Christmas Mine old picture and USGS website for photos

[Eppa]

Caption below the picture reads: "Deer Creek Coal Field. Christmas Copper Mine north of the Gila River. Pinal County, Arizona. 1903."


USGS website search counties, town names, old mine names...
http://libraryphoto.cr.usgs.gov/keyword.htm

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[djui5]

Do u know where this mine was exactly? I'd like to go check it out.

[Eppa]

It's between Globe and Winkelman. Near Dripping Springs. Hwy 77. However it is closed to the public, it belongs to Freeport mining company now.

[Eppa]

http://www.fcx.com Here is their website. I haven't dealt with them. I would love to get back in there and see the ghost town of Christmas. It (Christmas Mine and Town) is barely mined and may just be locked up right now.

[djui5]

Interesting.

Has anyone ever dealt with this mining company before?

Every heard of Phelps Dodge? This is the same company. Freeport-McMoRan is their new name. Their headquarters is downtown where the BLM office is. Next time I'm in there I'll stop by and see if I can get a "pass" to go check out the mine. It's just a copper mine so it's not like anyone is gonna pocket $30,000 worth of copper

[Eppa]

If you can get in I wanna go! If that's ok? About the pocketing the copper! I use to work at ASARCO and those guys there pocket copper all the time! Once, when copper was up real high, a lady who worked there drove her truck up to where she worked and lifted a panel (or anode) of copper and put it in the back of her truck and took off! They weigh ALOT!!

[Bunk]

I worked at the Christmas mine in the late 70's and all that was left of the town site back then was a few late 40's or early 50's houses. It would be a cool place to wander around with a detector. I have heard the reason it has never re-opened is the fact that the compeny sold the mill back when the price of copper was real low.
It was an interesting mine in that the pit was all diesel powered with 988 Cat loaders and 35T Cat haul trucks, very small next to the 400T trucks they are running a Ray these days.
Bunk