Montana's copper was discovered before Marcus Daly entered the industry. However, the metal that was found was not pure and the prospectors who knew it existed did not have the technology to smelt it. The discovery of copper was incidental to the gold and silver mining that began in the mid-1800s. After prospectors depleted gold and silver resources that were near the surface, they dug deeper and found copper in the veins between the other mineral deposits.
When it was discovered, there was not a large demand for copper. Its profits were not comparable to that of gold and silver, and dealing with copper involved a number of difficulties. To begin with, copper deposits were deeper than those for gold and silver, requiring skilled miners, which were scarce. Without the technology to process the metal, early extractions had to be sent to Baltimore or Wales, which was expensive. Furthermore, there were already copper mines in Michigan, which dominated the market.
Daly discovered pure copper and lured investors in time to exploit the Industrial Revolution, which created new uses for copper. It was discovered that wire made from the metal could transmit electricity and sound. This resulted in the expanding electric and telephone industries relying heavily on the copper mined from Montana.
Butte, a location that began as a collection of mining camps, converted into a city whose riches were heavily based on copper mining.
Success continued through the beginning of the 20th century. World War I boosted Montana's copper industry because bullets contained copper and a lot of it came from Butte.
Originally, copper mining was an underground effort. However, in the 1950s Anaconda Mining Company, the leading producer, changed its tactics and began pit mining. The change led to devastating effects, including contamination of rivers and the water table and the destruction of land and miners' homes.
The quest for copper was so detrimental that the area around Butte was designated as the U.S.'.s largest Superfund site, which is a hazardous wasteland.
