In the last post we looked at how Mariston developed into a major Inakaye port in the fifteen years between 1887 and 1902.  Now we will look at how Solace Bay developed in a different sort of way. 

Solace Bay is located at the isthmus between the North Ocean (connected somehow to the Sim Atlantic Ocean) and the Great Lake Audra.  As was said before, Solace bay is a smaller bay within the Larger bay of Wake’s Bay.  It was here that The Solace Bay Lumber company started Logging local lumber and sending it north to build the town of Wales. 

Around 1890 the Wyant brothers built many new factories that made their lumber into ready made products like furniture and tools.  These they sold to Auen, Duluth, and the then budding town of Mariston.  Thus increasing their market threefold. 

Also around this time the farms that had been set up south of Solace Bay started to form another community.  A cluster of small houses on the inlet that separates Lake Maureen from Solace Bay started to be known as the town of Lake Maureen.  Whereas nearly the entire town of Solace Bay was owned by the Wyant Brothers, Lake Maureen was independent, and consisted almost entirely of farmers and fishermen,   Here is an early photo of Lake Maureen.

By 1895 the Inakaye government had mapped and parceled out most of the northern half of the continent and were intent on selling it for the purpose of populating it (and then being able to tax that population of course).  Homesteads were now purchase-able at cheap prices for families.  And larger tracts of land could be purchased under the condition that they would be developed in a time frame approved by the government.  

Thus, the Wyant brothers who had made close to a million dollars on their business purchased most of the coast west of solace bay.  Their intentions were to log this entire region and sell it to the rich as chairs and banisters at an exhorbitant price.  Solace Bay Lumber Co. men had also noticed a visible vein of iron on a slope of the nearby Burton Mountain.

Robert Wyant, ever looking to expand business, immediately purchased the land and hired men from the casaba Iron ranges west of Duluth to come and asses this site.  It turns out that the hills north of the mountain were quite rich with iron ore, and thus Solace Bay Mining came into being. 

The first thing to be built was a dock to transport the workers and materials to the area.

Next a road was built from the site to the mine and an initial shaft was dug and a building constructed around it.

Lastly some shacks were constructed for the initial dig team who would reinforce the shaft and extract the first ore from the mine.

By this time it was 1902 and the first load of ore had been dug from the mine.  It was meager, but it shipped off to a factory in Mariston and marks the beginning of greater things for the Solace Bay co.

Robert and James had until now lived in a shack in downtown area of Solace Bay in order to be as close as possible to the goings on of their company.  They were quite the true capitalists viewing opulence as needless money spent.  However, the town itself was becoming unlivable due to the thick smoke coming from the factories.  Also, The level of their wealth at this point surpasses that of anyone save the elite of Auen, Duluth, or Mariston.  And James had begun to take on a change of heart towards things.  He convinced Robert to move across the bay, and for them to build a large house for themselves so that they could entertain visits from the wealthy of the cities they sold their goods to.  This way they could attract more investment to their business and perhaps further expand it.  Thus, the Wyant Landing was cleared and developed, and the Wyant estate was built.

This move did not go unnoticed by the workers in the “Solace Bay Slums” as they were called.  There was something encouraging knowing that your boss lived down the road, even if he paid you less than you deserved; there was some sort of equality about it.  Now things were heading in an entirely new direction for the town.

Lastly some views of the region circa 1902 . . .

Here the towns of solace bay and Lake Maureen can be seen on the right and the Solace Bay Mine can be seen in the hills to the far left.  The road to the ocean is the most visible landmark.  (photo a couple years earlier than 1902)

Here is a 1902 overview of downtown solace bay, notice the new lumber mills being built closer to the edge of the forest,

Here is Lake Maureen at 1902

And here is an overview of Cape Winston, a settlement on the shores of Lake Audra, and the closest significant settlement to Solace Bay.  As of now, it is just a small town of farmers and fishermen, fishing for the Lake Audra Silver Trout, quite a delicacy in Duluth.