Next, rare history unearthed.

Discover the surprising connections between minerals and mining and major events in America's past.

- When European colonists first arrived theyre looking for minerals.

Journey with me into the Sterling Hill Mine.

Step through the entrance, and into a world of geology and history.

- Oh, wow.

Find out how the science of fluorescence figures into this history and why this mine is so unique.

There's no other place like it in the world.

Drive by history starts now.

[Music] Made possible by The Preserve New Jersey Historic Preservation Fund, administered by the New Jersey Historic Trust, State of New Jersey.

Also, the New Jersey Historical Commission, enriching the lives of the public by preserving the historical record and advancing interest in and awareness of New Jersey's past.

Every day, thousands of motorists pass by countless history markers and say to themselves, “One of these days, I'm going to stop and read that.

One of these days I'm Im going to find out what happened and why it mattered.” Well, this is that day.

- I'm heading to a history marker that marks the spot where hidden treasure was found.

No gold was found there.

Rather a rainbow of riches.

And yes, that's a hint.

I'm Ken Magos, and this is Drive By History.

[Music] Today's investigation begins in Ogdensburg, New Jersey, located about 50 miles west of New York City.

An abundance of metals and other natural resources have attracted speculators to this corner of Sussex County as far back as the 1600s.

In the centuries that followed, the region yielded a wealth of minerals, including some colorful fluorescent minerals that can't be found anyplace else in the world.

- Here's the history marker.

It says, “ The Sterling Mine.

The Sterling Mine, which closed in 1986, yielded 11 million tons of zinc, iron and manganese ore.

This mine, together with the nearby Franklin Mine, had a huge impact on the economic and cultural development of Sussex County, as many immigrants came here to work.

These orebodies and the enclosing Franklin Marble constitute one of the great mining districts of the world.” - So the rest of the sign talks about preservation.

- Always important.

- But first, I want to go exploring and see where the Sterling Hill Mine leads in both American history and natural history.

[Music] When I think of the Atlantic Seaboard and its industrial past, I think of the maritime trade out of New York and Boston or the manufacturing boom that catapulted Newark and Camden to prominence.

I don't think of mining, and I hadn't even heard of Ogdensburg.

To find out more, Im off to the Guggenheim Library, housed in the former summer estate of Murry and Leonie Guggenheim, on the campus of Monmouth University, where Drive By Historys Anthony Bernard has been mining the stacks, unearthing a mountain of fascinating information.

[Music] - Hey Anthony, how are you doing?

- Hey Ken, how are you?

- Good to see you.

- Come on in.

- So I just came from a history marker that talks about one of the great mining districts of the world, and it's in new Jersey.

- Now, Im always looking for local histories that fit into the national narrative.

- Do you think I might have that here?

- For sure?

- Well, that's interesting.

- That's not something we hear a lot about.

- Or maybe I should say its not something I've heard a lot about.

- I don't think most people have.

- Maybe the California Gold Rush or the Klondike Gold Rush just captured the public's imagination a little more.

- Heading west to strike it rich -- now that I've heard of.

- Well, what you should know is that people headed east to strike it rich, too.

- Well, actually, west, because they came from Europe.

- But they came to the East coast, so east.

- Got you.

- There are hundreds, if not thousands of abandoned mines all over the east.

- That's a lot of mines.

- And, what I think you'll find fascinating is that some of them were started in the colonial days, in our nation's earliest days.

- And let me guess, that's because we think most of the colonists who came over were seeking freedom.

- But actually, many of the folks who came over during the colonial period were seeking prosperity, seeking natural resources, seeking minerals, right?

- You've learned a thing or two, I see.

[Laughter] - One of the first things that European powers sought from their American colonies was extractable metals.

- This is due in part to events from the 1500s involving the Spanish conquistadors.

- A staggering quantity of gold that the conquistadors extracted from the Americas allowed Spain to become the richest country in the world at that time.

- And, just as an aside, I know history involving the Spanish conquistadors is sensitive.

- Did they extract the gold or did they steal it?

- But that's for another day.

- Sure, so the other European powers had visions of gold.

- They want to get in on the game.

- You know it, but the French and the Dutch and the English didn't find gold or precious metals -- today we say precious metals -- but they did find other minerals.

- Iron ore is a good example.

- They had a big appetite for iron ore. - Sure, industrial metals -- today we say industrials metals -- to make cannons and cannonballs and firearms.

- Yes, but also tools -- a saw, the end of an ax.

- Those things are critical for survival, and made from metal.

- Also pots, pans, nails -- all very important.

- And do you know where they found those industrial metals?

- Considering I just came from the history marker, I'm going to guess New Jersey.

- New Jersey, other places too.

