MERCUR

Mercur (Tooele) is in upper Mercur Canyon, which had an earlier name of Lewiston Canyon. General Patrick E. Connor's soldiers discovered silver ore there in the 1880s. After several mines had opened, the town of Lewiston was established. Fire then destroyed the community and, since the mines were running out, Lewiston was not rebuilt. In 1882 a Bavarian prospector, Arie Pinedo, discovered cinnabar (mercury, quicksilver). Pinedo named the strike Mercur for Mercury. By the late 1880s another town had developed, but it could not be named Lewiston because the name had been usurped by a town in Cache Valley, so Mercur was substituted. Mercur has had its ups and downs. It has been burned out and mine and ore processing have failed. But with new advancements in technology, the town has come back and continues to be active.

John W. Van Cott