Painesdale Mine & Shaft officially recognized as Keweenaw Heritage Site
PAINESDALE — The Painesdale Mine & Shaft was just recognized as a Keweenaw Heritage Site. Painesdale Mine & Shaft Inc. is committed to preserving the Champion #4 Shaft House in Painesdale, Michigan. The #4 Shaft House, erected in 1902, was part of the Copper Range Mining Company. It ran mines from Atlantic Mine to Painesdale and remained in operation for almost 65 years, closing in 1967. Notably, Adams Township still uses the site to pump water for surrounding towns and cities, including the city of Hancock.
Visit the Painesdale Mine & Shaft this summer to take a unique look at a lesser-known piece of copper mining history. Photo courtesy of Visit Keweenaw.
To be recognized as a Keweenaw Heritage Site is to be part of the Keweenaw National Historic Park. Which, is a registry of partner sites that contain “significant cultural and/or natural resources, and make a unique contribution to the copper mining history.”
This summer, the Painesdale Mine & Shaft is showing off recent work on the grounds. The organization cleared vegetation, opening up views of the property, and opened upper levels of the shaft house for tours. The Painesdale Mine is sealed, so the unique experience takes advantage of the upper levels, showing you how rocks were crushed and loaded onto trains. The beautiful grounds are a nice spot for a picnic, or you can stop by for guided tours on Saturdays.
The powerful hoist house at the Painesdale site ran much later than other mines and was used by Adams Township to access lower levels, until newer water pumps were placed above ground to provide water to surrounding communities. Photo courtesy of Visit Keweenaw/
“We are very excited to join the Heritage Site program,” said Painesdale Mine & Shaft Inc. President Michael Prast. “Our Vice President and Secretary were at the park meeting… to receive the news. This is something we have been working towards for years as we have grown as an operation. The Park’s Service has been generous in helping us out and providing advice over the years given our shared missions to save local history, however not being an official Heritage Site limited the resources they could offer. While we will continue to operate independently as other heritage sites do, we are thrilled to be able to work with the Keweenaw National Historic Park and Advisory Commission to implement their expertise into preserving the Champion #4 Mine site for all to enjoy. It is wonderful to officially be a part of the network of wonderful historic sites working to preserve and share the local copper mining history.”