Mariscal Mine
a.k.a. Lindsey Mine,Ellis Mine
River Rd., Big Bend National Park, TXQuicksilver, or mercury, is a metallic element with the unique property of being the only metal that remains in a liquid state at ordinary temperatures, becoming solid only about 40°F below zero. The unique properties of this material make it useful in a wide range of products, such as insecticides, paint, pharmaceuticals, electrical apparatus, etc., and was used extensively in explosives, particularly during WWI.
The ore from which quicksilver is obtained is called cinnabar. Cinnabar deposits are caused only by certain types of volcanic activity and are therefore somewhat rare. The only major cinnabar mines in the United States are in California and in Brewster and Presidio Counties, Texas.
One of the less productive of the cinnabar mining ventures in Texas, the Mariscal Mines were not a financial success. Cinnabar was first discovered in the Mariscal area in 1900 by Martin Solis. D. E. Lindsey was the first to actively mine the area, however, extracting enough ore to only produce about 50 flasks of quicksilver. The ore was transported by burros to Terlingua for refining. W. K: Ellis was the one who really began the development of the area with the construction of storage bins and a retort. Between 1917 and 1919 the Ellis Mine "produced and shipped 894 flasks of refined quicksilver." Purchased in 1919 by the Mariscal Mining Company, considerable effort, and expense were used in the construction of a new refining plant, Ellis' requiring too high a grade of ore to be economical. The bulk of the structures remaining in the area date to this period of development. However, with the end of WWI, a drastic drop in the price of quicksilver, coupled with the development expenses the company had incurred, made the venture an economic failure, and the mines were closed in 1923. One last attempt to operate the mine was made by the Vivianna Mining Co. in 1942. It added some new equipment and constructed several new buildings, but this effort also ended in financial failure in 1944.
Cinnabar mining was one of the major industries leading to the development of the Big Bend area. Although the Mariscal Mine was not a financial success, other such developments in the area were successful. The Mariscal Mine is typical enough of these early mining enterprises to tell the story of this industry's contribution to the history of the area.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.