- Now, I know you like to come at history through a slightly different lens, and I think most people will be surprised to find that New Jersey has a strong mining history, and it fits into the national narrative.

- I am surprised.

- Good, because that's where the next leg of this investigation begins.

[Music] To find out more, Anthony sends me back to Ogdensburg, to the Sterling Hill Mining Museum for a deep dive into the entire region's mining history.

As the museum's Executive Director William Kroth explains, I'm about to have a one-of-a-kind experience.

- There is not another place like this on planet Earth, and that is not hyperbole.

- We are by far the...one of the most interesting, if not the most interesting mineral location on the planet.

That superlative is due in no small part to the discovery of fluorescent minerals at Sterling Hill.

And in an area of the mine called the Rainbow Tunnel.

the minerals glow and gleam in a vibrant range of colors like nothing I've ever seen.

- Oh wow, you werent kidding!

It really is remarkable, not only the geology, but also the history, and the way in which these spectacular minerals were discovered in the first place.

I'll get into all of that shortly, on an exclusive tour led by historian Rich Veit, Associate Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Monmouth University, and Geologist Joe Sarnoski Professor of Environmental and Sustainability Sciences at Kean University.

Together, we explore an area that's a particular favorite of mine, that place where American history meets natural history - How does that factor into this story?

- So one of the things that's really interesting is when European colonists first arrive in the Americas at places like Roanoke and Jamestown, they're looking for minerals.

As Anthony mentioned in the library, many colonists who voyaged to America came in search of prosperity.

Resources in North America were bountiful at that time.

The forests were lush, the soil fertile, the seas plentiful.

The same can be said of the minerals.

If you had been an early settler, you would have been amazed by the abundance of ore and rock deposits, an abundance uniquely available here, due to the events that took place thousands of years earlier.

- We had a nice big glacier that acts like a bulldozer and just scrapes off the surface and then exposes the rocks.

About 90,000 years ago, an enormous glacier known as the Wisconsin Glacier slowly ground its way forward well into what is now the East Coast of North America.

As it advanced, a river of ice scored the soil all the way down to bedrock.

When it melted, back around 18,000 years ago, the bedrock became exposed.

As a result, when the colonists arrived, the mineral resources they sought were visible to the naked eye.

- They got to see them right at the surface and just use their pickax right there.

- It would've been much easier.

Although Joe is talking specifically about the New York region, the same can be said for the Virginia colony too.

The glacier probably didn't make it past New Jersey.

However, the repeated freezing and thawing during the Ice Age split open the bedrock much further south.

And at Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in North America, some of the first colonists mined for minerals.

- And we think the first ironworks in North America was established in Virginia at a place called Falling Creek.

Records suggest Falling Creek was established in 1619.

To give you some context, that would mean mining was already underway in the colonies before the pilgrims ever set foot on the Mayflower in 1620.

Like the pilgrims, Falling Creek suffered more than a few setbacks, though the circumstances were very different.

Mining can be extremely dangerous, and at Falling Creek, that danger surfaced in a sudden and unexpected way.

- There's conflict with indigenous people, with Native Americans over ownership of land and resources.

Although relations between the Virginia colonists and the natives were cordial at first, in March of 1622 they took a sharp turn for the worse.

Hoping to demoralize the colonists, the natives conducted a series of surprise attacks on the English settlements all along the James River.

- And Native Americans ultimately attack and do away with that Falling Creek ironworks.

Sometimes called the Massacre of 1622, the culture clash claimed the lives of more than two dozen colonists at the ironworks and over 300 settlers all told in and around the Jamestown Colony.

The event played a significant role in history.

The survivors felt that the assault had been unprovoked, and as a result, the indigenous had forfeited rights to the lands they occupied.

Many conflicts followed.

European appetite for resources was insatiable.

The resulting scramble took place all over the colonies.

- So the Dutch and the English are both very interested in the resources in the Delaware Valley, and New Jersey and New York, especially the copper resources.

- And they're competing for those resources.

And that leads to another milestone.

Although blast furnaces and mining operations were established in almost every colony, as we head into the mine's historic office, I discovered the first profitable ironworks was established in the New Jersey Colony.

- This happens at Tinton Falls in the late 1600s.

Grovers Ironworks, later called the Tinton Manor Ironworks, produced bog iron, which, simply put, is iron deposits that form in bogs or wetlands.

- In fact, some of the earliest mines were bog iron mines in southern New Jersey, where they're removing bog iron and smelting it into iron.

The ore, furnished by Tinton Manor, provided the raw materials for neighboring colonies to produce a wide range of staples, such as nails, horseshoes, tools and more.

It's fair to say the activities at Tinton Manor contributed directly to the early success of the nation.

