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Mccracken Kaolin and Feldspar Mines

Past Producer in Swain county in North Carolina, United States with commodities Feldspar, Kaolin
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Alteration
  8. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Geologic structures
  11. Ore body information
  12. Controls for ore emplacement
  13. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Mining district
  15. Ownership information
  16. Links to other databases
  17. Bibliographic references
  18. General comments
  19. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10026049
MRDS ID K002506
Record type Site
Current site name Mccracken Kaolin and Feldspar Mines

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -83.45795, 35.45149 (WGS84)
Relative position 2,800 FEET N 55 E OF SHERRILL GAP, NEAR HEADWATERS OF BRYSON BRANCH.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Swain(county)

North Carolina(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Bryson City(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Fontana Lake(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Knoxville(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Tuckasegee(hydrologic unit)

Upper Tennessee(hydrologic accounting unit)

Upper Tennessee(hydrologic subregion)

Tennessee(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States North Carolina Swain

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Feldspar Primary
Kaolin Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Feldspar Ore
Kaolin Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Plagioclase Altered To Kaolin In Parts Of Deposit

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Gabbro
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Devonian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Devonian
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Ultramafic Intrusive Rock > Peridotite
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss
    Rock unit name Border Gneiss, Microcline Porphyroblasts In Medium-To Coarse-Grained Matrix Of Biotite, Quartz, And Feldspar;Mpal;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y
    Rock description Border Gneiss, Microcline Porphyroblasts In Medium-To Coarse-Grained Matrix Of Biotite, Quartz, And Feldspar;Mpal;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss

Nearby scientific data

(1) -83.45795, 35.45149
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Principal Zone Of Pegmatites Trends Northeast; Most Pegmatites Strike Northeast, But Some Strike Northwest.

Ore body information

  • General form SERIES OF LENSES
    Length 146.3M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fracture, Dilation Zone (Cameron, 1951)

Comments on the geologic information

  • WALL ROCKS ARE GRANITIC GNEISS AT THE SOUTHERNMOST WORKINGS AND BORDER GNEISS INTERLAYERED WITH GRANITIC GNEISS IN THE MIDDLE WORKINGS; THE NORTHERN WORKINGS ARE WITH BORDER GNEISS AND AS CLOSE AS 20 FEET TO METASEDIMENTARY ROCKS. THE WORKINGS ARE IN A SERIES OF PEGMATITES, OF WHICH THE LARGEST GROUP HAS BEEN THE TARGET OF THE NORTHERN WORKINGS. THE NORTH PEGMATITE CONSISTS OF A BORDER ZONE, WALL ZONE, INTERMEDIATE ZONE, AND CORE; MOST OF THE PEGMATITE IS COARSE- TO VERY COARSE-GRAINED PLAGIOCLASE-QUARTZ-PERTHITE WITH ACCESSORY BIOTITE IN THE WALL ZONE. THE CORE CONTAINS COARSE, QUARTZ-FREE PERTHITE AND PERTHITE IN GRAPHIC INTERGROWTH WITH QUARTZ. THE MIDDLE PEGMATITE IS A COARSE MIXTURE OF KAOLINIZED PLAGIOCLASE, QUARTZ, AND PERTHITE. THE PEGMATITES IN THE SOUTHERN WORKINGS OCCUR AS LENSES, STREAKS, STRINGERS, AND IRREGULAR BODIES, AND THE INTERVENING GRANITE GNEISS IS FELDSPATHIZED LOCALLY. ONE OF THESE LENTICULAR BODIES WAS MINED FOR KAOLIN MANY YEARS AGO. THE NORTH PEGMATITE IS
  • THE ONLY ONE AT THE MCCRACKEN MINES WHICH SHOWS INDICATIONS OF A SIZABLE BODY OF COMMERCIAL-GRADE FELDSPAR.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Significant No
Discovery year 1925
Year of first production 1915

Mining district

District name Bryson City Feldspar District

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Blue Ridge Mining Co., Mr. M.H. Cox
  • Type Owner
    Owner Mr. J. Mccracken

Comments on the workings information

  • WORKINGS INCLUDE PITS, OPEN CUTS, ADITS AND APPENDED DRIFTS AND CHAMBERS. THE NORTHERN PEGMATITE IS 250 FEET LONG (AS EXPOSED), 100 FEET IN WIDTH, MORE THAN 75 FEET THICK, STRIKES N 20 W, DIPS 45 W, AND IS EXPECTED TO PLUNGE SW. THE MIDDLE PEGMATITE IS POORLY EXPOSED, BUT TRENDS NORTHEAST AND APPEARS TO BE ABOUT 18 FEET WIDE. THE SOUTHERN PEGMATITES ARE SMALL FOR THE MOST PART, STRIKING N 52 E AND DIPPING 72 NW. THE LARGER PEGMATITES RANGE FROM 14 TO 22 FEET IN WIDTH, STRIKE NORTHEAST AND DIP STEEPLY WEST.

Comments on development

  • EARLIEST MINING WAS FOR KAOLIN BETWEEN 1910 AND 1920. A SMALL AMOUNT OF FELDSPAR WAS MINED IN EARLY 1940'S, AND THE BLUE RIDGE MINING COMPANY LEASED THE PROPERTY IN 1945 AND MINED THROUGH 1947. ; ECON.COM: THE PEGMATITE DOES NOT APPEAR TO HAVE PROMISE AS A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF COMMERCIAL FELDSPAR.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    CAMERON, E.N., 1951, FELDSPAR DEPOSITS OF THE BRYSON CITY DISTRICT, NORTH CAROLINA: NORTH CAROLINA DIV. MINERAL RESOURCES BULL. 62, 100 P

  • Deposit

    1951 OTHER CAMERON, E.N., N.C. BULL. 6

  • Production

    CAMERON, E.N., 1951, N.C. DIV. MIN. RES. BULL. 62

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Discovery Year: EARLY 1900'S

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1974 Hale, Robin C. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

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