Inyo Register Log

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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Inyo Register
June 30, 1910 - FIRST DATE VIEWED
November 24, 1910 - LAST DATE VIEWED

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An Inyo Register Column Named TABOOSE!
April 16, 1891 - In the column titled TABOOSE. Note: Taboose is (was?) a bulb dug by the local Indians, a staple of their diet. Willie (not William) Chalfant [I thought they called him Bill?] of P. A. Chalfant, founder of the Register started the column when he took over from his father P. A. Anyway, the paper said the Laws School was having a picnic on the banks of the river. Also from the same paper is the closing program for the Laws School. (Was school closing on April 16 in those days?). The program had thirty-seven entries, songs recitations, etc. Ella Huckaby recited "In School Days". Alice recited "The Faithful Little Mother"" Ella and Alice Huckaby did a dialogue together with Minnie and Myrtle McGee, and Katy McNally it was "Persevere". Willie Huckaby recited "Sam'l of Liberty" and Alice did 1 With Harry Ehlen titled "An Old Ballad"... Sounds like a good show and probably took most of the night. Every child in school had a part. Barton McGee, Minnie McGee, Albert McNally, Sanford Plumley, John Dehy, Lottie Schivley, Jas.Dehy, Ed Dehy were the other students. Ella Huckaby recited "Billy Grimes, the Drover.” (Inyo Register)

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6/30/1910 – Advertisement for White Smith, Attorney at Law, Notary Public (same advetertisement as listed on 9/1/1910 below) – Exact word-for-word transcription of the ad: Bishop, Cal. Loans Negotiated. Farms for rent, sale, or exchange. Property taken charge of. Titles examined; abstracts furnished; rents collected, taxes paid, etc., for residents and outside parties. Have Stock Ranches of from 1000 to 10,000 Acres. Choice property and easy terms. WHITE SMITH, Attorney at Law, Bishop, Cal. [shows that everyone was presumed to know the location of White Smith’s law office, as there is no address or phone number listed]

9/1/1910 – TO DEVELOP WEALTH OF SALINE – Salt to be Pumped in Solution Across Mountain Range to Swansea.—Project Approved by Investigators (long feature length article – 17 long paragraphs with extensive detail; each paragraph is numbered and summarized below).

Summary:
1. The enterprise of marketing Saline Valley salt has begun, and should be large.
2. The salt is the purest known, even compared to other salt sources AFTER purification; however, getting it out of the valley is the biggest obstacle.
3. Leffingwell, prompted by questions from White Smith, have devised a clever transportation solution: pumping salt in solution over the Whites.
4. A year or two ago, Tennessee investors were exposed by Salt Deposit claim owners Fred and White Smith to the possibility of exploiting those deposits.
5. The Tennessee contingent was convinced of the success of such an enterprise, and felt assured of a successful enterprise, given the certainty of the quality and quantity of the available salt.
6. The salt bed is large and pure, based on lab analysis.
7. Saline Valley salt is purer as it lays on the ground, than the purest salt sourced from the Ohio Valley after it has been purified.
8. Different brands of salt currently on the market were bought and tested against SV salt, and found to have visual impurities that the SV salt lacked.
9. At the SouthWest corner of Saline Lake, the salt is found in a solution of at least 25% (a conservative measurement) that is pure and clear salt and water.
10. The supply of pure SV salt is so vast as to be nearly inexhaustible, having been tested in a shaft sunk to 30 feet with the bottom still salt.
11. At 18 miles from railroad spur to SV over the White Mountains, a 4 inch steel pipe is proposed to carry the salt brine over the mountains, using Worthington triplex style pumps in a series of concrete tanks, each 800 feet higher elevation than the one before it; at the discharge, the brine will be distributed into evaporating tanks (similar to use at the soda works); daily delivery of salt expected to be 100 tons per day (a conservative figure); at the fields, water pipes will insure a constant supply of brine.
12. Cost per ton is expected to be $5 to $6 per ton for delivery to Los Angeles, and White Smith has obtained an offer of $18 per ton for all he can deliver to San Francisco; 30,00 carloads [train car loads?] of salt delivered yearly is expected.
13. Power required to drive the electric pumps is over 400 horsepower, although the falling brine can be made to develop almost _ of this necessary power.
14. The cost of the pipeline-based plan is approximately $750,000, and is to be raised by selling shares of SVSC, an Arizona Corporation, 1 million shares at $1 each, with 2 to 3 hundred thousand kept in the treasury, and the balance sold in share of at least 100 shares.
15. There will be plenty of west coast demand for salt of SV’s high quality, as other sources (Michigan, Ohio, New York – even England) are both of inferior quality and have much higher production and transportation costs.
16. If salt were a mining proposition, you couldn’t issue stock certificates fast enough; considering that the pure salt had both unlimited, high quality availability, and a competitive price advantage [what could go wrong?].
17. The proposition should be so appealing to “thinking investors” that it should be “speedily” capitalized.

9/1/1910 – Advertisement for White Smith, Attorney at Law, Notary Public (same advetertisement as listed on 6/30/1910 above).

9/1/1910 - Advertisement for Fred R. Smith, White Smith’s brother. Exact word-for-word transcription of the ad: Fred R. Smith, Notary Public. Office in White Smith’s law office, Bishop. [shows that everyone was presumed to know the location of White Smith’s law office, as there is no address or phone number listed]

9/1/1910 – Excursionists [article not directly related to the Salt Tram, but of some interest]. Except for Forbe’s auto, starting from Independence, and Hay’s from Lone Pine, all the machines going down to meet the Governor and party were from Bishop, including those of … W. W. Watterson, Will L. Smith, … The travelers in these cars were Mr. & Mrs. Leffingwell, …, Mssrs. W.W. Watterson, …, H. B. Smith, E. E. Smith, W. W. Yandell, W. A. Chalfant

11/17/1910 LARGEST TRANSFER YET – Smith Bros. Ranch about to Change Ownership for $100,000 or so. 3 paragraph article details sale of “large realty holdings” of White, E. E., and F. R. Smith of a tract midway between Bishop and Big Pine, containing 2,640 acres. [shows that White Smith was a major player in the local real estate wheeling and dealing market].

