The old stamp mill, location unknown. A stamp mill (or stamp battery or stamping mill) is a type of mill machine that crushes material by pounding rather than grinding, either for further processing or for extraction of metallic ores. Breaking material down is a type of unit operation. A stamp mill consists of a set of heavy steel (iron-shod wood in some cases) stamps, loosely held vertically in a frame, in which the stamps can slide up and down. They are lifted by cams on a horizontal rotating shaft. On modern mills, the cam is arranged to lift the stamp from the side, so that it causes the stamp to rotate. This evens the wear on the shoe at the foot of the stamp. As the cam moves from under the stamp, the stamp falls onto the ore below, crushing the rock, and the lifting process is repeated at the next pass of the cam. Each one frame and stamp set is sometimes called a "battery" or, confusingly, a "stamp" and mills are sometimes categorized by how many stamps they have, i.e. a "10 stamp mill" has 10 sets. They usually are arranged linearly, but when a mill is enlarged, a new line of them may be constructed rather than extending the line. Abandoned mill sites (as documented by industrial archaeologists) will usually have linear rows of foundation sets as their most prominent visible feature as the overall apparatus can exceed 20 feet in height, requiring large foundations. Stamps are usually arranged in sets of five. Some ore processing applications used large quantities of water so some stamp mills are located near natural or artificial bodies of water. For example, the Redridge Steel Dam was built to supply stamp mills with process water.

Photograph of the riverboat "Gilla" in Eldorado Canyon, with barge of coal for the mines and mills.

Handwritten description provided on back of image: "Tchatticup [sic] Mine, El Dorado Canyon."

The view of a hauling manganese for the first world war in early Las Vegas, Nevada. The Overland Hotel is visible in the background. Handwritten on the back of the image: "1st world war - hauling mang. - 3 kids to Las Vegas - 300 tons a day." Hand written on a slip of paper included with the image: "3 kids, mine owns included Roq Martin, Bill Ferron, "Chick" Chiapello (lived in LA, wealthy family) & probably others. Deal to purchase during March, 1918, when my mother, Ruth Ferron, was giving birth to me in Los Angeles. She didn't hear from Bill until 3 days after I was born, which did nothing to raise the stock of their new fathers! -Barbara Ferron Doyle."

A view of the Three Kids Mine located in Henderson, Nevada.

A view of the Three Kids Mine located in Henderson, Nevada.

Handwritten description provided on back of image: "Three Kids Mine, 1972. Ore ramp and bin foundations." Group Creators credit goes to Leavitt.