Workers at the Milford Mine near Crosby, site of a 1924 underground disaster that claimed the lives of 41 miners. (Minnesota Historical Society)
In 1924, the Milford Mine near the Cuyuna Iron Range town of Crosby, Minnesota, was the site of the worst mining disaster in state history. Forty-one miners died when a lake flooded the underground mine.
I’ve written about the story before, and we explored the history in the Crosby edition of my Great Northern Radio Show.
Today, mining no longer takes place on the Cuyuna Range, while the region has rehabilitated and redeveloped itself for outdoor recreation and new development. Nevertheless, the area remains tied to its mining and immigrant history. Community leaders and volunteers worked to create a public park commemorating the miners in 2010, and now they seek to make the Milford Mine park more of an attraction.
Adding fuel to the efforts, a state commission recently named the Milford Mine park one of 14 significant regional parks.
A Sept. 13, 2016 Brainerd Dispatch story by Chelsey Perkins details efforts to raise funds to finish the park:
Work on the park, which memorializes those miners, began in 2010 and is nearing completion. It is located west of Highway 6 and south of County Highway 30, between Island and Milford lakes, and includes the site of the mine. Construction on a boardwalk bridge across Milford Lake was recently completed and work to secure the mine shafts is ongoing. Interpretive signage and trail marking was part of recent work as well.
In his request for board action, Chris Pence, land services supervisor, listed several park amenities the funds would be used to develop: a restroom facility, a canoe launch and fishing platform, a secondary picnic shelter, a memorial wall addition and access road improvements. The funds would also support a site preservation action plan and marketing strategies. If awarded, the grant funds would be available beginning July 1, 2017.
You can’t appreciate the exciting new economic and tourism activity on the Cuyuna without acknowledging the significant contributions of its history.
I would encourage folks to visit the memorial park if they are in the area. It is a beautiful setting and they’ve done nice work in setting things up. It is very family friendly.