QUINCY SMELTER CLOSED...IN 1971!

In October the Quincy Smelter will have been closed for 42 years.  I was looking for some details regarding the closing on the web.   Couldn't find any details, except it closed that year.  But, I found an interesting website (more below).

What we tell visitors during our tours is that the Environmental Protection Agency closed the smelter because of pollution issues.  The EPA required everyone to leave and to not take anything from the smelter.  And it stayed locked up, permanently.  Through this accident of history, we now have an intact smelter to show visitors how our ancestors made copper during the Keweenaw's heyday.

Now to the website.  The individual was on the smelter grounds before the buildings were stabilized, primarily putting on new roofs and covering up the doors and glassless window openings.  This work was done by the National Park Service staff of the  Keewenaw National Historical Park and private contractors.

His website is called "Substreet.org  Guerilla HIstory, Photography and Urban Exploration".  What's different is he actually went up on the steel framework of the reverberatory furnace building.  Remember this is a building that has been deteriorating and the steel work is rusted from about four decades of neglect.  He climbs up and takes photos from about 30 feet above the floor.  Lucky for him and us!

Link: http://substreet.org/quincy-smelter/

REMEMBER: OUR LAST TOUR OF THE SEASON IS OCTOBER 12, 2013, 12-4 PM.  SEE THE PREVIOUS BLOG FOR DETAILS.

OCTOBER SMELTER TOURS

LAST TIME TO SEE THE QUINCY SMELTER  IN 2013

October 12th, 2013 

12:00 to 4:00 PM

Children under 10 free

AAA discount available to members

Our tours start on the hour.  You will have a guide for each tour to explain how copper ore was turned into copper ingots as we go through the smelter buildings.

We are on a former industrial site.  We recommend you wear shoes, not open sandals. 

We hope to see you at the only intact copper smelter in the country. This facility is a tribute to America's industrial might in the early 20th century.

As part of our fundraising efforts, we have high quality T-shirts for sale.  One is a sharp dark blue with white lettering with the neat Quincy Smelter logo.  The other shirt is a light tan with a vintage photo of the smelter plus lettering.  Come on a tour and leave well dressed!

Quincy Smelter Association is a private, non-profit organization.  The Quincy Smelter is owned by Franklin Township.  The township has given the QSA permission to conduct tours.  QSA has no affiliation with any governmental organization.

Quincy Smelter Association can conduct tours for private groups provided we have sufficient notice and volunteers available.

This is the official website of the Quincy .Smelter Association

SUCCESSFUL SEPTEMBER TOURS!

We  had a great time giving smelter tours last Saturday.  Thanks to our volunteers, we were able to give 5 one hour plus tours.  

We got in a whole bunch of T-shirts.  One design is dark blue with white lettering and the sharp Quincy Smelter logo!  The tan model has a photo of the smelter along with the lettering.  While not flying off the shelves, they're becoming popular movers.  We have XL to S sizes.  Come on a tour and leave with our cool shirts that help us with our work.

Besides thanking our regular tour guides, I want to welcome our new guide, Rob, who did a great job giving his first tours this past weekend.

Finally, I want to thank our blacksmiths, Karl Warsinski and Patrick Quimby, for putting on a great demonstration during our tours.  They made a bunch of neat hooks so our visitors were able to see how blacksmiths forged steel into tools.  They also did a great job of explaining the role of the blacksmith in our smelter.

So once again, thanks to everyone, visitors and volunteers!

See you in October!