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Read more about the article Platteville’s Mining History

The Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin, showing a Cornish miner right of the shield, circa 1881. Image ID: 91654. Wisconsin Historical Society

Platteville’s Mining History

The Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin, showing a Cornish miner right of the shield, circa 1881. Image ID: 91654. Wisconsin Historical Society The Platteville lead boom spanned from 1827 to 1849, bringing diverse groups of people and the mining industry…

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December 21, 2022

Mining Industry / Industry / Grant County / Education / Object Histories / Platteville / Manufacturing & Trade / 1877-1900 / Region 6 - South West / Ingersoll-Sergeant Pneumatic Rock Drill

OBJECT HISTORY: Ingersoll-Sergeant Pneumatic Rock Drill

Picture of Ingersoll-Sergeant Pneumatic Rock Drill, courtesy of Liam Reinicke. The Ingersoll-Sergeant pneumatic rock drill stands in front of the Rountree Hall Apartments in Platteville, serving as an important symbol of Platteville’s mining history. The drill was manufactured by the Ingersoll-Sergeant Rock…

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December 13, 2022

Mining Industry / Industry / Grant County / Object Histories / Platteville / Ethnicity & Identity / Manufacturing & Trade / 1877-1900 / Region 6 - South West / James D. Williams' Windlass

OBJECT HISTORY: James D. Williams’ Windlass

This is a machine used to lower and raise miners and materials through mine shafts in the lead mining region around Platteville, Wisconsin. Made from wooden supports with a wooden barrel shaft and crank attached to a rope with a bucket, a…

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January 9, 2018

Mining Industry / Industry / Object Histories / Grant County / Iowa County / 1787-1848 / Lafayette County / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Region 6 - South West

OBJECT HISTORY: Galena

Galena, the official state mineral of Wisconsin, is the raw material used to produce lead. During the Wisconsin “lead rush” of the 1820s-40s, lead was more valuable than gold. That is because just about everybody, rich or poor, used objects made of lead in their daily lives – products that ranged from plumbing to toothpaste!…

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December 9, 2017