11/24/1910 – Saline Tramway (short feature length article – one long paragraph). Complete article: Arthur Morton, general sales agent for the coast for the Trenton Iron Co., of Trenton, New Jersey, arrived Monday, and in company with F. R. and E. E. Smith has gone to Saline Valley. The company he represents, a subsidiary concern of U. S. Steel Co., builds tramways and has a long record of success. One of its lines, in the Argentine Republic, is 26 miles long. It is the company’s boast that not one of its cables has yet been broken. Mr. Morton’s trip here has to do with installation of a tramway for the Saline Valley Salt Co. The original plan of pumping the salt in solution across the White Mountains has given way to a tram proposition, the latter having several advantages, including economy of operation. The Trenton company installs its lines under a positive guarantee of their efficiency.

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click to go to SALT TRAM HOME

Origin of the Elusive "Go-Devil"

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
As the years pass, researching the true story of the Salt Tram is getting more difficult, as the abundant photos and written first hand accounts from that era find their way into landfills (instead of museums). We  are striving to rediscover the efforts of those who built and ran the Salt Tram, in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories.  
We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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Lewis of GhostTownExplorers recently piqued my interest with a comment about the Go-Devil, a sled-type device used by the Salt Tram builders to drag heavy equipment large distances, pulling and dragging them into their final resting places amongst the Salt Tram line. Lewis mentioned the possibility of actually finding remnants of the actual device itself, although it is not clear whether more than one Go-Devil was actually deployed by White Smith’s many crews. This led us to be more determined than ever to re-walk the entire Salt Tram route, including the power pole routes, in order to seek out seldom-seen remnants of the Salt Tram builders. This is a possibility, given the spread-out nature of the Salt Tram over 13.5 miles of absolute wild country that is seldom, if every, explored.

Interestingly, of the few photos we have of the Go-Devil, it is shown in various configurations, either indicating that there was more than one of them, or that they were reconfigured at-will by the crews for the task at hand. Photo 1 (courtesy of the Eastern California Museum) shows the Go-Devil with an electric motor for the Salt Tram being hoisted by a gas motor powered hoist, probably from Saline Valley up to Control Station I.

This also led me to be curious about the origins of the so-called Go-Devil. Turns out, all you have to do is google “Go-Devil” and the internet almost literally shouts out “The Go-Devil” was a crude sled used in the early timber industry in the Western states, when manpower was the only tool they had to deploy. The timber industry in the Western United States started in large-scale with the advent of the Gold Rush, when 150,000 white Europeans descended upon a wild land with no infrastructure whatsoever. The first lumberjacks deployed hand tools for felling and sawing lumber, as well as beasts of burden, mostly oxen, to drag the lumber from the forest to the crude hand-saw mills of the day. In this scenario was born the original use of the term “Go-Devil” to represent a natural Y-shaped tree where a few cross pieces of lumber were used to create a bed in which to cradle one end of a branch-stripped log was placed, and attached with a heavy chain to a horse or oxen team for transport to the mill. See Photo 2 & 3 (click on them for a larger version; photo 2 mentions the Go Devil in the first paragraph; photo 3 shows the earliest Go Devil design known on the West Coast). Go-devil's were the predecessors of modern day log skidders.







































As expected, the original crude “Go-Devil” evolved quickly on the American West lumber scene in the 1860’s into something much more sophisticated than “finding a sturdy log with a crotch, and tacking some wood across it, and attaching it to a chain”. More sophisticated Go-Devils were developed by the lumber industry, culminating in the addition of wheels for dragging over more rugged landscape, as shown by this steel Go-Devil, also used to drag lumber, in more sophisticated (and later) times. See Photo 3.





















The term “Go-Devil” picked up other uses based on its well-known status as a reliable tool in the early lumber trade. For instance, there was spawned a similar device used on snow, also called a Go-Devil and used into modern times, as you can see in Photo 4 depicting a large ship receiving supplies in a sled caravan pulled over ice (the caption for this photo is “Offloading cargo onto D-2 at dawn on go devil sleds at McMurdo Sound, January 26, 1956"). In addition, a popular child’s snow sled was labeled and marketed as a “Go-Devil”, with obvious ties to the original device of the lumbermen. More tangentially, a speed boat and motor was developed with the Go-Devil brand, as well as a more general term used to indicate that something was fast or unusually effective. Referencing Dictionary.com, we find the definition of “Go-Devil” as follows: (1) a flexible, jointed apparatus forced through a pipeline to free it from obstructions; (2) a dart dropped into a well, especially an oil well, to explode a charge of dynamite or nitroglycerin previously placed in a desired position; (3) a hand car deployed on railroads; (4) a sled used to drag or carry logs, stone, etc.; (5) also called a sled cultivator, one that rides on wood runners and used on listed furrows.

















As unique as the Salt Tram’s Go-Devil may seem to be, its basic design has been used for centuries by native American Indians of the West. Originally pulled by domesticated dogs that were native to North America, they were later hitched to horses by the Indians to pull larger loads. Instead of the term “Go-Devil”, they were termed “Travois” by the French in early American, which was defined at the time by the Canadian French (from French word travail as a frame for restraining horses, and also the obsolete travoy or travoise) as a frame used by indigenous peoples, notably the Plains Indians of North America, to drag loads over land. See Photo 5 of a Cheyenne family using a horse-drawn travois, 1890. Also see Photo 6, a modern photo depicting the “Dog Travois” that was used by American Indians and witnessed very early on in North American history by the Spanish conquerors and noted in their journals.


















