If you have any information on Mike Lee please contact us!
Mike Lee was a partner with William Schmidt starting
in the 50's sometime and continued taking tourists after Burro
Schmidt's death in '54. The photo below is his new cabin at the
tunnel before the Seger portion was added. The "Museum"
mentioned below, which was Schmidt's original cabin has been
looted and ransacked over the past couple of years. Pretty much
NONE of the artifacts and treasures saved for the benefit of
visitors and for future generations by Burro Schmidt then Mike
Lee and for 50 years by Tonie Seger, remains.
New info just in 1/09 from Mike Lee's grand nephew:
Chuck, Charlie & Jim,
(1) First, here is an obit for your website on Mike E. Lee:
Mike E. Lee was born on 22 Mar 1888 in Black River Falls,
MN to Mrs. Annie (Mattison,Matheson) and Ole E. Lee (Arbendson,Arbitson)
who lived most of their lives in the Norwegian community of Stanley,
WI.
Mike moved from Stanley, WI to work in northern Minnesota
before settling down in Scandia Valley, marrying Ollie Mathilda
Hill around 1911. Mike worked on his father-in-law's farm there
for a number of years and raised at least 4 children with Ollie:
Evelyn A. Lee born c1912, Alice J. Lee born c1914, Thelma E.
Lee born c1916 and Robert W. Lee born c1922. Ollie died 23 Feb
1976 in Little Falls, MN, 28mi from Scandia Valley. Alice also
stayed in the area running a Ben Franklin store in Minneapolis
but keeping a summer cabin on nearby Fish Trap Lake.
Mike was the oldest of 7 children. His sister Tillie moved
to nearby Ridgecrest, CA. Her son Harry Hawkinson (Mike's nephew)
is said to have lived in Pasadena and rode his palomino in the
Tournament of Roses parade for a number of years. Much of Mike's
youngest sibling's family (Arthur Lee and Mildred Leona Hoobler)
moved from Chippewa County, WI to upper Minnesota and on to areas
around Riverside, CA and southern California as Mike did. Their
children include (Mike's newphew and nieces): Dorthory Leona,
Edward A, George Alden, Anna Mae, Earl David, Marjorie Sarah,
and Mary Lou Lee.
Mike was also a favorite of his younger sister Jennie and
foundly remembered by family back in the Midwest. He is the only
sibling to appear in her wedding photo and she spoke favorably
of him throughout her life. Attached is a photo of young Mike
E. Lee circa 1925.
- by Jennie Lee's grandson Jan 2009
---
Here is a general query to post to your website if possible
Does anyone have the experience of meeting Mike Lee in person?
Does anyone know when he came to California or why and how he
became Burro Schmidt's partner? Does anyone know who he married
in 1956 or if he had any family with him? Was he in contact with
his sister Tillie in nearby Ridgecrest, CA?
Does anyone know about his sister Tillie (Lee) Hawkinson (or
perhaps Williams) or her family who lived nearby in Ridgecrest,
CA? Does anyone know about his brother family, Albert and Mildred
Leona Lee who also moved out to So. California in the Riverside
area. Any information about Mike and his families would be greatly
appreciated. - genealogy (no-spam) 1968@yahoo.com
-----
Finally, I'm gathering new information every day. I just came
in contact with a few relatives in MN who know early life stories
of Mike that I can update you with if anything fundamentally
new or interesting comes to my attention. Please let me know
what you can about Mike as well.
Regards,
Mike Lee's grand nephew
Above photo provided by Jon Chun of Mike Lee in 1925
:
Thanks Jon! We look forward to anything else you run across
that you can share!
Chuck
.Obituary: Body of colorful Miner
found.
Mr. Mike Lee, age 74, for many years a well-known miner and local
colorful character, passed away at the Black Mountain residence
near Randsburg recently. His body was found in the isolated cabin
he occupied Sunday, March 10, and was taken to Randsburg. Officials
estimated he had been dead about a week.
Mr. Lee was known for his mining ability and for a museum which
attracted many visitors. He was a partner of the late Burro Schmidt,
whose half-mile tunnel through Black Mountain is now a tourist
attraction. Schmidt is said to have spent 30 years digging this
tunnel, and died shortly after its completion.
