NaiivB Copjfter of Lake Superior ^ ^c, -1Q7 



scription of that lake adds " that upon it, we also find cop- 

 per mines, the metal of which is so fine and plentiful, thai 

 there is not a seventh part loss from the ore." (1) In 1721 

 Charlevoix passed through the lakes on his way to the 

 gulf of Mexico, and did not allow the mineralogy of the 

 country to escape his observation. " Large pieces of cop- 

 per," he says in speaking of lake Superior, " are found m 

 some places on its banks, and around some of the islands, 

 which are still the objects of a superstitious worship among 

 the Indians. They look upon them with veneration as if 

 they were the presents of those gods who dwell under the 

 waters ; they collect their smallest fragments which they 

 carefully preserve without however making any use of them. 

 They say that formerly a huge rock of this metal v/as to 

 be seen elevated a considerable height above the surface 

 of the water, and as it has now disappeared, they pretend 

 that the gods have carried it elsewhere ; but there is great 

 reason to believe that in process of time the waves of the 

 lake have covered it entirely with sand and slime ; and it is 

 certain that in several places pretty large quantities of this 

 metal have been discovered without being obliged to dig 

 very deep. During the course of my first voyage to this 

 country, I was acquainted with one of our order (Jesuits) 

 who had been formerly a goldsmith, and who, while he was 

 at the mission of Sault de St. Marie used to search for this 

 metal, and made candlesticks, crosses, and censers of it, for 

 this copper is often to be met with almost entirely pure." (2) 

 In 1766, Capt. Carver procui"ed several pieces of native 

 copper upon the shores of lake Superior, and about the 

 sources of the Chippeway and St. Croix rivers, and pub- 

 lished an account of these discoveries in his book of travels, 

 which has served to give notoriety to the existence of that 

 metal in the region alluded to, without however furnishing 

 any very precise information as to its locality or abundance. 

 He did not, from his own account traverse the southern 

 shore of the lake, but states that virgin copper is found in 

 great plenty on the Ontonagon or Copper Mine river, and 

 about other parts of lake Superior, and adds — " that he ob- 

 served many of the small islands, particularly those on the 



(1) La Hontan's voyages to Cariada,p. 214. 



(S) Charleroix^s Journal of a voyage to North America, vol. 2. p. 45- 