The basic construction of the Native American travois consists of a platform or netting mounted on two long poles, lashed in the shape of an elongated isosceles triangle; the frame was dragged with the sharply pointed end forward. Sometimes the blunt end of the frame was stabilized by a third pole bound across the two main poles. The travois was dragged by hand, sometimes fitted with a shoulder harness for more efficient dragging, or dragged by dogs or horses (after the sixteenth-century introduction of horses by the Spanish). A travois could either be loaded by piling goods atop the bare frame and tying them in place, or by first stretching cloth or leather over the frame to hold the load to be dragged. Although considered more primitive than wheel-based forms of transport, on the type of territory where the travois was used (forest floors, soft soil, snow, etc.), rather than roadways, wheels would encounter difficulties which make them a less efficient option. As such they found use in New France's fur trade by Coureurs des bois, who traded notably with the Plains Tribes. Boy Scouts and similar groups still receive instruction on how to build a travois and it is suggested as a method of transporting a sick or wounded companion when the option of leaving the patient cannot be considered. It is possible for a person to transport more weight on a travois than can be carried on the back.


















See also:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travois

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click to go to SALT TRAM HOME

Inyo Independent: February 24, 1911 article

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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QUESTION1: What is an electric road? (to understand this question, please keep reading - and yes, if you have an answer, please click on COMMENTS below and let us know - thanks!).

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The Inyo Independent ran this article on page 2 of the Friday, February 24, 1911 Edition. Strangely, on the microfilm, this article was INSANELY fuzzy and nearly impossible to read. However, through readjusting the focus on different section of the article in the microfilm reader,
and then printing portion out at different zoom levels, we were able to read it. Because of this, I retyped the article for future (easy) reference. And since I have it already in a word document, it is easy to reproduce here as example of the type of Feature-Length articles we found about the Salt Tram in the Inyo Independent. Note that similar articles in its (assumed) rival over in Bishop, the Inyo Register, were more detailed and thorough.

I'm a photo guy, and I feel bad that there are no images or photos in this blog post to create interest, so I looked through our 46 photos from the research trip in November, 2009, to see if there were any of ME doing research, but no, only of the others since, of course, I'm the photographer! Instead, here's a photo I took on one of our morning walks around Indy before the library and courthouse opened. On the west side of the Salt Tram, they would always have a stunning view of the Sierras, that might look like this!



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Inyo Independent Article
Friday, February 24, 1911 Edition
(note that I bolded key parts of the article for emphasis and easy reference).
SALINE VALLEY SALT COMPANY TO START IMMEDIATELY
Surveys for the Tramway of the Saline Valley Salt Company to start next week – electric road to Saline a possibility

Article Summary: The route survey for the tram to begin next week (approximately the beginning of March, 2011). Sufficient money raised (over $200,000 subscribed in stock with more to come) to build the tram. Tram manufacturer guarantees it will work perfectly. Tram will save money compared to railroad transportation ($2.50 per ton to Los Angeles via tram, compared to $11 per ton by train for salt from Michigan). Electric road also being considered, but unlikely.

Within another week the first surveys for the building of the tram of the Saline Valley Salt company will be begun and they will be completed as soon as it is possible. Engineers will be put to work to find the best route for bringing the immense deposits of salt in Saline valley to this side of the White Mountains.

The company has already raised enough money to be positive that they will have no trouble in carrying out the work as they plan it. Over two hundred thousand dollars of the stock has been subscribed and the balance of the amount they wish to raise will be subscribed within a short time. At present much of the stock is being bought by Inyo county people who realize that this is one of the best investments that has been put before the people here for a long time. The tram will be completed as fast as possible and as soon as it is finished the greater part of the fine salt used in the west will come from Saline Valley.

W. H. Leffingwell and N. J. Cooley recently returned from Salt Lake City, where they spent some time in looking over the workings of the different trams in that part of the country. They were more than pleased with the way the trams worked, and it was demonstrated to them that there is no reason at all why a tramway at the present stage of perfection cannot be made an entire success in carrying this salt over the White Mountains.

The manufacturers of these trams are willing to put them in and guarantee them to work perfectly. The latest model of tram will deliver the salt over the mountains for 50 cents per ton. This with a two dollar railroad rate to Los Angeles will make the transportation rate to Los Angeles $2.50 per ton, or saving of $11 per ton in transportation charges alone between Saline Valley salt and Michigan salt laid down in Los Angeles. The saline salt is the purest in the world, and is practically inexhaustible, so that with even the saving of part of this difference in freight rates for profit, it can easily be seen the enormous profits that the Saline Valley Salt Company will earn.

The perfection of tram as now constructed can easily be understood when one tramway in Utah at the present time delivers 3600 pounds of ore per minute, using only 3 men to run it.

Another mode of transporting the salt is under advisement at the present time, outside capital being interested in it. This consists in building an electric road either from Keeler or Olancha, passing near Darwin, and then to within eight miles of the salt fields. A spur would be run directly into the fields. This road would also handle all the ore from that district. While this later method is under advisement it is probable that the Salt Company will not seriously consider it as they are satisfied the tram will be an entire success, and the cost of transportation by railroad would be higher. The only reason for considering the proposition at all is because it would open up by railroad a country that has long needed railroad transportation.

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click to go to SALT TRAM HOME

Inyo Independent Log

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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Brian, you take the Inyo Independent:
Sue and I will take the Inyo Register. Dates we have covered in the Inyo Independent: 1/28/1910 - 6/21/1912. First cover 6/21/1912 - end of 1916, then cover 1/1/1909 - 1/28/1910, then cover 1917 - 1932!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In the Inyo Independent, we have already covered 1/28/1910 - 6/21/1912 (note that there is a missing date that we didn't cover, but might be mixed in with the others 3/31/1911 – MISSING EDITION).


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Inyo Independent, Independence, Calif. 
January 28, 1910 - FIRST DATE VIEWED
June 21, 1912 - LAST DATE VIEWED 

Note about “Around Town” column. This column appears to be in every edition of the paper, and we did NOT print every time that White Smith or other prominent characters to the Salt Tram story were mentioned. The appearance here is somewhat arbitrary, in that initially, we were very excited to see White Smith and others mentioned at all, then it become commonplace, then boring, even, and a bit tedious to keep printing this out when it didn’t really say much. For the times when we did print it out, it is listed in this index.


January 28, 1910 - FIRST DATE VIEWED


1/28/1910 – Around Town (Atty. White Smith of Bishop in town on legal business); Interesting note: In this particular issue, the column is NOT called “Around Town” like it is later.


