San Juan County’s
geological makeup encompasses finds of precious metals such as gold and copper
to deadlier elements of uranium and vanadium.
Depending on who is spoken with, there is either praise of the industry
and the monetary gain to many; or those who would rather it hushed up due to
the illnesses and deaths caused.
Personal feeling is, hiding history does not mean it never happened, or
will prevent it from happening again.
So, I’m going to be
drawing attention to the old Cottonwood Mill’s short history, and its
contribution towards Monticello Mill becoming the main processing plant of
radioactive materials.
The history of the
millsite will be a combination of information from two sources; a verbal
history from Grant Lee Shumway in the book, The Family of Peter and Mary
Johnson Shumway by Ruth Shumway Robinson and Gary Lee Shumway, and the
mining series published by Blue Mountain Shadows (“Mining in San Juan”,
"Cottonwood Mining", “Cottonwood Mining #2 and #3”). The first millsite, located along South
Cottonwood Road aka County Road 228, was built in 1937. The high temperatures needed to
"roast" the ore caused the building to burn down the same year. In 1938, the millsite was rebuilt, plus
additional buildings containing a blacksmith shop, laboratory, assay office,
boarding house for the workers, and a few cabins. In 1942, the mill burned down once again; it
was rebuilt, with a loan from the Defense Plant Corporation, in April
1943. The mill, however, was forced to
close its doors in July 1943; poor processing methods created few profits and
loans could not be repaid. In 1942, the
millsite in Monticello had been built and working in full force, so all the
ore, and tailings, from the Cottonwood area mines and millsite, were shipped to
Monticello for processing from then on.
Remember, at that time, the dangers of uranium and vanadium were still
unknown.
The Atomic Energy
Commission, with help from the BLM and National Forest Service, cleaned up both
mill sites. In 1997, it was determined
that travel along CR 228 had increased dramatically with hikers, campers, ATVers,
4 Wheel Drive enthusiasts. The BLM went
through the area to close off any open mines that would pose a danger, and made
sure the millsite was still safe from the effects of uranium and vanadium.
By the way, I initially
expressed some concern about the radiation contamination to my good friend, Amy
Watkins Kensley, a teacher at the elementary school down in Monument
Valley. Her response was, "Honey,
you live in San Juan County; we all glow in the dark!" That made me feel
way better about it.
Alright now, mining
history class over, let’s get to the next topic, food miners ate. Back in the 17th and 18th
centuries, miners in Cornwall, England needed meals that could be hand held,
eaten warm or cold, and not take time away from work. The test of a good pasty? Drop it down a mine shaft and see how well it
held together. Since many of the Mormon
pioneers have ancestry going back to the United Kingdom, it shouldn’t be
surprising that the recipe for the Cornish Pasty came with them. In The Mormon Pioneer Cookbook by
Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, page 60 has a recipe using meats of round steak
and pork chops mixed together.
I’m going back in time
though and use the traditional recipe from “The Cornish Pasty Association”,
Cornwall, England. In parentheses will
be the American equivalent of measurements and baking temperature. Note, instead of making 6 large pasties, I
made 8 small and had enough to experiment with a flour tortilla. Hint, stick with the pastry dough; flaky, yet
holds up well when picked up to eat, and oh so tasty…a tasty pasty, what more
could you ask for!?!
Traditional Cornish Pasty
For Shortcrust Pastry
Ingredients:
500 g (4 cups) strong
bread flour (it is important to use a stronger flour than normal as you need
the extra strength in the gluten to produce strong pliable pastry)
120 g (1/2 cup) lard or
white shortening
125 g (1/2 cup) Cornish
butter (regular unsalted butter will do)
1 tsp. salt
175 ml (2/3 cup) cold
water
For the Filling
Ingredients:
450 g (1 lb.) good quality
beef skirt, cut into cubes (I used Angus Ground Beef 80/20)
450 g (1 lb.) potato,
diced
250 g (1and ½ cups) swede (aka
turnip), diced
200 g (1 and ¼ cups)
onion, sliced
Salt & pepper to taste
(2:1 ratio)
Beaten egg or milk to
glaze
Method (Preparation)
Rub the two types of fat
lightly into flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add water, bring the mixture together and
knead until the pastry becomes elastic. This will take longer than normal pastry,
but it gives the pastry the strength that is needed to hold the filling and
retain a good shape. This can also be done in a food mixer.
Cover with cling film and
leave to rest for 3 hours in the fridge. This is a very important stage as it
is almost impossible to roll and shape the pastry when fresh. Roll out the pastry and cut into circles
approx. 20cm (7.75 inches) diameter. A side plate is an ideal size to use as a
guide.
Layer the vegetables and
meat on top of the pastry, adding plenty of seasoning. (I mixed it all together
in one bowl; a 1/3 measuring cup puts out the correct portion)
Bring the pastry around and crimp the edges together (see guide to crimping on website). Glaze with beaten egg or an egg and milk mixture.
Bake at 165 degrees C (350 F) for about 50 – 55 minutes until golden. (Mine were done at 50 minutes)
Tortilla Experiment
Mary Cokenour
The Cottonwood Millsite - San Juan County, Utah http://www.southwestbrowneyes.com/2015/03/cottonwood-millsite-and-mines-cr-228.html
