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Wassum Prospect #2

Occurrence in Smyth county in Virginia, United States with commodity Barium-Barite
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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. Host and associated rocks
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Geologic structures
  10. Ore body information
  11. Controls for ore emplacement
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Land status
  15. Ownership information
  16. Workings at the site
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10067256
MRDS ID VA01744
Record type Site
Current site name Wassum Prospect #2

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -81.5915, 36.85451 (WGS84)
Elevation 692
Relative position 3.7 MILES NORTHWEST OF DOWNTOWN MARION.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Smyth(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Marion(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Wytheville(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Winston-Salem(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

South Fork Holston(hydrologic unit)

French Broad-Holston(hydrologic accounting unit)

Upper Tennessee(hydrologic subregion)

Tennessee(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Smyth

Comments on the location information

  • 2300 FEET N 85 DEGREES 2 OF THE WASSUM VALLEY CHURCH, 1950 FEET S 67 DEGREES 2 FROM THE INTERSECTION OF COUNTY ROADS 664 AND 645, 650 FEET EAST OF THE CREEK IN WASSUM VALLEY. GENERAL LOCATION GIVEN BY E. CROUSE (PERSONAL COMMUNICATION 1985). FIELD EXAMINATION CONDUCTED 10/10/85

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Dolomite
    Rock unit name Beekmantown Formation
    Rock description Beekmantown Formation;Residual Clay And Soil

Nearby scientific data

(1) -81.5915, 36.85451
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Northeast-Southwest Trending Thrust Faults
Type of structure Local
Structure description Prospect Is On The Western Flank Of The Marion Dome, 650 Feet East Of Hungry Mother Creek Fault.

Ore body information

  • General form LENSE, PINCH AND SWELL, IRREGULAR
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fractures In The Bedrock

Comments on the geologic information

  • BEEKMANTOWN IS SUGARY DOLOMITE AS FOUND ON THE DUMP. REGIONAL GEOLOGY FROM C. BUTTS (1933), B. COOPER (1936), AND B. FRENCH (1967).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Occurrence
Commodity type Non-metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1875

Mining district

District name Smyth County Barite Belt

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Wassum Family - Who Owned The Property Before Crouse.
  • Type Owner
    Owner Elmer Crouse And Others

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Overall length 6.1M
    Overall width 4.57M

Comments on the workings information

  • WORKINGS CONSIST OF A SMALL, SHALLOW PIT/OPEN CUT AND SMALL DUMP ON HILLSIDE. WORKINGS ARE IN OPEN FIELD AND HAVE BEEN PARTIALLY FILLED IN WITH ROCK DEBRIS. FIELD EXAMINATION CONDUCTED 10/10/85. PIT IS APPROXIMATELY 125 FEET IN DIAMETER AND 2 TO 3 FEET DEEP.

Comments on development

  • NO RECORD OF THIS PROSPECT IS IN THE LITERATURE. E. CROUSE (PERSONAL COMMUNICATION ON 1985) STATED BARITE WAS MINED (PROSPECTED) AT THIS LOCATION, APPARENTLY WORKED AT THE SAME TIME AS THE WASSUM MINE AND WASSUM PROSPECT #1.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    BUTTS, CHARLE, 1933, GEOLOGY MAP OF THE APPALACHIAN VALLEY OF VIRGINIA, VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 42.

  • Deposit

    COOPER, B.N., 1936, STRATIGRAPHY AND STRUCTURE OF THE MARION AREA, VIRGINIA, VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 46-L

  • Deposit

    EDMUNDSON, R.S., 1938, BARITE DEPOSITS OF VIRGINIA, VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 53

  • Deposit

    FRENCH, B.E., 1967, THE GEOLOGY OF THE MARION DOME, V.P.I. MASTERS THESIS (UNPUBLISHED).

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit THIS IS A NEW PROSPECT LOCATION, NOT PREVIOUSLY DESCRIBED IN THE LITERATURE. ; INFO.SRC : 3 FIELD OBSERV; 5 PERS COMM; 2 UNPUB REPT
Deposit SMALL PIECES OF BARITE FLOAT AND SUGARY DOLOMITES FOUND ON DUMP PILE. DEPOSIT IS NOT EXPOSED NOR DESCRIBED IN THE LITERATURE. MOST LIKELY, BARITE OCCURS AS SMALL VEINS AND REPLACEMENT MASSES IN FRACTURED BEDROCK, AND AS IRREGULAR FRAGMENTS IN THE SOIL.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-OCT-1984 Lovett, James A. (Sweet Palmer C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

Beyond USGS

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

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