The Mining Law of 1872: Past, Politics, and Prospects

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History has left us a classic image of western mining of the forty-niner squatting by a clear stream, sifting through gravel to reveal gold. What this bucolic image does not reveal, however, is thousands of miners doing the same, their gravel washing downstream, causing the water to darken with debris while trout choke to death and wash ashore. Instead of the havoc wreaked upon the western landscape, we are told stories of American enterprise, ingenuity, and fortune. The General Mining Act of 1872, which declared all valuable mineral deposits on public lands to be free and open to exploration and purchase, has had a controversial impact on the western environment as, under the protection of federal law, various twentieth-century entrepreneurs have manipulated it in order to dump waste, cut timber, create resorts, and engage in a host of other activities damaging to the environment. In this thorough analysis, legal historian Gordon Morris Bakken traces the roots of the mining law and details the way its unintended consequences have shaped American legal thought and how it has informed much of the lore of the settlement of the West. “Without question, this is a high-grade scholarly examination, one that deserves careful attention by a variety of people. . . . Bakken and the University of New Mexico Press are both to be congratulated for this thought-provoking study.”—American Historical Review “For readers in a variety of fields, this book will be the place to look for a clear and balanced study of the law and its many ramifications. Bakken combines sparkling expository prose and penetrating insight in a way that enables knowledgeable veterans as well as newcomers to easily understand the complex topic.”—Western Historical Quarterly “This book has been needed for a long time.”—New Mexico Historical Review “Like all good works of history dealing with politically contentious issues, The Mining Law of 1872 provides both a reliable historical account and a thoughtful discussion of what, beyond the bluster, is actually at stake.”—Montana the Magazine of Western History Gordon Morris Bakken is professor of history at California State University, Fullerton. He is the author or editor of numerous books including Icons of the American West: From Cowgirls to Silicon Valley. university of new mexico press unmpress.com n 800-249-7737 ËxHSKIMGy343574zv*:+:!:+:! isbn 978-0-8263-4357-4 history n american west n environment cover illustrations: Grubstake Cyanide Mill, Red Bluff, Montana, ca. 1906–8, from a series of six photographs of cyanide process, ca. 1900. Courtesy of the Pioneer Museum, Bozeman, Montana; background: Butte mining claims map. Courtesy of the Montana Historical Society, Helena. cover design: Mina Yamashita ...