The Edison mine was
owned by Thomas Alva Edison. Many people didn't know he had a very large and
extensive mine operation called the New Jersey and Pennsylvania Concentrating
Works in Sparta NJ. The Mine complex was so
large in the late 1800's, that at its height Edison employed over 500 workers. The mine almost broke
Edison, however he somehow managed to break even in the end be recovering his
cost in ingenious ways. Edison had over
2 million of his own dollars in the mine during the 1800's and was one of the
first places in the world to provide electricity for the miners homes!
Before Edison brought
out the entire area, over 5 independent mine companies extracted ore from the
earth here. They were called the Victor Mine, Roberts/Pardee Mine, Old Ogden Mine, Davenport Mine,
Knoll mine and the Vulcan Mine. Most of the shafts have collapsed, were filled
with sand, or are water filled, as mining on this scale has been replaced by far larger operations, much in the same way recent years have brought a wealth of cheap flights instead of expensive journeys through the air.
There are numerous big cuts, including the famous "Horseshoe cut". There
are
also a few small adits stored away in well hidden location.
Rodney Johnson
is the author of "Thomas Edisons
Ogden Baby". The complete story of
the Edison Mines and the New Jersey & Pennsylvania Concentrating Works. The
book features overlay Maps with locations of the original structures, many
photographs, research and in
an in depth look into the Mines of Edison not found anywhere else.
More on his book is available at Rodney's Website at
www.map-maker.net
Video - Inside the Edison Mines
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The Knoll Mine
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The Old Ogden Mine Railroad which served the Edison Mine Complex
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An adit
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veritcal Shaft of the Knoll Mine
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Looking out of the knoll Mine
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This small shaft went down about 25 feet.
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The hidden adit in the edison mines..
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The old man inside the Tunnel
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Ruins of the complex are scattered about
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This mine was measured with sonar and had a depth of 89 feet.
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Roberts Mine - The Pardee Shaft - this shaft goes down over 300 feet!
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This mine is almost completely flooded
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The Vulcan Mine remains apppear to have been ccompletely obliterated, except for this largepile of tailings.
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The Victor mine was flooded during my visit, if your lucky, you can see it with the water subsided, featuring timbers and stopes.
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Edison Mine 
