A color postcard of Bisbee looking west. The front caption on the top right reads: “Looking West, Bisbee, Arizona.” The postcard was postmarked Bisbee Ariz August 28, 1918 4:30 PM and was sent by Violet Ramquist to Mrs. C. A. Ramquist National Mine Marqutte Co. Mich. The message on the back in ink reads: “Dear Mother, We got the package of goose berries and thank you very much for them they were dandy, and I made a pie, and I cooked the rest, to eat that way. It is fine to have anything like that from home, We are all well Hoping you are the same. With love, Violet” The postcard was published by the Taylor Cyclone Store, Bisbee, Arizona and was sent with a green, one cent George Washington postage stamp. Carl Ramquist Collection.
In 1877, the Copper Queen Mine began with the Jack Dunn’s discover of a blue and green stain on the side of the Mule Mountains that indicated the presence of malachite, azurite and copper. Development of the Copper Queen started in 1880 when Benjamin Williams, Lewis Williams and Judge DeWitt Bisbee purchased a number of mining claims including the Copper Queen. DeWitt Bisbee invested a large amount of money to build the towns first proper smelter. The town was named Bisbee in his honor. The Copper Queen Mine produced 20 million pounds of copper along with 80 thousand tons of malachite, azurite and cuprite. The richest of the copper ore contained 30% copper and it was mined out by 1884. There was a desperate search for another ore body which was struck, the downside was that the same ore body had been found by the Atlanta mine. To avoid legal battles, the Atlanta Mining company and the Copper Queen merged into the Copper Queen Consolidated Mining Company. This was taken as a subsidiary of Phelps Dodge after fifteen years of operation. In 1975, after Phelps Dodge ended mining operations in Bisbee, Mayor Eads and former miners came together to create a mine tour. Today the Copper Queen Mine Tour operates giving visitors a glimpse of the former operations in a small section of the former mine.
1983.18.21