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Maine Feldspar, Families, and Feuds Oxford County Mining History
Maine Feldspar Families and Feuds Oxford County Mining History "My father worked in the mines!" In parts of Maine, this is a statement of a little known heritage. Maine mineral mining is not a polluting industry, partly because much of the action has involved gems, mica, or feldspar. You rarely hear a complaint about gemstone runoff. Inland, as well as coastal, Maine has been the source of aquamarine, tourm... more »aline, amethyst, gold, mica, and feldspar.
Gemstones from Maine are well-known, but the lust for feldspar was also real, because it also meant money. There was never a huge profit in this mineral and tiny amounts of money still created conflicts, predatory relationships between mills and workers, and sometimes tore apart families. There is more myth than fact in most reports of Maine mining. This Book is a hard-core look at Maine feldspar mining and the people who struggled to make a living from it. This history is also the story of people and events in Oxford County, and the rest of Maine, starting in the late nineteenth century leading up to modern times. The perspective is that of the common man. Many have though that boys could walk up to a hill and find a fortune, while some have envisioned mining as worker ants clawing into the Earth. The truth is in between.
The editor has been an "insider" ACTCIVELY RESEARCHING Maine mining history, from a variety of perspectives, for over 30 year. Chapter authors provide their unique insights into history. This book is part of a series which discovers the story behind the story. There is a great deal of Maine mining folklore, which is no more than hearsay. However a "paper trail" exists. Revisionist historians in the nineteenth century did much to cloud the record, trying to diminish their competitors' triumphs, while aggrandizing themselves. Only through the pursuit of primary sources has a factual picture emerged. One thing has remained constant: life was a struggle "then" and life is a struggle "now".« less