Around 1868,
prospector Thomas Robinson discovered gold and silver, along with widespread, low-grade copper, in what became the Robinson Mining District. From around 1892 to 1907, several
gold mines were opened, but none were successful. Around 1907, interest turned towards copper. Under
Daniel C. Jackling, in 1905 Nevada Consolidated Copper Corporation (Nevada Con) began copper mining in the Veteran Mine. "The resulting mine was an impressive open-pit and satellite cave." During
World War I and until the
Great Depression, Nevada Con employed some 1000 - 1200 men in their mines. Mining ended around 1949. Future production would come from
open-pit mining. In 1932, Nevada Con became a wholly owned subsidiary of
Kennecott Copper, another Guggenheim-controlled company. In September 1978, Kennecott closed its Nevada mines, and in 1983 the
McGill smelter was also closed. and
cuprite in a high-grade copper ore specimen from the Robinson Mining District.
Magma Copper bought Robinson in 1991 and began work on reopening the mine in 1994. In 1996,
BHP acquired Magma, and operated Robinson from 1996 to 1999. Magma/BHP invested around $480 million in the mine and plant. The mine was closed in 1999 due to low copper prices.
Quadra Mining bought Robinson in 2004, and reopened the mine later that year. Since 2005, production has averaged about 125 million pounds of copper per year. In 2012, Quadra was acquired by
KGHM Polska Miedź, a large Polish copper producer. As of December 2017, the Robinson Mine had 605 employees. ==Geology==