4/29/1910 – Around Town (W. W. Yandell, White Smith in town from Bishop); Interesting note: In this particular issue, the column is NOT called “Around Town” like it is later.


4/29/1910 – Watterson vs. Owens River Canal Company lawsuit set for trial on 4/27/1910 (length: 1 long paragraph)


6/17/1910 – Around Town (T. G. Watterson, M. Q. Watterson, White Smith, Esq., P. W. Forbes and others, in town from Bishop)


8/26/1910 – Republican County convention, attended by N. J. Cooley, Geo. Watterson, G. A. Albright. W. L. Smith and others; Cooley and W. L. Smith mentioned elsewhere as being on an executive committee in adjacent column.


9/2/1910 – 3 articles of mild interest on this page. “Many Autos” (long 1 paragraph article on page 1 that discusses various local celebrities coming into Independence to meet the “Governor” – which I assume to mean the Governor of California, which according to Wikipedia, in 1911 was James Gillett – a Republican; among those meeting the Governor were Mr. & Mrs. W. H. Leffingwell, W. W. Watterson, Will Smith in the same car with W. A. Chalfant, famous photographer A. A. Forbes, W. W. Yandell and others). An adjacent article mentions the estate of Pat Reddy, a mining pioneer in nearby Darwin. Another adjacent article notes the grand opening of Big Pine Union High School in nearby Big Pine.


9/9/1910 - “Another Great Enterprise for Inyo: Eastern Capitalists To Develop the Greatest Salt Deposits In the Word – Work To Begin Immediately – Big Thing For Entire County”. Long, 10 paragraph, feature-length article on Page 1 about the Salt Tram, containing excellent data and detail re: the Salt Tram; discusses the pumping of Salt Brine in a 4 inch pipe over the Inyos (which they still called the White Mountains) instead of the tram.


9/23/1910 - 3 articles of interest in this edition.
“A NEW ROUTE FOR RAILROAD - Engineers Now Making a Survey to Run Railroad Through Mazourka Canyon. Summary: The Southern Pacific Railroad will probably be built through Mazourka Canyon [located just East of Independence and just North of Kearsarge] skirting the north edge of Saline Valley. Engineers are now at work making surveys of the proposed new route. [I don’t think this every happened?]


TO HAVE ELECTRIC LIGHTS: Within Forty Days Independence Will Have Streets and Houses Lighted by Electricity”. Feature length page 1 article with 4 paragraphs. Summary: Discusses completion of lighting for the streets of Independence “with electricity to be furnished by the Los Angeles Aquaduct”. The city agreed to furnish and maintain 2 [wow!] lights, with the citizens in attendance willing to supply and maintain at least 10 more. The lights will be 32 candle power. For street lighting, the city will charge $10 a year for each light. Supervisors also agreed to pay for 2 more lights for the courthouse yard outside the jail. Independence citizens have already put up $500 to run power lines into town. “The power will come from both Division Creek and Cottonwood Creek”. Citizens were left to negotiate the running of power to their individual homes. [wow!].


“PROPOSED NEW ROAD TO SALINE VALLEY”. Feature length article of 3 paragraphs. Summary: County board of supervisors to build a new road [was there an old road?] to serve the “mining properties” in that region. Also, “As soon as the Saline Valley salt works start building, which will be in the near future, they will need a road over which to haul the heavy machinery and pipe which it will be necessary for them to ship into that country.” Article does not indicate whether the they are talking about North Pass or South Pass, though I suspect North Pass, because that is the actual road that they used to transport Salt Tram building material to the Salt Lake, and I believe that South Pass was not built until much later? The road will cost about $1,500 if it can be shown that it will help that section “to the warrant the expenditure”. “There is little doubt that the supervisors will assist in building it”. Action on this item will be taken up again at the next meeting on October 3d.


10/7/1910 – Around Town (Supervisors Cooley and McBride in town for supervisor’s meeting)


10/28/1910 – Supervisor Cooley to Run – The Many Friends of N. J. Cooley Have Persuaded Him to Qualify for Another Term if Elected Nov. 8th (long 5 paragraph article on Cooley, he was Director and on the Finance and Executive Committee of the SVSC)


11/11/1910 – ad for buying stock in Saline Valley Salt – 1st notice – W. H. Leffingwell, Sales Agent for Owens Valley, Bishop, CA
11/18/1910 – ad for buying stock in Saline Valley Salt – 2bd notice – W. H. Leffingwell, Sales Agent for Owens Valley, Bishop, CA
11/25/1910 – ad for buying stock in Saline Valley Salt – last notice – W. H. Leffingwell, Sales Agent for Owens Valley, Bishop, CA


12/2/1910 – zip


12/9/1910 – Rev. S. S. Patterson performed marriage in Bishop


12/16/1910 – zip


12/23/1910 – (feature length article) To Build Line Down Valley – The Nevada-California Power Company Will Soon Begin Constructing New power Line Through Owens Valley (the Saline Valley Salt Company will be a big user of power); white smith in town; new highways – salt co.; $18 million in California highways – debate re: should Inyo lobby for some of it?


12/30/1910 – zip


1/20/1911 – White Smith in town& expects to begin building tramway shortly; W. H. Leffingwell mentioned


2/24/1911 – (feature length article) Saline Valley Salt Company to Start Immediately – Surveys for the Tramway of the Saline Valley Salt Compay to Start Next Week – Electric Road to Saline a Possibility; around town: White Smith in town


3/3/1911 – White Smith in town from Lone Pine via auto & left on the train for the north


3/24/1911 – Ned Smith came to Bishop to get pack animals to be used for salt tram survey, starting Weds in Owenyo


3/24/1911 – (feature length article) Saline Valley Salt Co. Survey Started (7 paragraphs). Summary: Preliminary surveys for the tram line started this week to determine the best route; at least 4 routes will be run to decide the most feasible route. With this start, Inyo will soon supply the world with a large portion ofher salt, the purest that has ever been found, and may give rise to other resource development in the county. The company is almost fully financed, with shares being sold to local Inyo residents, so that they can share in this enterprise that “cannot fail to be profitable”. The days of wondering whether they could finance the proposition are over, with many outside buyers being refused an opportunity to buy the last remaining shares, which were being reserved for the locals. Tramway expected to be running in October, 1911 [what a whopper!], as it will go up very quickly once the route is chosen; it will be built in “about” 6 sections [actually, 5 sections in the end]. Inyo county men stepped forward to undertake such a big project, and deserve to reap the benefits of their boldness. As it is being financially structured, control of the enterprise will be largely held locally [probably another huge lie] and the returns used to finance other large Inyo projects.


