Edward Wilson Davis

Who was Edward Wilson Davis?

Edward Wilson Davis was an American engineer and inventor famous for pioneering early research into taconite. As a researcher at the University of Minnesota, Davis developed an engineering process to economically extract iron ore from hard taconite rocks, making taconite valuable as iron ore for the iron and steel industries. He worked closely with industrial firms such as the Mesabi Iron Company and the Reserve Mining Company to transform his research into a working industry on northeast Minnesota's Iron Range. Davis was known as "Mr. Taconite" for his efforts.