Calumet in Houghton County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Float Copper

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, August 13, 2014

1. Float Copper Marker

Inscription. a mass of native copper weighing 9,392 lbs. found in 1970, buried under three ft. of soil, (glacial till), about 4½ miles southwest of Calumet. Float copper such as this, was torn loose from fissures and lodes by glacial action and together with other rock materials, carried by the ice sheet for great distances before being deposited as glacial debris, or till. The churning, grinding action at the base of the glacier rounded and smoothed the mass of copper, resulting in the lobate form here. The long period of burial, (about 9,000 years), since the cessation of glacial action, accounts for the thorough oxidation of the surface of the copper. The resulting oxidation products are primarily malachite, (green copper carbonate, CuCo₃•Cu (OH)₂) and cuprite, (red copper oxide,-Cu₂O).
Similar pieces such as this, were often discoverd in Keweenaw and on Isle Royale.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Natural Resources. A significant historical year for this entry is 1970.

Location. 47° 14.507′ N, 88° 26.889′ W. Marker is in Calumet, Michigan, in Houghton County. It is at the intersection of Calumet Avenue (U.S. 41) and Red Jacket Drive on Calumet Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Calumet MI 49913, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

and in Copper Country.

It is also in the American Midwest

and on Lake Superior’s South Shore Region.

Globally, it is in North America,

in the Great North Woods,

on the Great Lakes,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Clearing the Way

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

(about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); C & H: The Copper Giant (about 700 feet away); Suomi Synod (approx. ¼ mile away); Calumet Theater (approx. half a mile away); St. Paul the Apostle Church (approx. half a mile away); The Italian Hall / Italian Hall Tragedy (approx. 0.6 miles away); George Gipp Memorial (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Copper Country (approx. 5.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Calumet.

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, August 13, 2014

2. Float Copper Marker

The Piece of Float Copper image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, August 13, 2014

3. The Piece of Float Copper

Float Copper plaque image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, August 13, 2014

4. Float Copper plaque

Lake Superior Float Copper
9392 LBS.
Donated for display
Coppertown USA
By
Joseph Lizzadro & Mary Sandretto Lizzadro
A permanent exhibit of the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art
Elmhurst, Ill.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 29, 2018. It was originally submitted on August 16, 2014, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 1,029 times since then and 70 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 16, 2014, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.