rock Island, IL. The owners named their quartz mill “Black Hawk” for the famous Sac and Fox Indian Chief. The mill was constructed in 1860 and located near the center of town.

After the placer gold and decomposed quartz ore was exhausted, Black Hawk and the surrounding towns fell into a slump during the late 1860s. As the mines got deeper, complex sufide ores were encountered which could not be milled by the primitive stamp mills. What was needed was a smelting process where the ore was first heated to drive off the sulfur followed by smelting. It was Prof. Nathaniel P. Hill who brought this technology to Black Hawk in the form of a successful smelter, opened in January, 1868. In 1877, Black Hawk’s smelters were processing half of all the ore mined in Gilpin County. The old stamp mills, now rendered useless, were converted into concentrators. Their purpose was to separate the worthless rock from valuable ore-producing concentrates which were sent to the smelters to produce a copper, gold and silver matte
Below are historic pictures culled from various sources of the railroads, mines and mills around Black Hawk Colorado.

Other photos of Black Hawk can be found at these pages...

bulletFifty Gold Mines/Bobtail Mill
bulletCCRR/C&SRR in Black Hawk
bulletHumphry Mill
bulletIron City Mill
bulletNew York Mill
bulletPolar Star Mill
bulletRandolf Mill
bulletRocky Mountain Concentrator

Click on an image for a larger version.

Abbott Collection

Black Hawk, 1865

Old postcard, but obviously not 1856 as printed on picture.

Celebration in Black Hawk
Gilpin Historic Society

Something big is going on in Black Hawk!
Abbott Collection

Black Hawk
R A Ronzio Collection
Abbott Collection

 

Looking north  about where Chase Gulch meets Clear Creek.
Abbott Collection

C&S mogul backs a mixed train across Gregory Street Bridge.

 

Gregory Street Bridge in 1880.

Looking up Selack Street to the Gregory Street Bridge.  50 Gold Mines is the mill on the right.
Gilpin Historic Society

Gregory Street Bridge (C&S)
Gilpin Historic Society

Gregory Street Bridge (C&S)
Gilpin Historic Society

Downtown, Gregory Street Bridge and 50 Gold Mines
Gilpin Historic Society


Looking down Chase Gulch into Black Hawk

Looking down Chase Gulch into Black Hawk
H H Lake
Leo Stambaugh collection
Abbott collection


Cracker Bakery

Temporary track laid up Gregory Street to clean up flood damage. 1910-1914
Abbott Collection

Temporary track laid up Gregory Street to clean up flood damage. 1910-1914
Gilpin Historic Society

Flood down Gregory Street
Gilpin Historic Society

Gilpin Hotel
Gilpin Historic Society
 

Near the turntable.  The old Colorado Central Station is on the left.  1906
Roger Baker Collection


Looking south at Black Hawk along North Clear Creek, 1911
E S Bastin

Power Plant in lower right.
Gilpin Historic Society

Sampling Works across from station.
Gilpin Historic Society

Black Hawk Station, 1910

Southeast from Station at Black Hawk

Looking up Clear Creek past the Black Hawk Station
Gilpin Historic Society


Black Hawk Station is middle right.
Abbott Collection

Looking Southeast from the Black Hawk station.  Note the third rail for the Gilpin Tram on the right.
Gilpin Historic Society

Black Hawk Station after a flood.

Black Hawk Station
Gilpin Historic Society

Black Hawk Feed Company
Gilpin Historic Society

Foundry
Gilpin Historic Society

Black Hawk Boiler and Sheet Iron Works
Gilpin Historic Society


 
 

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This page was last updated 01/27/07

Copyright 2007 by Mark Baldwin