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61-914: The Calumet Fire Station is a firehouse located on 6th Street in Calumet, Michigan . It is also known as the Red Jacket Fire Station . The building was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1971 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, and is part of the Calumet Historic District and the Keweenaw National Historical Park . The building now houses the Upper Peninsula Fire Fighters Memorial Museum . At

122-486: A much smaller proportion of them joined the federation." Fewer Calumet and Hecla employees joined the strike than employees of other mines, and more employees of Calumet and Hecla returned to work than employees of other companies after the Michigan National Guard arrived to protect strikebreakers. The mines reopened under National Guard protection, and many went back to work. The companies instituted

183-430: A tug of war event where the losers take a dive into an inflatable pool filled with ketchup . The Calumet Theatre is a theater and opera house which opened in 1900. In 1898, the copper mining industry was booming, and the town had an enormous surplus in its treasury. The town council decided to spend some of the surplus on a theater. The theater hosted a large number of famous actors, musicians, and opera singers. With

244-623: Is a village in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan . The village is located within Calumet Township , Houghton County , and had a population of 621 at the 2020 census . Calumet was once the center of Michigan's copper mining industry . The village is home to a unit of Keweenaw National Historical Park , and also includes the Calumet Downtown Historic District , listed on

305-408: Is a two-story Richardsonian Romanesque building, rectangular in plan and measuring fifty-four feet by eighty-three feet. It is constructed of red sandstone. Three fire engine entrances with wooden doors are in the center of the front facade. The doors are topped by a stepped gable which is flanked by a smaller gable on one side and an open bell tower with a pyramidal roof sits the other. The roof of

366-470: Is based on this event. Loss of wartime demand caused the copper price to drop following World War I . With the decreased demand for copper, thousands left Red Jacket in the 1920s, many moving to Detroit , Michigan , where the automobile industry was booming. During the Great Depression , almost all mines were shut down. As a result, many miners and their families left to find work. In 1950,

427-532: Is served by Calumet High School , whose teams are known as the "Copper Kings". St. Paul the Apostle Church, formerly known as St. Joseph's Catholic Church, was formed in 1889 by Slovenian immigrants who came to the Calumet area to work in the booming copper mines. The first church that they built burnt down in 1902, but the church was rebuilt in sandstone by 1908. The church "rises authoritatively over

488-504: The Red Jacket Jamboree , an old-time radio variety show heard on Michigan public radio stations including Interlochen Public Radio and WNMU Public Radio 90. Every two years there is an all-school reunion for the graduates of Calumet High School. Many activities occur at this time, including a classic car show and parade. Pasty Fest is a one-day event that takes place every summer downtown Calumet. The event celebrates

549-541: The Copper Country Strike of 1913–1914 , although the workers were said to be sharply divided on the strike question. The union demanded an 8-hour day, a minimum wage of $ 3 per day, an end to use of the one-man pneumatic drill , and that the companies recognize it as the employees' representative. Although Calumet and Hecla paid high wages by Copper Country standards, at the time of the 1913 strike, their wages were lower, and labor hours longer, than those at

610-476: The Great Depression , copper prices dropped, and as a result most copper mines in the Copper Country closed, including Calumet and Hecla. Many mines reopened during World War II , when wartime demand raised the price of copper. After the war copper prices plummeted, and most copper mines closed almost immediately. However, Calumet and Hecla was able to stay afloat due to their practice of acquiring many of

671-404: The Keweenaw National Historical Park are located inside the village limits, mostly covering the intricate complex of the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company's main operations. Houghton County Memorial Airport (KCMX), largely in nearby Oneco, serves Calumet, Houghton County and the surrounding communities. Calumet was host to a number of railroad routes, including: One of the biggest parts of

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732-456: The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Most of the village itself is also included within the Calumet Historic District , a larger area which is NRHP-listed and which is a National Historic Landmark District. What is now Calumet was settled in 1864, originally under the name of Red Jacket , for a Native American Chief of the Seneca tribe . Until 1895 the name "Calumet" was used by

793-728: The Precambrian age. The find was in Houghton County, Michigan , between the rich Cliff mine to the northeast, and the copper mines of Portage Lake to the southwest, but a long way from either. Hulbert formed the Hulbert Mining Company in 1864 to acquire the land rights, before creating the Calumet Company in 1865, with investment capital from Boston. The company spun off the Hecla Company

