Editing Ely, Minnesota (section)

==History==
[[File:Pioneer Mine 01.jpg|thumb|Pioneer Mine]]

The first Europeans to explore the area were [[North American fur trade|fur traders]] who made their way into the wilderness in search of furs. But it was the [[Lake Vermillion]] [[gold rush]] that brought the first large numbers of pioneers to the area in 1865. Although hardly any gold was ever found, it was discovered that the area did contain large deposits of [[iron ore]]. Thousands of new immigrants were arriving in America at that time, and many of them came to the area later known as the [[Minnesota]] [[Iron Range]], looking for work.<ref name="it-all">{{cite web 
|title=It all began with mining 
|url=https://www.ely.org/_site_components/uploads/item_files/file-1131.pdf 
|website=Ely Minnesota History 
|archive-date=April 22, 2020 
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200422190737/https://www.ely.org/_site_components/uploads/item_files/file-1131.pdf 
|access-date=2022-10-25  }}</ref>

When the [[Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway]] laid tracks extending the rails from [[Tower, Minnesota|Tower]] to Ely in 1888, Ely began mining operations with the opening of the Chandler Mine. Ore was shipped by rail to docks on [[Lake Superior]] in [[Two Harbors, Minnesota|Two Harbors]] and [[Duluth, Minnesota|Duluth]]. From there it was shipped by [[lake freighter]] for processing in [[Ashtabula]] and other points in Ohio.<ref name="it-all" />

That year the miners incorporated the town of Florence, population 177, near the east side of Shagawa Lake on a site now known as Spaulding. Florence was named after the daughter of the Chandler mine's Captain Jack Pengilly (also the town's first mayor). After ore was discovered farther west, the town relocated, changing its name as well. Since it was discovered that the name "Florence" was already used by another village in Minnesota, "Ely" was chosen in honor of mining executive Samuel B. Ely, a big promoter of [[Vermilion Range (Minnesota)|Vermilion Range]] ore who lived in Michigan. (He is not known to have visited his namesake town.)<ref name="it-all" /> In 2020, ''The Ely Echo'' wrote: 
:The name Ely stems from the "Isle of Eels," a wetlands near Cambridge, England. In historic times,those lakes swarmed with the slithery fish (similar to eelpout) that provided sustenance for ancestors of Samuel B. Ely. His clan arrived in the states (from Ely, England) in the 1600s (one ancestor was a close associate of George Washington). Samuel, a mining executive, financed the railroad to Ely in 1888 which launched our town. He embraced Ojibwe culture and applied native names to some of his mining projects, including Ontonagon (hunting river) & Ishpeming (heaven), Michigan. Samuel's great grandson, Courtland Ely III, was Grand Marshal at Ely's 1988 Centennial Parade, stayed with Schurkes at Wintergreen & was given keys to the city by Gov. Rudy Perpich (an Iron Ranger from Hibbing).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Schurke |first1=Paul |title=The rich legacy of the White Iron Chain of Lakes |url=https://www.elyecho.com/articles/2020/08/14/rich-legacy-white-iron-chain-lakes |website=The Ely Echo |access-date=August 29, 2020}}</ref>

The original town site consisted of 40 acres. A man named McCormick opened the first grocery store in a small log building. A. J. Fenske built the first frame building in the fall of 1887; he also opened a hardware and furniture store. The Pioneer Hotel was also built that year at the corner of Sheridan Street and Fourth Avenue. The first school opened in 1889 in a small frame building on Second Avenue; its enrollment was 112 during the first season.

According to a history written in 1910, "The first religious service was conducted by Father Buh, who came from Tower for that purpose, and the Catholic congregation erected the first church. The first Protestant minister was Rev. Mr. Freeman, who arrived in time to hold an Easter service in 1889, and located here permanently, organizing the Presbyterian church. There are now six churches, representing as many different faiths.

Soon other mines opened in Ely: The Pioneer Mine (1889), the Zenith (1892), the Savoy (1899), and the Sibley (1899). The Pioneer was by far the most productive, producing 41 million tons or 40% of the Vermilion Range's entire output. Eventually 11 mines opened near Ely. In 1967 the Pioneer mine closed. It is on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] and its offices house the Ely Arts & Heritage Center.<ref name="it-all" />

Originally the mining was an open-pit operation, but when the abundant ore was mined out, deep shafts were made to start mining underground. With the need for wooden support beams to keep the tunnels from collapsing and for lumber to meet the needs of the ever-expanding growth in the area, the logging and milling industries grew. Logging continues in the region, though on a limited scale and only for paper pulp—the major operations virtually disappeared by 1920 when the area's tree reserves were depleted.<ref>[http://zenithcity.com/zenith-city-history-archives/minnesotas-arrowhead/a-brief-history-of-ely/ "A Brief History of Ely"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213731/http://zenithcity.com/zenith-city-history-archives/minnesotas-arrowhead/a-brief-history-of-ely/ |date=October 4, 2013 }}, Zenith City Online</ref>