Arizona Mining Scams and Unassayable Ore Projects of the Late 20th Century

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Author
Donaldson, W.S.
Issue Date
2002-12-01
Keywords
Arizona Department of Mines and Mineral Resources
Historic
Arizona
salting gold
mining fraud
fraud
unassayable ore
mining scams
mining industry

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Description
“A gold miner is a liar standing next to a hole in the ground.” The quote, traditionally misattributed to Mark Twain,1 defines the experience of the many investors who have lost money in dubious Arizona mining projects. The state has a long and glorious history of mining scams, a history that continues today. The introduction to the Arizona Department of Mines and Mineral Resources’ (ADMMR) mining scams circular2 describes the phenomenon: A time-honored method to bilk the public of millions of dollars is the ubiquitous mining swindle. Since an unusually rich ore deposit, or bonanza, has historically produced enormous profits for the developer, many of us believe that we too, like the ‘49er, can strike it rich. The glamour attached to “discovery” creates, in the imagination of some people, a relatively easy way to attain fantastic wealth. Although money can be made in mining and this Department certainly encourages mining, we also have a responsibility to urge the public to exercise prudence in its investment. Too many people have lost their hard-earned savings on an illadvised mineral scheme. Archives are full of outrageous examples of mining scams and swindles in which the only beneficiary was a glib entrepreneur with unbounded optimism. In most cases, he disappeared before his investors realized what happened.
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10150/629665
Additional Links
https://library.azgs.arizona.edu/
Language
en
Series/Report no.
ADMMR OFR-02-20
Rights
Arizona Geological Survey. All rights reserved.
Collection Information
Documents in the AZGS Document Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact azgs-info@email.arizona.edu.
North Bounding Coordinate
37.0355
South Bounding Coordinate
31.4826
West Bounding Coordinate
-114.741
East Bounding Coordinate
-109.116
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