854-503: The 1920s by buying and merging with neighboring copper mines. In 1923, Calumet and Hecla merged with the Ahmeek, Allouez, and Centennial mining companies. The combined entity was renamed the Calumet and Hecla Consolidated Copper Company . The merged company essentially controlled all the operating copper mines north of Hancock, Michigan . The company had always disposed of the mill tailings (locally called stamp sands ) in lakes adjacent to

915-562: The 8-hour day, but refused to set a $ 3 per day minimum wage, refused to abandon the one-man drill, and also refused to employ Western Federation of Miners members. On Christmas Eve 1913, the Western Federation of Miners organized a party for strikers and their families at the Italian Benevolent Society hall in Calumet. The hall was packed with between 400 and 500 people when someone shouted "fire". There

976-693: The Calumet Company have no reason to fear strikes among any portion of their force." In 1898, the Michigan Commissioner of Mineral Statistics enthused that "no mining company in the world treats its employees better than Calumet and Hecla." In 1916, the Arizona Bureau of Mines wrote of Calumet and Hecla, which had no operations in Arizona: "Probably no mining company in the country has paid more attention to welfare work than has

1037-473: The Calumet and Hecla Mining Company, and its subsidiaries, in the upper Michigan peninsula." The Arizona Bureau of Mines followed with more than a page detailing the employee benefits at Calumet and Hecla in Michigan. However, Calumet and Hecla's labor policy, like that the other mining companies in the Copper Country, was rife with paternalism . The charge of paternalism was not disputed by those in favor of

1098-529: The Calumet and Hecla mine, opened in 1949. Calumet and Hecla sold the mine to the Eagle-Picher Company in 1954. The company also diversified into copper-based products, including a copper tube manufacturing business and fertilizers. Calumet and Hecla opened the Kingston mine in 1965, the first new native copper mine opened in more than 30 years. By 1967, the company was operating six mines in

1159-587: The Calumet area were forced to merge because of the low number of parishioners and economic constraints. This included St. Anne's (the French church), St. John's (the Croatian church), St. Mary's (the Italian church), and St. Joseph's. The combined parish is housed in the old St. Joseph's building, and has changed its name to St. Paul the Apostle Church. Today, they have a large and active congregation, which pays for

1220-641: The Presbyterian church are still standing today but are not in use. As of the census of 2010, there were 726 people, 376 households, and 161 families residing in the village. The population density was 3,630.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,401.6/km ). There were 512 housing units at an average density of 2,560.0 per square mile (988.4/km ). The racial makeup of the village was 96.8% White , 0.4% African American , 0.4% Native American , 0.3% Asian , 0.3% from other races , and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 2.5% of

1281-424: The age of 18 living with them, 19.9% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 64.6% were non-families. 58.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 25.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.85 and the average family size was 3.12. In the village, the population was spread out, with 20.0% under

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1342-464: The age of 18, 24.8% from 18 to 24, 21.8% from 25 to 44, 15.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males. The median income for a household in the village was $ 17,404, and the median income for a family was $ 22,750. Males had a median income of $ 21,667 versus $ 18,125 for females. The per capita income for

1403-400: The cheap electricity generated from Niagara Falls to electrolytically refine copper. The Buffalo Smelting Works was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. Electrolytic refining had the advantage that it separated out the silver from the copper. By 1897, the Calumet and Hecla's Red Jacket shaft had reached a vertical depth of 4,900 ft (1,500 m), making it

1464-421: The closing of the mines, the theater became a movie theater and fell into general disrepair for many years. In 1975, the town began a large project to repair and restore the theater, which is now used for many local and touring productions. The theatre was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 5, 1971, and is also a Michigan State Historic Site. The Theatre was the original recording venue of

1525-447: The community. When the company supplied consumer goods to employees, it used its buying power to provide coal, firewood, and electricity for its tenants at wholesale prices. Its treatment of employees brought praise from outside the Copper Country. A writer for Harper's Magazine visited a number of iron and copper mines of upper Michigan in 1882, but singled out Calumet and Hecla's labor policies for particular praise. He wrote: "But

1586-410: The company a preferred employer, and it generally had its pick of the best workers. Lankton also noted that the company was willing, when necessary, to "control labor management relations", to use "coercion, covert manipulation, armed deputy sheriffs, or mass firings". Calumet and Hecla strived to create ideal communities around its mines and mills, in the hope that pleasant living conditions would help

