P a g e 7 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r Mullen added, "Mining has always had this glittery Powerball mentality. You can strike it rich, even if your chances aren't good." Quivik said some early miners used a series of ladders that descended hundreds of feet into the ground. At the end of the day, when the miners were tired, not everyone made it to the top successfully. Hoists and open cages replaced ladders, but miners sometimes fell or banged into jutting rocks. Power drills and electric lights were advancements that also carried risks, Quivik said. Power drills created more dust, so miners who inhaled too much silica developed the chronic lung disease called silicosis. Many miners were electrocuted after electric lights were installed in underground mines. Other conference speakers discussed the Anaconda smelter and human health and the treatment of miners at the Galen Sanitarium. Brett Walker, head of the Department of History and Philosophy at MSU, compared mining in the West with the Kamioka Mine in Japan. Quivik looked at litigation in the early 1900s involving the Anaconda smelter. The conference ended with a discussion of mining in Libby. The April 24 conference was held at MSU's Museum of the Rockies. It was sponsored by the Volney Steele Endowment for the Study of Medical History, the WWAMI medical education program, MSU's Department of History and Philosophy and the Museum of the Rockies. –Evelyn Boswell, (406) 994-5135 or evelynb@montana.edu, Courtesy of https://www.montana.edu/news Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Helena, MT- Fire Tower. The welfare of the community depended upon this prominent landmark, strategically placed atop the town's most prominent hill. Fire was the grim reaper that stalked all western mining camps, and Last Chance Gulch was no exception. Hastily built log cabins, crowded together along the streets, created a constant hazard. In the mining camp at Last Chance, wind whipping through the gulch was an added danger. The wind could carry burning embers to distant neighborhoods; every miner's cabin had a fire bucket hanging within easy reach. Citizens organized a warning system and built the first fire tower here in 1868. Volunteers took turns scanning the gulch for wisps of smoke where none should be. Ironically, fire destroyed the first tower. This structure, constructed using millwright techniques of beams bolted together, took its place in 1874. The city added a guardroom and bell in 1886. For many years the bell rang the evening curfew for Helena's youngsters. The "Guardian of the Gulch" served the community for nearly seventy years and has become a symbol of Helena's early history and resilient citizens. -National Register of Historic Places in Cooperation with www.mtmemory.org
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