Description
This collection consists of 18 diaries kept between 1863 and 1895 by
American mining engineer Louis Janin (1837-1914), which
chiefly contain accounts of trip California, Nevada, Japan, and Mexico to survey mines.
Background
Mining engineer Louis Janin (Nov. 7, 1837-March 6, 1914), one of three sons in a New Orleans family who followed the profession
of mining engineer, figured prominently in Western mining for nearly sixty years.
Educated at Yale and then at the Freiberg Mining Academy, Janin began his career out West in 1861, shortly after his return
from Europe. He made his first mark on the profession in the early 1860s
on the Comstock Lode, where he applied his scientific training to improving the extraction of silver from formerly-discarded
tailings. In subsequent years, first in the employ of others and later in
his own practice, he obtained experience on mining fields all over the Far West. Having established a considerable reputation
as a consulting engineer for accuracy and discriminating judgment,
Janin acquired a growing list of clients including investors in Mexican properties and, in 1873, the Japanese government.
His many skills and the breadth of his experience particularly attracted
litigants in mining suits, who regularly employed Janin to ascertain the facts of the matter or provide corroborative testimony.
Although afflicted in later life with a variety of ailments, Janin
carried on with his work for some years and attained the profound respect of his peers. The three sons of his marriage to
Elizabeth Marshall, Louis, Jr., Eugene, and Charles, chose their father's
profession, carrying on the distinguished family name with their own careers.
Restrictions
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