David's Research Site

Arthur S. Dwight was a friend of Karl’s since they were boys. He was also Rossiter Raymond’s nephew. Arthur was a mining engineer who worked for Anton Eilers and with Karl Eilers for several years.

Karl Emrich Eilers, Engineer of Mines, Master of Science (Hon.) Honorary Member, Director and Treasurer of the Institute, one of the most distinguished and probably the most widely beloved of its members, died at his Sea Cliff, Long Island home on August 18, 1941. In spite of failing health, he had continued his activities to the end. He was seventy-five years old.
He was born at Marietta, Ohio, on November 20, 1865, the son of F. Anton Eilers and Elizabeth Enrich Eilers. While his family was later residing in the far west he attended the Hill School, Pottstown, Pa., was roommate of my cousin, Alfred Raymond and spent his vacations in Brooklyn with his roommate’s family, where I came to know him intimately. Later he graduated from the Brooklyn Polytechnic, and in 1889 from the Columbia School of Mines, following which he went abroad to take some courses in the German mining schools and to visit foreign metallurgical plants.
In 1896, after his establishment in active work in Colorado, he married Miss Leonie Wurlitzer of Cincinnati, Ohio, and had three children, Marguerite (Mrs. Andrew Beer) K. Fritz, and Farny, all of whom, with his widow survive him.
For me to describe his career is like telling my own story, up to a certain point, for he was my boyhood friend, my close associate in metallurgical work in the west, during which our professional careers were moulded by the same influences, and after our professional paths diverged, though still closely parallel, he remained an unwavering and loyal friend.
The background of the story is the lifelong friendship of Karl’s father, the late Anton Eilers, with my uncle, the late Dr. Rossiter W. Raymond, one of the founders of the Institute and its Secretary for over 30 years. It also involves some of the ancient history of the development of lead smelting in the west. The elder Eilers, after graduating from Clausthal Mining School, came to this country in 1859. In 1863 he became one of a group of young mining engineers on the staff of the firm of Adelberg & Raymond.
Having proved his abilities, Eilers was selected by Raymond in 1869 as his Deputy Commissioner of Mining Statistics, in helping gather and edit the voluminous data on mineral resources of the West, which they verified by personal visits to the western mining camps. The record of their work is to be found in the 8 volumes of “Raymond’s Reports” covering the period of 8 years ending in 1876. This long’ and intimate association of the two men resulted in a close intimacy of their families, influencing profoundly the careers of Karl Eilers and myself, and indirectly those of many others.
Anton Eilers, by the wide knowledge of the mineral resources of the west gained by his extensive travels, saw the great opportunities offered by the lead-silver deposits of the Utah and Colorado districts. In 1876 he acquired an interest in the Germania Smelter at Salt Lake. In 1879 soon after the opening up of the extensive carbonate deposits at Leadville, Colo., he formed a partnership with the late Gustav Billing and built a lead smelter in Leadville. Under the improved smelting technique which Eilers developed this plant had a very profitable career at the height of the Leadville boom and, after its sale the Consolidated Kansas City Smelting as Refining company, became known as the Arkansas Valley Smelter. It is today, under the ownership of the American Smelting & Refining; Company, the only lead smelter of all the dozen or more of its one time competitors still operating in Colorado. The old log cabin which Eilers built as his office is still standing.
On the dissolution of their partnership Mr. Billing purchased the Kelly mine and built the Socorro Smelter in New Mexico, afterwards acquired by the St. Louis S. & R. Co. Anton Eilers formed a company with the owners of the Madonna mine at Monarch, Colorado under the name of the Colorado Smelting Co. and in 1883 built his smelting plant at Pueblo, Colo. The Madonna ore, a carbonate lead ore, low in silica and high in iron oxide with an average tonnage of over 150 tons per day for several years, formed an ideal smelting base, and with cheap fuel and limestone enabled Eilers to compete for the profitable silicious ores at his own figures. The plant though not as large as some of the other smelting works in Colorado was excellent in design, and with the many structural improvements introduced by Eilers and his standardized slag formulae, his works became famous as a model in design, or orderliness and efficient practice, and its financial results highly profitable, especially as long as the Madonna ore held out. In all his successive enterprises, Eilers beautified the surroundings of his smelting plants and the one at Pueblo was no exception. The grounds around the offices and Mess House were beautifully landscaped and well kept. Any of the old time metallurgists who could trump up an excuse to stop at Pueblo en route never failed to do so and enjoy the hospitality of the Club House, with Eilers at the head of the table, and us younger members of the staff ranging down in order of seniority, the youngest member chaired with custody of the keys to the wine cellar and dispensing of the fine brands of Rhine wine the Company provided for entertaining its guests. Thus we youngsters had the privilege of personal acquaintance with many of the older men of the mining and metallurgical profession whose names are famous in the early history of mining in this country.
Eilers selected his staff with care and everyone of them knew that if he made good he was in line for the top. The plant became a real training school, and many of us owe whatever professional success we may have attained to the precepts and thorough basic training we received from Eilers, who came to be known as the “father of modern lead-silver smelting.”
Otto E. Hahn, a contemporary of Eilers, was the first Superintendent; junior to him came the brilliant Robert Sticht, who later was transferred to Montana to build and operate the Great Falls plant for Eilers, and who afterwards became famous by successfully working out the art of pyritic smelting of pepper ores at Mt. Lyell, Tasmania.
Immediately on my graduation in 1885, I entered Mr. Eilers’ service at Pueblo; as Assistant Assayer, later Chemist, and in 1889 I succeeded Hahn as Superintendent. Walter H. Aldridge followed me in the line of promotion up to Assistant Superintendent, when he me transferred to the Montana Plant; then followed H. Paul Bellinger, Frank M. Smith, and later Karl Eilers.
Karl had spent most of his vacations at the plant and thus shared in the training and experiences that meant so much to the rest of us. And after his return from studies in Germany, following his graduation from Columbia School of Mines in 1889, he came to Pueblo 1892 as a regular member of the staff and moved up through the successive grades. After he had served for a year as Assistant Superintendent. I felt he was fully qualified to take the place which I had held so long as personal assistant to his father. So, I took the initiative, and against the very generous protests from both father and son, and with secret reluctance, resigned my position as Superintendent in 1896 and move to other fields.
Karl continued with his father’s company until after it became merged with the other smelting companies into the American Smelting & Refining Co. Here he was given wider and wider fields of usefulness, especially in the construction and operation of the great Garfield copper smelter in Utah. From there he was called to New York, in 1903 and became in time a director and Vice President of the Company, serving until he resigned in 1920 to take up consulting practice.
In 1927 he was induced to accept the presidency of the Lenox Hill Hospital, a position he held until his death, the hospital prospering greatly under his wise direction. His interest in welfare work led him to take a leading part in the Associate Hospital Service of New York, of which he was the first president.
Karl joined the Institute in 1888. He served various times as Vice President and Director and was Treasurer from 1927 until his death. He was elected Honorary Member in 1933, a distinction universally approved, for his technical ability, his high character, and his unfailing devotion to the interests of the Institute.
Karl resembled his father in his sturdy, forthright character, his distinguished talents, thoroughness, broad sympathies, kindly nature, and a gift for friendship. He achieved a professional reputation worthy of his blood. His impressive figure, silver mane, and benign manner will be remembered by all who knew him.
I think I cannot end this sketch more fittingly than by passing on the identical words that Dr. Raymond used in his obituary of Karl’s father: “And this is my farewell, so far as earthly companionship is concerned, to my genial, upright, generous comrade through four and fifty years of loyal friendship and mutual trust unmarred by doubt or discord.”