Quincy Smelter: Mineral House Door

A doorway out of the Mineral House at the Quincy Smelter.
Continuing my Quincy Smelter series: this photo comes to you from the Mineral House, which was the first building which "raw" copper would arrive in, at the smelter. Quincy is filled with red doors like this, with angled details. You can find out more about the Mineral House at Copper Country Explorer.

Quincy Smelter: Compressor Wheel

An old compressor wheel in the Quincy Smelter
This is part of my series of photos from my Quincy Smelter photo tour. This shot came from a machine room which was in surprisingly good shape. Two large engines -- probably compressors -- were still fully installed in this room, and the roof was even intact. The thing which most amazed me about these machines were the details. Despite being huge mechanical beasts, someone had taken the time to stencil these lovely details on the spokes of the wheels. Many of the fittings on the machines also had similar details. The details served no function, of course, but they are something you wouldn't find on most modern machinery.

Quincy Smelter: Rooms in Rooms

A room inside a room inside the Quincy Smelter.
On October 3rd, I had an amazing opportunity to go inside the Quincy Smelter and take photos.

The Quincy Smelter is an old copper refining operation on the shores of the Portage, just down the hill from Ripley. It was opened in 1898 by the Quincy Mine, and operated for 70 years until it closed in the late 1960s. Time has not been kind to the smelter, and most of the roofs have caved in from time and weather. The result is that the insides of the buildings are falling apart at an ever increasing rate.

The Quincy Smelter Association, along with the Quincy Mine Hoist Association and the Keweenaw National Historical Park, sponsored tours of the smelter, including special photographic tour. I had an opportunity to see inside almost all of the buildings, photograph them, and take my time enjoying the sights. This is the first of a series of the best photos -- look forward to more in the future!