The Sunshine Mine is located between the cities of Kellogg and Wallace in northern Idaho. It has been one of the world's largest and most profitable silver mines, having produced over 360 million ounces of silver by 2001. A 2007 Canadian report by Behre Dolbear & Company estimated measured and indicated resources of 31.51 million ounces of silver in 1.43 million tons at 21.8 ounces of silver per ton and inferred resources of 231.5 million ounces of silver in 2.28 million tons at 101.6 ounces of silver per ton. The Behre Dolbear report is considered historic in nature and illustrates the resource potential of the Sunshine Mine. From historical records beginning in 1904 the Sunshine Mine has produced 364,893,421 ounces of silver from 12,953,045 tons of ore through 2001 when the mine was closed. From January 1, 1998, to January 1, 2004, the average reserves carried by the mine were 1.38 million tons containing 32.20 million ounces of silver at 23.3 oz Ag/ton. Geography The Sunshine Mine is on the east side of Big Creek and south of the unincorporated community of Big Creek, Idaho, approximately south of Interstate 90 between Kellogg and Wallace. The entrance is approximately above sea level. The Sunshine Mine is just upstream from the Crescent Mine, which operated between 1906 and 1986. History Early history The Sunshine Mine property had its beginning in 1884. In September of that year two brothers by the names of True and Dennis Blake filed claim on a series of ore deposits in the Big Creek mining district in Shoshone County, Idaho. The Blake Brothers, as they are frequently collectively referred to, were natives of Maine. In the fall of 1876, for reasons unspecified in extant sources, the Blake Brothers began their westward migration. They lived and worked in Chicago for some time before continuing west and settling in Washington Territory. According to court records the Blake Brothers were living in Snohomish County, Washington Territory by October 1878. The Blakes didn't remain in Washington Territory for long however. Sometime after November 1879 the brothers relocated to the eastern part of the territory, settling in the then small city of Spokane Falls. By early 1880 the Blakes had again relocated to the Coeur d'Alene Valley in Idaho where they homesteaded at the mouth of a stream named Big Creek; located midway between the present cities of Kellogg and Wallace. Here the