HANCOCK -- Last month four separate areas of the Quincy Mine were vandalized with graffiti, and the Quincy Mine Hoist Association (QMHA) spent the last couple of weeks doing their best to cover it up.
“Unfortunately on the Rock Skips, we could not get the paint off without damaging what was underneath, so we ended up matching the paint and painting over it, and we also did that on the corner building,” said Quincy Mine Hoist Association manager, Glenda Bierman.
The Number Four Boiler House is the only building where the graffiti could not be removed. The association is trying to find other ways to remove it, but for now, their goal is to keep the integrity of the 130-year-old building.
QMHA says law enforcement officials have yet to contact them in regards to any leads, but that is not keeping them from moving forward.
This historical landmark was once a place where many men mined copper. It started back in 1856 and underground mining continued until 1945. Quincy Mine was the second largest mining company in the area. Today it is a place where people can take a journey into the past.
“If they take a full tour it would include the Shaft House which is where the men went down into the mine and brought the ore out, the Hoist House, the Cogwheel Tram Ride which goes down the side of the hill to the opening of the mine, and then we take them in by wagon half a mile into the site,” Bierman said.
This year visitors can look forward to some new additions inside the Hoist House.
“We have some new interpretive panels that went up. We also received some pictures from Seaman’s Mineral Museum,” Bierman said.
QMHA says the only way to continue to preserve the mine’s history is to educate others on how important and valuable it is to the community.
Quincy Mine tours are available Friday and Saturday, 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The gift shop is open Friday and Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information click here.
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