1647-411: The company could force them to vacate their houses on short notice. Whether in rented company housing, or their own houses located on rented company land, the employees and their families were dependent on the continued good will of the company for housing. The provision of housing to favored employees also fostered jealousies among those not so favored. Although continued employment with Calumet and Hecla

1708-543: The company deeded it to the village. The total cost of the building at the time was just over $ 20,000, including architectural work, stonework, and carpentry. In 1964, the fire department moved to the town hall building. The building was used in various ways, including rooms for summer repertory performers at the nearby Calumet Theatre . It now houses the Upper Peninsula Fire Fighters Memorial Museum. The Calumet Fire Station

1769-496: The company maintain a loyal and productive workforce. Historian Lankton wrote that in an era and an industry known for hard working conditions, the Michigan copper companies treated their employees better than most: "… they remained known for being among the most enlightened, fair, humane, and paternalistic employers in the American mining industry." Some credited Calumet and Hecla, as the district’s leading company, allegedly setting

1830-419: The company, who even embraced the term, and saw it as the policy of enlightened capitalism. Company paternalism was most evident in company housing. Calumet and Hecla built hundreds of company houses, and provided them to married employees at low rents that left no room for any company profit. The company also allowed employees to build about 1,000 houses on rented Calumet and Hecla land, but under terms by which

1891-575: The deepest mine in the world. The neighboring Tamarack mine became the world's deepest mine for some years; it was bought by Calumet and Hecla, and became part of the Calumet and Hecla system. The Tamarack/Calumet and Hecla remained the world's deepest mine until about 1915, when its vertical depth of 5,500 ft (1,700 m) was exceeded by the 5,824 ft (1,775 m) depth of the Morro Velho gold mine in Brazil. Annual copper production from

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1952-642: The dredges used, Calumet and Hecla Dredge Number One , is currently sunk in shallow water in Torch Lake . By 1902, Calumet and Hecla had 5,000 employees, and the towns of Calumet (then named Red Jacket), Laurium , and Lake Linden were virtual company towns . The mining superintendents (called "captains") were traditionally Cornishmen ; the workers were often Finns, Poles, Italians, Irish, Slovenes, and other immigrant nationalities. Historian Larry Lankton wrote that Calumet and Hecla's success resulted in increased benefits that "trickled down" to workers. This made

2013-515: The first, or even the first, American company to set up an employee health benefits fund. Other Michigan copper companies ran employee aid funds, but Calumet and Hecla was the only Michigan copper mining company to match contributions. By 1908, the company provided a staff of physicians and a hospital for employees and their families, worker clubhouses with bowling alleys; and employee libraries with reading material in 20 languages. The company also contributed to construction of schools and churches in

2074-436: The following year, and assigned shares in the new company to Calumet shareholders. Hulbert was a major shareholder in both companies, and was in charge of mine operations. But despite the rich ore, Hulbert did not have the practical knowledge to dig out the ore, crush it, and concentrate it. Frustrated with Hulbert's lack of success, the company sent Alexander Agassiz , son of famous geologist Louis Agassiz , to Michigan to run

2135-484: The food culture of not only Calumet, but the entire Copper Country , is the pasty . This was a main part of copper miners' diets. A pasty is a mixture of meat, potatoes, rutabaga, carrots and onions wrapped in a crust made of flour and lard. Traditionally Cornish, they have even sparked local events such as the Pasty Fest, where there are eating contests (with consumption of pasties, of course), games, events, and even

2196-582: The formerly great mines in the Keweenaw during and before the Depression, and as a result outlasted nearly all other mining companies. The company branched into other minerals after World War II. Calumet and Hecla geologists drilled into a major lead-zinc ore body in Lafayette County in southern Wisconsin in 1947. Ore minerals were galena, sphalerite, calcite, and marcasite. The mine, named

2257-480: The majority of the copper produced in the Michigan copper district. By 1901, the underground mining complex had 16 shafts. The company operated a large ore treatment facility at Lake Linden, Michigan . The first smelter was built at Hancock, Michigan , but in 1887, the company moved its smelting to the new smelter at Lake Linden. The company later built a second smelter in Buffalo, New York , which took advantage of

