>> ONCE THE SUPPLY WAS CONSIDERED AN EXHAUST -- INEXHAUSTIBLE, BUT TWO WARS AND THE VAST GROWTH OF AMERICAN INDUSTRY INCREASED THE NEED FOR IRON AND STEEL TO NEW PEAKS.

SO THE OPEN PIT MINES BROUGHT FORTH UNPRECEDENTED TONS OF IRON ORE.

BUT NOT WITHOUT SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES.

MINNESOTA IRON ORE WAS BEING USED UP.

>> TACONITING BECAME THE PROCESS OF REVIVING THE IRON ORE INDUSTRY AND MAKING THE RESOURCES OF NORTHERN MINNESOTA NOW, AGAIN, READILY AVAILABLE TO THE STEEL PRODUCERS OF THE NATION.

>> I REMEMBER TELLING DAD, I'M NOT GONNA WORK IN THE MINE ALL MY LIFE JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE, WELL, I DID, 35 YEARS LATER, I WORKED IN THE MINE FOR 35 YEARS.

>> WHEN I WAS GROWING UP IN HIBBING, THEN, I WOULD SEE ALL THE OLD IRON ORE OPEN PIT MINERS AND THEIR SKIN, WHAT WAS EXPOSED, WOULD BE DYED TOTALLY RED.

THEIR FACE, THEIR NECK.

AND THEY'D BE WHITE UNDER THEIR SHIRT, BUT EVERYTHING EXPOSED TO THE ORE WAS RED.

AND I'D SEE THESE GUYS AND I THOUGHT, BOY, IS THAT WHAT I'LL LOOK LIKE SOMEDAY?

AND THEN MY DAD TAUGHT UNION AND MINING -- WOULD TALK UNION AND MINING AROUND THE DINNER TABLE AND TELL ALL THE HORROR STORIES.

AND I THOUGHT, THAT ISN'T THE LIFE I WANT.

LIFE HAS TO BE BETTER SOMEWHERE ELSE.

WHEN WE GOT OUT OF THE NAVY, THAT WAS IN 1954, THIS IS AFTER THE KOREAN WAR, SO THE ECONOMY WENT DOWN, AND THERE WERE NO JOBS UP HERE ON THIS -- IN THIS AREA, SO WE MOVED TO CALIFORNIA.

LOOKING FOR A BETTER LIFE.

>> WE FOUND TWO MONTHS LATER.

WE SPENT TWO YEARS OUT THERE, I THINK.

>> RIGHT.

YEAH.

>> ONE OF MY BOSSES CAME TO ME ONE DAY AND HE SAID, YOU'RE FROM MINNESOTA, AREN'T YOU?

AND I SAID, YES.

AND HE SAID, WELL, THERE'S AN ARTICLE IN READER'S DIGEST HERE ABOUT FOUR COMPANIES BANDED TOGETHER AND THEY WERE BRINGING A TACONITE PLANT.

>> I DON'T KNOW WHAT TACONITE IS.

BUT THEY WERE GOING TO EMPLOY ABOUT 3,000 PEOPLE.

AND THERE WAS A STORY ABOUT THE SURVEYORS OUT HERE ON THE DIVIDE SURVEYING THE LAND TO BUILD THE PLANT AND THE BEARS TIPPING OVER THE PLANT, KIND OF A REALLY WILD STORY ABOUT BEING IN THE WILD, IF YOU WILL.

>> SO WE FLEW ALL OF OUR FURNITURE AND -- FILLED OUR FURNITURE IN A COUPLE OF TRAILERS AND HEADED HOME.

>> I THINK THE MAIN REASON WE CAME BACK, TO BE HONEST, IS WE MISSED FAMILY.

WE KNEW THERE WERE JOBS HERE WHERE THERE WERE NO JOBS BEFORE.

AND THE FACT THAT THESE NEW TACONITE PLANTS WOULD BE DIFFERENT FROM THE OPEN PIT RED ORE MINE.

>> HERE IN THE SO-CALLED BIWABIK FORMATION IN THE EASTERN END OF THE MESABI RANGE WAS A GRAY BLACK ROCK CARRYING 30% IRON.

>> TACONITE IS A RELATIVELY UNPURE ORE, AND THROUGH A MANUFACTURING PROCESS, IT'S BEING REALLY SHAPED INTO PELLET FORMS AND EASILY CONSUMED IN THE BLAST FURNACES OF THE STEEL PRODUCTION.

