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Furnace Mountain Mine

Past Producer in Loudoun county in Virginia, United States with commodity Iron
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Host and associated rocks
  7. Nearby scientific data
  8. Geologic structures
  9. Ore body information
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Land status
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10080142
MRDS ID W031229
Record type Site
Current site name Furnace Mountain Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -77.53719, 39.25225 (WGS84)
Elevation 98
Relative position 1.1 KM (0.7 MI) SSW OF VILLAGE OF FURNACE MOUNTAIN.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Loudoun(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Point of Rocks(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Frederick(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Baltimore(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Middle Potomac-Catoctin(hydrologic unit)

Potomac(hydrologic accounting unit)

Potomac(hydrologic subregion)

Mid Atlantic(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Loudoun

Comments on the location information

  • LOCATION APPROXIMATE, NOT FIELD CHECKED. ABOUT 100 M (300 FT) SSW OF U.S. HWY 15, 0.3 KM (0.2 MI) BY ROAD SE OF JUNCTION WITH STATE ROAD 664.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Iron Primary

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
    Rock unit name Catoctin Formation
    Rock description Catoctin Formation
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic

Nearby scientific data

(1) -77.53719, 39.25225
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Ne-Sw Trend, Blue Ridge Anticlinorium, Culpeper (Potomac) Basin Triassic Border Fault

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR

Comments on the geologic information

  • HOST UNIT FORMERLY MAPPED AS THE LOUDUN FORMATION DEPOSIT OCCURS ADJACENT TO TRIASSIC BORDER FAULT.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1839
Year of first production 1839

Land status

Ownership category Private

Comments on the production information

  • PRODUCTION FROM 1866 ON IS QUESTIONABLE.

Comments on development

  • LIMONITE ORE WAS MINED FOR THE POTOMAC FURNACE WHICH WAS BUILT IN 1839 AND REBUILT IN 1846

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    KEITH, ARTHUR, 1894, HARPERS FERRY, VIRGINIA-MARYLAND-WEST VIRGINIA: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, GEOLOGIC ATLAS OF THE U.S., FOLIO 10.

  • Deposit

    LESLEY, J.P., 1882, THE EARLY IRON-WORKS OF THE VIRGINIAS: THE VIRGINIAS, V. 3, P. 41, 62, 87-88.

  • Deposit

    WATSON, T.L., 1907, MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA: LYNCHBURG, VA., J.P. BELL CO., 618 P.

  • Deposit

    1839 DIREXPL MINED ORE.

  • Deposit

    1894 GEOLMAP A. KEITH: ISSUED GEO. ATLAS FOLIO 10.

  • Production

    LESLEY (1882, P. 41)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit POTOMAC STEAM HOT-BLAST COKE FURNACE WAS OWNED BY J.W. GEARY AND USED CHARCOAL UNTIL 1848. IT WENT OUT OF BLAST IN 1854, BUT AROUND 1866, THE FURNACE RECEIVED A LARGER ENGINE AND WAS PREDICTED TO AVERAGE 60 T PER DAY. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1980 Meintzer, Robert E. (Sweet, P. 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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