3/31/1911 – MISSING EDITION


4/7/1911 – Will L. Smith, Bishop retail store advertisement (same Will Smith that is the salt tram “Secretary”? or the one that slit his throat?; believe that it is Will Smith of the Salt Tram)


4/21/1911 – (feature length article) Salt Co. Starts Operations [6 paragraphs]. Summary: Preliminary work in organization and financing is completed; route still needs to be chosen, but once it is, work will start in “ernest”. Leffingwell, Morton, Wickham (tram engineers) and assistants arrived from the north by train and headed out to look over the proposed routes. Camps have been “made” in the White Mountains to support picking out the best Salt Tram route. SVSC is gonna be huge, as there is always a good market for salt [yeah, but at what price?]. Inyo locals have invested heavily, and they are so conservative that they would never invest without thorough due diligence. The officers of the company are all locals and in high standing, and insures a business-like management for the stockholders.


4/21/1911 – (Around Town) Independence now has street lights. Main Street is now well lighted with electricity and reports state that in the near future that arc lights will be put on the back streets.[entire article, word for word]


4/28/11 – around town: White Smith of Bishop is looking after business matters in Independence


5/19/1911 – Will L. Smith, W. H. Leffingwell, and White Smith were in Independence the first week after a trip to the Saline Valley Salt fields.


5/26/1911 – zip


6/2/1911 – (shorter feature length article) Construction to Begin Soon (5 paragraphs). Summary: Actual construction will begin in mid July, 1911 and will be pushed as fast as possible; before fall the tram will be in “working order”. Wickham returned home to Trenton, New Jersey with all the data he needs to determine the best route for the tram, with construction to commence after route selection. Men are presently “running lines” on all routes, so that when the route is selected, the surveys would all have been completed and ready for construction. A good market for the salt has been found, so it is only a matter of waiting for the salt to be “delivered on this side”. All of the stock from the east that has not been sold has been called is, as the company is fully financed and “desires to sell no more”.


6/2/1911 – Around Town: W. W. Watterson and Mr. Johnson, representing the Deere Implement [unreadable word] made a trip down from Bishop by auto Weds.


6/2/1911 – Around Town: Mrs. White Smith and daughter Margaret have spent past week in Independence while Mr. Smith in San Francisco on business trip


6/2/1911 - List of Delinquent Purchasers of School Lands in Inyo County due 1/1/1911 – [not sure what this is, given that the newspaper date is 6/2/1911 and the so-called delinquent list is dated 1/1/1911, but will take at face value that this was some sort of sale of public lands to private investors, and that Will L. Smith, Elsle Watterson, and Eliabeth Watterson bought some, and at a point in time, 1/1/1911, their payments to the government entity that sold them the land were in delinquency]. Will L. Smith: principle paid $160; unpaid principal $640; interest paid $81.88; Elsle Watterson: principle paid $130; unpaid principal $520; interest paid $66.53; Elizabeth Watterson: principle paid $160; unpaid principal $640; interest paid $29.70.


6/9/1911 – Around Town: White smith came to bishop by auto; Will Smith passed through Independence on Salt Tram business


6/16/1911 – zip


6/23/1911 – (feature length article) “SALINE VALLEY SALT COMPANY, Telephone line Now Completed Between Swansea and Saline Valley – Tram Construction to Begin Soon (9 paragraphs). Summary: Much preliminary work has been done and work is progressing satisfactorily. A telephone line has been built from Swansea to Saline Valley and is in working order [if so, this would be amazing, unless work on the telephone and power line was begun much earlier; this is unlikely, however, as the power line / phone line route, which runs parallel to the Salt Tram – at least on the East side – which means that the route was already selected; from the Google Earth Photos, it would appear the timber-cleared path for the power lines is as wide as that of the Salt Tram, which is probably 50 feet or more; that’s a lot of tree clearing! Since Wickham – see below – is still working on the route, it is unlikely that the final power pole route has been completed; perhaps they just ran a long wire from Swansea to Saline Valley on the ground to serve as a temporary communication mechanism, which would be sorely needed during construction]; several stations along the route of the line have been connected and will save much time [wish I knew what this statement meant, as it is significant; assuming station refers to control stations, and perhaps the 6 circuits alluded to previously, which got reduced to 5 in the final design, are what is being referenced; the time saved may be the time saved due to one less station in the design layout]. A great part of the trail and road have been fixed and within a short time, all will be done. Wickham is still working on the best route. At a recent stockholder meeting, the following officers were elected: White Smith (President), T. G. Scales (VP), F. R. Smith (Treasurer), Directors: White Smith, N. J. Cooley, Will L. Smith, Geo. D. Ferrell, T. G. Scales, J. A. Goodman, E. E. Smith, F. R. Smith, W. W. Yandell, Finance and Executive Committee: Will L. Smith, N. J. Cooley, White Smith. Currently, about 30 men are doing preliminary work, with construction expected to begin 7/15/1911 [construction actually began 9/1/1911, about 1.5 months later than expected on this date]. Company is fully financed with no stock left on the market, although they are receiving many offers. The company is doing a great job in developing “one of the biggest enterprises in this country”.


6/23/1911 – Around Town: Fred Smith [brother of White Smith] of Bishop was at the county seat Weds. White Smith, president of the SVSC, came down to the county seat last evening and will spend several days here on business connected with the company.