>> IT WAS FOUND THAT AFTER EXTENSIVE CRUSHING AND GRINDING, IRON PARTICLES COULD BE MAGNETICALLY SEPARATED FROM THE WASTE MATERIAL.

A CONCENTRATE ROLLED INTO SMALL BALLS, OR PELLETS, COULD BE EASILY HANDLED FOR SHIPMENT.

>> THE TACONITE PROCESS ITSELF CAME OUT OF THE LABORATORIES OF UNIVERSITY, DONE ON UNIVERSITY TIME, BY UNIVERSITY FACULTY MEMBER.

THE UNIVERSITY CONSIDERED THAT WHAT IT WAS DOING WAS ENHANCING, DEVELOPING THE ECONOMIC BASE OF THE STATE.

>> THIS WORK STARTED IN 1913 AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA.

HERE, A YOUNG ENGINEER, BY THE NAME OF E.W.

DAVIS, DEVELOPED A PROCESS FOR UPGRADING TACONITE.

IN 1920, A SMALL PLANT WAS BUILT NEAR BABBITT, APPLYING THE DAVIS EXPERIMENTS.

BUT THE COSTS WERE TOO HIGH TO COMPETE WITH DIRECT SHIPPING ORE.

THIS PLANT CLOSED AFTER TWO YEARS OF OPERATION.

DAVIS REALIZED THAT THE DEPOSITS OF DIRECT SHIPPING ORE WOULD NOT LAST.

USING TACONITE TO MAKE STEEL WAS INEVITABLE.

SO THE RESEARCH WENT ON.

AND IN THE EARLY 1950s, TWO GIGANTIC TACONITE PROJECTS WERE BEGUN ON THE EASTERN MESABI.

>> NOW IN TACONITING, WHAT YOU HAVE IS THE IMPERSONAL FACTORY.

IT'S LOCATED IN A PLACE THAT NEVER EXISTED BEFORE ON THE RANGE.

INSTEAD OF HUNDREDS, THOUSANDS WORKING, WITH A NEW COMMUNITY DEVELOPING, THE CHANCES OF CONTINUITY OF THE OLD CULTURE DIMINISH.

>> A TOWN WAS PLANNED FOR ERIE EMPLOYEES.

THE YOUNG FAMILIES WHO LIVE IN HOYT LAKES ALL OWN THEIR OWN HOMES.

ALTHOUGH THE TOWN WAS CAREFULLY PLANNED, THE COMPANY LEAVES COMMUNITY AFFAIRS TO THE PEOPLE, WHO ARE PROUD OF THEIR TOWN.

THE BROAD STREETS AND ATTRACTIVE HOMES.

>> ABOUT SIX WEEKS AFTER I HAD WORKED AT THE PLANT, I WENT DOWN INTO THE REAL ESTATE OFFICE, AND THE REAL ESTATE AGENT HAD TWO BRASS RINGS FULL OF KEYS AND THERE WERE PROBABLY ABOUT 400 KEYS ON EACH RING.

HE GIVE THEM TO ME, ALL RIGHT, GO PICK OUT A HOUSE.

SO MY WIFE AND I DROVE AROUND TOWN, UP AND DOWN STREETS.

AND WE'D LOOK AT ONE HOUSE, NO, DIDN'T LIKE THAT, DIDN'T LIKE THAT.

CAME AROUND THE CORNER, HERE, SAW THIS HOUSE, MY WIFE SAID, THAT'S THE ONE.

THAT'S HOW WE PICKED OUT THIS HOUSE AND WE JUST WENT DOWN AND BOUGHT IT.

>> IF YOU DRIVE AROUND HOYT LAKES, YOU'LL SEE THERE ARE SOME HOUSES THAT ARE BIGGER THAN OTHERS.

THOSE WERE KNOWN THEN AS STAFF HOUSES.

THEY WERE RESERVED FOR THE HIGHER-LEVEL SALARIED PEOPLE THAT CAME FROM CLEVELAND AND WHATEVER.

WE WEREN'T ALLOWED TO BUY ONE OF THOSE, EVEN IF WE HAD THE MONEY, WE COULDN'T BUY ONE.

THE MINING COMPANY OWNED THE TOWN.

