Gusler-Austin Mine

Past Producer in Botetourt county in Virginia, United States with commodities Barium-Barite, Sulfur-Pyrite, Iron, Copper
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 10080153
MRDS ID W031244
Record type Site
Current site name Gusler-Austin Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -79.9581, 37.48784 (WGS84)
Elevation 390
Relative position 2.4 KM (1.5 MI) NORTHEAST OF HAYMAKERTOWN. 4 KM (2.5 MI) SOUTHWEST OF HOWELL MILLS.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Botetourt(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Daleville(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Roanoke(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Roanoke(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper James(hydrologic unit)

James(hydrologic accounting unit)

Lower Chesapeake(hydrologic subregion)

Mid Atlantic(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Botetourt

Comments on the location information

  • 0.4 KM (0.25 MI) SOUTH ON STATE ROAD 666 FROM ITS INTERSECTION WITH STATE ROAD 600; TO A 90 DEG RIGHT TURN IN THE ROAD; FOLLOW FENCE LINE, ON SOUTH SIDE OF THE CURVE IN THE ROAD, SOUTHEAST FOR 360 M (1181 FT) TO THE WATERFILLED PIT.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary
Sulfur-Pyrite Tertiary
Iron Tertiary
Copper Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore
Limonite Ore
Chert Gangue
Dolomite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Clay, Mud
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Dolomite
    Rock unit name Clay Residuum;Beekmantown Formation
    Rock description Clay Residuum;Beekmantown Formation

Nearby scientific data

(1) -79.9581, 37.48784

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Ne-Sw Trend
Type of structure Local
Structure description Fincastle Syncline; Thrust Faults To North And South Of Mine

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR
    Strike N 35-50 DEG E
    Dip 60 DEG SE
    Thickness 21M
    Length 46M
    Width 46M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 21M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Clay Residuum Between And Above Dolomite Pinnacles

Comments on the geologic information

  • FOR GEOLOGIC MAP SEE MCGUIRE, O.S., 1976, VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES REPORT OF INVESTIGATIONS 42.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Both
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1935
Discoverer J.N. And N.S. Hotinger
Year of first production 1935

Mining district

District name Roanoke-Botetourt Counties Area

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Duffey, Mr. (Gusler Property)
  • Type Operator
    Owner Clinchfield Sand And Feldspar Corp.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Overall length 42.06M
    Overall width 46M

Comments on the workings information

  • MINE IS NEARLY CIRCULAR PIT APPROXIMATELY 46 M (150 FT) IN DIAMETER AND 21 M (70 FT) DEEP. A TWELVE FOOT EXPOSURE CONTAINING BARITE IS IN THE SOUTH-SOUTHWEST BANK OF THE PIT IN 1986. PIT IS WATER-FILLED. A DUMP IS PRESENT JUST NORTHWEST OF THE MAIN PIT. ADDITIONAL DUMPS (ORE AND WASTE ROCK) ARE PRESENT AROUND THE FOUNDATIONS FOR THE OLD WASHING EQUIPMENT.

Comments on development

  • THE MINE WAS OPENED IN 1835 ON THE GUSLER PROPERTY, BUT SOON EXTENDED OVER TO THE AUSTIN PROPERTY, WHERE THERE WAS EVEN MORE BARITE. AT FIRST THE MINE WAS SMALL SCALE AND THE PIT HAND DUG, BUT SOON A DRAG-LINE WAS BROUGHT IN AND MOST OF THE BARITE WAS MINED BY IT. A WASHING PLANT WAS ERECTED TO THE NORTH OF THE MINE. AT FIRST THE BARITE WAS HAULED TO THE WASHER BY TRUCKS BUT AS THE PIT WAS DEEPENED NARROW GAUGE CARS DRAWN BY CABLES REPLACED THE TRUCKS. A FLOW SHEET, TYPICAL OF BARITE WASHING PLANTS WAS USED HERE TO CONCENTRATE THE CRUDE MATERIAL. A MAGNETIC SEPERATOR AND DRYER WERE INSTALLED BY THE LAST OPERATORS TO DECREASE THE IRON CONTENT. THE MINE WAS CLOSED IN 1937 AND IS NOW PARTIALLY FILLED WITH WATER.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    EDMUNDSON, R.S., 1938, BARITE DEPOSITS OF VIRGINIA: VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 53, 85 P.

  • Deposit

    ECONOMIC GEOLOGY FILE: VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES.

  • Deposit

    HAY, N.R.T., 1950, GEOLOGY OF THE FINCASTLE SYNCLINE, BOTETOURT COUNTY, VIRGINIA: UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA UNPUBLISHED MS THESIS.

  • Deposit

    1935 DIREXPL J.N. AND N.S. HOTINGER? - DUG PIT AND MINED

  • Deposit

    1936 DIREXPL CLINCHFIELD SAND AND FELDSPAR CO. - MINED

  • Deposit

    1975 RECON VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES - INSPECTED SITE

  • Production

    EDMUNDSON, (1938)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit RED-YELLOW CLAY CONTAINING BARITE AND CHERT NODULES MAKES UP THE UPPER PART OF THE PIT. IN THE LOWER PART DOLOMITE PINNACLES WERE FOUND. NO CHERT WAS SEEN IN THE BEDROCK. BARITE ALSO OCCURS AS THIN VEINS WHICH CEMENT LARGE MASSES OF DOLOMITE AND AS IRREGULAR REPLACEMENT MASSES. BARITE IS SOMETIMES BLACK DUE TO IRON STAINING AND WHEN TWO PIECES ARE HIT TOGETHER THEY SMELL OF H2S, THIS BARITE IS MORE ABUNDANT IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE PIT. SOME METAL SULFIDE (PYRITE?) MINERALIZATION CAN BE OBSERVED IN SMALL POCKETS IN THE DOLOMITE BRECCIA IN THE PINNAACLES.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-AUG-1980 Trimble, David C. (Sweet, Palmer C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources
Updater 01-DEC-1987 Sweet, Palmer C. Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

Beyond USGS

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