Copper

specimen number:
2013486

location:
Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan, USA

description:

A very large well-formed crystal of native copper set on matrix. If you smaller crystals are present around it. In great condition. From the collection of Louis Lafayette.

The Keweenaw Peninsula, often called "Copper Country," was the site of the first major copper boom in the United States. Native peoples had mined surface copper for millennia, but industrial mining began in earnest around 1845 following the "copper fever" sparked by Douglass Houghton's geological reports. This region became world-famous for its unique deposits of "native copper" -- pure metal found in its elemental form rather than as an ore. Giants like the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company dominated the global market during the late 19th century, fueling the American industrial revolution. However, as mines reached extreme depths and richer deposits were found elsewhere, the industry faced a slow decline. Most major operations ceased by the mid-20th century, with the final large-scale mine, the White Pine, closing its primary operations in 1995, effectively ending over 150 years of industrial copper production in the region.

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