- We usually associate the mining industry with Pennsylvania or other parts of the country.

How interesting to learn that it has a legacy in New Jersey as well.

However, it should be noted, the success of the Ironworks was also due to enslaved labor.

As many as 60 men and women toiled in bondage, living and dying at this New Jersey location.

As we continue forward with the history, Rich tells me that iron ore was just one of many different minerals sought by the early colonists.

- Folks in Europe are aware that there's great mineral wealth in the Americas, so metallurgists are coming over looking for potential sources of copper.

First discovered in 1705 north of Hartford, Connecticut, holds the honor of opening the first copper mine in the colonies.

However, in the span of only ten years, demand for copper products surged and the quest to find more copper deposits intensified.

- Copper becomes huge here in northern New Jersey.

Around 1715, the red metal was also discovered in what is now North Arlington, New Jersey, along the Hackensack marshes.

However, rather than by a metallurgist, this discovery was made by an enslaved laborer who worked for a prominent landowner You might know the name: Arent Schuyler.

- Distantly related to one from the Hamilton.

- There you go, yeah.

- And he established the first copper mine, along the Meadowlands.

Arent was one of ten children born to Colonel Philip Pieterse Schuyler the progenitor of the powerful Schuyler family.

The Schuyler copper mine exported over 1000 tons of copper to England and Holland in its first decade of operation.

Not only did the mine generate wealth for its owner, it generated prosperity for the region itself, and it led to another milestone in history.

After several decades of excavation, the mine shaft had reached a depth of 100ft, a significant depth for the time, and it regularly flooded.

- Well, because of the location of the mine that's right next to a marsh, They need a way to constantly pump out water.

Enter the steam engine.

Although you might think of steam engines in the context of railroad history, they're actually on the scene before that.

The first steam engine built in America was built for the Schuyler mine in 1755.

- That was our first mine that used a steam engine.

It's an important milestone, and one that hasnt been appreciated until somewhat recently.

Perhaps that's because, at the time, developments had to be kept quiet.

The colonies were discouraged from having the technology to process ores.

It's only in more recent years that events have been put into context.

The technology was transformational.

- They're able to go deeper, they're able to pump water out more effectively.

- And it really transforms the American economy.

At the Schuyler mine, the engine pumped as much as 700,000 gallons of water per day and allowed the mine to descend nearly 350ft below the surface, making it the deepest mine in America at the time.

Today, the Schuyler mine only exists in the history books.

In the 20th century, the property was razed, then transformed into a residential neighborhood.

As we continue through the Sterling Hill Mine, I can't help but wonder, is this what a mine would have looked like during colonial times?

- It's close, but not exactly, right.

- A colonial mine would have been a little bit, I think, a little bit tighter, a little bit more claustrophobic.

- I feel like this is pretty tight and kind of claustrophobic.

[laughter] - It is.

It is indeed.

The Sterling Hill Mine is very much a product of the Industrial Revolution.

But before we jump ahead, one last point.

Mining was probably a trigger for the American Revolution.

As we alluded to earlier, the British strongly preferred that the colonies send raw materials back to England.

- That's exactly right.

- They don't want finished resources or finished products rather being produced here in America.

- And they don't want the colonies competing with them.

The Americans, however, had different ideas.

And by the mid 1700s, kettles, pots, pans and more, all of which had been made in the colonies, were being sold in markets from Boston to Savannah.

That did not sit well with England.

And in 1750 Parliament introduced laws banning new iron production plants in the colonies.

Rather than advocate for repeal, the colonists chose to ignore the laws -- defy them,really.

More than 60 operations made illegal by the Iron Act of 1750 were constructed after its passage.

Frustration mounted on both sides of the Atlantic.

- This place is really amazing.

Turning attention now to Sterling Hill Mine.

By its name, you might be inclined to think silver was discovered here.

It was not.

- So, not precious metals.

- Not silver.

Instead, this site is named for William Alexander, also known as Lord Stirling, a Continental Army figure who owned the land.

- Lord Stirling is involved in mining iron in the 1700s.

If you're a history buff, you might recognize this name too.

Stirling fought heroically at the Battle of Long Island.

He also served at Valley Forge and became a trusted confidant of George Washington.

And, because I know you're wondering, the ‘I in Stirling was later changed to an ‘E.

Although a man of wealth and prominence, Lord Stirling didn't make a lot of money from this mine.

That's largely because he was looking for copper and iron.

The discovery that really put this mine on the map happened in the 19th century.

- Millions of tons of zinc were mined here.

Discovered in the 1830s, the find promised to be nothing short of extraordinary.

And it triggered quite a few property disputes, arguably a land grab.

- Zinc isn't found in many places, and to find such a rich reserve of it was such a rare find, and thats why this became such an important part of the history.

