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Swain Kaolin and Feldspar Mine

Past Producer in Swain county in North Carolina, United States with commodities Kaolin, Feldspar
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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. Workings at the site
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10102332
MRDS ID K002503
Record type Site
Current site name Swain Kaolin and Feldspar Mine
Alternate or previous names Deep Creek No. 1 Mine
Related records 10257239

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -83.45295, 35.45538 (WGS84)
Relative position 2,100 FEET N 57 W FROM RANDALL CEMETERY

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
Kaolin Primary
Feldspar Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • THE MINE REPORTEDLY RANKED SECOND ONLY TO DEEP CREEK NO. 1 MINE IN PRODUCTION.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Feldspar Ore
Kaolin Ore
Biotite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Partial Alteration Of Plagioclase To Kaolinite

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Ultramafic Intrusive Rock > Peridotite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Devonian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss
    Rock unit name Granite Gneiss;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Border Gneiss, Microcline Porphyroblasts In A Medium-To Coarse-Grained Matrix Of Biotite, Quartz, & Feldspar
    Rock description Granite Gneiss;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Prec Mpal 1050-320 M.Y.;Border Gneiss, Microcline Porphyroblasts In A Medium-To Coarse-Grained Matrix Of Biotite, Quartz, & Feldspar
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
    Rock unit name Ocoee Series, Quartz-Mica Schist & Feldspathic-Mica Quartzite
    Rock description Ocoee Series, Quartz-Mica Schist & Feldspathic-Mica Quartzite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -83.45295, 35.45538
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

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

Ore body information

  • General form PIPELIKE SHOOT
    Plunge 40-50 DEG
    Plunge direction S 60 W
    Length 54.86M
    Width 51.82M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fractures, Dilation Zones (Cameron, 1951)

Comments on the geologic information

  • THE PEGMATITE IS SHARPLY DISCORDANT TO THE WALL-ROCK STRUCTURE. PLAGIOCLASE HAS BEEN KAOLINIZED TO THE LOWEST LEVELS OF THE MINE. ZONES COMPRISING THE PEGMATITE INCLUDE: A BORDER ZONE OF PLAGIOCLASE, QUARTZ, AND PERTHITE AND ACCESSORY BIOTITE; A WALL ZONE OF COARSE, BLOCKY PLAGIOCLASE ALTERED TO KAOLIN WITH SUBORDINATE QUARTZ AND SPARSE PERTHITE; TWO INTERMEDIATE ZONES OF PLAGIOCLASE-QUARTZ-PERTHITE - THE OUTER ZONE LESS COARSE-GRAINED THAN THE INNER - AND ACCESSORY BIOTITE; A THIRD INTERMEDIATE ZONE OF PERTHITE PEGMATITE (INCLUDING PLAGIOCLASE, QUARTZ, AND BIOTITE); A CORE-MARGIN ZONE COMPOSED OF QUARTZ-PERTHITE; AND A CORE OF QUARTZ. ALL ZONES ARE TRANSECTED BY FRACTURE-FILLINGS OF QUARTZ WITH ACCESSORY PERTHITE AND PLAGIOCLASE.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Significant No
Production years CHIEFLY 1940 TO 1946

Mining district

District name Bryson City Feldspar District

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner United Feldspar And Mineral Corp.
  • Type Owner
    Owner Harris Clay Co.

Comments on the production information

  • AMOUNT OF CLAY AND FELDSPAR PRODUCED NOT AVAILABLE.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • RECOVERY OF UNMINED FELDSPAR IS DEPENDENT UPON SOLVING PROBLEMS OF UNSTABLE GROUND AND THE DEPTH OF WEATHERING.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Overall depth 96.01M
    Overall length 67.06M
    Overall width 30.48M

Comments on the workings information

  • DEVELOPMENT INCLUDES OPEN CUTS, SHAFTS, DRIFTS, AND WINZES. MINING WAS DONE CHIEFLY BY DRIFTING. TEMPORARY INTERRUPTIONS IN MINING AND CESSATION OF MINING WERE CAUSED BY CAVING AND SLIDES.

Comments on development

  • THE PEGMATITE WAS ORIGINALLY MINED FOR KAOLIN. THE FELDSPAR PRODUCING COMPANY OF SPRUCE PINE, N.C., OPERATED THE MINE FOR HIGH-GRADE POTASH FELDSPAR DURING 1940 TO 1945. UNITED FELDSPAR AND MINERAL CORP. WORKED THE MINE IN 1946. ; ECON.COM: VERY UNSTABLE GROUND CONDITIONS; AN ADDITIONAL TONNAGE EQUAL TO OR GREATER THAN THAT PREVIOUSLY MINED IS SAID TO BE PRESENT; THERE IS NO INDICATION THAT THE BOTTOM OF THE ZONE OF WEATHERING HAS BEEN REACHED.

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 THE EASTERN END OF THE PEGMATITE IS ENCLOSED IN INTERLAYERED BORDER GNEISS AND GRANITIC GNEISS, THE MAIN PART IS WITHIN BORDER GNEISS, AND THE NORTH END IS IN METASEDIMENTARY ROCKS. THE PERTHITE-PEGMATITE ZONE HAS YIELDED MOST OF THE FELDSPAR PRODUCED FROM THE MINE.

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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