During the winter of 1876-77, the Tip Top mine and silver were first discovered in wh~t is now the Tip Top mining district by Messrs. Corning and Moore. In the fall of 1876 Mr. John Corning came into Prescott,
Arizona from the silver mines of Nevada. Eventually the Gillette and Hoffman Tip Top Company, took over this property and began active operations.
George Webber became superintendent of the Tip Top Mine in April 1878 and resigned in 1882. Webber began his mining career in the West in the late 1860s, likely starting somewhere in Nevada or California before arriving in San Francisco in 1872. He took over the main management position at the Belmont Mining Company, based in Belmont, Nevada, soon thereafter. He returned to San Francisco for a few years before heading to Gilette, Arizona Territory to assume the same position at Tip Top. Within a month after Webber’s arrival, ingots were being produced and shipped from the Tip Top Mine. Under the management of Mr. Webber the Tip Top mines and mill were operated for about four years, or until October 15, 1883.
The Prescott Weekly Arizona Miner of April 26, 1878 announced that “the Gillette Stage, which arrived last evening, brought in six bars of bullion worth nine thousand five hundred four dollars and fifteen cents, proceeds of four days run at the Tip Top mill.” The bars contained 8,237.31 ounces of .864 to .910 fineness. Needless to say, none of these large bars survives; none were meant to, as they served only to move a measured quantity of assayed metal to a more commercial location.
Gilette was known at the time for saloon shootings, stage coach hold-ups, and general Old West-style mayhem; bringing in new money and miners in the late 1870s only made those situations worse for those who lived there. Among the hijinks of the era, the town blacksmith held up a Wells Fargo stage outside of town on four different occasions in 1882 before being caught, right about the same time this unusual ingot was made.
Between 1876 and 1884, Tip Top, Tombstone and Wickenburg were the most active mining towns in Arizona!
See: http://docs.azgs.az.gov/OnlineAccessMineFiles/G-L/HumbuggoldpropertyYavapai901a-1.pdf
5.7 oz Arizona Territory. Tip-Top Mine. Geo. E. Webber, Superintendant. Gilette. Silver.
Not marked for weight, value, or fineness. 180.2 grams, 5.79 troy ounces.
- Face: GEO. E. WEBBER / TIP-TOP MINE / A.T.
- Back: blank.
- Top side: blank.
- Bottom side: blank.
- Left side: blank.
- Right side: blank.
- Dimensions: 61.2 x 35.7 x 15.9 mm.
A magnificent and extremely rare ingot from Arizona Territory, one of just five ingots known to survive from Arizona today. Despite the lack of usual information on this ingot—which suggests its presentation or souvenir status. The design is both attractive and distinctive.
The decorated face of the ingot is unlike any other Western ingot we’ve seen, produced by tracing a design on the flat face and engraving away the fields, rather than punching or engraving in the inscription. A significant amount of hand-work was involved, giving this piece a uniquely crafted appearance. The other faces are finely accomplished, smooth and polished. Only minor handling is seen. The bar was likely a presentation bar and/or was made as a desk ornament such as a paperweight.
[10/2007] https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-AV6QL/tip-top-mine-george-e-webber-arizona-territory-silver-ingot ($18,400)
[07/2009] https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-B2LC6/arizona-territory-tip-top-mine-geo-e-webber-superintendant-gilette-silver ($21,850)