Bear Canyon mine, Globe, Arizona

The Bear Canyon mine was a chrysotile mine in Gila County, Arizona, worked by companies based at Globe; the U.S. Bureau of Mines placed it "on the San Carlos Indian Reservation."^2,6 A 1930 advertisement in Asbestos, the industry's trade journal, offered "Arizona Asbestos Mines, Bear Canyon, Gila Co.," as "miners of chrysotile asbestos" and "shippers of crudes and spinning fibres."¹ The Bureau's Minerals Yearbook, reporting on 1932, said that "sales were made from stocks on hand" by the Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. at Globe, while the yearbook for 1934 said there had been "no sales from the Bear Canyon mine of the Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. (address Ambler, Pa.) since 1930."^9,10 Later yearbooks list the Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. among Globe companies that made sales of chrysotile in 1937 and 1941.^2,3

The sources name different operators over the following years: writing in Asbestos in 1953, Jack L. Neal of the Arizona Asbestos Producers Association named "the Keasbey & Mattison Company on the Bear Canyon property" among companies that had worked Gila County deposits "in the last decade."⁴ The yearbook listed R. G. Robertson as active at the Bear Canyon mine in 1949 and 1950, and the Bear Canyon Mining Co. of Globe as active from 1951 to 1953 and producing chrysotile in 1954.^{5,6,7,8,11,12} Neal wrote in 1953 that the mine, "operated by D. E. Green and associates until last year," had been "one of the major producers in the Arizona field," and that exploration with the aid of the Defense Minerals Administration had found ore, with "the possibility of the mine and mill to resume operations in the near future."⁴ The producers' association newsletter reported that spring that the Bear Canyon Mining Co. was "in 228 feet" and that "some fibre is being picked up in the North cross cut."¹³

Two sources tell of a change of hands in 1955 differently: the Minerals Yearbook, drawing on Mining World, said that "Jack L. Neal and associates acquired the Bear Canyon asbestos property on the San Carlos Indian Reservation in Arizona under a 10-year leasing agreement."¹⁴ Asbestos reported that "the Metate Asbestos Mines Company of Globe, Arizona, have acquired the Bear Canyon mine and mill," and that "operation of this mine was resumed in August of this year."¹⁵

The documents report this mine producing asbestos fiber for sale.³

Location

Year by year

Every statement about this mine in the documents, in each document's own words, by the year it is about.

1930

• Worked: “Arizona Asbestos Mines, Bear Canyon, Gila Co.: miners of chrysotile asbestos”, said by Bell Asbestos Mines / Arizona Asbestos Mines (advertisement), p. 11¹
• Idle: “There have been no sales from the Bear Canyon mine of the Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. (address Ambler, Pa.) since 1930” (Bear Canyon Asbestos Co.), p. 4¹⁰

1932

• Idle: “No production is recorded for Arizona in 1932. Sales were made from stocks on hand ... by the Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. at Globe” (Bear Canyon Asbestos Co.), p. 4⁹

1937

• Worked: “Sales of chrysotile were made by the ... Bear Canyon Asbestos Co., Globe, Ariz.” (Bear Canyon Asbestos Co.), p. 4²

1941

• Worked: “Sales ... were made by the following companies: ... Bear Canyon Asbestos Co. ... of Globe, Ariz.” (Bear Canyon Asbestos Co.), p. 3³

1943

• Worked: “the Keasbey & Mattison Company on the Bear Canyon property on the San Carlos Indian Reservation” (Keasbey & Mattison Company), said by Jack L. Neal, Secretary, Arizona Asbestos Producers Association, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 14⁴

1949

• Worked: “R. G. Robertson (Bear Canyon mine) (active)” (R. G. Robertson), p. 2⁵

1950

• Worked: “R. G. Robertson ... (Bear Canyon mine on the San Carlos Indian Reservation) (active)” (R. G. Robertson), p. 2⁶

1951

• Worked: “Bear Canyon Mining Co., Globe (active)” (Bear Canyon Mining Co.), p. 2⁷

1952

• Worked: “Bear Canyon Mining Co., P. O. Box 1730, Globe (active)” (Bear Canyon Mining Co.), p. 2⁸
• Idle: “The Bear Canyon mine operated by D. E. Green and associates until last year” (D. E. Green and associates), said by Jack L. Neal, Secretary, Arizona Asbestos Producers Association, as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 18⁴

1953

• Exploration: “they are in 228 feet where they encountered diabase and immediately started their cross cut” (Bear Canyon Mining Co.), said by Arizona Asbestos Producers Association (Newsletter, April 1953), as reported by Asbestos (magazine), p. 46¹³
• Worked: “Bear Canyon Mining Co., P. O. Box 1730, Globe (active)” (Bear Canyon Mining Co.), p. 2¹¹

1954

• Worked: “Bear Canyon Mining Co. (produced chrysotile in the Globe district)” (Bear Canyon Mining Co.), p. 2¹²

1955

• Ownership: “The Metate Asbestos Mines Company of Globe, Arizona, have acquired the Bear Canyon mine and mill” (Metate Asbestos Mines Company), p. 48¹⁵
• Ownership: “Jack L. Neal and associates acquired the Bear Canyon asbestos property ... under a 10-year leasing agreement” (Jack L. Neal and associates), as reported by Mining World, p. 2¹⁴
• Worked: “Operation of this mine was resumed in August of this year” (Metate Asbestos Mines Company), p. 48¹⁵

Other names

Documents call this mine “Bear Canyon mine”, “Bear Canyon Asbestos Co.”, “Bear Canyon asbestos property”, “Arizona Asbestos Mines, Bear Canyon”.

See also

• Asbestos exposure sites in Arizona
• All asbestos mines

References

1. Asbestos Magazine, 1930, January 1930 (January 1, 1930), p. 11.
2. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1938 (January 1, 1939), p. 4.
3. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1941 (January 1, 1942), p. 3.
4. Asbestos Magazine, 1953, October 1953 (October 1, 1953), pp. 14, 18.
5. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1949 (January 1, 1950), p. 2.
6. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1950 (January 1, 1951), p. 2.
7. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1951 (January 1, 1952), p. 2.
8. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1952 (January 1, 1953), p. 2.
9. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1932–33 (January 1, 1934), p. 4.
10. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1934 (January 1, 1935), p. 4.
11. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1953 (January 1, 1954), p. 2.
12. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1954 (January 1, 1955), p. 2.
13. Asbestos Magazine, 1953, May 1953 (May 1, 1953), p. 46.
14. Minerals Yearbook: Asbestos Chapters, 1955 (January 1, 1956), p. 2.
15. Asbestos Magazine, 1955, September 1955 (September 1, 1955), p. 48.