Business Tycoon. He is remembered as one of the three "Copper Kings" of Butte, Montana, the others being William Andrews Clark and F. Augustus Heinze. Born in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland he emigrated to the US in 1856, arriving in New York City, New York. He then moved west, finding work in the mines of California and Utah, and eventually becoming foreman for the syndicate working the famed Comstock Lode in Nevada. A self-educated mining engineer, he founded his fortune on the Anaconda Copper Mine in Butte, which he purchased with funding from various backers, including George Hearst (father of William Randolph Hearst) in 1880. The Anaconda began as a silver mine, but copper was discovered there and found to be one of the largest deposits known at the time. He built a smelter to process the ore, and by 1895 had become a millionaire and owner of the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, the world's largest producer of copper. He was active in Montana politics throughout the 1890s and also founded the town of Anaconda, near his smelter. In 1894 he spearheaded an energetic but unsuccessful campaign to have Anaconda designated as Montana's state capital. He became interested in horse breeding and was the owner/breeder of Scottish Chieftain, the only horse bred in Montana to ever win the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, in 1897. In 1899 the Anaconda Copper Mining Company was bought out by the Amalgamated Copper Company. He died in New York City at the age of 58. A statue of Daly stands at the main entrance to Montana Tech of the University of Montana (formerly the Montana School of Mines) in Butte. The Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital, located in Hamilton, Montana, was named in his honor.
Business Tycoon. He is remembered as one of the three "Copper Kings" of Butte, Montana, the others being William Andrews Clark and F. Augustus Heinze. Born in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland he emigrated to the US in 1856, arriving in New York City, New York. He then moved west, finding work in the mines of California and Utah, and eventually becoming foreman for the syndicate working the famed Comstock Lode in Nevada. A self-educated mining engineer, he founded his fortune on the Anaconda Copper Mine in Butte, which he purchased with funding from various backers, including George Hearst (father of William Randolph Hearst) in 1880. The Anaconda began as a silver mine, but copper was discovered there and found to be one of the largest deposits known at the time. He built a smelter to process the ore, and by 1895 had become a millionaire and owner of the Anaconda Copper Mining Company, the world's largest producer of copper. He was active in Montana politics throughout the 1890s and also founded the town of Anaconda, near his smelter. In 1894 he spearheaded an energetic but unsuccessful campaign to have Anaconda designated as Montana's state capital. He became interested in horse breeding and was the owner/breeder of Scottish Chieftain, the only horse bred in Montana to ever win the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, in 1897. In 1899 the Anaconda Copper Mining Company was bought out by the Amalgamated Copper Company. He died in New York City at the age of 58. A statue of Daly stands at the main entrance to Montana Tech of the University of Montana (formerly the Montana School of Mines) in Butte. The Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital, located in Hamilton, Montana, was named in his honor.
Bio by: William Bjornstad
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