From the Road
The Keweenaw was a land tamed by steam. The rise of steam power in the nation corresponded with the rise of the copper mines in this region, resulting in a celebrated use of these technological beasts of burden. Steam engines were used in all aspects of the industry. They were used to hoist rock out of the mine, pump water out of the mine, run the trains, power the machine shops, and crush the ore at the stamp mills. All these engines required boilers that drank up water in gallon gulps. Then there were the stamp mills themselves. Stamping required the use of an even greater amount of water (much more than any single boiler) to separate the copper from the rock, and to wash the stamp sand away.
The Keweenaw needed a constant and dependable source of water to quench this industrial thirst. In order to meet that need, dozens of dams were built all over the copper country, blocking up streams and creeks along the way. Most of these were small endeavors, made from earth, timbers, or masonry. There was however a few dams that were a bit more ambitious. In the copper country two of these immense structures remain – Victoria and Redridge.
Sitting along the shore of Lake Superior, nested between the red cliffs that gave the area its name, sit the stamp mills of the Baltic and Atlantic Mines. These two mills used over 25 million gallons of water each day, requiring the need for a large reservoir to supply the mills with water. A small crib dam - built along the Salmon Trout River some miles inland - proved inadequate for these needs and a second, larger, dam was built. The result was the Steel Dam that exists today, creating a 600 million gallon reservoir that provided more than enough water to the mills. The mills and the reservoir may not exist today, but the enormous structure of the dam still remains.
As we pass the small ( and hardly noticeable ) town of Redridge, we can see a large rust-metal structure on our left was we cross the river. It is only a glimpse, as it disappears behind the trees as we pass. We pull over on a side road slightly up the road and get out to get a closer look.
A good question, however, is why the mills didn’t just use the water from adjacent Lake Superior? That would have surely supplied enough water to easily satisfy any mill’s needs. The Mohawk Mill at Gay, and Champion Mill at Freda didn’t have large dams or reservoirs to supply their water needs. Perhaps it was an issue with pumping the water up from the lake - since the water was fed to the Mills from the dam on gravity alone.
explorer | September 27, 2006
The champion mill, I think, had an intake tunnel driven in the sandstone under the lake to furnish water. The cheaps path of least resistance is probably what determined the source of water.
alvin | February 13, 2007
Alvin - You’d think almost anything was cheaper then building and maintaining a dam (specially of this size). Perhaps mine companies learned their lesson from Redridge and decided against that route in the future. Or perhaps the sandstone along the shore there made a pipe too difficult to lay, but not so much down the road at Freda. But I agree with you, economics probably played the biggest role in the method finally chosen.
explorer | February 13, 2007
Did you get any pictures of the origional Redridge dam (the wood one)? It would be interesting to see how the area looks 2 years after the DEQ destroyed it.
Joe Dase | February 14, 2007
Joe - I didn’t get many of the wood dam, but I did shoot a panoramic of both the dams together. You can view it here. I also have some video of the old dam and the newly formed falls that crest it here, but be warned the file is large.
I had never been at the old dam until that time I went for Explorer. It definitely looked as if the top of the dam was ripped off, and the lake level was obviously much lower then it had been, but besides that it didn’t look all that bad. I’ll probably try to go back in spring thaw to see how everything holds up.
explorer | February 14, 2007
I used to hunt in this general area back in 90/91 while I was a student at Tech. We used to stop at the dam to check it out each morning before settling in to our hunt…which I think took place down the un-named road that leads to Boy Scout Camp. I remember a trailer/cabin filled with drunk hunters as well as miles to two-tracks that led to the rare old beat up cabin and even the old big dear as well. I have good, yet muddled, memories of exploring that area with my dad and brother.
jb | August 11, 2008
Hey Joe, here’s a link, it has some of the wood dam after it was lowered to keep the Michigan DEQ happy
http://www.copperrange.org/redridge.htm
Gordy Schmitt | August 11, 2008