Mr. Lee's death was attributed to' natural causes.
Relatives of the colorful area mountaineer are being sought by
authorities.
Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society
Courtesy of Mojave Desert News, California City, Kern, CA
Published: 14 Mar 1963
The above is a reproduction from an old xerox shared
with us. Notice the "Mike E. Lee" lettering on the
side of the cabin. The "Museum" or Burro Schmidt Cabin
is the shack beyond the newer structure. The tunnel is just beyond
the ridge if you follow the curved high road. The Seger portion
was added to the Lee cabin you see above. We don't know the date
of this photo. Can anyone let us know? Click image for a 2mb
file.
Scott Schwartz has a great article on Desertusa.com:
"Later in his life, Schmidt took on a partner,
a man named Mike Lee, to assist in taking visitors on tours of
the tunnel. After Schmidt died in 1954, Lee continued to
give tours of the tunnel until he, too, died, in 1963"
Please read more at Desertusa.com!
We're looking for any photos and any documents or
other information on his "Copper Mountain Resort" and
the claim he purchased or was given to from Burro Schmidt.
Thanks in advance!
10/17/05 This Just In!
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"Me and Mr. Lee"
In 1956, as a 15 year old, I lived in Delano, Ca. and was
a history buff .I studied the Indians in the surrounding areas
and discovered that Black Mountain, an old volcano in the El
Paso Mountains had been a scared place for the Indians of a by
gone age.
Unable to legally drive I talked my mother into driving the
150 miles to see this mountain. We arrived only to discover that
the mountain was big and that no road went to the top.
While we were there we followed the signs to "Burro Schmidt
Tunnel". There we meet a most unusual man. His name was
Mike Lee.
Mike Lee was an old man by my standards. Somewhere he had
lost one arm. He had been a prospector for years. He claimed
to have been friends with Burro Schmidt and had taken over the
claim upon Burro's death. He lived in a very small cabin next
to the museum.
Mike owned an old military ? ton four-wheel drive truck with
a scraper blade on the front. He used the blade for road repair,
but he also used the blade for prospecting. Ever time I see a
place off road that has been scraped; I think Mike Lee has been
here.
Contained in the museum and area were a lot of old rusted
relics. These were never pointed out to us or discussed as part
of the history. The highlight of the museum was Mike's "black
light" and the amazing colors that the most ordinary rocks
displayed when painted with this light. Mike furnished us with
kerosene lanterns and directed us to the tunnel. We were also
told by Mike that we were more than welcome to picnic or even
camp over night inside the tunnel.
After our walk through the tunnel we returned the lanterns
and left a gratuity to show our appreciation.
During 1956 Mike went to Pasadena, married and brought his
wife back to the camp. That same year my father and I visited
again and Mike was in the hospital. I arranged with his wife
to return the following week and help her with the chores. Prior
to leaving home Mike wrote me a letter thanking me for the offer,
but he had returned from the hospital and was home.
Between 1956 and 1959 I probably made 25 trips to the area,
either with family or friends. On half of them, we stopped by
the tunnel and probably spent the night in the tunnel 7 or 8
times. It was the coolest place in the El Paso Mountains.
Our last trip was the spring of 1959. On that trip, two others,
and myself actually climbed Black Mountain. We found a volcano
crater with mud in the bottom and 8 or 9 tent circles left by
the Indians where they built rock circles to protect from the
wind.
In 1986, after an absence of 27 years, I returned to the El
Paso Mountains, bring my wife with me. Again I followed the signs
to Burro Schmitz's tunnel.
We arrived and meet Tonie Seger, a feisty little lady.
Tonie was able to fill in some of the 27-year gap.
I was told that Mike Lee and his wife had separated and his wife
still lived somewhere in the area.
We learned that Mike had been found dead in his bed.
Tonie told us that she and her husband had gone to a mining claim
auction. They bid on several claims and won one. They were shocked
and amazed when they discovered that they now had procession
of a historical site.
Tonie took us to the old cabin, told the history of the tunnel,
and lent us two battery-operated flashlights. We noticed that
other cabins had been built next to the old house.
It has now been 19 years since I last visited the "Burro
Schmidt Tunnel".
Glenn
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