The Mineral Point Centennial Zinc Medal

[Cliff Krainik]

[The following article first appeared in the Mineral Point Historical Society Newsletter - Summer, 2004]

The Mineral Point Centennial Zinc Medal

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Mineral Point Centennial Medal. Struck in zinc the medal measures
1 1/4 inches in diameter, just 1/16 of an inch smaller than a United States
half dollar. The medal is gray and dull in appearance with a smooth,
unmilled edge.

The obverse depicts two 19th-century miners raising a bucket of lead with a
windlass; a pick, rope and ore bucket are scattered about. Surrounding the
center vignette is the inscription, "1827 CENTENNIAL 1927 / AUGUST 3-
4-5-6" and "MINERAL POINT / WISCONSIN." Directly below the text
appear the words, "WHITEHEAD HOA[?]" - probably the die engraver or
manufacturer's name.

The reverse displays two divided scenes representing then current (1927)
economic interests of Mineral Point. At the top right section a large
factory with numerous smoke belching chimneys is illustrated
accompanied with the word "ZINC." At the lower left portion of the
design the words "BLUE GRASS REGION" appear under a pastoral
scene with grazing livestock.

It was 1927 and the Milwaukee Journal carried a full-page illustrated story proclaiming that, "An epidemic of pageantry has struck Wisconsin. It has hit this summer in the southwestern corner, where five towns of the old lead mining district, in honor of their centennials, are producing historical pageants." [1] The festivities began on July 1, appropriately in Linden where lead ore was first discovered by American settlers in 1827. Dodgeville held its Centennial Celebration starting with a town homecoming on July 3 and continuing with an old fashioned Fourth of July party filled with two evenings of pageantry at the baseball park. Schullsburg and Montfort hosted their own special Centennial galas. But it was in Mineral Point during the first week-end in August where the most extensive and elaborate celebration occurred.

One of the exciting features of Mineral Point's four-day Centennial Celebration was the parade of floats. Starting each day at 10:00 in the morning and lasting for over thirty minutes, a dazzling array of historical floats ascended High Street to the enjoyment of thousands of spectators. The colors were carried by the young World War I veterans followed by a band of full-blooded Oneida Native Americans. Then came the floats - a Cornish miner's home-on-wheels, an oxen team pulling an old prairie schooner, the first territorial capitol float, ore wagons, a stagecoach, some old fire equipment and a slow moving band of bewhiskered Civil War veterans. Besides the parades there were historical markers temporarily erected all over town - Jerusalem Springs, the site of Caffee's hanging in 1842, Fort Jackson from the Black Hawk War [2], the site of the first courthouse and jail, as well as the locations for the first Mineral Point bank, several early churches, and the first Odd Fellows Lodge.

In addition to the numerous floats and historical markers, it seemed that the entire business district was transformed into a sidewalk museum with relics of Mineral Point's past prominently displayed in every shop window. There were old mining tools and pistols, coins, arrowheads, fine silver and imported china, an ancient shawl and spinning wheels, collections of postage stamps, musical instruments, daguerreotypes and faded photographs. Gundry and Gray Company presented an elaborate exhibit of clothing and furniture of early days. All of the personal heirlooms were identified and lovingly attributed to their past owners - ancestors alive only in the memory of their families. In a front page story the Iowa County Democrat exclaimed that the Centennial Celebration was "an affair that will always be remembered!" [3]

To keep the memory of the Centennial Celebration

It occurred to the Mineral Point Centennial committee that a fitting tribute should be made to honor the town's history and to preserve the memory of the recent celebration. The details of the Centennial Zinc Medal are best told in an article first published in the Iowa County Democrat on July 28, 1927:

Permanent Record of Centennial In Zinc Medal Souvenirs

A celebration of the magnitude and importance of the Mineral
Point Centennial celebration is deserving of a permanent record.
After the noise and bustle of the affair has cleared away, everyone
connected with it will want some souvenir to remember it by. It was
to fill the need of a suitable souvenir that the Centennial committee
arranged for the purchase of a large number of Centennial medals
commemorating Mineral Point's hundredth birthday. These medals
have now arrived and are ready for distribution. As zinc is the metal
identified with this region, it was chosen for the material of the medals
and the New Jersey Zinc company kindly furnished the zinc necessary.
On one side of the medal is the design of the city seal; on the other
side is a view of the Mineral Point Zinc works, our chief industry; and
also a design showing a hilly pasture, representing the ‘Blue Grass
Region.' The medals have been designed and struck off with the
same care and workmanship as that employed on coins, and the result
is very pleasing.

