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Copenhaver, H.P., Mine

Past Producer 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 10080171
MRDS ID W031264
Record type Site
Current site name Copenhaver, H.P., Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -81.54983, 36.82064 (WGS84)
Elevation 658
Relative position 2.4 MILES SOUTHWEST 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

  • ELEVATION AND UTM COORDINATES LOCATE CENTER OF SURFACE WORKINGS, WHICH EXTEND APPROXIMATELY 3000 FEET (.55 MILES) TRENDING N 87 DEG E TO EAST-WEST. SURFACE WORKINGS ARE CLUSTERED AROUND FIVE MAJOR AREAS. FROM WEST TO EAST, THE FEVE UTM COORDINATES ARE 4075200N-449530E, 4075220N-449820E, 4075240N-449980E, 4075240N-450170E, 4075240N-405380E. THE CENTER OF SURFACE WORKINGS IS LOCATED 2100 FEET S10W FROM THE INTERSECTION OF STATE ROADS 659 AND 665 AT EBENEZER CHURCH, 1900 FEET N2S FROM BENCH MARK BM M 375, 650 FEET NORTH OF THE MIDDLE FORK OF HOLSTON RIVER. THE TWO MOST WESTERN WORKINGS ARE NOW LOCATED IN A RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISION.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore
Dolomite Gangue
Limestone 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 Beekmantown Formation
    Rock description Beekmatnown Formation;Residual Clay And Soil

Nearby scientific data

(1) -81.54983, 36.82064
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Ne-Sw Trending Thrust Faults, Pulaski Thrust Block.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Mine Site Is Located On The Southern Flank Of The Marion Dome, 1.2 Miles North Of The Seven Springs Thrust Fault.

Ore body information

  • General form LENSE, PINCH AND SWELL, IRREGULAR
    Strike N 70 DEG E TO EAST-WEST
    Dip VARIABLE
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fractures In The Bedrock

Comments on the geologic information

  • FOR GEOLOGIC MAP SEE RANKIN, ESPENSHADE, AND NEUMAN, 1972, USGS MISC. GEOL. INVESTIGATIONS MAP I-709-A. GOOD BARITE CRYSTALS IN COARSE AGGREGATE MASSES FOUND ON THE PROPERTY. THE BEEKMANTOWN IS FINE-GRAINED LIMESTONE AND DOLOMITE. EDMUNDSON (1938) STATES THE STRATA VARIES IN STRIKE AND DIP, PROBABLY DUE TO MINOR CROSS FAULTS ON THE NORTHWEST SIDE OF THE MCMULLAN SYNCLINE. REGIONAL GEOLOGY FROM C. BUTTS (1933), B. COOPER (1936), AND B. FRENCH (1967).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1875
Discoverer H.P. Copenhaver (?)
Year of first production 1893
Year of last production 1906

Mining district

District name Smyth County Barite Belt

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner H. P. Copenhaver
  • Type Owner
    Owner R. V. Carnaham, J. Scott Oh

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Overall length 914.4M
    Overall width 91.44M

Comments on the workings information

  • EDMUNDSON (1938) STATED THE SURFACE WORKINGS EXTENDED FOR ABOUT ONE-HALF A MILE IN STRIKE LENGTH AND THE LARGEST OF THE OPEN CUTS WAS ABOUT 100 FEET LONG, 50 FEET WIDE AND 50 FEET DEEP. FIELD EXAMINATION WAS CONDUCTED 11/18/85. WORKINGS CONSIST OF MODERATE SIZED PITS, OPEN CUTS, TRENCHES AND DUMPS OVER A 3000 FOOT EAST-WEST TREND. WORKINGS ARE CLUSTERED IN FIVE MAIN AREAS (SEE LOCATION COMMENTS). LARGEST WORKINGS ARE WEST OF STATE ROAD 659. EAST OF STATE ROAD 659, WORKINGS ARE IN A RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISION AND MOSTLY FILLED IN. ALL WORKINGS ARE PARTIALLY FILLED WITH ROCK DEBRIS AND GROWN OVER. SMALL TRENCHES TREND N 70 DEG E TO EAST-WEST.

Comments on development

  • MOST LIKELY MINED IN THE EARLY 1890'S (?). EDMUNDSON (1938) STATES THIS PROPERTY WAS ONE OF THE LARGEST PRODUCERS OF HIGH-GRADE BARITE IN SMYTH COUNTY. MINING WAS LIMITED TO SURFACE METHODS. MOST OF THE BARITE WAS RECOVERED FROM THE RESIDUAL SOIL, ALTHOUGH THE LARGER OPENINGS EXTENDED INTO BEDROCK. THE WORKINGS EXTEND APPROXIMATELY 3000 FEET TRENDING N 87 DEG E TO EAST-WEST. EDMUNDSON (1938) ALSO STATED THE OCCURRENCES HE NOTED WERE NOT OF SUFFICIENT QUANTITY TO BE CONSIDERED OF COMMERCIAL VALUE.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

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

  • Deposit

    BUTTS, CHARLES, 1933, GEOLOGY MAP OF THE APPALACHIAN VALLEY OF VIGINIA, 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

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

  • Deposit

    DIREXPL COPENHAVER? - DUG OPEN CUTS, MINE

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit COARSELY CRYSTALLINE BARITE OCCURS AS VEINS AND REPLACEMENT MASSES ALONG FRACTURES IN THE BEDROCK, AND AS IRREGULAR FRAGMENTS IN THE OVERLYING UNCONSOLIDATED RESIDUAL CLAY AND SOIL.
Deposit THIS IS ONE OF THE LARGEST IN SIZE AND PRODUCTION OF HIGH-GRADE BARITE IN SMYTH COUNTY. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

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