One hundred and twenty two years ago, the January 6, 1899 Philipsburg Mail headlined the following story: “With the closing hours of the old year disappeared one of the oldest and most prominent landmarks of Granite county. About 8 o’clock last Saturday evening the Algonquin mill and holding works at Hasmark were discovered to be on fire and within a short space of time the entire plant was reduced to ashes and nothing remained but the stone walls and a heap of ruined machinery. The blaze was seen a long distance and the mountains for several miles were lit up as bright as day. The night was comparatively dark, but fences and buildings across the valley were almost as plainly discernable as in bright daylight. The heat around the burning buildings was intense as the woodwork was very dry and burned like tinder. Live trees some distance up the mountain side caught fire from the heat, but they ceased to burn after the fiery element had ended its furious spectacle of destruction at the works.
The property was owned by the Hope Mining Company and is a total loss, with no insurance. The Algonquin Mill and hoisting works were built during the fall and winter of 1879-1880, and the mill was first started up in February 1880. Mr. John Ainsley being master mechanic and chief engineer. It originally consisted of 20 stamps, dry crushing; six amalgamating pans, three settlers, and one revolving cylinder roaster, and had an engine of 150 horse power. The machinery was constructed in Ohio by Griffith & Wedge, and when started the Algonquin was the model mill in Montana. The cost of the mill was about $82,000 and the hoisting works about $15,000, as everything had to be freighted in and wages were high at that time. About 85 men were employed by the Company, which was originally organized in 1875. The officers of the company at the time the works were built were: H.A. stiles, President: J.H. Williams, Vice President: J.K. Pardee, Superintendent and General Manager: H. S. Showers, Assistant Superintendent. Mr. Hopkins was foreman of the mill and H.K. Fairgrieve the bookkeeper. About 32,000 tons of ore were crushed during the year 1880 and the mill was kept running at intervals until December, 1883, when it closed down. During the year 1892, Mr. John McKechney, then operating the Puritan mine, procured possession of the property and set about putting it in thorough repair. The shaft house was partitioned off for living rooms and office and equipped with steam heat and electric lights. Some new machinery was added, including a small engine and dynamo. When the panic over-took the country in 1893 the Algonquin mill together with the Puritan were among the Granite county enterprises that suspended operations and since that time the property has remained closed down. About two years ago it was sold under execution and the ownership passed to the Hope Mining Company.
Just how the fire started is not known, but it was first discovered in the hoist, which was about ten feet distant from the mill and there being no water about the premises the entire plant was soon a roaring furnace. It is about the cleanest wreck ever seen--every particle of wood was consumed by the fire and nothing but ashes and iron remain. The shaft has caved in and for several days after the conflagration smoke was seem issuing from the pit.
The town of Hasmark seems deserted since the disappearance of the works, but the old residents who never have lost confidence in the future of their camp feel that while the fire has played serious havoc some time in the near future a custom smelter will adorn the site formerly occupied by the Algonquin and the new ores from the many promising mines around Hasmark will be successfully treated at home.”
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