The zinc from Sterling Hill has been called unparalleled in its richness and purity.

And it's the zinc that catapulted this mine onto the national stage.

- I think there were something like 11 million tons of zinc mined here.

- Wow.

Zinc has a wide variety of uses, ranging from the familiar, such as ointments and home care products, to the less expected, such as its role in the manufacture of brass.

The mine operated continuously until the 1980s, reaching a depth of over 2,500 feet, with a tunnel spanning 35 miles.

- And it's supplying the entire nation back then.

As significant as the zinc discovery was at Sterling Hill, it was another discovery that really cemented its place in history.

As many as 90 minerals found here share a very unique property.

They fluoresce or glow under ultraviolet light.

[Music] - A very small selection of minerals will fluoresce.

- It becomes a very rare and exciting find at the time.

- It's extraordinary.

The discovery was so rare it attracted attention from all around the globe.

Though at first I have to admit I couldn't see why.

- So this is the world famous Sterling Hill Mining Museum Rainbow Tunnel.

- OK, so I see some colors here.

- It's looking good right now.

- But when we turn off the light is when you're going to see why they call this the Rainbow Room.

- Well, then it's time.

Alex, lets hit the lights.

- Wow.

- Oh, wow.

- You werent kidding.

The area is transformed into perhaps the most beautiful rock garden on the planet.

Immediately, I understand the significance.

I've never seen anything like it.

The colors are arresting, transfixing.

I'm drawn in by the soft glow, from the burgundy red to the deep sea blue.

There's an intoxicating quality to this place.

- The different colors are representative of the different types of minerals found in the mine.

- The green is our willemite, and the red is that calcite.

- That's beautiful.

- And so in this, in this mine, we have 70 fluorescent minerals.

- We have 35 that are found nowhere else.

As I gaze upon all the different formations and colors, I can't help but wonder how a discovery like this was made in the first place.

- So they almost stumble upon it, because they have these early switches as they're electrifying their systems, and when they pull those.. - You mean light switches?

- They're light switches, but they're very large.

- So they pull down that lever and it sparks.

- And those sparks sometimes contain some ultraviolet light.

- And then they start to see these colors.

- And it must have just been miraculous.

- Oh yeah, the first person who noticed it mustve been shocked.

- Right.

The history dates all the way back to the 1850s, when glowing minerals were first documented by a British scientist named George Stokes.

He did a great deal of work involving light waves and essentially found some minerals absorb black light in a way that allows them to also emit light, but at a different wavelength.

That's a very simplified explanation, but it gets to the heart of the matter.

- And that's what you're seeing.

- So when they originally found this, it was a spark that lit up this room and they were able to see this.

- It probably wasn't nearly as colorful as what we are looking at.

- It couldn't have been as beautiful as this.

A person could gaze at these colors all day.

It's something Sterling Hill Mining Museum President William Kroth mentioned to me earlier.

- I never get tired of seeing these rocks glow under the ultraviolet light.

- This is the Mecca for them on the planet.

It's something to see and resonates with me because this site was almost lost.

Oftentimes, historic locations that are razed don't look terribly special.

It's hard to visualize the significance, but that's not the case here.

Nonetheless, in the not too distant past, this site was threatened with development.

- The thought when this property was up for sale that it may be used for waste disposal or condominiums.

- We have plenty of that.

- So it was really important that this was preserved so everybody could see, so future generations would have that same wonderment that I had when I first saw these fluorescing minerals.

As the day draws to a close, I'm reminded of the debt we owe to William Kroth and so many others like him, people who prioritize history and preserving the past.

In this case, the history is a series of different stories that all came together to form a shared narrative.

From Tinton Falls, the first profitable mining operation in the English colonies, and the Schuyler Mine, where the nation's first steam engine pumped water and powered the Industrial Revolution forward, to the discovery of copper, iron and zinc, and the wealth they created.

The history of mining is the history of America.

There's a lot to experience at Sterling Hill, including 90 fluorescent minerals, two dozen of which can't be found anyplace else in the world.

- If you talk to geologists or even scientists from other countries, you mention New Jersey, their mind doesn't go to thoughts of the New Jersey Turnpike or something like that.

- It goes towards this wonderful mineral deposit.

This is truly a place where American history meets natural history.

And it's what makes this corner of the country the fluorescent capital of the world.

- Well that was, that absolutely exceeded my expectations.

- That was phenomenal.

- It's really amazing.

- Its beautiful.

- One of a kind place.

- And I'm taking some of the mud home with me.

[Laughter] See you next time.

Made possible by the Preserve New Jersey Historic Preservation Fund, administered by the New Jersey Historic Trust, State of New Jersey.