Once again, I'll pick up my little story about Burke, Idaho. In Part #4, I conveyed a snapshot of history involving the most infamous of the Hercules Silve Mine's owners, Mr. Horsley. I also started to show you some images of the Hecla Mining Operation that lined one side of the town of Burke. I promised more photos...so here we go!

Though in Part 4, I showed you what I refer to as "The Tower", I didn't show you photos of what the area looks like just before you get to "The Tower". The photo shown above will do that...and you can see a little bit of the Tower peering behind the power pole located immediately to the right of the "Idaho 4 END" sign (by the way, you take Highway 4 to get to Burke). I want you to pay a lot of attention to the right 2/3rds of the photo. See all the dirt? Once upon a time, that wasn't dirt. Keep that in mind as you look on. Technically, I've shown photos a little "out of order" with Part 4...but I'll eventually show a picture that will kind of "connect" everything for you (relative to the size of the Hecla Mining operation).

Just past "The Tower", the mining operation continues on down the street. Eventually revealing two interesting brick buildings. These are fairly large buildings...and keep in mind that, at least to some degree, there were walkways used to traverse from one section of the operation to the next. So...the people working in these buildings had fairly ready access to the Tower and the buildings located immediately behind it. My belief is that these were the office "headquarters" for Hecla Mining Corporation.

This photo was take from in front of the brick buildings...at least as close as the fence would let me get and still capture the scope of the structure. This picture has some interesting aspects...and if you study the photo a bit, you'll find the little..."interesting" things that I'm referring to.

Yet another photo...albeit a dark and somewhat ominous one...of the Hecla Mining Buildings overlooking the town of Burke.

This photo was taken located near the car/truck entrance for Hecla Mining. You can see that the operation really covered most of this side of the street/highway. I do have some additional photos...but, of course, these blogs only allow me to include a handful at a time. So...I'll take this opportunity to share a little more of Burke's history with you...

In the first posting, I think that I mentioned that Burke is just 3/4 of a mile long...and 300 feet wide at the valley floor. So...as you can somewhat see from the last photo shown above, the mining operation occupies a massive amount of the town. Candidly, what is still standing is only a SMALL part of what used to exist in Burke. Most of the buildings that once filled the valley are gone. Interestingly, this isn't the first time in the history of the town...where most of the buildings that once existed "vanished"...

With the spatial limitations imposed by the landscape, Burke's population density was a bit...extreme. Both buildings and people existed in extraordinarily close proximity to each other. In 1923, a fire burned three-quarters of the town down. Fire has long been a hazard for cities and towns through world history...and Burke is no exception. The town's economy was still quite strong...and so Burke was rebuilt after the fire...and life moved forward with enthusiasm!

Rising from the valley floor, the mountains and hills pose a rather interesting construction challenge. Consequently, retaining walls were a major fact of life in Burke. You can see evidence of these walls on multiple hillsides...though most of the buildings that once stood behind the walls are long, long gone. I think that I mentioned this in the first or second posting...but at one point, Burke had the Tiger Hotel...which was built over the highway, creek and railroad tracks. This structure once boasted 150 rooms! Like New York, Burke's situation required that people go "up"...and so multi-story buildings once occupied much of Burke. The only structures with any height that still stand are those of the Hecla operation. As an aside, not all of the Hecla's structures still exist; many were made of wood and vanished long ago. One of the outcomes of Burke's 1923 fire; the town's people learned that brick doesn't burn like wood...

As some of you may be aware, the mining industry has a rather mercurial history (no pun intended). It has been plagued with "ups and downs" forever. The 1930's and the Great Depression hurt the industry...and Burke. A 1930 census shows Burke's population at 800. It was clear that the good times for this town were over...though a modest resurgence appeared to take place for a few years after 1936. Through informal questioning of a few people in the surrounding area, I gathered that the Hecla operation still ran...at a lesser capacity...in the early 50's. That said, I've encountered some documentation indicating that Hecla Mining Corporation shut the mine down in 1944. I have yet to be able to interview anyone that lived in Burke during that time...so I cannot verify the facts surrounding the closing of the mine. I do know that Burke was Hecla's headquarters for a number of years past 1944 (some reports indicate well into the 1960's)...and this reduced existence probably provided some economic lifeblood for Burke...though, clearly, nothing sustainable.

A 1980 census shows Burke's population at 15. As is often the case with history, conflicting reports exist...but frankly, what I've seen indicates that the census is probably "very close to reality". Hecla closed the Burke offices in 1982...officially signaling the end of the town.

While 1982 was the where "The End" really began for the town of Burke, you and I haven't yet reached the end of our tale. So stay tuned for Part 6! I promise more photos...a little more information...some personal opinion...and, likely, the final chapter in this story. Until then, keep your powder dry and your edges sharp!