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Vaucluse Mine

Past Producer in Orange county in Virginia, United States with commodities Gold, Sulfur-Pyrite, Copper, Lead
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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. Mineral occurrence model information
  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. Land status
  16. Ownership information
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10067629
MRDS ID W000421
Record type Site
Current site name Vaucluse Mine
Alternate or previous names Grimes Mine, Grymes Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -77.72859, 38.35393 (WGS84)
Elevation 91
Relative position 3.8 KM (2.4 MI) NW OF WILDERNESS CORNER.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Orange(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Chancellorsville(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Fredericksburg(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Washington(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Rapidan-Upper Rappahannock(hydrologic unit)

Lower Chesapeake(hydrologic accounting unit)

Lower Chesapeake(hydrologic subregion)

Mid Atlantic(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Orange

Comments on the location information

  • 0.24 KM (0.15 MI) ALONG A WOODS ROAD OFF WEST SIDE OF STATE ROAD 667 EXTENDED, 2.7 KM (1.7 MI) BY STATE ROAD 667 NNE OF JUNCTION WITH STATE HWY 3.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Sulfur-Pyrite Tertiary
Copper Tertiary
Lead Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Gold Ore
Marcasite Ore
Ankerite Gangue
Calcite Gangue
Chlorite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Sericite Gangue

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 273
USGS model code 36a
Deposit model name Low-sulfide Au-quartz vein
Mark3 model number 27

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite > Diabase
    Rock unit name Dike
    Rock description Dike
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Cambrian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Triassic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Triassic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
    Rock unit name Chopawamsic Formation;Dike
    Rock description Chopawamsic Formation;Dike

Nearby scientific data

(1) -77.72859, 38.35393
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Northeast-Southwest Trend, Columbia Syncline
Type of structure Local
Structure description Shear Zone Up To 12 M Wide. Strike And Dip Of Shear Zone Is About Same As Schistosity, N40-60dege, 80 Deg Nw Thru Vertical To 80 Deg Se.

Ore body information

  • General form POD/LENS
    Strike N40-60 DEG. E
    Dip 80 DEG. NW - 80 DEG. SE
    Plunge NE
    Plunge direction 30-70 DEG
    Thickness 15.2M
    Length 61M
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Shear Zone

Comments on the geologic information

  • THE QUARTZ BODIES LIE ALONG THE WALLS OF THE SHEAR ZONE; SHEAR ZONE CONTINUOUS, BUT INDIVIDUAL ORE BODIES ARE NOT. SOME POST-ORE MOVEMENT INDICATED. DIABASE DIKE LOCATED ABOUT 0.4 KM TO THE SOUTH. ; GEOL.DESC: THIS MINE IS ON THE SAME SHEAR ZONE AS THE MELVILLE MINE.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1832
Year of first production 1832

Mining district

District name Gold-Pyrite Belt

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Virginia Mining Corp
  • Type Owner
    Owner Gayle And Goodwin Bros Lumber Co., A. P.

Comments on the production information

  • DIRECT MINING, MILLING, AND SHIPPING COST PER TON FROM 1935 TO 1938 WAS $4.56. IN DECEMBER, 1853, THE MILL WAS CRUSHING 50 TONS A DAY AND THE AVERAGE VALUE OF THE ORE WAS ESTIMATED TO BE $8 PER TON.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • THERE IS PROBABLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF ORE AT THE SITE. ALL KNOWN COMMERCIAL BODIES ABOVE 91 M LEVEL ARE EXHAUSTED, HOWEVER CORE DRILLING BELOW THIS LEVEL INDICATE SAME GEOLOGICAL/MINERALOGICAL CONDITIONS BELOW

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Length 662M
    Overall depth 92.9M

Comments on the workings information

  • ** THIS FIGURE INCLUDES BOTH DRIFTS AND CROSSCUTS.IN 1974, TWO LARGE OPEN PITS, NUMEROUS SMALL CAVED PITS, CONCRETE FOUNDATIONS, AND COVERED DUMPS WERE SEEN. ADDITIONAL WORKINGS AT 15.2 M, 33.5 M, AND 61.6 M. IN 1865 CREDNER REPORTED SEVERAL SHAFTS HAD BEEN SUNK AND TWO OPEN CUTS, EACH 24 M (80 FT) DEEP, 91.5 M (300 FT) LONG, AND 7.6 M (25 FT) WIDE, HAD BEEN OPENED. THE VAUCLUSE SHAFT WAS 67 M (220 FT) DEEP WITH LEVELS AT 15.2, 33.5, AND 61.3 M (50, 110, AND 201 FT). THE 33.5 M LEVEL CONTAINED AT LEAST 84 M (275 FT) OF WORKINGS AND THE 61.3 M LEVEL CONTAINED 267 M (876 FT) OF DRIFTS AND CROSS CUTS IN JANUARY OF 1936.

