We first learned of Billy Seymour from a book written by Don Dickey - Finding Gold, Miners and All: Don Dickey's Mining Stories – that relates his sad story… It isn’t often that we get to know so much about someone connected to a particular mine and it is an extraordinary story. So, we made it a mission to find Billy Seymour’s mine, where he lived and as much about him as we could.

This was easier said than done as we had very little to work with other than what Don Dickey shared and from vague, fragmentary references in old reports and on old maps. The name “Seymour Mine” is a false lead, for example, as there is more than one gold mine in the area named “Seymour Mine” and, of course, none of them are Billy Seymour’s Mine.

Another source of confusion stems from the fact that Don Dickey spelled his name as “Billy Seymore.” However, elsewhere, his name is spelled as “William Seymour” or “W.J. Seymour.” As “Seymour” is how it appeared in the official documents and the maps that we located, we went with the more traditional spelling of “Seymour.” I relate that to simply give some idea of the hurdles one must overcome in researching historical subjects.

If anyone has additional information on William Seymour, we would love to hear it. We were unable to even locate where he is buried.

Copies of Don Dickey’s book can be sourced from Alleghany’s Underground Gold Mining Museum and I highly recommend the museum and the book:

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As Don Dickey met Billy Seymour personally, I shall quote him from his book and allow him the last word on Mr. Seymour.

On describing the working of his mine:

“I was surprised at how little equipment was on the property. Billy had a little forge set up, and apparently had been doing some timber work, but I didn’t see any compressors or equipment that would have helped him.

During the week Billy would single-jack the next round and maybe an extra one on his own. It was very, very slow going.

There didn’t seem to be any rhyme nor reason for his driving these drifts.”

For those unfamiliar with it, a “single-jack” is mining with what is essentially a hammer and chisel. It’s truly incredible how much Seymour accomplished with such primitive techniques.

On the tragedy that brought him westward:

“He lost his family on a boat ride in Chicago. The family had gone for a Sunday excursion on the Great Lakes, which was very common in those days. As they were leaving the dock, a fire broke out on a boat or structure alongside and everybody on the crowded boat rushed to the rail on one side to see the fire and the boat capsized. Many people were lost. Billy survived, but his family, his wife and children drowned.

What prompted him to come west I have no idea. The consensus was that he was just a very sad man and that he’d come our way to forget the tragedy of his early life. Mining was just a way of using his energy and working himself to the point where he could fall asleep at night. I don’t know for how many years this went on. But I know he did an amazing amount of work.

He was a very quiet nice little man and, as I say, a very sad example of what can happen in the hills of loneliness. The sadness I will always remember.”

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Lastly, I said I would include the link here for the other video with the “Tea Garden Drips” in it. So, here you are:

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