KEPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 1^5 



the southern shore of Lake Superior, called Keweenaw Point. Through 

 the whole of this peninsula a band of metalliferous deposit extends 

 more than a hundred miles in length, and from one to six miles in 

 width. Within this band pure copper is found in immense masses, 

 also in thinner veins and small boulders. 



The Jesuit missionaries as early as 1636 mentioned the existence 

 of copper in this region; their knowledge, however, was probably re- 

 stricted to small pieces of copper found in the streams. The first 

 actual attempts at mining in this region within historic times were 

 made in 1791, by Alexander Henry, but it was not until about 1842 

 that active and successful operations were undertaken. 



Previous to this period pits and small mounds of earth had been 

 observed in the metalliferous region; but it was only in 1848 that 

 these were discovered to be remains of ancient excavations con- 

 nected with the mining of copper. After this fact was clearly ascer- 

 tained, it was turned to a profitable account by modern explorers, 

 who found that their predecessors had industriously ferreted out the 

 rich lodes, and that copper was always to be found by the indications 

 of the ancient "diggins," as these excavations are popularly called. 

 The ground is mostly covered with a dense forest, and, in many 

 cases, with fallen trees of a preceding growth, indicating a great 

 lapse of time since the excavations were made. The present Indians 

 of the region have no knowledge of the orig^in of these remains, or of 

 the purpose with which they were connected. The implements em- 

 ployed by the ancient miners were those which European archeeolo- 

 gists refer to w^hat they call the stone age, and to the transition period 

 denominated by them the bronze age. They consist of mauls and 

 adzes of trap rock, and chisels of flint and of copper. Fire was not 

 employed to melt the metal, but apparently to assist in disintegrating 

 the rock. Levers of wood were used for elevating large masses, but 

 with the implements mentioned the earth could only be penetrated 

 to a short distance. For cutting wood, copper chisels and probably 

 adzes and axes of the same metal were employed. The copper was 

 hardened by hammering when cold, and not in any case by admixture 

 with other metals. The primitive miners were unable to manage 

 large masses, and consequently sought for lumps which could be 

 readily beaten into the required shape. 



The Lake Superior mining region does not appear to have been 

 the place of permanent residence of a large number of tribes, for no 



