The Reed Gold Mine is a North Carolina historical site located in Midland, NC approximately 20 miles from Charlotte. In 1966, the Reeds Gold Mine became a National Historical Landmark. In December of 1971, the Kelly family heirs who owned the mine after John Reed’s death donated seventy acres and the mine to the people of North Carolina. The historical site opened to the public in April of 1977 (North Carolina Historical Sites, n.d.).
The site set up is very simple and easy to get around when you are approaching the site the parking is off to the right hand side. Right across the road from the parking is the visitor’s center. When you walk into the visitor center you will be greeted by staff that is very friendly and willing to answer any questions you may have. In the visitor’s center if you go to the left you can go and watch a twenty minute film about the history of the mine over the years. The film was very informative, but it was kind of cheesy in the fact that it was very outdated. The narrator’s voice in the film was as if he had a false country slang accent.
The film described how the Reed Gold Mine began. It all started when a twelve year old boy
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At the entry of the museum, there were several cases that showed how gold was used as status symbols for the rich. One case had forks, spoons, knives and goblets made of gold in it that were used by royalty. As you move through the museum, there were pictures and plaques about the history of gold and other gold mines from the same era. The museum also housed tools, pans and several large pieces of machinery that was used in the mining process. At the end of the museum, there is a replica of the seventeen pound gold rock that was found by Conrad Reed. Overall the museum was set up well and had some great artifacts, but personally a guided tour would have been better than having to read all the information
John Steinbeck was born in 1902. He lived and grew up during the Great Depression near Salinas Valley and wrote many novels based on his experiences and backgrounds. Due to conditions such as nice weather and good agricultural industry, many people settled there. There was a gold rush around the 1850s which attracted many people to this region. The Salinas Valley was a very significant and essential place in the 1930s.
These two passages “There’s Still Gold in These Hills” and “Letter From a Gold Miner” help the reader understand the history and process of gold mining in the US. Both passages give detailed information, specific instructions, and an interesting background about gold mining. These passages use different strategies to help the reader perceive the history and process. These strategies may include using specific dates of when the gold rush took place, information to help the reader picture the setting of where to find gold, and also teaches the process step by step.
The tar creek mining site originally was owned by a Native American tribe, the Quapaw. The Quapaw wanted to keep these lands, but the Bureau of Indian Affairs deemed members opposing a transaction to mining companies “incompetent” (1). In such a case the business could continue and the Bureau of Indian Affairs sold the lands to mining companies. In essence these lands were stolen from the Quapaw because they were ripe for mining. These mines were then used from approximately 1891 to 1970. In the 79 years the mines were open 1.7 million metric tons (~3.75 billion pounds) of lead and 8.8 million metric tons (~19.4 billion pounds) of zinc were withdrawn from the mine (2). The entire area around Tar Creek is known as the tri-state mining area. This tri-state area was a massive source of metals. This area accounted for 35% of the all worldwide metal for a decade. It also provided the majority of metals the United States used in World wars I and II (3).
As indicated above, the exhibit is theme-based, centered around a historical period of time. Because of this, there is a large proportion of text, revealing background history, in relation to the actual artifacts. In my second, more thorough run-through, I certainly found myself reading more than looking at "things". In fact, it seems as though the exhibit only tells the true chronological history to those patient enough to read all of the text. A less thorough visit to the exhibit will undoubtedly result in a skewed view of the past. I will address this issue later in the Critical Assessment section.
In 1799 young Conrad Reed, a 12 year old boy, found a big shiny rock in Little Meadow Creek on the family farm in Cabarrus county North Carolina. Conrad lugged it home but the Reed family had no idea what it was and used it as a clunky door stop. Thinking that it must be some kind of metal, John Reed, Conrad’s father, took it to Concord North Carolina to have a silver smith look at it. The silver smith was unable to identify it as gold. John Reed hauled it back home. Three years later in 1802 he took the rock to Fayetteville North Carolina where a jeweler recognized it for what it was right away. The jeweler asked him if could smelt it down to a bar for him, John agreed. When John returned to the jeweler had a gold brick measuring six to eight inches long. It’s hard to believe but John Reed had no idea of the metals worth. The jeweler asked him what he wanted for it and John thought that a week’s wages would be fair so he sold it to the jeweler for $3.50. It is rumored that John purchased a calico dress for his wife and some coffee beans with his wi...
