On This Date in Minnesota History: October 9

October 9, 1900 – “One of the largest explosions ever occurring in the state: seven thousand five hundred pounds of dynamite in the powder magazine at the Spruce mine, about half a mile from [Eveleth], blew up about 5:30 o'clock. A hole 100 feet square and 25 feet deep marks the spot where the magazine stood. The force of the explosion was so great that there is not a piece of glass over a square within a radius of two miles of the mine. Practically every window and mirror in Eveleth was broken, while in saloons all bottled goods were demolished in addition. The loss in the city is estimated at $30,000. The damage done to the Spruce mine was about $3,000, the mine laboratory and warehouses being totally wrecked.”

http://www3.gendisasters.com/minnesota/3387/eveleth%2C-mn-explosion%2C-oct-1900