US Mica Industry Pioneers 2: The Ruggles and Bowers Families - Paperback

by Fred E. Davis III (Author)

The Second Edition fills in many dates and events not previously available, including material not found online. The histories of Sam Ruggles' grandson, George H. Randall, and great-grandson, Charles Ruggles Tainter, both involved with Ruggles mine and the mica industry, are updated and expanded.Mica is one of the most useful and versatile minerals. It has been used since 40,000 B.C.E., and is still used today in everything from cosmetics to advanced electronics. Two families started the mica industry in the U.S. in the early 1800s and this is their story. It began with Sam Ruggles, a Boston grocer and merchant who purchased property in New Hampshire and had local folks quarry the mica. Many myths about Sam Ruggles abound, but historically accurate accounts of his family history and mica business are virtually nonexistent. For over 60 years in the 1800s, the Ruggles' only competition was James Bowers, a self-sufficient farmer in South Acworth, New Hampshire and his family. James loved collecting rocks and minerals and was a mineral dealer. This led him into the mica business that continued across three generations of his family with mines in two states. Before about 1870, the Ruggles and Bowers were the mica industry and were known around the world. This book portrays the lives, adventures, business challenges and occasionally intense loss and sorrow of these pioneers across the 19th century. The book is filled with maps, photographs and illustrations, many of which have never before been published, and a historical account that is thoroughly documented and indexed. A lot of forgotten history has been rediscovered!