6/30/1911 – A Sad Happening – Will Smith of Big Pine tried to slit his throat with a razor blade, but survived in critical injuries. Will L. Smith, the Salt Tram guy, lived in Bishop, so this must be a different Will Smith, though it does present an interesting saga to us, as it is reported several times in the II.


7/7/1911 – zip


7/14/1911 – Around Town: Will L. Smith of Bishop, was at the county seat Weds, ib gus way to Swansea, where he was going on business connected with the Saline Valley Salt Company.


7/14/1911 - General Expenses listing [assumedly for the county?]. Listings as follows: W. L. Smith, constable service [law enforcement?] $4.00; W. A. Chalfant, printing $200.85; W. L. Smith, constable service $52.45; W. L. Smith, supplies $4.50; W. L. Smith, supplies $6.50 [note that these selected listings wree among a large listing of suppliers – we selected just those names that we knew to be associated with the Salt Tram]; further on in the listing we find this under “Road Dist. No. 5” Resignation of W. L. Smith, Constable of the 2nd Township read, mition make and carried that action be deferred until next regular meeting.


7/21/1911 – Around Town: W. H. Leffingwell and W. L. Smith passed through Independence Monday on their way from Swansea to Bishop


7/21/1911 – Adjudged Insane – Will L. Smith Jr. of Big Pine, who cut his throat and also cut his wife badly… [once again, the Will L. Smith – of Bishop - of the Salt Tram is different from the Will L. Smith “Jr.” – of Big Pine – who slit his own throat as well as that of his wife, though it had us going for a while].


8/18/1911 – zip


9/1/1911 – (short article) Supplies Arriving for Tram. Article in full: Yesterday, the first of the supplies for building of the tram way of the SVSC arrived on the ground and work will begin immediately. The first shipment was mostly lumber, some machinery being included. From now on the rest will arrive as fast as possible and the men at the head of affairs will lose no time in pushing the work. At Swansea a house will be erected immediately for use of the company.[critical information – construction materials for the SVSC have arrived and work will commence immediately].


9/1/1911 – interesting article not related directly to the SVSC, except as it might pertain to Patterson’s diary, where he makes an entry “Voted Dry”. More Whiskey Cases: Warrants were sworn out in Bishop yesterday against … of Lone Pine, accused of selling liquor, contrary to county ordinance. [this confirms that Inyo County was dry at that time of the Patterson Diary entry – date?????????].


9/1/1911 – another interesting article not related directly to the SVSC at all: The Cyty quartz mill in the Funeral Range is expected to start crushing ore shortly. Source: Rhyolite Herald. [Cyty’s mill is located about 1 mile North of the cyanide workings of the Keane Wonder Mine in the Funeral mountains, and Cyty was a colorful figure of that era with a quick temper and an event quicker trigger finger, and had gunned down at least 2 mining rivals in various claims wars – not sure if these “murders” had occurred by this date].


9/1/1911 - Leffingwell, White & Will Smith & Cooley on way to Swansea for SVSC; White Smith and W. P. Teel came to Independence to be here for the decision of Watterson vs. Nevada-California Power Co.; Judgment Rendered in case of T. G. Watterson vs. Owens River Canal Co., after a trial in 1910 of 58 days where T. G. Watterson was awarded $10,273.96 and costs.
12/8/1911 – around town: White Smith, Will L. Smith and Ed Schober were on their way to Swansea. Beveridge Hunter mentioned in same “Around Town” column.


12/22/1911 – Wm. A. Gibson, who has a position with the Saline Valley Salt Company at Swansea, was in town for a few hours last Tuesday; Assessor W. W. Yandell at county capitol on county business


[Given that construction began on the Salt Tram with the arrival of construction materials on 9/1/1911, it seems odd that there are no entries in the Inyo Independent between 9/1/1911 and June 21, 1912 – we are hoping that there is more information in this time frame in the Inyo Register, which is a much more substantial paper].


3/15/1912 – Around Town: W. H. Leffingwell was in Independence a couple of days during the week. White Smith, Esq. Was in town during the first of the week [note that this is the first observed notation of White Smith with the “Esq.” Title after his name in the Inyo Independent].


5/10/1912 – Interesting article not directly related to the SVST, but of interest to us nonetheless, as follows: In 1870 the press was purchased by Chalfant & Parker and removed to Independence, Inyo County [assume they were talking about the physical printing press itself?], California, where they began publication of the Inyo Independent. And in the office of the Independent this old press stands today. I call it old because its history covers the whole of that of California under American rule, not because the old veteran is the least decrepit, or even battle-scarred. On the contrary, save the grime of ink and oil, it is today as bright and good, and apparently as little worn as the day it turned out the first number of the Dime Catcher [need to figure out what the term “Dime Catcher” means – perhaps a publication?] a half century ago. Of its class it is and ever was a superior piece of machinery, never seriously out of repair, always ready for duty and reliable – a veritable old civilizer and historian, telling its own story from day to day, and not ready to sum up, perhaps for a century to come. [It continues for multiple paragraphs to praise the apparently VERY OLD printing press – wonder if this press is still around, given that it apparently was built no later than 1820?].


5/31/1912 – Inyo Independent, Subscription $3 per year, Harry A. Glasscock, Editor and Proprietor

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Periodical Research (Inyo Independent & Inyo Register)

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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On our November 2009 research trip, we began reviewing periodicals at the time of the Salt Tram era. We have had great success, discovering data that we had never seen or heard before. Though we have about 100 or more different sources for information about the Salt Tram (primarily books, magazine articles, and government publications), it is clear that they get most or all of their information from a single source: The May 17, 1917 American Society for Civil Engineering article on the Salt Tram. This has been quite disappointing, since every time we discover a new source of Salt Tram information, it turns out to be the same old data.

With our review of the Inyo Register (Bishop)and Inyo Independent (Independence) on the November 2009 trip, that has changed. Unfortunately, what has NOT changed is how long it takes to go over these weekly publications with a fine tooth comb. Basically, in 15 hours total sitting in front of a microfilm reader, we were able to review 1 year of the Inyo Register (1910) and 3 years of the Inyo Independent (1910 - 1912). We should have spent more time with the Register, as it was clearly the more substantive paper, with similar articles on the Salt Tram, but with noticeably greater depth of reporting, investigation and subsequently, article length. We plan on reviewing many more years of these publications in order to cover the entire Salt Tram era, which spans a great number of years, especially if you include the salt companies that preceded the Saline Valley Salt Company.

