The Deepest Mine in the U.S. – The Quincy Smelter in Hancock, Michigan

The Quincy Smelter in Hancock, Keweenaw Peninsula in the U.P. - it's the only remaining copper smelter in the Lake Superior region and it's being saved for history. It was built in 1898 by the Quincy Mining Company to process ore from local copper mines.....it ceased operation in 1972.

Many of you know about the Quincy smelter, but here’s a brief intro on how it came about...

In 1846, a mineral claim was made by someone named Ruggles. In 1852, it was owned by Christopher Douglas who made his home there. He just happened to be an agent for the Quincy Mining Company and ended up selling that land to the company.

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In 1859, Sam Hill was the agent for the company and platted a town around the mine. A post office opened in 1860; it became a village in 1875 and finally incorporated as a city in 1903. As for the name of this “new” village? It was named after THE ‘John Hancock’, signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Now for the Quincy Smelter: it was built to melt, purify and mold the raw copper so Upper Michigan wouldn't have to ship ore to private contractors, as far away as Detroit. Now all the ore could be mined, stamped, and smelted all in one place, thanks to the Smelter. The Quincy Smelter's most profitable mine shaft was over 6,000 feet deep and titled “Deepest Mine in the United States.”

Now in the 2020s, the smelter has been turned into a public tourist destination, allowing people to walk through on their own, along with nearby picnicking & fishing.