In the shadow of large mining districts like Ophir, Rush Valley and Camp Floyd, a number of small mining districts were organized in Tooele County in the 1890s. The development of the cyanide process and the construction of the first commercial cyanide mill in Mercur greatly enhanced the profitability of gold mining and was a stimulus to increased mining activity throughout the area. Residents of Clover and St. John organized the Shambip Mining District in February 1894. District boundaries included the area north and west of St. John and Clover. The Shambip Mining District was organized according to federal law which states that mineral deposits in the public domain were free and open to exploration, and locators of the same had exclusive right of possession (Statutes at Large, Treaties, and Proclamations, of the United States of America, vol. 17, 1872, chap. 152). The law authorized the organization of mining districts to keep records and oversee mining operations within specified boundaries. In 1897 the Utah Legislature enacted a mining law, which transferred responsibility for keeping mining records to county recorders (Laws of Utah, 1897, chapter 36).
In accordance with federal guidelines, mining districts adopted by-laws to regulate mining activity in the district and elected recorders to keep records of claims. After the discovery of a potential location, Shambip prospectors were allowed thirty days to stake the claim and have it recorded. Also within the first thirty days they were required to complete at least five feet of work on the shaft or five feet on the surface.
Miners in the district elected a recorder for a one year term. Recorders collected $1 for each claim recorded. Even though the miners' minutes indicate that John T. Russell was elected recorder in March 1895, all records for this district were signed by Edward J. Arthur, district recorder.
The recorder appointed deputies to assist him as needed. In 1897 the Utah Legislature enacted a mining law which transferred responsibility for keeping mining records to county recorders. (Laws of Utah, 1897, chapter 36). The mining records of the Shambip District were transferred to the office of the Tooele County recorder.
Blanthorn, Ouida. A History of Tooele County. Utah Historical Society, 1998.
Laws of Utah, 1897, Chapter 36. Utah State Archives, Legislature (Series 83155).
Shambip Mining District (Utah). Recorder. Mining records. Utah State Archives (Series 24166).
Statutes at Large, Treaties, and Proclamations, of the United States of America, vol. 17, chap. 152. Published by authority of Congress, Boston: Brown, Little and Company.
Tooele County (Utah). Recorder. Mining records. Utah State Archives (Series 6150). Book D p. 379.