|
Free Traveling Guides » States » Minnesota » Greater Minnesota
Soudan Underground Mine
Located in the Vermillion Range of the Iron Range of Minnesota, the Soudan Underground Mine is a century old mine – and also the oldest and deepest mine in the state. First opened in 1884 by an industrialist from Pennsylvania, this mine emerged as one of the richest iron ore producing centers of the country. In 1901, the ownership was transferred to the U.S. Steel Corporation and it was operational until 1962.
The Soudan Underground Mine is today open to the public and has the distinction of being the only underground mining facility accessible to visitors. The experience of going down into the near 2400 feet underground pit seated in a caged arrangement cannot be described and has to be experienced. Necessarily dressed in hard hats visitors are thrilled by the trip that takes them to the deepest levels of the mining pit and from where they are shifted to a rail car to explore the mining region. Narratives about the mining days only add to the awe and excitement of being here.
On the ground level, visitors can travel around the dry shop, engine house, crusher house and drill shop all constructed between 1901 and 1925. There is boardwalk for those who would like to just walk around the mining pits and is a nice way to see the environs of the mine.
Other attractions in the Soudan Underground Mine State Park are hiking trials that pass through the surrounding conifer forests, geological formations and bird watching.
|
