King of the Comstock South : the life, letters, and legacy of Lewis Chalmers
Dustman, Karen2023
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This is the untold story of Lewis Chalmers, a Scottish mining capitalist who spent two decades chasing silver sixty miles south of the original Comstock Lode. In lengthy letters to friends and financiers in London, he chronicled his day-to-day struggles at multiple lodes in the mountains of Alpine County, California - from miners' strikes to fending off a series of financial disasters. In addition to hard-rock silver shafts, Chalmers' ambitious projects included the mammoth Isabella Tunnel, a nearly mile-long venture he promoted as a 'Second Sutro.' Part charming conman, part resourceful entrepreneur, part silver-tongued dreamer, Chalmers wangled funds from influential European friends to keep his mining enterprises going until 1885, when he returned to London. Excerpts from Chalmers' business and personal correspondence provide a detailed record of his adventurous pursuit of silver.
Main title:
Author:
Dustman, Karen, author
Imprint:
Charleston : America Through Time, 2023.
Collation:
224 pages ; 23 cm
ISBN:
9781634994453 (pbk)
Dewey class:
338.274210979443
LC class:
TN413
Local class:
F2 CHA
Language:
English
Subject:
BRN:
3403108