Comments on development

  • WHEN FIRST WORKED, MINE OPERATED ON PLACERS AND DECOMPOSED SURFACE PARTS OF THE MINERALIZED ZONES. IN 1844, LIBERTY MINING CO. OF LONDON PURCHASED MINE AND BEGAN UNDERGROUND DEVELOPMENT. 6 SHAFTS AND 50-TON MILL OPERATED FROM 1854 TO CIVIL WAR. HENRY FORD PURCHASED PROPERTY IN 1933-34 AND MOVED MACHINERY TO HIS MUSEUM IN DEARBORN, MICH. MINE PURCHASED BY RAPIDAN GOLD CORP IN 1934 AND SOLD TO V-M CORP. IN 1935, V-M CORP. DEEPENED WORKINGS AND CARRIED OUT DIAMOND DRILLING BELOW 90 M. V-M CORP. CLOSED AND SOLD MINE AT AUCTION IN DEC. 1938. TOTAL DIAMOND DRILLING AMOUNTED TO ABOUT 1370 M. IN 1865 CREDNER REPORTED A ROASTING HOUSE, WITH 4 STILL UNUSED REVERBERATORY FURNACES, A CRUSHING HOUSE WITH 6 PAIRS OF ROLLERS, AND 2 ENGINES (ONE OF WHICH WAS 180 HORSEPOWER), A STAMP-MILL WITH 30 STAMPS, AND A WHOLE ROW OF SHAKING TABLES IN EXCELLENT SHAPE ON SITE. CALLAHAN MINING CORP DRILLED 2 CORE HOLES ON THIS PROPERTY IN 1982. ; ECON.COM: IN 1930'S TOTAL DIRECT MINING, MILLING, AND MARKETING
  • EXPENSE PER TON WAS $4.56

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    BASS, C E, 1940, THE VAUCLUSE GOLD MINE, ORANGE COUNTY, VIRGINIA: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY, V 35, P 79-91

  • Deposit

    PARDEE, J T AND PARK, C F, JR, 1948, GOLD DEPOSITS OF THE SOUTHERN PIEDMONT: US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 213, 152 P.

  • Deposit

    SWEET, P C, 1980, GOLD IN VIRGINIA: VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES, PUBLICATION 19, 77 P

  • Deposit

    LONSDALE, J.T., 1927, GEOLOGY OF THE GOLD-PYRITE BELT OF THE NORTHEASTERN PIEDMONT, VIRGINIA: VGS BULL 30, 110 P.

  • Deposit

    CREDNER, H., 1868, REPORT OF EXPLORATIONS ON THE GOLD FIELDS OF VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA: AMER. JOUR. MNG., VOL. VI, P. 371.

  • Deposit

    SWEET, P.C., 1971, GOLD MINES AND PROSPECTS IN VIRGINIA: VIRGINIA MINERALS, VOL. 17, NO. 3, P. 25-33.

  • Deposit

    PARK, C.F., JR., 1936, PRELIMINARY REPORT ON GOLD DEPOSITS OF THE VIRGINIA PIEDMONT: VGS BULL 44, 42 P.

  • Deposit

    WATSON, T.L., 1907, GOLD AND SILVER, IN MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA: LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, J.P. BELL CO., P. 549-567.

  • Deposit

    1832 DIREXPL UNKNOWN ORGANIZATION (LIBERTY MINING CO BEGINNING 1844): DEVELOPED PLACER AND UPPER WORKINGS

  • Deposit

    1935 DIREXPL VIRGINIA MINING CORP: DEVELOPED LOWER WORKINGS AND CONDUCTED EXPLORATORY DRILLING.

  • Deposit

    1974 RECON VA DIV MIN RES: INSPECTED SITE.

  • Production

    BASS (1940)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit AVG THICKNESS: 1.2 M, AVG LENGTH: 15.2 M SOME PODS CUT ACROSS SCHISTOSITY. LENSES CONFORM TO FLUTING IN SHEAR ZONE
Deposit A LARGE PART OF VIRGINIA'S GOLD PRODUCTION BETWEEN 1833 AND 1860 PROBABLY CAME FROM THE VAUCLUSE MINE. THE MINE WAS FIRST OPERATED AS A PLACER MINE. THIS SAME SHEAR ZONE AS AT MELVILLE MINE ABOUT 1.5 KM TO NE. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAY-1972 Meintzer, Robert E. (Le Van, D.C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources
Updater 01-JUL-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.

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