From that point on there’s a digital interactive guide that displays the layout of the museum and location of the exhibits. The museum is divided into quadrants with an elliptical rotunda in the middle. The rotunda is illuminated by natural light from the glass dome with skylights above you. Also when you look up you can see extraordinary symbolic painting on the ceiling. From the center of the rotunda you can go left or right to see the exhibits of Native Americans. For some reason I felt like going in through the left, aside from the fact that the right side was closed for renovations. I headed left into the “Time Exposure” exhibit by the Haudenosaunee Discovery Room. When entering the exhibit it can seem a bit disoriented, but you just have...
As the tour of the museum began, it was easily noticed that all of the objects on display were placed behind thick glass cases. Many plaques inside of the case provide the visitor with information about the specific case that is being looked at. In most cases the plaques didn’t so much provide an elaboration on the pieces, but rather expand upon the historical context of the pieces. Also, the plaques shed light onto muc...
Mining played a crucial role in the settlement of Socorro County. In the late 1860’s a man by the name of Colonel J.S. Hutchason discovered three sizeable limestone croppings near Magdalena Peak (pdf thing). Hutchason at first only worked the Juanita and Graphic claims; having a partner, Andy Kelly, work on the third claim. Kelly named the mine after himself; however, Hutchason later repossessed the claim when Kelly failed to do work to preserve it. News of Huchason’s success brought many new prospectors to the area. In 1870, Kelly, a small boom town, was created; named after the successful mine. In 1876 Huchason leased out the Juanita mine and sold both the Graphic and Kelly mines (Harris, 97).
A gold fever was arising. It was the talk of the country in the mid 1800’s. Worth about $1,000 per ounce today, gold meant great wealth in the 1840’s and 50’s. The news of gold findings in California soon spread worldwide. Many people were quick to react hearing that gold had been founded in California. California was a place of chaos during the gold rush of 1849. A plot of land that went for $15 in 1847, was later sold for $40,000 after the discovery of gold(Heinrichs, 23). Cities formed and California’s economy increasingly grew. A railroad was built which connected California to other states farther east in the United States because flocks of people continued migrating with the hopes of wealth. The gold rush drew much needed attention to California making it a crucial event to decisions about California in the future. The gold rush of 1849 resulted in the rapid growth of California ultimately leading to statehood and westward expansion.
The first exhibit I saw was the “It Ain’t Braggin’ if it’s True” (one of my friends told me I had to see the shrine to Lance Armstrong and the rhinestone car). The name of the exhibit didn’t make much sense to me though; aren’t all museum exhibits, especially ones about history, supposed to be true? The big banner in the middle of the room didn’t help much either. It simply said “Vision” and had a quote about how only those with great vision can see opportunity where others see empty space. Maybe those who have this type of vision get the braggin’ rights?
The first museum, we entered was very small which was called “The Stockyard Museum” like a corner store size. This museum was based on historical events such as cowboys , native Americans, chisholm trails and the north/ stockyards of fort worth history. The old man we talked was very nice which I didn’t expect based on his body language, however he introduces us on what to expect and a scavenger hunt for the items in the museum; which was pretty cool because we actually to go around and take us to read everything because he was going to go over it with us afterwards. The main piece that really stood out to me was this dressed which was called "The Bad Luck Wedding Dress" that was the perfect name for this dress if you asked me. This dress was
Colorado also has a rich mining history which began in about 1859 with the discovery of gold and development of new reserves, Colorado’s present day industry is a modern, innovative, safe and environmentally responsible citizen that extracts a wide variety of minerals such as; gold, Marble, and gypsum from the earth, valued at more than $2 billion each year. (Colorado Mining Association, 2007)
Before understand the film, Modern Times, we needed to understand the time period while the film made. America had the Industrial Revolution in 1840’s. It was little later than Europe, but America had abundant natural
Exploration."" "Stan Grist's Resources for Gold Prospecting, Metal Detecting, Treasure Hunting and Exploration." N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2014
When first arriving at the museum it was an old styled, rustic, building that was not very modern, which I think fits into the theme of the museum. The outside of the building had history, similar to how the inside of museum is filled with a history. There was also an impressive statue of former president Theodore Roosevelt. I thought it was an interesting display, but Theodore Roosevelt was an advocate for the preservation of national parks and the conservation of animals, moreover, I thought it was a great tribute to him. I think the outside of the museum shows how rich the history of the world is and there is so much to learn. The past has been polished for the people of the present to understand and admire. Overall, I felt every exhibit was easy to understand and not intimidating; subsequently, it was easy for children and adults to look at.