Red Rider Resort

from Love of the Lakes 2022

by Brainerd Dispatch and Echo Journal

Editor’s Note

Desire to share their property with others leads couple to open resort on mine pit

Red Rider Resort is on Manuel Mine Pit

By Pete Mohs

Vern and Teffany Lewis enjoyed their cabin property on the Cuyuna Range, and they wanted to share it.

That’s why they opened Red Rider Resort on the far east side of the Cuyuna Recreation trails on Manuel Mine Pit just northeast of Crosby.

“Our plan was to be campground hosts when we retire,” Tiffany said.

The plan actually began before retirement for the Lewises as they purchased the land on the east side of Manuel in 2017, started constructing cabins and developing the land in 2018, and opened the resort on Memorial Day of 2019.

“We first wanted a place for our cabin,

Owners Vern and Teffany Lewis opened Red Rider Resort in 2019 on the shores of the Manuel Mine Pit on the Cuyuna Range.

Photo by Pete Mohs / Echo Journal

22014 Serpent Shores, Deerwood MN 56444

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ON THE COVER

The sun sets over Whipple Lake from the view of the fishing pier. Contributed photo.

PUBLISHER

Pete Mohs.......................pete.mohs@brainerddispatch.com

EDITOR

Nancy Vogt.............................nancy.vogt@pineandlakes.com

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Pete Mohs.......................pete.mohs@brainerddispatch.com Nancy Vogt .............................nancy.vogt@pineandlakes.com Travis Grimler ....................travis.grimler@pineandlakes.com Dan Determan ................dan.determan@pineandlakes.com Dick Carlson | Mike Rahn | Jon Stolski | Nate Blasing

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What’s in a name?

People often mention the Cuyuna Range mine pit names, but do they know how each location received that identification?

Here are updates on the naming, plus some additional facts, for a few of the most popular mine pits.

But first of all, how did the Cuyuna Range region between Brainerd and Aitkin gain its name?

It was discovered by Cuyler Adams, a surveyor who found traces of magnetic ore while surveying land in 1895. The word “Cuyuna” was created with the first three letters of Cuyler plus “Una,” his St. Bernard’s name.

Mining took place on the Cuyuna Range from 1907 to 1982 in more than 30 different mines. The Cuyuna Range held the largest domestic supply of manganese-rich iron ores to harden the steel used in production during World War I and World War II.

The mining industry eventually slowed for the Cuyuna Range. The mine pits were eventually filled with water and the region has become an attraction with its lakes and biking trails.

Following is the history of the mine pit names and the reason for their popularity, thanks to help from the Cuyuna Iron Range Heritage Network:

• Armor 1: This mine pit is located on what was once the homestead of John Mattson, a Swedish emigrant. It was named after C.D.

Armor, a stockholder and director.

Armor 2, which started its mining operation in 1912-13, and once owned by Inland Steel, was the last underground mine to operate on the

Cuyuna Range in 1967. • Kennedy: Named after S.A.

Kennedy, president of Rogers Brown

Ore Co. The first shipment of ore was transported by train in 1911. • Mahnomen: The name is a Native

American word for wild rice.

• Milford: Named in honor of mine pit owner George Crosby’s mother’s hometown of Milford, Connecticut.

Milford was the location of the worst mining disaster in Minnesota on

Feb. 5, 1924. A tunnel was blasted too close to nearby Foley Lake, and water rushed in, killing 41 miners. • Portsmouth: Was once owned by one of the biggest mining companies in the United States, the M.A. Hanna

Mining. Portsmouth, reaching depths of around 450 feet, is the deepest lake inside the state of Minnesota (not including Lake Superior). On Aug. 19, 1957, the mine pit, then not yet filled with water, was the site for a big stratospheric balloon launch, the second flight of the Air

Force's Project Man High. The pilot was Dr. David G. Simon. • Manuel: The local Zontelli brothers named their mine pit in honor of their grandfather, Emanuel Zontelli. • Virginia: The Zontelli brothers named this mine after their mother, Virginia. • Sagamore: Named after former

U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt’s birthplace home in New York City. • Barrows: Named in honor of

Walter A. Barrows. Also, a small town south of Brainerd is named after his son, Walter A. Barrows Jr. • Rowe: Open pit mining started at the Rowe mine, located near

Riverton, in 1912. In addition to the iron, the ore was rich in manganese, which was useful during World

War 1.

• Sixth Street Mine: A mine pit operated in south Brainerd from 1913-15. It was called the Sixth

Street Mine since it was located just south of the former Holiday Inn along Sixth Street.

“Three of our cabins are built on stilts, so people can have an opportunity to see the water when they’re up there. It’s like a treehouse.”

Vern Lewis

and we fell in love with the property,” said Vern, adding the location is perfect for guests as the cabins are on a 35-foot bluff over the mine pit. “Three of our cabins are built on stilts, so people can have an opportunity to see the water when they’re up there. It’s like a treehouse.”

Red Rider, which features eight cabins, four RV sites and room for camping, is unique because it overlooks a lake that once served

One of the Red Rider Resort features is a sauna built along the cliffs of Manuel Mine lake.

Photo by Pete Mohs

as a manganese/iron ore mining pit. Today, the property features the clear water of the mine pits that are surrounded by an abundance of trees and nature.

“The Zontelli brothers were the last ones to mine here,” Vern said as he looked at a 1953 photo on the wall of one of his cabins of the

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