Because of the large quantity purchased, it is possible to sell these
medals for twenty-five cents, although if only one were struck off, the
cost would be prohibitive for the average person. The profit on the
sale of the medals will be used towards defraying the expenses of the
celebration. This presents an opportunity for every man, woman and
child in the Mineral Point region to do his or her bit toward making
the celebration a success. The medals are not only a very pleasing
souvenir, but their purchase enables the committee to finance the
extensive and elaborate program that has been provided. [4]

I Zinc therefore I am ...

Mineral Point was the most populated, affluent and politically important town in the Lead Mining Region during the late 1820s through the beginning of the Civil War. Long before gold became the driving force that would pull men inexorably westward, lead held out the allure of great and instant wealth. The mining, smelting and transporting of lead or "mineral" as the massy ore was simply called, was the very reason southwest Wisconsin was settled. Cotton may have been King in the South but in Mineral Point lead was Supreme. The exhaustion of shallow lead deposits dramatically impacted the prosperity of the region until the early 1880s, when zinc mining and cattle production restored economic stability. By the turn of the century over thirty zinc mines were in full operation in the Mineral Point area and the mines and processing plants were the major industry and chief employer. So it is not surprising that at the time of the Centennial Celebration of 1927, far more importance was given to zinc production than the bygone lead.

Examples of the Mineral Point Centennial Medal appear from time to time at antique shows, estate sales and at auction. The newspaper report of 1927 told that "a large number of Centennial Medals" were made available to the public. My guess is that the old families of Mineral Point have kept these mementos of their Centennial Celebration, and that grandfather to father and mother to daughter have handed down the quaint tokens now, perhaps wrapped in tissue and resting securely in sock drawers, biscuit tins and jewelry boxes. To hold the zinc Centennial Medal in hand is to literally hold a piece of Mineral Point's history.

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Cliff Krainik resides in Warrenton, Virginia. He is a contributing member of the Mineral Point Historical Society Public History Committee.


NOTES:

1. Milwaukee Journal, "The Lead District Passes Century" (Sunday, 3 July
1927).

2. Author's Note: Fort Jackson, named in honor of President Andrew
Jackson, was located near the intersection of present-day Commerce and
Fountain Streets. The wooden fortification was hastily erected during the
Spring of 1832 to serve as a refuge and supply depot during the Black
Hawk War. In May of 2002 a group of historians and concerned citizens
raised a private subscription and through the auspices of the Mineral
Point Historical Society and under the authority of the State of Wisconsin,
placed a permanent marker at the site of Fort Jackson.

3. Iowa County Democrat , "Four Day Centennial And Fair Now Part of
Memorable Past" (11 August 1927), p. 1.

4. Iowa County Democrat , "Permanent Record of Centennial In Zinc Medal
Souvenirs" (28 July 1927), p. 5.

[Larry Koschkee]

Outstanding research and article, Cliff. It immediately gave me the itch to dust off the old metal detector and head for the lawns and park at Mineral Point. And yes, I do repair my divots...

This observation is not intended to detract from this wonderful article, rather to point out a small feature on the medal that could be considered out of place or context.

The tree covered hillock on the observe side of the medal shows the artistic forms of non-deciduous trees, ie, fir or pine. Historical accounts and academia research indicates when Euro-Americans began arriving in the lead district, southwestern Wisconsin was essentially devoid of non-deciduous trees, with only a few relic stands in deep ravines or rock outcroppings that escaped the frequent prairie fires.

The tree next to the miner on the right would have been a good repesentative of the tree species found in the mining district. That being Black and White Oak, Bur Oak or a mighty Shag-bark Hickory.

Once again, a great article... thanks for brining into my home.

Larry Koschkee

[Cliff Krainik]

Hi Larry - aka EAGLE-EYES,

Thank you for your acute observations regarding the flora of Territorial Michigan as it was misrepresented on the 1927 Mineral Point Zinc Centennial Medal. I wonder who drew the vignette and when it was created. As you probably know, the illustration on the medal is, in fact, the corporate design for the city of Mineral Point, Wisconsin. I'll check with M.P. to see if they can provide any information.

I suggest you dust off your metal detector and head for Mineral Point. A word of warning - Bob Camardo not only has a lotta guns he sports a few 19th century cannons as well - best to stay clear of his claim.

I'm glad you liked the article.

Cliff

[Larry Koschkee]

Cliff, I definately do want to develope a reputation for claim jumping, but would convince Camardo to allow me to go over ground he has already covered. Camardo spent days searching what I consider a rich First American village site along the Wisconsin River in Crawford County known locally as "Wright's Ferry." I went over the site after he did and picked up artifacts that he said he could not find.

Camardo and guns!.... well on second thought maybe I will not enter that rough and tumble mining town after all... not because I am concerned about him shooting me but him shooting himself in the foot, which would make me feel sorrow for causing an accident.

