Here's what I've learned about my uncle Bateman Eilbeck:
His namel, “Bateman”, was taken from the surname of his great-grandmother Margaret Bateman. From 1922 to 1923 Bateman worked at the Homestake Gold Mine in Lead, South Dakota. The Homestake Gold Mine was the oldest, largest and deepest operating gold mine in the Western Hemisphere with shafts extending 8,000 feet into the earth. The mine closed permanently in 2001 after 125 years of operation. Bateman started on January 21, 1922 as a shoveler on the 1250 foot level. On February 21, 1922 he was a laborer on the 800 foot level. On June 12, 1922 he was a timber helper on the 800 foot level. On November 27, 1922 he was a miner on the 1000 foot level. On February 5, 1923 he was a miner on the 1000-1100 foot level. He reported as sick on March 10, 1923 and never returned to work.
From 1934 to 1936 Bateman helped to build the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in Keystone, South Dakota. He was the Chief Powder Man with a salary of $1.00/hour. In October, 2000 I found his work record in a card file kept by the National Park Service at the Mount Rushmore Visitors Center. His name is engraved on a granite wall at the entrance to the Memorial that lists the names of workers who built Mount Rushmore. His son Eugene Eilbeck told me the following story about Bateman and the famous sculptor and designer of Mount Rushmore, Gutzon Borglum:
One day Bateman had to set a dynamite charge close to the cable system that brought men and supplies to the top of Mount Rushmore. He was very careful in the selection and placement of this charge, but some rocks and debris from the ensuing explosion still hit the cable system. Gutzun Borglum had a quick temper and yelled, “Who set that charge?” Bateman immediately stepped forward and said, “I did sir - I set that charge.” Borglum pointed a finger at Bateman and told him, “You’re fired! Pack up your things and get out!” This was in the 1930’s at the height of the Great Depression. As Bateman trudged to his locker to retrieve his possesions, Borglum relented and yelled “OK, you’re not fired. I need skilled people -- now get back to work!”
Bateman moved to Laramie, WY in 1944 and worked for the Universiy of Wyoming and at the newspaper The Laramie Daily Boomerang. He died in 1975 in Laramie when a truck driver, blinded by the afternoon sun, struck Bateman as he crossed an intersection in the crosswalk and with the green light.
Bob Schoonover
rbobjim@aol.com