HOME

Your tour begins at our ticket office when you board our trolley. On the short trip to and from the mine you will be treated to a narrative of the colorful history of Historic Wallace, Idaho, the Silver Capital of the World. The city of Wallace, in its entirety, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and still has the feel and flavor of a turn-of-the-century mining camp.

Once at the mine, you will be fitted with a hard hat. Before entering the mine, your guide, himself a retired miner, will give a brief overview of the fundamentals of hard-rock mining. 

Then into the mine, where exhibits and demonstrations will acquaint you first hand with a hard-rock miner's work and daily experiences. Your guide will teach you about historic and modern day mining techniques, and demonstrate pneumatic powered mining equipment. 

Aside from a short climb up 25 concrete steps to the mine, the 1,000 foot guided tour through the U-shaped tunnel is a comfortable slight decline on a smooth surface with no tight spaces or ups and downs. 

Mine History

Initially discovered around 1900, the Sierra Mine's ore bodies were never rich enough to warrant active mining. Assays ran about 1/2 ounce of silver per ton of ore mined. 

Ownership of the mine changed hands several times. It was sporadically worked until a more thorough exploration took place in the 1960s, which involved sinking an incline shaft and running several hundred feet of drift. Unfortunately, they ran out of money and development once again halted. A few years later the mine up the road ran a drift two hundred feet below Sierra Silver and hit a very rich vein of ore. Sierra Silver was just another near miss in the mining game. The mine remained idle until it was used as a classroom to teach local high school students mining skills. 

In 1982 a group of local businesspeople formed the non-profit organization Sierra Silver Mine Tour, Inc. that teaches over 10,000 people each summer where the silver in their life comes from.

Mission Statement

Our mission is to preserve our rich mining history and educate current and future generations as to the history, current practices, and culture of hard-rock mining in the Coeur d'Alene Mining District.  We accomplish this by providing an underground experience utilizing historically and technically correct narratives, exhibits, and live demonstrations of mining machinery. 

HOME