Larry

[Cliff Krainik]

A dear friend in Madison wrote to me -

"Cliff:

Interesting observation Larry made about that deciduous versus non-deciduous landscape. Of course he is absolutely right - the pine forests in Wisconsin don't start until you get north to Wausau. Perhaps the designer of the medallion/MP logo was engaging in wishful thinking - expressing the hope citizens wished for more trees in Mineral Point? Or, maybe he was thinking in more global terms reflecting the fact that historic Mineral Point had a territorial/state significance not enjoyed by any other community? It will be interesting to learn what your research tells you. But from my reading I seem to remember that shipping of pine logs to Chicago from Northern Wisconsin and the development of the lumber trade in that city began as early as the 1840's. It might even be possible that if someone had been so foresighted to keep the early records of the MP Railroad we would be able to discover that shipments of pine boards from Northern Wisconsin via Chicago might well have been among the early cargo of that soon to be memorialized enterprise. In any case, I am hoping the famous "Pine-tree Discrepancy" turns out to be other than just a flat-out mistake."

Cliff Krainik

[Larry Koschkee]

Cliff,

I like the way your Madison friend thinks. That person is "thinking out of the box" in suggesting interpretive ideas of the medal.

Please allow me to comment on a point that was made. "A dear friend wrote:"

"...The pine forests in Wisconsin don't start until you get north to Wausau."

Actually, there were marketable pine timber stands south of the 44th parallel in Wisconsin at the time of Euro-American settlement... as far south as 43 degrees 30.' (1) Along the Baraboo River. The city of Baraboo was home to a thriving pine lumber business for a short while until the supply of pine was exhausted giving way to flour and woolen mills.

(2) The Kickapoo River Watershed. Starting in present day Forest Township, Richland County, Wisconin and continuing north into the townships of Star and Whitestown of Vernon County, Wisconsin, thence north thru the Monroe County, Wisconsin townships of Sheldon, Wellington and Wilton. To quote an early explorer of this watershed... "The Kickapoo extending into the southern reaches of the great Wisconsin pineries had rich stretches of giant red and whitge pines on the hills and bench lands, tamarack swamps and cranberry marshes in lowland places and occasional dense groves of hemlock, spruce, balsam and cedar."

The first "Lumber Baron" in Wisconsin, Jared Warner exploited these boreal forest species beginning in 1839. In 1838 Warner and his family came from Ohio in a keel boat named Kickapoo down the Ohio River, up the Mississippi and up the Wisconsin River to a landing site on the banks of the Wisconsin, presently known as Millville, Grant County, Wisconsin. He set up the first pine saw mill in Granty County and the winter of 1839-1840 had logging crews cutting the valuable pine timber in the Kickapoo watershed. He discontinued logging the area about 1849 or 1850 due to a diminishing resource and turned his focus on purchasing log rafts that were now coming down the Wisconsin River from the northern pinery. Warner, eventually a very rich man, sold his sawmill and logging interests just before the Civil War.

Charles Grimesey, a laborer at the flour mill near Warner's sawmills, reported this 1853 picture.

"It is a lovely June day in 1853...we look down across the valley and see the teams loaded with wheat from Blake's Prairie and up around Patch Grove and Whiteside Prairie, unloading their wheat at Kidd's flouring mill and watch the loads of lumber going out from Warner's saw mills. These lumber teams are headed for Patch Grove, Wyalusing, different points on Blake's Prairie, the Whiteside prairie, Fennimore, Lancaster, Mineral Point, Platteville and many other points."

This leads me into asserting the doubt that in the early days of the Mineral Point Railroad it may have transported car loads of lumber from Chicago unless it was special order or exotic material. By the time the short line (1855 or 1856) railroad started local or regional sawmills could supply rough or planned lumber to the region much more efficiently and cheaper than suppliers at Chicago. However, at any rate the hardy miners and settlers welcomed the chance to move from shacks and log cabins into frame. buildings. They rocked their children to sleep in cradles made from white pine slats and buried their dead in coffins made of white pine boards.

Larry

[Larry Koschkee]

A dotted line connection to the presence of pines south of the 44th parallel can be found in Crawford Thayer's book Massacre at Bad Axe, pps 132 - 133.

Phillip St. George Cooke...We emerged on the 31st{actually August 1}from the gloomy forests into the gladsome light of the sun, in an open pine grove, on the bank of a fine little river, which we scarcely knew then to be the Kickapoo

Ninevah Shaw... About twelve o'clock this day, we came to a small river, which was called Kickapooo. We here found that the country was about to change. A short distance before we got to this stream, we came to a beautiful body of pine timber, which was tall and large