>> THEY BUILT IT AND BOUGHT IT AND IT WAS THEIRS.

AND THEY COULD DO WITH WHATEVER THEY WANTED TO.

>> FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE.

FIRE.

>> THANK YOU, GENTLEMEN.

>> WHEN YOU WATCH THE BLAST, IT LIFTED ALL OF THAT ORE UP, UP IN THE AIR, AND MOVED IT RIGHT OVER HERE TOWARD US, AND IN A NEAT LITTLE PILE, IF YOU CAN SEE, WHAT THEY CALL THE FRAGMENTATION, SMALL, EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANTED IN THE COURSE CRUSHER.

ONCE IT GETS INTO THE -- INTO THE COURSE CRUSHER, YOU PROBABLY GOT MAYBE 15 HOURS.

AND OUT TO THE STOCKPILE WITHIN A 24-HOUR PERIOD.

>> THE TACONITE INDUSTRY CAME -- ACTUALLY MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY, WHEREAS, THE IRON ORE INDUSTRY ORIGINALLY WAS AN EXTRACTION INDUSTRY.

AND WITH A MANUFACTURING YOU HAD A DIFFERENT SET OF MANAGEMENT SKILLS THAT ARE NECESSARY, DIFFERENT SET OF PERSONALITIES NECESSARY.

>> I DON'T THINK THE SUPERVISORS THAT THEY DID BRING IN WERE IN TUNE WITH THE PEOPLE ON THE IRON RANGE, BUT THE IMMEDIATE SUPERVISORS WERE UNDER A LOT OF PRESSURE, LIKE RUSS SAID, TO KEEP THIS PLANT OPERATING.

>> MOST OF THE MANAGERS CAME OUT OF THE WARTON BUSINESS SCHOOL, HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL, OR THE CARLSON BUSINESS SCHOOL.

VERY FEW CAME OUT OF SCHOOLS OF MINES, THE WAY THE OLDER MANAGEMENT TYPES DID.

THESE ARE BUSINESS TYPES, ACCOUNTANTS, MANIPULATEORS, PAPER PUSHERS.

>> ANYONE THAT CAME FROM ANY DISTANCE WAS CALLED A PACK SACKER.

>> YOU WERE A PACK SACKER.

>> AND IT WAS A VERY COMMON TERM BACK THEN.

>> IT WAS MEANT TO BE DEROGATORY, YEAH, SURE.

[ ♪♪ ] >> THE MEN OF MINNESOTA FOUND NEW JOBS CLOSE TO HOME.

IN A VERY REAL SENSE, NEW JOBS FOUND THEM.

>> THE MINING COMPANY LEFT THE IRON RANGE AND WENT TO DIFFERENT PARTS OF MINNESOTA AND PROBABLY EVEN OUTSIDE OF MINNESOTA TO HIRE FARMERS, IF YOU WILL, TO COME UP HERE, AND ON THE PART OF THE COMPANY TO DESTROY THE UNION, TO OPERATE A NONUNION PLANT.

AND WHEN THEY BROUGHT THE FARMERS IN, THE FARMERS ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT THE MINERS UP ON THE RANGE WERE MAKING BIG MONEY, IT WAS ALWAYS THIS FEELING BETWEEN MINERS AND FARMERS AND MINERS.

AND WHEN THEY CAME UP INTO THE MINES AND THEY STARTED WORKING, THEY FOUND THAT THIS WAS NOT EXACTLY WHAT THEY HAD ENVISIONED.

YOU KNOW, IT TOOK EVERY PENNY THAT THEY MADE TO PAY FOR THE HOUSE ELECTRIC BILL, BUY FURNITURE AND THE REST OF IT AND PAY FOR A CAR, WHATEVER, YOU KNOW.

AND THEY LEARNED QUITE A LESSON, YOU KNOW.

AND THEY BECAME VERY STRONG UNION PEOPLE.

>> THE PLANT WAS DESIGNED TO OPERATE IMMEDIATELY PERFECTLY, ONLY IT DIDN'T.

SO BETWEEN PRODUCTION PROBLEMS, LABOR PROBLEMS, THEY HAD PROBLEMS.

IT WAS A HARD PLACE TO WORK AT FIRST.

IT REALLY WAS.