2318-507: The mills, but about 1900 began investigating methods to recover the copper remaining in the waste tailings. Beginning in 1915, Calumet and Hecla began reprocessing the stamp sands at Lake Linden, using a finer grind and ammonia leaching. Once the process proved profitable, the Tamarack mill also began reprocessing tailings. Through 1949, the company had recovered 535 million pounds (243,000 metric tons) of copper by reprocessing tailings. One of

2379-467: The mine. Calumet and Hecla built itself into a copper mining colossus. From 1868 through 1886, it was the leading copper producer in the United States, and from 1869 through 1876, the leading copper producer in the world. From 1871 through 1880, Calumet and Hecla turned out more than half the copper produced in the United States. In each year save one between 1870 and 1901, Calumet and Hecla made

2440-590: The mine. Under Agassiz' expert management, the Hecla company paid its first dividend in 1868, and the Calumet company began paying significant dividends in 1869. The two companies merged in May 1871 to form the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company, with Quincy Adams Shaw as its first president. In August of that year, Shaw retired to the board of directors and Agassiz became president, a position he held until his death. The town of Red Jacket (now named Calumet ) formed next to

2501-400: The mines peaked in 1906 at 100 million pounds (45,000 metric tons), then declined to 67 million pounds (30,000 metric tons) by 1912 in response to lower prices. Output dropped to 46 million pounds (21,000 metric tons) of refined copper in the strike year of 1913, but rebounded due to high copper prices during World War I to 77 million pounds (35,000 metric tons) in 1917. The boost in production

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2562-480: The nearby town of Laurium , Michigan ; present-day Calumet was not legally named so until 1929. Red Jacket grew due to the copper mines in the area. It was incorporated as a town in 1867. The copper mines were particularly rich; the Boston-based Calumet and Hecla Mining Company produced more than half of the United States' copper from 1871 through 1880. In addition to copper mining and smelting,

2623-469: The pasty, which was brought over by Cornish miners in the mid 1800s. The meat and vegetable "pie" became a staple for miners throughout the Upper Peninsula. The event includes a parade, street fair, live music, a pasty eating contest and a competition among restaurants for the best pasty. Public education in Calumet is served by Public Schools of Calumet-Laurium-Keweenaw . High school education

2684-423: The pattern of improved living conditions followed by other mining operations. In 1868, Calumet and Hecla built the first industrial hospital in the United States. In 1877, Calumet and Hecla started an employee aid fund for ill and injured employees. Participation was voluntary. Each participating worker contributed 50 cents per week, which the company matched. Some writers credit Calumet and Hecla with being one of

2745-622: The population began to decline. In the same year, the town was the site of the Italian Hall Disaster . Striking miners and their families were gathered on Christmas Eve for a party in Italian Hall , when the cry of "fire" precipitated a stampede that crushed or suffocated seventy-three victims, over half of them children under ten years old. The identity of the person(s) who started the stampede has never been determined. Folk singer Woody Guthrie 's 1945 song, " 1913 Massacre ",

2806-456: The population of Calumet was 1,256 people. Small-time mining continued in the area, particularly during World War II , until it was shut down completely by a labor strike in 1968. In 1984, Calumet's name was borrowed by Hollywood. Calumet was moved from Michigan to Colorado, where it was invaded by Soviet paratroopers in the original Red Dawn film. Producer and screenwriter Kevin Reynolds

2867-444: The population. There were 376 households, out of which 21.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.4% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 57.2% were non-families. 48.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

2928-400: The region also supported the dairy industry and truck farming . Many immigrants (from Poland and other countries) settled there in the late 19th century. By 1900, Red Jacket had a population of 4,668, and Calumet Township , which contained Red Jacket and nearby mining towns, had a population of 25,991. However, in 1913, Red Jacket suffered from the Copper Country Strike of 1913–1914 , and

2989-719: The region. However, the company by this point was not even able to produce enough copper for its internal uses. Universal Oil Products ( U.O.P. ) bought Calumet and Hecla in April 1968. In August of that same year, the more than 1,000 Calumet and Hecla employees went on strike. In the wake of this strike, the last of Calumet and Hecla's copper mines shut down, and the company shut down the dewatering pumps in 1970. The mines have remained idle ever since, and most are permanently capped. Today, many Calumet and Hecla company mines and buildings are part of Keweenaw National Historical Park . Folksinger Woody Guthrie wrote and sang " 1913 Massacre ",

