Exploring the Abandoned PMT Mine
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IMPORTANT UPDATE: YouTube user Nelly the Elephant Jr did some research on the miner named Ernest Affranchino whose name appears as graffiti inside the mine at 4:56. Here's the fascinating info Nelly unearthed about him:
Ernest was born 1889 to Alfonso and Catherine Affranchino. His father Alfonso was also a metal miner. Ernest died 1959 and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in Las Vegas.
Ernest's grave is photographed here: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=28272986
And his entry in the 1920 Nevada census record (aged 30) is here: http://nvshpo.org/component/census/?view=demographics&id=28233&limitstart=0
Much thanks to Nelly the Elephant Jr for finding out this information!
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I recently spent an afternoon exploring the PMT Mine. This abandoned silver and gold mine was initially dug on August 22nd, 1876. Many other silver mines were also started in the same area around the same time. Some mining reports say that 940 tons of ore were removed from the PMT Mine from 1882 to 1891 with an estimated value of $30,000. Eventually, the PMT Mine's main tunnel reached a depth of 3500 feet into the mountain with a branching tunnel going even further than that. This branching tunnel leads to extensive workings that connect up with other mines in the area via shafts and raises that are both inclined and vertical.
I spent two hours in this mine exploring the main level and probably walked a distance of a couple miles. Some discoveries I made while in the mine include an ore cart, a skip car, and an old brake fluid can. Deep in the mine is an interior vertical shaft over which was perched the miners' cage that they would ride in as they descended and ascended the shaft. And, as always, I found graffiti from the early 1900s left behind by the many long-forgotten miners who worked in the sprawling, dark underground workings of the PMT Mine.
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