I BECAME INVOLVED IN SOME OF THE SMALL UNION AFFAIRS, GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE PERSON, SAFETY COMMITTEE PERSON, IF YOU WILL.

I BECAME PRESIDENT IN JULY OF 1964.

>> HERE MUST BE MET THE CHALLENGE OF GREATER AND GREATER PRODUCTION AT THE LOWEST POSSIBLE COST.

IN A STUDY YEAR IN -- STEADY YEAR IN AND YEAR OUT OPERATION.

>> I'D SAY THE PEAK OCCURRED JUST ABOUT AT THE TIME OF THE VIETNAM WAR, A LITTLE BIT THEREAFTER.

>> WE WERE PROMOTED TO SUPERVISOR IN APRIL OF 1968.

>> AND WE WERE ASKED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT IF WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE MESABI JOB.

I THINK IT WAS ON A FRIDAY.

I THOUGHT TO MYSELF.

WELL, AS I GROW OLDER, I WON'T HAVE TO GET OUT ON THE COLD CONCRETE WITH MY KNEES, I CAN GO IN ONCE AND A WHILE, GET OUT OF THE CHILL, IT WOULD MEAN I PROBABLY WOULDN'T HAVE TO SUFFER A STRIKE, I'D HAVE A STEADY INCOME, I HAD A LARGE FAMILY, SO I SAID, I THINK PROBABLY I'LL TAKE IT.

AND MY BROTHER, HE SAYS, I'M TAKING IT, I'VE GOT NOTHING ELSE.

>> SOMETIMES IN ORDER TO BETTER YOURSELF, YOU HAVE TO CROSS TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE.

AND -- BUT EVEN THOUGH YOU DO THAT, I DETERMINED THAT I WAS NOT GONNA BE THE TYPE OF SUPERVISOR THAT THEY HAD IN THE PAST.

I WAS GONNA BE MY KIND.

>> EVERYTHING KEPT GETTING BETTER AND BETTER.

1973 PEAKED OUT.

WE THOUGHT THIS WAS A BOON TIME.

WE WERE GETTING RAISES LEFT AND RIGHT.

I NEVER HAD SUCH GOOD TIMES.

1980, THAT'S WHEN THE MINING COMPANIES WON'T PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER AND ASKED HIM FOR SOME SUBSIDIES FOR THE STEEL COMPANY, AND HE TOLD THEM TO GO BACK AND TRIM THE FAT.

BY THE EARLY '80s, TACONITING WAS DONE.

'82, '83 WERE DISASTROUS YEARS, PARTICULARLY ON THE RANGE, THEY WERE DISASTROUS YEARS.

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY, TACONITING ACTIVITY DECLINED.

WITH THE DECLINING FORTUNES OF THE STEEL INDUSTRY.

>> THE COMPANIES CONTINUE TO COME UP WITH A LONG LIST OF THINGS THEY HAVE TO HAVE.

THEY HAVE TO HAVE TAX CONCESSIONS, LABOR CONCESSIONS, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, ET CETERA, YOU KNOW.

AND IT NEVER QUIT.

>> WE'VE MADE A REAL GOOD LIVING OUT HERE IN MINE.

THANKS TO THE HARD WORK OF ALL OUR PREDECESSORS.

>> PREDECESSORS.

>> IT'S BEEN A GOOD LIVING.

>> HOW MANY YEARS DO YOU GIVE TACONITE?

>> I THINK PERHAPS NO MORE THAN ANOTHER DECADE OR TWO AT THE VERY MOST.

IN OTHER WORDS, ONE MORE GENERATION.

OR HALF A GENERATION.

THEN IT'S GONE.

>> WHEN WE CAME HERE, [ AUDIO UNINTELLIGIBLE ] YOU KNOW, EITHER ONE OF US.

MANY PEOPLE IN THIS TOWN, SAME THING, YOU KNOW.

'59 WIPED US OUT, THE '59 STRIKE REALLY WIPED US ALL OUT.

BUT NOW HAD SOMEONE BACK IN 1959 SAID, THIS IS WHAT IT WOULD BE LIKE IN 1993, I WOULDN'T HAVE BELIEVED IT MYSELF.

>> YOU PUT 35 YEARS IN OUT HERE, I DON'T THINK ANYBODY WOULD PREDICT 35 YEARS FROM NOW.

[ ♪♪ ]