3050-576: The structure is flat. Small doors are in each of the other three sides. The building was originally constructed with the first floor housing fire engines and horses, with other equipment in the basement. The second floor primarily housed the fire fighters, but also held hay for the horses. The firemen's quarters included a bunk room, locker room, and a larger hall for social affairs. Calumet, Michigan Calumet ( / ˌ k æ lj u ˈ m ɛ t / KAL -yuu- MET or locally / ˌ k æ lj ə ˈ m ɛ t / KAL -yə- MET )

3111-409: The turn of the twentieth century, the threat of fire was constant in what was then a prosperous mining town. The construction of the fire station was started in 1898 and completed in 1899, using plans made by architect C. K. Shand. Although the station was built by the village of Calumet (then "Red Jacket"), the lot on which it sits was leased from the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company until 1910, when

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3172-465: The unionized copper mines of Butte, Montana . After the strike started, the mining companies maintained that it had already been considering a reduction of the work day to eight hours. The company claimed that lower wages were more than made up by the lower cost of living compared to Butte. The US Department of Labor report on the strike noted: "The employees of the Calumet and Hecla Co. were better satisfied than those of any other company, and therefore

3233-400: The upkeep of the church. The city, at one time, Calumet had six active Lutheran churches (two of which were Laestadian ), three Methodist churches, as well as an Episcopal, Congregationalist, Baptist and Presbyterian church. Today, only one Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, and Episcopal church remain open. Additionally, another Baptist church has opened. Two of the former Lutheran churches and

3294-425: The village like a cathedral of medieval Europe." When the church was completed, the cost of construction was an amazing $ 100,000. It is constructed of local Jacobsville sandstone , and features beautiful stained glass windows, a custom-built 19’ by 18’ pipe organ, and a beautifully painted interior. The interior of the church remains virtually unchanged architecturally. In 1966, four of the five Catholic churches in

3355-480: The village was $ 12,111. About 29.0% of families and 35.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 50.5% of those under age 18 and 18.9% of those age 65 or over. Some of the notable attractions in the village include: Calumet and Hecla Mining Company In 1864, Edwin J. Hulbert discovered a copper-bearing section of what became known as the Calumet Conglomerate dating back to

3416-665: The village. The population density was 4,524.2 inhabitants per square mile (1,746.8/km ). There were 491 housing units at an average density of 2,527.1 per square mile (975.7/km ). The racial makeup of the village was 98.98% White , 0.23% from other races , and 0.80% from two or more races. 0.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 35.7% were of Finnish , 10.3% German , 9.3% Irish , 7.1% United States or American, 7.0% French and 6.5% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000 . 95.7% spoke English , 3.0% Spanish and 1.2% Finnish as their first language. There were 387 households, out of which 20.2% had children under

3477-439: Was 1.93 and the average family size was 2.78. The median age in the village was 40.4 years. 20.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.5% were from 25 to 44; 27.6% were from 45 to 64; and 18.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 49.3% male and 50.7% female. As of the census of 2000, there were 879 people, 387 households, and 136 families residing in

3538-555: Was a seasonal resident of the Keweenaw Peninsula. According to the United States Census Bureau , the village has a total area of 0.20 square miles (0.52 km ), all of it land. Calumet is at an elevation of 1,209 feet (369 m) above sea level. The village of Calumet sits on 2,000 miles (3,200 km) of underground mine shafts, drifts and stopes, empty for many decades. Large portions of

3599-551: Was attained partly by purchase of the Tamarack Mining Company in 1917. Copper prices fell drastically after the war, and in 1921 copper production fell to 15 million pounds (6,800 metric tons) as the company shut the Osceola (amygdaloid) mine in 1920, and shut down mining on the Calumet conglomerate in April 1921. Copper production rebounded in 1922, and rose steadily through the 1920s. Calumet and Hecla grew in

3660-467: Was no fire, but 73 people, the vast majority of them children, were crushed to death trying to escape. This became known as the Italian Hall Disaster . The strikers held out until April 1914, but then gave up the strike. Calumet and Hecla employees were not again unionized until 1943, when the company signed an agreement with the CIO -affiliated International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers. During

3721-639: Was required for occupancy of company housing, Calumet and Hecla, unlike the Quincy and Copper Range companies, did not evict strikers during the 1913-1914 strike. In July 1913, the Western Federation of Miners called a general strike against all mines in the Michigan Copper Country. Hundreds of strikers surrounded the Calumet and Hecla mine shafts to prevent others from reporting to work. All Calumet and Hecla mines shut down during

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