Anyways, I am pleased to share a few tidbits of information from these newspapers. The first is an ad the was run in a series of 3 ads, starting with this one on November 11, 1910, followed by 2 more in succession on November 18 and November 25, 1910. Identical ads ran in both the Independent and the Register. The first ad was labeled "First Notice", the 2nd ad "Second Notice", and the 3rd ad "Final Notice". Clearly there was a bit of salesmanship going on (more about this in another blog post), but the idea that they didn't sell shares in the Saline Valley Salt Company on the East Coast because they wanted to save some for the locals is, frankly, preposterous, but definitely typical of the times. Mining interests sold as many shares as they could, to anybody who could pay for them. If they supposedly "sold out" shares to the "East Coast Investors", they could (and would) print more shares and sell them too! Even better, assuming this causes an increase in the share price, sell their own shares, and perhaps buy them back later when the stock price plummeted on the nearly always inevitable bad news!

The second ad is for legal attorney services of none other than the principal of the entire Salt Tram operation, White Smith, Esq. Take a careful look at the ad, and you will appreciate all the local pies that Mr. Smith has his finger in, locally, and it becomes obvious why he is treated like a local Owens Valley celebrity. As we reviewed more and more of the paper, Mr. Smith's status as a local dignitary became clear.
















 

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Set your calendar for Saturday, March 13, 2010

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 5:30pm in Independence, California

 The "Friends of the Eastern California Museum" have asked my younger brother Brian and me to give a presentation on our Salt Tram Research at their Annual Membership Meeting/Dinner on Saturday, March 13, 2010, 5:30 p.m in Independence, California, at the Owens Valley School Multi-Purpose Room. We wanted to let folks know in case they were interested in attending. Also on the same day, there is a open house and reception at the Eastern California Museum from 3:30pm - 5pm.

Note on 2/5/2010 from Roberta about the presentation: We are putting together the newsletter for the Friends of the Eastern Califorinia Museum and I need a short bio on both of you for our article/section about the Annual Membership Meeting/Dinner on Saturday, March 13th, 5:30 p.m. (open house/reception at the Museum from 3:30 to 5 p.m.)  Can you please forward me asap a bit about your backgrounds and the presentation you plan to have - PowerPoint and talk, etc.  Also a mailing address.  You can forward the e-mail to my museum at rharlan@inyocounty.us  Again, can't wait for the program!!!

And of course, no post goes without a photo (or 2, or 4), so here goes:

Photo 1: Donna and Roberta at the Eastern California Museum - thanks for all your help.

 
















Photo 2: Sue does research at the Independence Free Library in the basement of the Independence Courthouse.



















Photo 3: Brian poses in front of the Classic Independence Courthouse.

Photo 4: Brian scanning microfilm of the Inyo Independent and the Inyo Register. We completed 4 years of scanning, with a lot of years to go!

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Salt Collection Equipment in the Middle of Lake

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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We recently scanned some newly found historical Salt tram photos, which have been very helpful in our research. The next 2 photos are very interesting. As soon as we saw them, we believe they matched the equipment that is found out in the middle of the Salt Lake today. Here they are:

































We haven't analyzed this equipment in detail, although it definitely was used in the salt gathering process. The individual scoops are shown to be full of salt in the photos, and clearly the scoops dumped salt into the ore carts sitting on the ore cart tracks. We don't know what era this salt collection equipment came from, as there were at least 4 companies that ran 4 different salt mining operations, all of which used the tram at some point for transporting the salt in buckets over the lofty Inyo Mountains. There is also a monorail associated with this piece of equipment, though I do not have a photograph of it, but I know I have seen a photograph of it somewhere, and will have to track it down (I believe there is a photo of the monorail at the Eastern California Museum in Independence). In fact, you can BARELY see the monorail in the second photo, to the left of the person on the left side of the photo. Strangely, these two pieces of equipment seem almost identical, except that one is rather tall and high above the salt plain, and the other is low and almost touching the ground! Strange....

Here is the tall one as it sits today in the Saline Valley Salt lake, followed by the shorter one, and then both of them together!

















































I wonder if the monorail track is still out there somewhere, submerged under the lake? I decided to rummage around in some photos from 2007 that Brian and I took out at the lake and found these:

































Obviously, they are the buckets from the Salt Collection System in the first 2 photos of this post! Cool. On that trip in 2007 when the photos were taken, Brian and I walked around different parts of the Salt Lake and took photos of every piece of junk that we found, hoping that some of them were related to the salt Tram. Victory! Now we have to figure out more about this equipment.

















Finally, here is a photo of the taller of the 2 Salt Collection Systems, taken by Farmer Dean and provided to me by Alan, proving once again that taking pictures of any old piece of junk does sometimes pay off. Note that the photo was probably taken in the fall, when the Lake had dried up, and he could walk out to it. The taller Salt Collection System is pretty tall, so it is buried pretty far into the lake - maybe about 5 or 6 feet down into the Salt. Wonder how much of it has been corroded by the salt.

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What are "Cutter Shoes"?

Friends of the SALINE VALLEY SALT TRAM

www.SaltTram.blogspot.com   SalineValleySaltTram@gmail.com
Salt Tram history is rapidly disappearing, and we are striving to rediscover the efforts of our forefathers in order to give proper recognition to their hopes, dreams and abundant sweat from an era that is rapidly fading from our memories. We are actively seeking out information about the mining of Salt in Saline Valley between 1903 and the 1950's, including: documents, photos, articles, stories, artifacts, etc. If you can help us out, please email us at the address above - Thank-you! --Tim and Brian Waag, the Waag brothers (aka E. Clampus Waagus).

