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3. LAND USE HISTORY <br /> • <br /> 3. 1 PRE-CLIMAX OPERATIONS <br /> 1859 to 1917 Disturbance Impact <br /> The history of land disturbance in the upper Arkansas , <br /> Eagle and Tenmile Valleys and the Fremont Pass area can be traced <br /> back to 1859. This was the beginning of the mining boom in the <br /> Leadville area. It is doubtful that earlier Indians and mountain <br /> men created any measurable disturbance prior to 1859. <br /> Tenmile Valley <br /> In the 1860 ' s, placer mining operations took place <br /> along upper Tenmile Creek and one of its tributaries in McNulty <br /> Gulch. <br /> • By 1880, four incorporated towns, Carbonateville, <br /> Robinson, Kokomo, and Recen, were located in the upper valley of <br /> the Tenmile. <br /> By 1881, one thousand miners and their families occupied <br /> the Tenmile Mining District. Robinson had one large smelter and <br /> four sawmills operating full time. At least three other smelters <br /> were located in the area and were active between 1880 and 1900 . <br /> By the end of the 1880 ' s, the Tenmile drainage had been clear cut <br /> and burned over. Soil erosion substantially eradicated upper <br /> Tenmile Creek as a fishery. The creek was impacted by acid mine <br /> water drainage, smelter effluents and waste from the mining <br /> settlements. <br /> 3-1 <br />