After six years, Silver City's Donovan Mill Restoration Project is nearly complete thanks to work of volunteers
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Wed, 10/27/2021 - 2:36pm
Six years ago, it was determined that without direct intervention, Silver City’s Donovan Mill would crumble and collapse.
That’s when a core group of volunteers began their pursuit of the mill’s restoration, working tirelessly to not only save the historic building from imminent collapse, but to restore it to its former glory for the benefit of the public.
The project is spearheaded by Don and Elaine Bergstrom who, along with The Comstock Foundation, have been undergoing massive conservation efforts of the mill which can be traced as far back as the 1860s.
The Donovan Mill is significant on the international level, because some say it is the site where the cyanide/zinc process of refining was perfected through trial and error on the Comstock as millions of dollars worth of gold and silver needed to be refined and processed for the market.
The mill consists of multiple buildings from eras ranging from the 1860s all the way to the 1930s, and there were major issues involving crumbling foundations, roofs nearing collapse, and rotting frame work that all needed to be dealt with, and all with very limited access to electricity.
To learn more about the history of the Mill, watch the video at the bottom of the story, or click here.
Not to mention, residents of both fur and feather had taken over the site since its abandonment.
One of the most difficult aspects, however, was the fact that when the Donovan Mill was abandoned, it was abandoned with massive lodes of ore still in its chutes, all which needed to be cleaned out — by hand.
The property has come a long way over the past six years, from the restoration of the foundations, to mason and stonework experts coming in to help rebuild certain aspects that had crumbled over time, to the authentic 1800s blacksmith shop which is still functioning. The shop is thanks to volunteer John Olsen who helped broker the purchase of most of the forge from an estate sale in Wadsworth, which took over a year’s worth of negotiations before sealing the deal.
The process of bringing the mill up to viewing standards for the public is nearing completion, and the volunteers cannot wait to be able to share their work with the public.
“It was a massive undertaking,” said Don. “We’ve been in here for six years now, but every day we are finding something new.”
The Comstock Foundation purchased the complex in 2014 for $195,000 and work started immediately to stabilize the roof supports before they could collapse, as well as lifting the building up in certain areas using a house mover in order to fix rotting supports and foundations.
Thanks to the efforts over the past six years, the public will be able to view the blacksmith forge in action, learn about the mill process from the inception of huge lodes of ore, screened and brought by conveyor belts to chutes which would plunge the ore through huge crushing mechanisms, before being further screened and flushed with at first mercury, and in later years as the technology involved, cyanide.
A piece of Carson City and Dayton history can also be found in the Silver City mill. In the 1890s, ten stamps (a machine used to pound and crush ore) were added, refurbished from the Virginia and Truckee Railroad Foundry in Carson City. Then, in 1938, an additional twenty stamps from Dayton’s Rock Point Mill owned by the Nevada Mining, Reduction and Power Company, were added as well into the 1930s expansion of the mill.
Visitors can also see the enormous original cyanide tubs, which helped to further process the gold and silver from the lesser minerals to bring forth a refined product.
The site is a mix of original Donovan Mill artifacts, as well as mining-era donations and acquired objects, from pieces of the blacksmith forge, to a bridge originating in Incline which will be used for visitors entering the site, and much more.
Others have donated books on historic mining and the Comstock lode for a future library on site so visitors will have a chance to learn even more about the processes of the era.
The project will continue even after it is able to open for the public, as the site is a work in progress, and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. According to the Comstock Foundation, an estimated $4 million is needed to bring the mill back into service entirely.
The project site is always looking for volunteers, donations and eventually, docents who will be able to help give tours around the site.
The next project right now volunteers are working on is bringing electricity to the rest of the mill, which is an undertaking in and of itself because they are using the original on-site motor to power the facility.
Those who are interested in helping the Donovan Mill Restoration Project reach completion can either donate, become members of the Comstock Foundation, or even volunteer on site to help bring the Mill back to its former glory.
Check below to learn more about the history of Silver City's Donovan Mill:
