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Fire and Brimstone: The North Butte Mining Disaster of 1917
The worst hard-rock mining disaster in American history began a half hour before midnight on June 8, 1917, when fire broke out in the North Butte Mining Company's Granite Mountain shaft. Sparked more than two thousand feet below ground, the fire spewed flames, smoke, and poisonous gas through a labyrinth of underground tunnels. Within an hour, more than four hundred men would be locked in a battle to survive. Within three days, one hundred and sixty-four of them would be dead.
Fire and Brimstone recounts the remarkable stories of both the men below ground and their families above, focusing on two groups of miners who made the incredible decision to entomb themselves to escape the gas. While the disaster is compelling in its own right, Fire and Brimstone also tells a far broader story striking in its contemporary relevance. Butte, Montana, on the eve of the North Butte disaster, was a volatile jumble of antiwar protest, an abusive corporate master, seething labor unrest, divisive ethnic tension, and radicalism both left and right. It was a powder keg lacking only a spark, and the mine fire would ignite strikes, murder, ethnic and political witch hunts, occupation by federal troops, and ultimately a battle over presidential power.
Fire and Brimstone recounts the remarkable stories of both the men below ground and their families above, focusing on two groups of miners who made the incredible decision to entomb themselves to escape the gas. While the disaster is compelling in its own right, Fire and Brimstone also tells a far broader story striking in its contemporary relevance. Butte, Montana, on the eve of the North Butte disaster, was a volatile jumble of antiwar protest, an abusive corporate master, seething labor unrest, divisive ethnic tension, and radicalism both left and right. It was a powder keg lacking only a spark, and the mine fire would ignite strikes, murder, ethnic and political witch hunts, occupation by federal troops, and ultimately a battle over presidential power.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published August 8, 2006
171 people are currently reading
1453 people want to read
About the author
Michael Punke
7 books628 followersMichael Punke is a writer, novelist, professor, policy analyst, policy consultant, attorney and currently the Deputy United States Trade Representative and US Ambassador to the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland. He is best known for writing The Revenant: A Novel of Revenge (2002), which was adapted into film as The Revenant (2015), directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, with a screenplay by Iñárritu and Mark L. Smith, and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
May 22, 2011
A few days ago the Washington Post had an article noting that colleges have had to agree to teach a course on capitalism using Ann Rand's "Atlas Shrugged". That work essentially touts that capitalism in its extreme is an exemplary system. Perhaps the college should add "Fire and Brimstone" to the course. This book recounts the mining industry in Montana and shows that without the union, companies cut corners on safety to make more profit. The mining industry controlled the press in Montana at the time and lied about the miners and their union. Politicians were bought by the mining industry and regulators such as they were, were bribed. It is a very interesting read, especially after reading "Triangle" and "Homestead". However, other works that a course on capitalism should use are the novels of Sinclair Lewis, and Ida Tarbell's "History of the Standard Oil Company."
December 29, 2022
True story of the worst hard rock mining tragedy in US history that occurred on June 7, 1917, when a worker at the Granite Mountain copper mine accidentally started a fire that rapidly spread into a fiery inferno, trapping 400 miners underground and killing 168. The narrative follows the history of copper mining, the Copper Kings, the people involved in the tragedy, the company’s responses, and a detailed analysis of what happened.
The first half describes the causes of the disaster and rescue efforts. It highlights the heroic actions of two men - Manus Duggan and James Moore. They each saved lives by leading a group of men to build a bulkhead in two different places, which enabled them to escape the toxic gases produced by the fire. This section delves into the lives of the men and their family members. It is based on interviews of descendants and contemporaneous news accounts.
The second half covers the miners seeking safer conditions and better pay via unions, and the resistance to their demands by the company. It covers labor history and the associated violence. It speaks of politicians, corruption, and legal battles. It is an engrossing book filled with tragedy, heroism, and the struggles of workers for improved conditions. The author provides many detailed footnotes. He ties the Butte mining disaster to the bigger picture of politics, labor, and legislation on local, state, and national levels.
The first half describes the causes of the disaster and rescue efforts. It highlights the heroic actions of two men - Manus Duggan and James Moore. They each saved lives by leading a group of men to build a bulkhead in two different places, which enabled them to escape the toxic gases produced by the fire. This section delves into the lives of the men and their family members. It is based on interviews of descendants and contemporaneous news accounts.
The second half covers the miners seeking safer conditions and better pay via unions, and the resistance to their demands by the company. It covers labor history and the associated violence. It speaks of politicians, corruption, and legal battles. It is an engrossing book filled with tragedy, heroism, and the struggles of workers for improved conditions. The author provides many detailed footnotes. He ties the Butte mining disaster to the bigger picture of politics, labor, and legislation on local, state, and national levels.
May 31, 2020
Politics, politics and more politics. What a disappointment. Only about a quarter of this book is about the North Butte mining disaster. You know, THE TITLE OF THE BOOK. Union politics. Labor politics. Montana politics and ending with country politics. I get it. Politicians and mega wealthy corporations have always screwed the general public. They are self serving and greedy pieces of filth. I know. I don't need to read about it in a book that was supposed to be about something else. Yeah, I have a big problem with misleading titles. I feel ripped off. Never would have spent my money on this book had I known. Whelp, off to the next.
April 15, 2018
Let me start by saying, I'm not really a history buff by any encompassment of the term, but this book may have converted me. I live an hour from Butte, MT and am quite awestruck by the rich history that took place less than 100 miles from where I've spent the majority of my life.
I do find the title to be a little misleading because this book covers so much more than the tragic Mining Disaster of 1917. This is a really informative and well-researched book about early mining efforts, the infamous battle of the Copper Kings, and formation and tedious fight for labor unions. While the tragedy and heroism that surrounds the Disaster is worth reading the book, be aware that this is also a fantastic historical narration that delves deep into mining history (early as the Gold Rush) and delivers an impressive account of historical information throughout the Great Depression.
I do find the title to be a little misleading because this book covers so much more than the tragic Mining Disaster of 1917. This is a really informative and well-researched book about early mining efforts, the infamous battle of the Copper Kings, and formation and tedious fight for labor unions. While the tragedy and heroism that surrounds the Disaster is worth reading the book, be aware that this is also a fantastic historical narration that delves deep into mining history (early as the Gold Rush) and delivers an impressive account of historical information throughout the Great Depression.
November 1, 2021
This is a must read for any nonfiction fan. So much historical information packed into this book, while also telling a fascinating story.
January 11, 2021
Its a difficult one to call. The writer writes well. His subject is meticulously researched. You know a bit about what he's talking about. But somehow, it doesn't go quite where you were expecting it to go.
Metalliferous mining at Butte in Montana has been proceeding since around 1862. The first activities were for placer gold - those old pictures of 49ers digging and sluicing gravels for gold which had been washed out of the surrounding country rock. This was followed by some silver mining but the area really took off when copper was exploited through shaft mining and underground stopeing of what is, to use a technical geological expression, a classic Porphry Copper deposit of copper-molybdenite-silver-gold-lead mineralisation. This means that though there are a few concentrated 'veins' of mineralisation the host rock is generally mineralised as a 'stockwork' with the mineralisation shot through the host rock in low concentrations. This usually means large scale extraction commonly through open pit mining.
In the case of Butte, by the time this was realised a large part of what would become the city had already been built over an extensive part of the deposit prohibiting it's exploitation by Open Pit extraction (that came much later and is still continuing). So instead you have multiple mine setts exploiting the individual concentrations through shaft and level mining. At Butte most of the concessions were taken over by Anaconda as a giant copper mining conglomerate but there were other smaller contenders too.
The book tells the story of the 1917 disaster at the Granite Mountain - Speculator mine when a large electric cable which was being lowered to the 2600ft level was lost control off so that it plunged into the shaft ending up in a giant tangle with the lead shrouding damaged and the paraffin-soaked paper wrapping of the cable largely exposed. When the damage was being inspected by the crew it was accidentally ignited from the flame of one of the crew's carbide lamps. The ensuing fire caused fumes which filled the mine and led to the deaths of 168 miners - still the biggest loss of life for a metalliferous mine in the USA.
Michael Punke, through expert research, documents the events which led to the fire and the subsequent rescue of men and the events which followed afterwards. The causes are examined as well as the effects following the disaster. It needs to be born in mind that this was 1917, in the midst of the First World War when America was involved and drafting troops to Europe. Also a factor which came into play was the large variety of immigrants into the mining community in Butte. A further factor is the non-compliance with or even the lack of regulations on health and safety in the mines. Poor industrial relations and the presence of a monopoly holder in Anaconda Copper also played their part.
Having detailed the disaster and the events of the rescue, Punke goes on to describe the fallout from it. This is mostly along political lines. It would have been useful to have followed up what progress was made on the health and safety to prevent this event happening again, but the concentration is really on the political side. There is however a good section on the industrial relations and the unionisation in the area with a discussion on the intervention of the IWW (International Workers of the World).
The first part of the book detailing the disaster and rescue follows an interleaved character with chapters on the disaster alternating with chapters giving background. Most of the latter part of the book deals with the politics and social history from 1917 onwards. Some of this latter part is quite dull given the tension and pace set by the first part. The great lack is how the underground world of the miners was changed by the disaster, and this is not really covered other than discussing attempts at unionisation and the failure to break the monopoly of the operating companies (mostly one company - Anaconda Copper) who controlled every aspect of the miners lives.
This is a worthy book which kind of sideways details how the power of the military-industrial conglomerate and capitalism can fail to value human life at the expense of profit - a lesson we still fail to realise.
Metalliferous mining at Butte in Montana has been proceeding since around 1862. The first activities were for placer gold - those old pictures of 49ers digging and sluicing gravels for gold which had been washed out of the surrounding country rock. This was followed by some silver mining but the area really took off when copper was exploited through shaft mining and underground stopeing of what is, to use a technical geological expression, a classic Porphry Copper deposit of copper-molybdenite-silver-gold-lead mineralisation. This means that though there are a few concentrated 'veins' of mineralisation the host rock is generally mineralised as a 'stockwork' with the mineralisation shot through the host rock in low concentrations. This usually means large scale extraction commonly through open pit mining.
In the case of Butte, by the time this was realised a large part of what would become the city had already been built over an extensive part of the deposit prohibiting it's exploitation by Open Pit extraction (that came much later and is still continuing). So instead you have multiple mine setts exploiting the individual concentrations through shaft and level mining. At Butte most of the concessions were taken over by Anaconda as a giant copper mining conglomerate but there were other smaller contenders too.
The book tells the story of the 1917 disaster at the Granite Mountain - Speculator mine when a large electric cable which was being lowered to the 2600ft level was lost control off so that it plunged into the shaft ending up in a giant tangle with the lead shrouding damaged and the paraffin-soaked paper wrapping of the cable largely exposed. When the damage was being inspected by the crew it was accidentally ignited from the flame of one of the crew's carbide lamps. The ensuing fire caused fumes which filled the mine and led to the deaths of 168 miners - still the biggest loss of life for a metalliferous mine in the USA.
Michael Punke, through expert research, documents the events which led to the fire and the subsequent rescue of men and the events which followed afterwards. The causes are examined as well as the effects following the disaster. It needs to be born in mind that this was 1917, in the midst of the First World War when America was involved and drafting troops to Europe. Also a factor which came into play was the large variety of immigrants into the mining community in Butte. A further factor is the non-compliance with or even the lack of regulations on health and safety in the mines. Poor industrial relations and the presence of a monopoly holder in Anaconda Copper also played their part.
Having detailed the disaster and the events of the rescue, Punke goes on to describe the fallout from it. This is mostly along political lines. It would have been useful to have followed up what progress was made on the health and safety to prevent this event happening again, but the concentration is really on the political side. There is however a good section on the industrial relations and the unionisation in the area with a discussion on the intervention of the IWW (International Workers of the World).
The first part of the book detailing the disaster and rescue follows an interleaved character with chapters on the disaster alternating with chapters giving background. Most of the latter part of the book deals with the politics and social history from 1917 onwards. Some of this latter part is quite dull given the tension and pace set by the first part. The great lack is how the underground world of the miners was changed by the disaster, and this is not really covered other than discussing attempts at unionisation and the failure to break the monopoly of the operating companies (mostly one company - Anaconda Copper) who controlled every aspect of the miners lives.
This is a worthy book which kind of sideways details how the power of the military-industrial conglomerate and capitalism can fail to value human life at the expense of profit - a lesson we still fail to realise.
April 18, 2025
The irony of this disaster is that workers were lowering a cable that would provide power to a sprinkler-type system in order to help douse shaft fires but the oil-soaked cable ignited from a spark from a worker's carbide lamp. The cable itself dropped 28 levels - a half mile - and flames quickly spread, destroying the signaling system which prevented the cage to be risen in a timely manner causing the horrific death of the two engineers.
The author goes into the history of the mines - the Granite and Speculator - which was part of the Anaconda and connected to 5 other mines owned by the company. The town of Butte was the home of the largest deposit of copper in the world and infighting between the 'copper kings' who were fighting for control of the mining wealth but political power.
But that wasn't the only tension in the town or the mines. Riots had occurred just days before regarding the draft - the U.S. was being drawn into World War I, immigrants fleeing Europe were moving into Montana causing the miners to feel their jobs were threatened and various unions.
Back to the disaster - 150 of the 163 men that died were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning. The shafts were so hot from flames that the transport cages were twisted so escape that way was impossible. Many tried to find the cross-cuts to the other mines but lost themselves in the smoke. Two entombing bulkheads - one created by Duggan and the other by Moore - managed to provide 25 out of 29 (Duggan while under the influence of CO2 poisoning fled deeper into the mine and was later found dead) and Moore's group all initially survived but 4 later died.
It is shortly after the discussion regarding the difficulties the families had recognizing their burnt loved ones and arranging for funerals for the numerous dead, Punke does into massive details of the unionization, the combatting of the locals verses the national unions. Anaconda being bought by Standard Oil in 1906. The company-wide strike that eventually was brought to a halt by the electricians coming to an agreement and then the other crafts leaving the miners to battle alone. To give an idea of the level of violence, national guard troops occupied Butte for 4 years since copper production was vital to the war. Oddly enough, troops occupied numerous mines across the United States at this time.
The last chapter dealt with Montana's rabidity regarding the purchase of war or liberty bonds during World War II. The samples of questioning as well as the way people not participating to the 'required' levels were treated reminded me of the questioning of those before the Committee for UnAmerican Activities a couple decades later.
Today, the town of Butte sits at the edge of an open pit mine - Berkley Copper Pit which was created from the remains of the Anaconda's Granite, Speculator and other mines. The mine was shut down in 1982 with all the equipment - including the pumps - removed which brought contaminated water levels near the surface and it has been added as an EPA Superfund site.
I can understand how all the unionization information affected the town and the miners but it just got to the point where it wasn't interesting. Most books on disasters go into the legal ramifications after the disaster or the investigations into what caused the catastrophe but this one barely touched on the lives of those who survived and/or returned to the mines afterwards. Although there was a short tale of Duggan's wife being on town transport with her infant daughter, born months after her father's death, and the miners who were heading home, knew who she was and wanted to hold the child for a few moments. A story that the infant that grew into a woman with her own family takes wry pride in.
2025-021
The author goes into the history of the mines - the Granite and Speculator - which was part of the Anaconda and connected to 5 other mines owned by the company. The town of Butte was the home of the largest deposit of copper in the world and infighting between the 'copper kings' who were fighting for control of the mining wealth but political power.
But that wasn't the only tension in the town or the mines. Riots had occurred just days before regarding the draft - the U.S. was being drawn into World War I, immigrants fleeing Europe were moving into Montana causing the miners to feel their jobs were threatened and various unions.
Back to the disaster - 150 of the 163 men that died were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning. The shafts were so hot from flames that the transport cages were twisted so escape that way was impossible. Many tried to find the cross-cuts to the other mines but lost themselves in the smoke. Two entombing bulkheads - one created by Duggan and the other by Moore - managed to provide 25 out of 29 (Duggan while under the influence of CO2 poisoning fled deeper into the mine and was later found dead) and Moore's group all initially survived but 4 later died.
It is shortly after the discussion regarding the difficulties the families had recognizing their burnt loved ones and arranging for funerals for the numerous dead, Punke does into massive details of the unionization, the combatting of the locals verses the national unions. Anaconda being bought by Standard Oil in 1906. The company-wide strike that eventually was brought to a halt by the electricians coming to an agreement and then the other crafts leaving the miners to battle alone. To give an idea of the level of violence, national guard troops occupied Butte for 4 years since copper production was vital to the war. Oddly enough, troops occupied numerous mines across the United States at this time.
The last chapter dealt with Montana's rabidity regarding the purchase of war or liberty bonds during World War II. The samples of questioning as well as the way people not participating to the 'required' levels were treated reminded me of the questioning of those before the Committee for UnAmerican Activities a couple decades later.
Today, the town of Butte sits at the edge of an open pit mine - Berkley Copper Pit which was created from the remains of the Anaconda's Granite, Speculator and other mines. The mine was shut down in 1982 with all the equipment - including the pumps - removed which brought contaminated water levels near the surface and it has been added as an EPA Superfund site.
I can understand how all the unionization information affected the town and the miners but it just got to the point where it wasn't interesting. Most books on disasters go into the legal ramifications after the disaster or the investigations into what caused the catastrophe but this one barely touched on the lives of those who survived and/or returned to the mines afterwards. Although there was a short tale of Duggan's wife being on town transport with her infant daughter, born months after her father's death, and the miners who were heading home, knew who she was and wanted to hold the child for a few moments. A story that the infant that grew into a woman with her own family takes wry pride in.
2025-021
February 11, 2024
A fantastic story about the Granite Mountain mining disaster and the history of Butte, Montana. Much of the story is split between the horrific events in June of 1917 when a fire broke out in a massive copper mine and a history of the industrial titans that controlled this region of Montana, the “Copper Kings”. This is a story of the industrial corruption that defined the Gilded Age when men like William Clark, who bribed his way to the United States Senate, and Marcus Daly amassed inconceivable amounts of wealth.
These stories stand in stark contrast to the heroism of the miners and foremen who worked tirelessly to save the men who were trapped down in the mine. Men from all over the world; Germany, Ireland, Finland, and the Balkans putting their differences aside to help rescue as many trapped miners as possible. They were neither wealthy nor powerful but their bravery and sacrifices form the heart of this story. A fascinating microcosm of the American West as it became less rugged and more “civilized”.
The book also examines the hysteria that swept this country during the First World War. The anti-German sentiment that was spewed regularly and the measures taken to curtail and suppress all things German played a significant role in the latter half of this book. “Patriotic” pandemonium swept the Nation and the horrifically unconstitutional Alien and Sedition Act was used as a weapon against so many American citizens. Montana was no different where even stricter sedition acts were enacted and people were labeled as Bolsheviks and freedom haters for voicing their opinions about the war. Labor unions were especially valuable targets for the mega-corporations during this time for their supposed socialist values.
An enthralling story with many different components none more compelling than the stories about the miners and their struggle to survive the disaster.
These stories stand in stark contrast to the heroism of the miners and foremen who worked tirelessly to save the men who were trapped down in the mine. Men from all over the world; Germany, Ireland, Finland, and the Balkans putting their differences aside to help rescue as many trapped miners as possible. They were neither wealthy nor powerful but their bravery and sacrifices form the heart of this story. A fascinating microcosm of the American West as it became less rugged and more “civilized”.
The book also examines the hysteria that swept this country during the First World War. The anti-German sentiment that was spewed regularly and the measures taken to curtail and suppress all things German played a significant role in the latter half of this book. “Patriotic” pandemonium swept the Nation and the horrifically unconstitutional Alien and Sedition Act was used as a weapon against so many American citizens. Montana was no different where even stricter sedition acts were enacted and people were labeled as Bolsheviks and freedom haters for voicing their opinions about the war. Labor unions were especially valuable targets for the mega-corporations during this time for their supposed socialist values.
An enthralling story with many different components none more compelling than the stories about the miners and their struggle to survive the disaster.
October 1, 2022
Honestly, I'm pretty impressed with this book given how daunting a task the author, Michael Punke, faced. With 164 of those involved losing their lives deep below the ground - and so many more being hampered by incomplete memories from low oxygen levels and traumatic injuries - Punke was forced to reconstruct a rather complex disaster one hundred years on. And yet, he did fairly well with it, offering an engaging and complete story. Ironically, it most convincingly hits its stride midway through, well past the climatic drama of the cave in, as we get to know two of the groups who have survived the initial disaster and are attempting to await rescue.
I think the book does its best work, however, in two other respects. First, we get a taste of the emergence of mine rescue as a discipline, and the deep limitations faced by those involved in 1917. I wish there was more on this - hell, if anyone has a good book recommendation just on mine rescue, I'd love to read it - but it was a real highlight. Punke did a great job weaving these aspects throughout the story in an interesting way.
The second major success of the book was, despite the last living soul being pulled from the mine several chapters before the end, continuing with a compelling story about how the disaster shaped Butte, the mining industry, and even America more broadly. He does a really nice job drawing out some of these lessons in a concise yet sufficiently detailed way, giving you broader context without it becoming a slog.
Overall, I'd recommend. One of the better mining disaster books I've read in terms of setting the broader context, and eminently readable throughout.
I think the book does its best work, however, in two other respects. First, we get a taste of the emergence of mine rescue as a discipline, and the deep limitations faced by those involved in 1917. I wish there was more on this - hell, if anyone has a good book recommendation just on mine rescue, I'd love to read it - but it was a real highlight. Punke did a great job weaving these aspects throughout the story in an interesting way.
The second major success of the book was, despite the last living soul being pulled from the mine several chapters before the end, continuing with a compelling story about how the disaster shaped Butte, the mining industry, and even America more broadly. He does a really nice job drawing out some of these lessons in a concise yet sufficiently detailed way, giving you broader context without it becoming a slog.
Overall, I'd recommend. One of the better mining disaster books I've read in terms of setting the broader context, and eminently readable throughout.
March 27, 2021
Not the typical type of book for me. I read this to better understand my grandfather, the times he lived in, his experience as a miner and the experience of what it might be like for him as he helped recover bodies from the horrible tragedy.
My dad as a young boy was complaining about the horrible smell of cleaning out the chicken coup when his dad spoke only limited about his time as a teenage boy retrieving bodies from a mine disaster in Butte Montana.
I won’t go into detail of what he said.
“One goal of the training was to teach the men to avoid the types of physical exertion with which their breathing equipment could not keep pace. Thus they were taught to walk at a speed of only three miles an hour, resting at the end of each minute. The men also practiced in dark “smoke rooms” wearing their breathing apparatus, they engaged in activities such as carrying a dummy, crawling through a nineteen by seventeen inch tunnel, and climbing over obstructions . The exercises were important and succeeded in simulating many of the physical challenges that the rescuers would face. But as the Bureau of Mines noted, “It is not possible to reproduce the mental strain, anxiety and fear sometimes manifested in mine-recovery work.”
My grandfather was previously mining in Colorado, I’m not sure of his training. But my son, his namesake is now 18, the same age my grandfather was at the time of this disaster and it’s hard to imagine him doing such things.
My dad as a young boy was complaining about the horrible smell of cleaning out the chicken coup when his dad spoke only limited about his time as a teenage boy retrieving bodies from a mine disaster in Butte Montana.
I won’t go into detail of what he said.
“One goal of the training was to teach the men to avoid the types of physical exertion with which their breathing equipment could not keep pace. Thus they were taught to walk at a speed of only three miles an hour, resting at the end of each minute. The men also practiced in dark “smoke rooms” wearing their breathing apparatus, they engaged in activities such as carrying a dummy, crawling through a nineteen by seventeen inch tunnel, and climbing over obstructions . The exercises were important and succeeded in simulating many of the physical challenges that the rescuers would face. But as the Bureau of Mines noted, “It is not possible to reproduce the mental strain, anxiety and fear sometimes manifested in mine-recovery work.”
My grandfather was previously mining in Colorado, I’m not sure of his training. But my son, his namesake is now 18, the same age my grandfather was at the time of this disaster and it’s hard to imagine him doing such things.
December 31, 2021
I received this book unexpectedly as a Christmas gift so I jumped into the subject rather blind. It was a nice surprise because I really enjoyed the book! To be clear, this book is about much more than the Butte Mining Disaster of 1917. Punke dives into the origin, history, and politics of Butte, Montana as a mining town. The author presents a well supported thesis on how the Butte Fire shaped national politics at the time. The story of Butte has many great and heroic characters, such as, miner Manus Duggan and Senator B.K. Wheeler. But like all great stories, there are just as many villains. I would highly recommend this book to anyone loves American history!
April 3, 2024
This is a decent enough account of the Butte Mining disaster, that is really an account of Butte and the Anaconda Mining Company and how they shaped contemporary Montana and US politics. There's an excellent focus on trade union and working class politics, but unfortunately Michael Punke doesn't really have the politics and understanding to do this justice. As such its a book that can only end with the apparent "faith" of Butte's population that things will get better. Not without struggle they won't.
August 30, 2021
I wanted to like this book more. It wasn't totally dry, the author threw in some humorous comments. And, indeed, it was a very tragic event that I was glad to read about. But for some reason, I couldn't keep my attention on it. One problem for me was that I couldn't grasp the enormity of the mineshaft and I kept getting confused about the geography. I'm sure that Michael did a first rate job of explaining it, but I just couldn't seem to grasp it.
However, it was quite the story of neglect and tragedy. 163 people died. When I picked up the book, I assumed that was everyone down in the mine. I was amazed to learn how many people were saved. I didn't realize how many people work in a mine at a time. There were definitely some amazing facts.
However, it was quite the story of neglect and tragedy. 163 people died. When I picked up the book, I assumed that was everyone down in the mine. I was amazed to learn how many people were saved. I didn't realize how many people work in a mine at a time. There were definitely some amazing facts.
October 13, 2025
Fascinating documentation of the North Butte mining disaster as well as Butte’s history in the aftermath.
April 19, 2022
Vividly written tale of horror beneath the ground, the tragedy of early miners in an unsafe work place.
March 29, 2023
A Butte history overview:
Around the 1860s, gold-seeking prospectors had some luck with placer mining around Virginia City and environs. Silver was discovered soon after, but extraction of this precious metal would require industrial mining on a scale far exceeding any operations that were in place at that time.
One of the earliest men to take advantage of the new opportunity was William Clark, a man of middle-class upbringing from Pennsylvania who attended Columbia’s School of Mines, made some money by transporting highly marked up goods by mule from Salt Lake City to mining camps in Montana. Clark used the money to become a banker in Deer Lodge, after which he began to repossess mines from debtors who couldn’t pay their loans. He also invested $30,000 in a property in Butte, and became wealthy mining silver and later copper. After striking it rich, Clark lived lavishly in the Copper King mansion, and later built an extravagant 125-bedroom mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City. It was said to be the most expensive property in New York at the time. Through a great deal of shameless bribery, Clark managed to get himself appointed to the US Senate, though allegations of corruption forced him to step down soon after arriving in Washington.
Marcus Daly, an Irish immigrant who worked in Nevada’s Comstock Lode and other mines before coming to Montana, became Butte’s second Copper King. Daly founded the Anaconda Company, which at its height around the turn of the 20th century owned rail lines, coal beds, newspapers, hotels, and even retail stores, and also employed over three-fourths of wage-earning workers in the state. After striking it rich in 1872 by being the first to discover copper in Butte, Daly built a palace for himself in the town of Anaconda, which included a dining hall large enough for 500 people, where he usually ate alone, as well as a 26-mile railway built just for him to get to his mining operations in Butte.
The third Copper King was F. Augustus Heinze, an affable young man from Brooklyn and another graduate of Columbia’s School of Mines. Heinze preferred to do most of his mining in the courtroom, directing a small army of lawyers in battles over property rights. Most notably, he employed the Apex Rule, a law that allowed a miner to follow a vein that reached its apex beneath his property for as far as it went, even if it continued below the property of another miner. Incredibly, Heinze also managed to cast himself as a populist folk hero waging war on the oppressive Standard Oil Company, which had acquired the Anaconda Company in 1899 (though the name reverted to the Anaconda Company some years later). “My fight against Standard Oil is your fight,” Heinze rather dubiously told audiences around the state.
At the center of Butte’s story are the events of 1917, beginning with the worst hard-rock mining disaster in American history in June of that year. As an electrical cable, five inches thick and more than half a mile long, was being lowered into the Granite Mountain mineshaft, it broke under its own weight. When workers went to investigate the enormous pile of tangled cable, one of them accidentally touched his carbide-burning headlamp to the cable’s sheath, which was made of oily fabric since rubber and plastic were hard to come by in those days. The fire quickly grew out of control, and noxious fumes and carbon monoxide began spreading into the tunnels connecting to the shaft. There was no alert system in place, so the miners were on their own to realize that there was a fire and to figure out which direction in the maze of underground tunnels might offer the best chance of escape. Two groups of men barricaded themselves behind improvised bulkheads for 30 hours or more, struggling to breathe by the end as there wasn’t even enough oxygen remaining to support a flame. Some of the deaths were caused by scalding from billowing clouds of steam that rapidly expanded through the lower tunnels as water was poured on the fire from above. Most of the 163 men who died were poisoned by carbon monoxide. Some of their bodies were found in heaps next to bulkheads through which they might have escaped had the structures had doors built in, as required by state law. According to one eyewitness, some of the men’s fingers were worn down to the second knuckle from trying to claw their way out.
After a golden age in which workers made significant gains in terms of wages and working conditions, Butte underwent a great deal of labor unrest in the early decades of the 20th century. At one time union membership had practically been a religion in Butte, where even the two chimney sweeps in town were said to have formed a union. As the grip of the Company tightened, however, the unions disintegrated. Workers were required to obtain a “rustler card” before being eligible to work, and these were granted only to those who passed a background check for socialist and other undesirable activity. Though strikes were attempted - in 1914, culminating in the dynamiting of the court house, and in 1917 following the Speculator-Granite Mountain disaster - the Company was able to use its monopoly of the press and divide-and-conquer tactics to gain the upper hand. Workers striking to untie their wages from the price of copper or to limit the workweek to forty hours would have little success until New Deal legislation later forced companies to recognize and not interfere with unions.
By the 1950s, mining in Butte had become largely unprofitable. Open pit mining in Arizona, Utah, and especially Chile had been found to be much more efficient that drilling shafts and tunnels, but Butte had long resisted this method since it would necessitate the destruction of large parts of the town. Faced with the bitter choice between losing neighborhoods and losing its livelihood, it began construction of the Berkeley Pit in 1955, which sustained the mining economy for another 27 years. In 1971, after its profits had been severely set back by President Allende's nationalization of its copper mines in Chile, the Anaconda Company was sold to ARCO, which continued mining operations until 1982, when mining operations in the Pit were shut down. Although a handful of mining projects employing perhaps a few hundred people continued, Butte��s reign as the richest hill on earth had come to a close. The only other major employer that survived in Butte was the Montana Power Company, which provided utilities for the entire region. In the wave of tech excitement during the 1990s, Montana Power sold off most of its infrastructure and reformed itself as Touch America, a communications corporation based on the latest fiber-optic technology. This went well until the tech bubble burst, and by 2003 the company’s stock shares were valued at pennies, employees and pensioners were left with nothing, and the last few million dollars went to golden parachute packages for the top executives.
Butte has something that not many small American towns have: a compelling narrative. In the book’s final page, Punke sums up his fascination with the town in this way: “Far from normal, everything about Butte looms larger than life, magnified, exaggerated, like some gross caricature of itself. Butte’s villains are more villainous, its heroes more heroic, its wealth more extravagant, its poverty more grinding. Butte’s triumphs are the stuff of legends. Butte’s tragedies are almost too painful to bear. And yet, in this caricature we somehow see more clearly - the essence standing out in stark relief."
Around the 1860s, gold-seeking prospectors had some luck with placer mining around Virginia City and environs. Silver was discovered soon after, but extraction of this precious metal would require industrial mining on a scale far exceeding any operations that were in place at that time.
One of the earliest men to take advantage of the new opportunity was William Clark, a man of middle-class upbringing from Pennsylvania who attended Columbia’s School of Mines, made some money by transporting highly marked up goods by mule from Salt Lake City to mining camps in Montana. Clark used the money to become a banker in Deer Lodge, after which he began to repossess mines from debtors who couldn’t pay their loans. He also invested $30,000 in a property in Butte, and became wealthy mining silver and later copper. After striking it rich, Clark lived lavishly in the Copper King mansion, and later built an extravagant 125-bedroom mansion on Fifth Avenue in New York City. It was said to be the most expensive property in New York at the time. Through a great deal of shameless bribery, Clark managed to get himself appointed to the US Senate, though allegations of corruption forced him to step down soon after arriving in Washington.
Marcus Daly, an Irish immigrant who worked in Nevada’s Comstock Lode and other mines before coming to Montana, became Butte’s second Copper King. Daly founded the Anaconda Company, which at its height around the turn of the 20th century owned rail lines, coal beds, newspapers, hotels, and even retail stores, and also employed over three-fourths of wage-earning workers in the state. After striking it rich in 1872 by being the first to discover copper in Butte, Daly built a palace for himself in the town of Anaconda, which included a dining hall large enough for 500 people, where he usually ate alone, as well as a 26-mile railway built just for him to get to his mining operations in Butte.
The third Copper King was F. Augustus Heinze, an affable young man from Brooklyn and another graduate of Columbia’s School of Mines. Heinze preferred to do most of his mining in the courtroom, directing a small army of lawyers in battles over property rights. Most notably, he employed the Apex Rule, a law that allowed a miner to follow a vein that reached its apex beneath his property for as far as it went, even if it continued below the property of another miner. Incredibly, Heinze also managed to cast himself as a populist folk hero waging war on the oppressive Standard Oil Company, which had acquired the Anaconda Company in 1899 (though the name reverted to the Anaconda Company some years later). “My fight against Standard Oil is your fight,” Heinze rather dubiously told audiences around the state.
At the center of Butte’s story are the events of 1917, beginning with the worst hard-rock mining disaster in American history in June of that year. As an electrical cable, five inches thick and more than half a mile long, was being lowered into the Granite Mountain mineshaft, it broke under its own weight. When workers went to investigate the enormous pile of tangled cable, one of them accidentally touched his carbide-burning headlamp to the cable’s sheath, which was made of oily fabric since rubber and plastic were hard to come by in those days. The fire quickly grew out of control, and noxious fumes and carbon monoxide began spreading into the tunnels connecting to the shaft. There was no alert system in place, so the miners were on their own to realize that there was a fire and to figure out which direction in the maze of underground tunnels might offer the best chance of escape. Two groups of men barricaded themselves behind improvised bulkheads for 30 hours or more, struggling to breathe by the end as there wasn’t even enough oxygen remaining to support a flame. Some of the deaths were caused by scalding from billowing clouds of steam that rapidly expanded through the lower tunnels as water was poured on the fire from above. Most of the 163 men who died were poisoned by carbon monoxide. Some of their bodies were found in heaps next to bulkheads through which they might have escaped had the structures had doors built in, as required by state law. According to one eyewitness, some of the men’s fingers were worn down to the second knuckle from trying to claw their way out.
After a golden age in which workers made significant gains in terms of wages and working conditions, Butte underwent a great deal of labor unrest in the early decades of the 20th century. At one time union membership had practically been a religion in Butte, where even the two chimney sweeps in town were said to have formed a union. As the grip of the Company tightened, however, the unions disintegrated. Workers were required to obtain a “rustler card” before being eligible to work, and these were granted only to those who passed a background check for socialist and other undesirable activity. Though strikes were attempted - in 1914, culminating in the dynamiting of the court house, and in 1917 following the Speculator-Granite Mountain disaster - the Company was able to use its monopoly of the press and divide-and-conquer tactics to gain the upper hand. Workers striking to untie their wages from the price of copper or to limit the workweek to forty hours would have little success until New Deal legislation later forced companies to recognize and not interfere with unions.
By the 1950s, mining in Butte had become largely unprofitable. Open pit mining in Arizona, Utah, and especially Chile had been found to be much more efficient that drilling shafts and tunnels, but Butte had long resisted this method since it would necessitate the destruction of large parts of the town. Faced with the bitter choice between losing neighborhoods and losing its livelihood, it began construction of the Berkeley Pit in 1955, which sustained the mining economy for another 27 years. In 1971, after its profits had been severely set back by President Allende's nationalization of its copper mines in Chile, the Anaconda Company was sold to ARCO, which continued mining operations until 1982, when mining operations in the Pit were shut down. Although a handful of mining projects employing perhaps a few hundred people continued, Butte��s reign as the richest hill on earth had come to a close. The only other major employer that survived in Butte was the Montana Power Company, which provided utilities for the entire region. In the wave of tech excitement during the 1990s, Montana Power sold off most of its infrastructure and reformed itself as Touch America, a communications corporation based on the latest fiber-optic technology. This went well until the tech bubble burst, and by 2003 the company’s stock shares were valued at pennies, employees and pensioners were left with nothing, and the last few million dollars went to golden parachute packages for the top executives.
Butte has something that not many small American towns have: a compelling narrative. In the book’s final page, Punke sums up his fascination with the town in this way: “Far from normal, everything about Butte looms larger than life, magnified, exaggerated, like some gross caricature of itself. Butte’s villains are more villainous, its heroes more heroic, its wealth more extravagant, its poverty more grinding. Butte’s triumphs are the stuff of legends. Butte’s tragedies are almost too painful to bear. And yet, in this caricature we somehow see more clearly - the essence standing out in stark relief."
October 13, 2008
My son read this as part of his Montana State History class at UM in Missoula and brought it home. I found it really interesting and even more so because my mother lived in Butte for a while in the early 30's so she knew some of the relatives of these people and tells the story of laying in bed at night and being able to hear the voices of the miners below her! A very interesting story about the worst mining disaster in US history, Butte in 1917 must have been quite a place...it's sure not much to look at now :-)
May 7, 2024
Well researched and written account of the 1917 Butte mining disaster.
I liked how he interspersed the facts of the incident and the personal stories of some that were profoundly affected. It gave me a lot of new insight into Montana history.
It also went into the corruption in politics and big industry, as well as the challenge the miners faced in trying to unite for better pay and conditions.
It's a story of mining, immigration, union organizing, monopolies, greed, and sacrifice - and has much changed in 100 years? It made for a great book club discussion.
I liked how he interspersed the facts of the incident and the personal stories of some that were profoundly affected. It gave me a lot of new insight into Montana history.
It also went into the corruption in politics and big industry, as well as the challenge the miners faced in trying to unite for better pay and conditions.
It's a story of mining, immigration, union organizing, monopolies, greed, and sacrifice - and has much changed in 100 years? It made for a great book club discussion.
February 6, 2018
Story well told. Top-notch research and writing. Michael takes the reader into the heart of this Montana tragedy.
April 28, 2020
Started out great with the title theme, but ended up being political babble about unions/etc. Should have stuck with the title subject and left the stuff on BK Wheeler/etc for a different day!
December 29, 2022
Michael Punke's account of Montana's North Butte mining disaster of 1917 is a remarkably rich vein of history, both in heartfelt description of the men trapped and/or killed in a tragedy not of their making, its cause, and aftermath. Yet not all the combustibility lay below the surface. Butte had been simmering for three years under a hostile corporate takeover whose number one goal was to crush organized labor. Add ethnic division and tension, and the politics of WW I and conscription, and all the right ingredients for eruption were present as much as the gas and timber and airflow in the Speculator Mine: just add spark.
What is remarkable about this narrative is the breadth of view coming from an author who was both WTO delegate *and* an NSC staffer - uncommon within organizations that are built on ideological platitudes, not intelligent analysis, to judge from their public faces. Of course it is "B. K." Wheeler, Butte's USDA and future Congressional notable, who emerges as the linchpin of the story for Mr. Punke: the man who "holds the course between two extremes." Why matters should have polarized is, however, well-documented: an intransigent corporation resting on the divine right of property; and trampled labor that insists democracy also includes the hired help, with the right to fight for it at home as well as abroad.
Yet certain blinkers remain in Punke's reconstruction, perhaps inevitable for an organization man of Gen-X. He writes on p. 176 (paperback edition) that the IWW - Industrial Workers of the World, aka "Wobblies" - was a "radical communist-oriented labor organization." A radical labor organization it was, but none were "communist-oriented" per modern American cliche. The IWW was as much syndicalist and populist as socialist, with its executives like Bill Haywood expelled from the old Socialist Party. Similarly, Punke darkly notes the IWW's use of Marx' most influential statement on p. 198, that workers "have nothing to lose but their chains," per his Communist Manifesto. Despite Punke's red flag warning, the line itself had long been common to all socialist groups, moderate or radical - and anarchists, opposed to mainstream socialism - for two generations by 1917 and is hardly a prima facie indictment. Though, indeed, the IWW were faithful fundamentalists of class struggle, the Establishment's favorite bogeyman before the rise of the Communism so necessary to modern American culture.
Punke takes us beyond the tragedy of the Speculator into the personal losses of survivors - which included the Anaconda Corporation and its affiliates, as well as Butte itself. Family members were cheated of pensions, Anaconda succumbed to a one-two of technology and over-reaching greed, while Butte suffered two economic collapses in the rise of "global prosperity." It seems Frank Little, the lynched IWW radical labor organizer, had the last macabre laugh after all. Butte, though, refuses to see itself as a loser, trying to recover and face forward, as did the families who claimed their loved ones' remains in America's domestic battlefield.
What is remarkable about this narrative is the breadth of view coming from an author who was both WTO delegate *and* an NSC staffer - uncommon within organizations that are built on ideological platitudes, not intelligent analysis, to judge from their public faces. Of course it is "B. K." Wheeler, Butte's USDA and future Congressional notable, who emerges as the linchpin of the story for Mr. Punke: the man who "holds the course between two extremes." Why matters should have polarized is, however, well-documented: an intransigent corporation resting on the divine right of property; and trampled labor that insists democracy also includes the hired help, with the right to fight for it at home as well as abroad.
Yet certain blinkers remain in Punke's reconstruction, perhaps inevitable for an organization man of Gen-X. He writes on p. 176 (paperback edition) that the IWW - Industrial Workers of the World, aka "Wobblies" - was a "radical communist-oriented labor organization." A radical labor organization it was, but none were "communist-oriented" per modern American cliche. The IWW was as much syndicalist and populist as socialist, with its executives like Bill Haywood expelled from the old Socialist Party. Similarly, Punke darkly notes the IWW's use of Marx' most influential statement on p. 198, that workers "have nothing to lose but their chains," per his Communist Manifesto. Despite Punke's red flag warning, the line itself had long been common to all socialist groups, moderate or radical - and anarchists, opposed to mainstream socialism - for two generations by 1917 and is hardly a prima facie indictment. Though, indeed, the IWW were faithful fundamentalists of class struggle, the Establishment's favorite bogeyman before the rise of the Communism so necessary to modern American culture.
Punke takes us beyond the tragedy of the Speculator into the personal losses of survivors - which included the Anaconda Corporation and its affiliates, as well as Butte itself. Family members were cheated of pensions, Anaconda succumbed to a one-two of technology and over-reaching greed, while Butte suffered two economic collapses in the rise of "global prosperity." It seems Frank Little, the lynched IWW radical labor organizer, had the last macabre laugh after all. Butte, though, refuses to see itself as a loser, trying to recover and face forward, as did the families who claimed their loved ones' remains in America's domestic battlefield.
September 8, 2024
Put simply, I enjoyed this read immensely.
I say that in full-on disaster-nerd mode. A testimonial on the cover notes a strength of the book as Punke's situating the North Butte Mining Disaster into the context of its day. I agree; that effort was skillful, and it helped me to feel both the human and temporal sides of the disaster. Punke also noted that he intentionally did not included direct quotes in the book unless they originated in a media piece or other document from the era. That was another strength of the writing. It's a non-fiction title that reads like a fictional narrative; it's that accessible.
As a scholar of crisis management and emergency management, I've often told students and clients alike that disasters are unequivocally tied to the context in which they occur. Prevailing thoughts, politics, competing events...all of these things influence how we view the event and the damage it causes. In the case of the North Butte disaster, it's easy for us to criticize the safety measures that were in-place, and it's easy for us to marvel at the level to which a company could take advantage of its personnel. But we're not in 1917. We're not pre-labor regulation (largely). We're not living during a world war (yet), nor are we on the cusp of a recession or depression (hopefully).
Punke's narrative also makes me think of the leaders who were thrust into this crisis. At what threshold does culpability start or end? How much credit do we (i.e., observers from afar) give for effort? Some of my favorite authors on crisis management and crisis leadership talk about managing accountability as one of a small set of key tasks for crisis managers/leaders. This story makes me think about how these characters handled that accountability. On one hand, it's obvious who was at fault, and it's also obvious that they were active in the response and its aftermath. But was that enough? Can a crisis be so big that the appropriate corporate response is to shut down? We all know that it's nearly impossible to put a price on a human life, but when a company does and provides a death benefit to a family, are we right to criticize said company for what it determines, regardless of the number?
I imagine all of you reading this will have varying answers. I'm pretty sure that the way I answer those questions will be different when I return to this review.
So it is with disasters. The interconnections of our complex world make disasters almost inevitable, and each new fact we learn about them changes our perception of the response. Even for those that occurred more than 100 years ago.
Read this book and soak it in. Think about its stories and what they mean. Put yourself in the shoes of various characters. And marvel at the resilience we humans are capable of demonstrating.
I say that in full-on disaster-nerd mode. A testimonial on the cover notes a strength of the book as Punke's situating the North Butte Mining Disaster into the context of its day. I agree; that effort was skillful, and it helped me to feel both the human and temporal sides of the disaster. Punke also noted that he intentionally did not included direct quotes in the book unless they originated in a media piece or other document from the era. That was another strength of the writing. It's a non-fiction title that reads like a fictional narrative; it's that accessible.
As a scholar of crisis management and emergency management, I've often told students and clients alike that disasters are unequivocally tied to the context in which they occur. Prevailing thoughts, politics, competing events...all of these things influence how we view the event and the damage it causes. In the case of the North Butte disaster, it's easy for us to criticize the safety measures that were in-place, and it's easy for us to marvel at the level to which a company could take advantage of its personnel. But we're not in 1917. We're not pre-labor regulation (largely). We're not living during a world war (yet), nor are we on the cusp of a recession or depression (hopefully).
Punke's narrative also makes me think of the leaders who were thrust into this crisis. At what threshold does culpability start or end? How much credit do we (i.e., observers from afar) give for effort? Some of my favorite authors on crisis management and crisis leadership talk about managing accountability as one of a small set of key tasks for crisis managers/leaders. This story makes me think about how these characters handled that accountability. On one hand, it's obvious who was at fault, and it's also obvious that they were active in the response and its aftermath. But was that enough? Can a crisis be so big that the appropriate corporate response is to shut down? We all know that it's nearly impossible to put a price on a human life, but when a company does and provides a death benefit to a family, are we right to criticize said company for what it determines, regardless of the number?
I imagine all of you reading this will have varying answers. I'm pretty sure that the way I answer those questions will be different when I return to this review.
So it is with disasters. The interconnections of our complex world make disasters almost inevitable, and each new fact we learn about them changes our perception of the response. Even for those that occurred more than 100 years ago.
Read this book and soak it in. Think about its stories and what they mean. Put yourself in the shoes of various characters. And marvel at the resilience we humans are capable of demonstrating.
April 23, 2020
If you look at a map of Butte, Montana, you might see what looks like a lake to the north of downtown; this is the Berkeley Pit. On its southern end sits the Berkeley Pit Visitor Center, and northwest of the Berkeley Pit (the "lake") is the Granite Mountain Mining Memorial. We've been through Butte many times in our travels as full-time RVers, but our next time through I'll want to stop, pay our respects at the memorial, and see the Pit for ourselves.
Sadly, in the US, we've all heard tales of mining disasters. This one, in some ways, probably wasn't much different than many others: the mining company made some mistakes, the miners too, and disaster ensued. But this particular incident, at this particular time, in this particular location, led to so much more than you'd think.
Michael Punke does an excellent job of teasing out the details of what happened, what led to the tragedy, and it's long aftermath. I learned more about mining unions, mining processes, mining families, and mining companies, all through the careful unpeeling of a complicated onion of relationships.
Punke's ability to cover immense ground -- from general historical incidents to the personal particularities of various figures who were involved -- through the unwinding of various profiles and stories, all reliant on primary and seconary sources, makes this book a fascinating read. And for those who aspire to write excellent nonfiction, this book is also a great example of how to share the specifics of a piece of history.
I highly recommend this book for those who love history, Montana, labor struggles, and the impact a few people can make on institutions that seem impenetrable.
Sadly, in the US, we've all heard tales of mining disasters. This one, in some ways, probably wasn't much different than many others: the mining company made some mistakes, the miners too, and disaster ensued. But this particular incident, at this particular time, in this particular location, led to so much more than you'd think.
Michael Punke does an excellent job of teasing out the details of what happened, what led to the tragedy, and it's long aftermath. I learned more about mining unions, mining processes, mining families, and mining companies, all through the careful unpeeling of a complicated onion of relationships.
Punke's ability to cover immense ground -- from general historical incidents to the personal particularities of various figures who were involved -- through the unwinding of various profiles and stories, all reliant on primary and seconary sources, makes this book a fascinating read. And for those who aspire to write excellent nonfiction, this book is also a great example of how to share the specifics of a piece of history.
I highly recommend this book for those who love history, Montana, labor struggles, and the impact a few people can make on institutions that seem impenetrable.
August 26, 2023
It is a powerful story, well researched (I think). But its title describes only part of the book. The rest could be called US Politics Over the Years from Woodrow Wilson to Franklin Roosevelt, and How They Affected Butte, Montana. Or some such. None of it is pretty.
The mine fire was horrific, and the miners who helped each other were truly heroic. This is a story worthy of being told. Even a biography of Butte, Montana, is a worthy story. From its beginning it was a place of both villainy and decency, perhaps both traits in consequence of its accidental founding by desperate people striving to overcome hardship from somewhere else. That its heritage is a polyglot of peoples from multiple foreign countries who learned to live happily with each other should be inspirational as well. They all speak English now.
But focusing on the politics of unionism vs. corporate management was the author’s choice of follow-up to the tragic catastrophe of 1917. I suppose that’s pertinent, but the political arguments jumped into the story before the resolution of the main event—the mine calamity—and they were distracting. Questions remain about how long it took to clean out the underground gasses and repair collapsed tunnels, and who did those things. Or was the mine ever really restored, even to its inadequate safety guards of origin? Didn’t the strikers emphasize those deadly dangers?
My judgment is that the book is a good read, but maybe incomplete.
The mine fire was horrific, and the miners who helped each other were truly heroic. This is a story worthy of being told. Even a biography of Butte, Montana, is a worthy story. From its beginning it was a place of both villainy and decency, perhaps both traits in consequence of its accidental founding by desperate people striving to overcome hardship from somewhere else. That its heritage is a polyglot of peoples from multiple foreign countries who learned to live happily with each other should be inspirational as well. They all speak English now.
But focusing on the politics of unionism vs. corporate management was the author’s choice of follow-up to the tragic catastrophe of 1917. I suppose that’s pertinent, but the political arguments jumped into the story before the resolution of the main event—the mine calamity—and they were distracting. Questions remain about how long it took to clean out the underground gasses and repair collapsed tunnels, and who did those things. Or was the mine ever really restored, even to its inadequate safety guards of origin? Didn’t the strikers emphasize those deadly dangers?
My judgment is that the book is a good read, but maybe incomplete.
January 15, 2024
The Spectacular Mine on Granite Mountain in Butte, Montana suffered a catastrophic disaster on June 8, 1917. This mine, in particular, was at maximum production in support of operations during World War I. Miners had long been dissatisfied with safety precautions in the mines, and had begun a strong push for improved safety measures. Part of those safety measures included fire protection. Miners were using carbide lamps, which contained an open flame, to light their work areas. This was exceptionally dangerous when working in a mine that has various gasses inside of it. As part of these safety measures, an electric cable for a fire prevention system was being installed. Unfortunately, one of the carbide lamps caught insulation for the wire on fire and the fire spread rapidly through the mine, killing 168 miners.
I purchased the Audible version of this book, which came in at around seven hours to listen to. If you are interested in the physical copy, it is just over 350 pages. The author of this book is also the author of The Revenant, as well as Last Stand, which is about saving buffalo. The writing style of this book was very readable, and the narrator on the Audible version was pleasant to listen to. I appreciated the level of research that went into this book, but my favorite part was the personal statements and accounts by those who were present at the time of this disaster. I really learned a lot of about mining and mine rescue from this book.
I purchased the Audible version of this book, which came in at around seven hours to listen to. If you are interested in the physical copy, it is just over 350 pages. The author of this book is also the author of The Revenant, as well as Last Stand, which is about saving buffalo. The writing style of this book was very readable, and the narrator on the Audible version was pleasant to listen to. I appreciated the level of research that went into this book, but my favorite part was the personal statements and accounts by those who were present at the time of this disaster. I really learned a lot of about mining and mine rescue from this book.
January 25, 2022
Does a really good job of balancing narrative and history. I will say, though, that there were a few times I wished the author would let the events speak for themselves, instead of directing his own veneration. Like, I get the miners were brave from his reporting, but there’s a weird almost interjection thing he sometimes does (more attributable to writers coming from a conservative vein) where, it’s like, it’s not enough to show these characters are valorous, they have to argue and praise them in a valorous light as well (I guess, as a reader, I resist authors that try too hard to venerate, to uphold). Feel similarly about some lines on the book (“the story of the American west is the story of hope”) and this gem of a line here (“one of the more striking attributes of Buttes people is a fundamental lack of self-pity - striking attributes in todays victimhood society”) (lol what?). And for the record, I’m not against authors making these claims but…he never really follows it up and I’m left scratching my head…anyways, a fine blend of history, politics, and gripping narrative, at times weighed down by what I felt like was the author interjecting himself too immersively to have the reader share his beliefs, to venerate, rather than letting us come to those conclusions or choose.
August 27, 2023
The majority of this book was a thoroughly fascinating history of Butte's early mining history, the miners and other citizens involved in the tragedy of the 1917 mine disaster. The book described the large number of ethnicities represented in the mines of Butte (and across Montana) and the dynamics that were created as the various groups of immigrants settled in the area over time. The ongoing struggle between the miners and the owners of these large companies, particularly Anaconda, is also traced through the story line of the book and brings Butte's historic citizens to life. The last portion of the book was less enjoyable to me as it seemed to lose focus. The author tried to cram the remaining 100 years of Butte's mining history into a handful of chapters as well as tie up the story of B.K. Wheeler, which continued in for several more decades beyond the events of 1917. While some of the events discussed tied to the mine disaster as a precipitating event, the point of the book seems to lose focus at this point. I would still recommend the book as a mostly well-done recording of an important aspect of Montana's history (and even to some extent modern day Montana), the mining industry and the Montanans who made their living in the mines.
September 29, 2024
I really enjoyed the first 200 pages about the fire and the trapped miners. That much of the book is 5 star reading. Even reading about some of the aftermath was great! The last 75 or so pages was where my experience dropped to about 3 stars leaving me to rate the book as a whole as 4 stars.
The first 200 pages followed several people and their actions and mishaps as the mine they are in is on fire. Many make ready escapes, others intentionally barricade themselves against toxic smoke. Some are successful while others are not at this tactic. There are also rescuers going into the mine to help, but mostly recover bodies. Alternating with this story is the story of copper mining and Butte, Mt. It's a great adventure and is interesting reading.
The last 75-ish pages: After these two stories are told out, we read about the aftermath of the disaster. The workers of the mine and the company are at odds at a time that the US is at war and copper goes from being in low demand to eventually high demand. This part of the story involves strikes and courtroom drama. I think this part is interesting too, but the stories of Wheeler and Little were too adjacent to the story at least as much as I could tell and started to feel like info for a different book.
The first 200 pages followed several people and their actions and mishaps as the mine they are in is on fire. Many make ready escapes, others intentionally barricade themselves against toxic smoke. Some are successful while others are not at this tactic. There are also rescuers going into the mine to help, but mostly recover bodies. Alternating with this story is the story of copper mining and Butte, Mt. It's a great adventure and is interesting reading.
The last 75-ish pages: After these two stories are told out, we read about the aftermath of the disaster. The workers of the mine and the company are at odds at a time that the US is at war and copper goes from being in low demand to eventually high demand. This part of the story involves strikes and courtroom drama. I think this part is interesting too, but the stories of Wheeler and Little were too adjacent to the story at least as much as I could tell and started to feel like info for a different book.
April 28, 2019
This book reads, in a sense, like a thriller. I have a deep interest in the subject, time period, and location of the event… and simply put, I couldn’t put the book down. I read it in three days.
Michael’s research on the event was impeccable. He provided facts and reaction from every different angle. You really felt like you were a part of the town and seeing the event unfold. The first-hand accounts and individual stories he included helped show how drastic and devastating of an event this truly was.
I loved learning the various topics he place in this book. I was interested to see if he would mention the backdrop of The Great War going on and it’s effects on the event and thankfully he did multiple times.
The only small complaint I have is the minimum scenic description which seemed balance better in The Revenant. I understand he was viewing this as closer to a historical rendition of the event, but some more poetic language would have strengthened it a bit in my opinion. This is the mountainous part of Montana let me feel I’m placed in it. Or when trapped with the miners give me just a little scenic description to make me feel as if I’m suffering with those poor men.
Michael’s research on the event was impeccable. He provided facts and reaction from every different angle. You really felt like you were a part of the town and seeing the event unfold. The first-hand accounts and individual stories he included helped show how drastic and devastating of an event this truly was.
I loved learning the various topics he place in this book. I was interested to see if he would mention the backdrop of The Great War going on and it’s effects on the event and thankfully he did multiple times.
The only small complaint I have is the minimum scenic description which seemed balance better in The Revenant. I understand he was viewing this as closer to a historical rendition of the event, but some more poetic language would have strengthened it a bit in my opinion. This is the mountainous part of Montana let me feel I’m placed in it. Or when trapped with the miners give me just a little scenic description to make me feel as if I’m suffering with those poor men.
February 4, 2022
After watching "Yellowstone," one would think that Montana revolved solely around cattle ranching, but Michael Punke's "Fire and Brimstone" goes into detail regarding the state's rich history of mining, particularly as it relates to Butte, with an emphasis on the No. Butte Mining Disaster of 1917. The disaster, with 164 dead, is the largest underground mining disaster in U.S. history, and the focus of perhaps 2/3 of the audio book. The balance is devoted to Butte's modern history, including the "Copper Kings" of the Gilded Era (a nice tie-in with the currently running HBO series), the Anaconda mining conglomerate, an array of crooked officials and judges, as well as crusaders such as Sen. B.K. Wheeler, a Democrat, that often locked horns with FDR, including being the prime force that sunk his SCOTUS packing plan. As a student of labor movement history, this was an excellent overview of union and anti-union activities of the AFL and the IWW ("Wobblies"), and the depths the mining companies went to in-order to scuttle union activities, including the much publicized murder of IWW agitator Frank Little. A fascinating listen for an overview of early 20th Century Montana and the West.
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