West Hill Mine

Past Producer in Cherokee county in South Carolina, United States with commodities Barium-Barite, Copper, Lead, Fluorine-Fluorite
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. 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 10078197
MRDS ID W026383
Record type Site
Current site name West Hill Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -81.43843, 35.07041 (WGS84)
Elevation 177
Relative position 0.25 MILE S15W OF KINGS CREEK

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Cherokee(county)

South Carolina(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Kings Creek(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Gastonia(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Charlotte(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Broad(hydrologic unit)

Santee(hydrologic accounting unit)

Edisto-Santee(hydrologic subregion)

South Atlantic-Gulf(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States South Carolina Cherokee

Comments on the location information

  • MEASURED FROM THE INTERSECTION OF SC HWY 5 AND THE SOUTHERN RAILROAD TRACK
  • 0.25 Miles S15w of Kings Creek From the Intersection of Sc Hwy 5 and the Southern Railroad Track, Kings Creek 7.5 Quad

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary
Copper Secondary
Lead Tertiary
Fluorine-Fluorite Critical Tertiary

Comments on the commodity information

  • CHEROKEE CHEMICAL CORP. SOLD BARITE FROM 1910-23 WHICH WAS USED TO ADULTERATE SUGAR AND FLOUR AND AFTER 1923 WAS SOLD AS A FILLER. THE CLINCHFIELD SAND AND FELDSPAR CORP. SOLD THE BARITE AS A FILLER AND INDUSTRIAL MINERALS, INC. SOLD BARITE AS A FILLER FOR RUBBER. A FEW HUNDRED POUNDS OF COPPER AS A BY-PRODUCT WERE PRODUCED BY INDUSTRIAL MINERALS, INC.
  • Used As Filler

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore
Sericite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 184
USGS model code 28a
Deposit model name Massive sulfide, kuroko
Mark3 model number 93

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
    Rock unit name Battleground Schist
    Rock description Battleground Schist
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic

Nearby scientific data

(1) -81.43843, 35.07041

Economic information

Ore body information

  • General form VEINS AND LENSES
    Dip 0
    Plunge IONE
    Thickness 2.44M
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Barite Veins Enclosed In White Sericite Schist

Comments on the geologic information

  • Kings Mountain Belt, Battleground Schist

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Both
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1825
Year of first production 1910
Year of last production 1966

Mining district

District name Kings Creek Barite District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Industrial Minerals, Inc.
    Home office P. O. Box 454, York,Sc 29745 (803-684-6000)
  • Type Owner
    Owner Industrial Minerals, Inc.
    Home office P. O. Box 454, York,Sc 29745 (803-684-6000)

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface
    Area 0.197HA
    Overall length 76.2M
    Overall width 27.43M

Comments on the workings information

  • INITIAL WORK PROBABLY OPEN CUT WITH UNDERGROUND MINING LATER WHEN SEVERAL ENTRIES WERE MADE INTO THE HILLSIDE. HAND COBBED BARITE DELIVERED TO THE GRINDING PLANT BY TRUCK.
  • Abandoned

Comments on development

  • CHEROKEE CHEMICAL COMPANY STARTED UNDERGROUND MINING IN 1910 AND ERECTED A MILL AT THE MINE. THE CLINCHFIELD SAND AND FELDSPAR CORPORATION LEASED THE PROPERTY IN THE EARLY 1930'S AFTER THE 1929 CRASH AND FOLLOWING DEPRESSION FORCED BANKRUPTCY ON THE CHEROKEE CHEMICAL COMPANY. IN 1943 MINING DISCONTINUED AND THE PLANT WAS USED TO GRIND BARITE ORE FROM TENNESSEE. IN 1949, INDUSTRIAL MINERALS, INC. BOUGHT THE CHEROKEE CHEMICAL COMPANY'S HOLDINGS. BARITE WAS MINED UNTIL 1966.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    VAN HORN, E.C.: LEGRAND,J.R.: MCMURRAY,L.L.,1949, GEOLOGY AND PRELIMINARY ORE DRESSING STUDIES OF THE CAROLINA BARITE BELT: RESEARCH, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT BOARD, DIV. OF GEOL., BULL. NO.18, P.15

  • Deposit

    KEITH,A.AND STERRETT,D.B., 1931, DESCRIPTION OF THE GAFFNEY AND KINGS MOUNTAIN QUADRANGLES: U.S.G.S., GEOL. ATLAS FOLIO SER., NO.222, 13P.

  • Deposit

    MCCAULEY, C.K., 1962, BARIUM RESOURCES OF SOUTH CAROLINA: S.C. STATE DEVELOPMENT BOARD, DIV. OF GEOLOGY, BULL. NO.27, 22P.

  • Deposit

    WILSON,L.G., 1958,BARITE AT KINGS CREEK: S.C. STATE DEVELOPMENT BOARD, DIV. OF GEOLOGY, MINERAL INDUSTRIES LABORATORY MONTHLY BULLETIN, VOL. 2, NO.6, P. 40-45

  • Deposit

    Van Horn,E.C.,Legrand,J.R.,Mcmurray,L.L.,1949,Geology And Preliminary Ore Dressing Studies Of The Carolina Barite Belt: Research,Planning And Development Board,Div.Of Geology,Bull.No.18,P.15.Van Horn,E.C.,Legrand,J.R.,Mcmurray,L.L.,1949,Geology And Preliminary Ore Dressing Studies Of The Carolina Barite Belt: Research,Planning And Development Board,Div.Of Geology,Bull.No.18,P.15.

  • Deposit

    Keith, A. And Sterrett, D.B., 1931, Description Of The Gaffney And Kings Mountain Quadrangles: U.S.G.S., Geol. Atlas Folio Ser., No. 222, 13 P.Keith, A. And Sterrett, D.B., 1931, Description Of The Gaffney And Kings Mountain Quadrangles: U.S.G.S., Geol. Atlas Folio Ser., No. 222, 13 P.

  • Deposit

    Abandoned

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Discovery Year: FARLY 1880'S
Deposit ENTIRE KINGS CREEK LOCALITY ESTIMATED TO HAVE 30,000 TONS OF BARITE IN THE MINE DUMPS AND 133,000 TONS IN PLACE RESERVES (VAN HORN,ET,AL.): HOWEVER, INDUSTRIAL MINERALS, INC. MINED BARITE AT KINGS CREEK AFTER VAN HORN, ET.AL.'S STUDY ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 3 FIELD OBSERV
Deposit Entire Kings Mt District Estimated 30,000 Tons of Barite
Deposit Updated 10/98 Ahm Scgs

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAR-1982 Maybin, Arthur H. III (Zupan, Alan-Jon W.) South Carolina Geological Survey Field Obs
Updater 01-OCT-1998 Maybin, Arthur H. III South Carolina Geological Survey
Editor 01-DEC-2002 Nicholson, S.W. U.S. Geological Survey Added Continent, Country, And State Fields; Formatted Fields Where Necessary

Beyond USGS

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