Caution (PLEASE READ): Climbing around on the tramway is dangerous because its really old and defnitely unsafe, so don't even think about it. Shoot, just getting to it requires some perilous hiking, and if you don't believe me, just take a look at the Zig Zag Access Trail (or what's left of it). Plus, climbing on it weakens it and endangers your life. Also, the Saline Valley Salt Tram is on the National Register of Historic Places and should be treated with the respect that it deserves. What little remains is of great historic value, and should not be disturbed in any way. Heck, its probably against the law to move parts of the tram around, and certainly a crime to take home some of the few bits of it that remain (though you'd have to ask your friendly local BLM agent for details). So please treat it with the respect it deserves, so that future generations can enjoy whats left, without you messing it up. Really. Please. You can see its listing on the National Register of Historic Places at these web links:
National Register of Historic Places 1          National Register of Historic Places 2

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With Help from an Anonymous Comment (updated November 2010): Wow, I just got to this post - thanks. Believe that you are right! Can't find ANY internet references to Cutter Shoes aka Logging Shoes, so Cutter Shoes is probably not a generic term for a style of shoe. Instead, I'm going with A. A. Cutter as the shoe supply company that is being referenced! These shoes were handmade with the best material to the highest standards of quality, and would thus be an item of great importance to someone such as Cliff who is working outside in rugged terrain and cruel weather (both hot and cold and windy). Thanks!

Anonymous wrote in their comment: Cutter shoes may refer to logging shoes made by the AA Cutter company of Eau Claire Wisconsin that made logging boots from the early 1870 to at least 1923

Link to A. A. Cutter shoe factory of Wisconsin

A few excerpts from the above reference:

The man on the drive, the cruise or in the woods - the lumberjack - is the most discriminating person in the world about one thing.  He is as exacting in that as the Beau Brummel of the boulevards is about his dress.  That one thing is his shoes.  The shoes of the lumberjack must fit comfortably, since the nature of his work demands foot comfort.  His shoes must be made of the very best leather and fashioned in the very best way in order to stand the heavy strain.  The lumberjack has his shoemaker just as the boulevard dandy has his tailor, and usually his shoemaker is the A. A. Cutter Company, of Eau Claire, Wis.  Ask almost any lumberjack what make of shoe he wears and his answer will probably be "Cutter."  The Cutter make means par excellence to the man with the ax and saw or the peavey, pike pole and cant hook.

Back in 1870, when Eau Claire was a great sawmill center, with twenty-two mills busy sawing northern timber, A. A. Cutter was the leading shoe retailer in town.  The lumberjacks who occasionally came out of the woods in large numbers demanded a distinctive shoe.  To meet this demand Mr. Cutter kept two cobblers busy making shoes that suited the lumberjacks.  The lumberjacks, who were mostly of French or Irish nationality, demanded quality in their shoes and did not heed the cost.  At that time it was customary for them to leave their measure in the fall before going into the woods and on their return the following spring their made-to-measure shoes would be ready.

In 1892 Mr. Cutter discontinued the retail business and began manufacturing exclusively for lumbermen's needs.  Today the concern is considered one of the leading manufacturers of high-grade footwear for lumbermen, miners, cruisers, surveyors, prospectors, rangers and sportsmen in the United States.  The company has a model factory at Eau Claire.  A force of nearly 100 are employed in making handmade shoes, and the output is from 200 to 350 pairs a day. 

The Cutter shoes are almost entirely hand-made, the only exception being a minor part of the stitching.  Only solid leather throughout is used.  No leather substitute ever entered the Cutter factory.  Some leather reaches there that inspection shows can not be used, and in such case it is returned to the tanners.  Only the heart of the imported hide is used and the remainder is disposed of to other manufacturers or used in cheaper low-cut shoes.  The cobblers employed are chiefly German and Norwegian, who served apprenticeships in their native countries.  The only difficulty that the Cutter company experiences is in obtaining skilled workers.  Since the introduction of machinery into most shoe factories of this county and Europe, fewer young men have been apprenticed to the cobbler's trade.

Only the best leathers obtainable in the world's tannery market are used.  The French kip used in Cutter drivers is tanned at the Simon Ullmo tannery at Lyons, France, and is imported especially for the Cutter company.  It is considered the best leather that can be procured for this class of shoes, as French kip will stand the water as no other leather will.  The French kip is used in the vamp of the Cutter shoe.  A French kip tanned hide weighs from 5 to 5½ pounds and only the heart of it is used.

Another brief internet reference:

The shoe business developed as a side product to the lumbering industry, at least, that's the way the A. A. Cutter Shoe Business started in Eau Claire in 1870. The lumberjacks demanded good shoes and had them made by Cutter. The word of his quality shoes spread as far east as Pennsylvania when a man left here and moved there to become foreman at a lumber mill. 

Photo of Cliff at Control Station 4 (Station 29) wearing his "A. A. Cutter" boots. Photo courtesy of Patterson Family:

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At the top of the Henry Clifton Patterson Salt Tram Diary, dated February 8, 1912, it states "Got Cutter Shoes". I've googled "Cutter Shoes" and can't come up with anything obvious, as far as antique work boots called "Cutter Shoes". Though some current manufactuers make a shoe called a "Cutter" shoe, it looks nothing like an antique shoe.

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Previous Futile Discussion of "Cutter" Shoes: I've included a photo of a worker at a Salt Tram Tent Cabin that was located near Control Station 4 on the West side of the Inyos, who is wearing the most common type of work boot seen in the various historical Salt Tram photos. So I'm guessing that there is some chance that the high top leather boot might indeed be the "Cutter" shoe style. Also, since Cliff appears to have started working on the Salt Tram on 12/1/1911, perhaps he noted getting some appropriate work boots in his diary because it was a big event. Given the foul winter weather in the Inyos, it is an event that he likely looked forward to.

However, does anybody know definitively what a Cutter Boot is? (click on the photo of the 2 men wearing the boots for a closer look). Thanks!

Found this link:

http://www.hotboots.com/bootinfo/logger.html

Think that cutter shoes refer to Logging Shoes, or Log Cutters Shoes. A possibility. Nope! Update November 2010: it refers to A. A. Cutter shoes of Wisconsin.

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