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Hewitt Barite Mine

Past Producer in Campbell 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. Alteration
  8. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Geologic structures
  11. Ore body information
  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 10080186
MRDS ID W031282
Record type Site
Current site name Hewitt Barite Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -79.28142, 37.20423 (WGS84)
Elevation 201
Relative position 2.1 MILES SSW OF EVINGTON FROM ROUTE 24 RAILROAD CROSSING.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Campbell(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Lynch Station(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Roanoke(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Roanoke(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Roanoke(hydrologic unit)

Roanoke(hydrologic accounting unit)

Chowan-Roanoke(hydrologic subregion)

South Atlantic-Gulf(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Campbell

Comments on the location information

  • 0.45 MILES WEST OF ROUTE 696 ON ROUTE 694. TURN SOUTH ON PADLOCKED GATE ROAD TO U.S. GOVERNMENT RADIO FACILITY FOR 0.6 MILES. MINE IS 1000 FT FARTHER S SW OF BEND IN ROAD, OR ABOUT 0.75 MILES S SW OF ROUTE 694, MAIN CUT IS FILLED WITH WATER. OTHER WORKINGS ARE 600 FT W SW (DUMPS) ON POWER LINE AND 100-300 FT WEST OF POWER LINE CUT. THESE WORKINGS ARE 1000 FT NORTH OF OTTER RIVER.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Barium-Barite Critical Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Barite Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Marble Alteration To Black Clay ("Umber")

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
    Rock unit name Mt Athos Member, Alligator Back Formation, Lynchburg Group
    Rock description Mt Athos Member, Alligator Back Formation, Lynchburg Group
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Marble
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist > Mica Schist
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Conglomerate

Nearby scientific data

(1) -79.28142, 37.20423
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Se Dipping Fault

Ore body information

  • General form LENSES IN MARBLE AND MICA SCHIST
    Strike N 50 DEG E
    Dip 40-60 DEG SE
    Thickness 6.1M
    Length 548.64M
    Width 45.72M
    Depth to top 0M

Comments on the geologic information

  • NW (FOOT) WALL CONSISTS OF 2 THICK BEDDED QUARTZITES INTERBEDDED WITH MICA SCHIST AND CONGLOMERATE HANGING (SE) WALL IS THINLY FOLIATED MICA SCHIST. BOTTOM OF CUT (UNDER WATER) WAS BLACK AND RED CLAY SURROUNDED BY MARBLE PINNACLE.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Significant No
Discovery year 1874
Year of first production 1874
Year of last production 1964

Mining district

District name James River-Roanoke River Mn, Fe And Ba Mine

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Wood, (Albert) Mining Co.
    Home office Sweetwater, Tennessee.
  • Type Owner
    Owner Mrs. R. Langhorne

Comments on the production information

  • EDMUNDSON (1938) BELIEVES THE RESERVES ARE LARGELY EXHAUSTED. MRS. LANGHORNE (PERSONAL COMMUNICATION) REPORTED SOME BARITE RECOVERED IN 1964 WAS SHIPPED BY RAIL. ORIGINAL DATA IN SHORT TONS.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • RESERVES ARE BELIEVED TO BE LARGELY EXHAUSTED. MRS. LANGHORNE (PERSONAL COMMUNICATION) STATED THAT BARITE WAS STILL PRESENT AT DEPTH WHEN THE MINE WAS CLOSED, BUT AT THAT DEPTH IT WAS UNECONOMICAL TO RECOVER.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Length 548.64M
    Overall depth 51.21M
    Overall width 91.44M

Comments on the workings information

  • OPENED IN 1874 WITH UNDERGROUND WORKINGS TO DEPTH OF 160 FT FROM 1874-1904 AND CLOSED BECAUSE OF WATER. REOPENED BY BARIUM MINING CORPORATION OF GRETNA, VIRGINIA AS OPEN CUT 1800 FEET LONG 200-300 FT WIDE AT TOP AND 100 FEET WIDE AT BOTTOM. WORK STOPPED IN 1933. WASHING PLANT THEN MOVED TO THE RAMSAY MINE, PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY, VIRGINIA. IN 1964 WOOD MINING COMPANY BUILT A WASHER PLANT AND REWORKED DUMP. BARITE WAS RECOVERED AND SOME SHIPPED BY RAILROAD. CLOSED BECAUSE IT WAS UNECONOMICAL COMPARED TO CHEAPER IMPORTS. DUMPS CONTAIN COARSE SAND SIZE CONCENTRATES OLD OPEN CUT IS NOW A WATER FILLED QUARRY.

Comments on development

  • THIS OPERATION BECAME UNECONOMICAL DUE TO CHEAPER FOREIGN IMPORTS AND CLOSED DOWN, LEAVING A LARGE PILE OF BARITE UNSHIPPED.
  • MINE WAS OPENED ON A SMALL SCALE IN 1874 AND LATER DEVELOPED INTO THE LARGEST BARITE MINE IN VIRGINIA. IT WAS MINED BY UNDERGROUND WORKINGS TO A DEPTH OF 168 FT (51 M) UNTIL 1904, WHEN EXCESSIVE WATER RESULTED IN CLOSURE OF THE MINE. NUMEROUS SHAFTS AND DRIFTS WERE DUG AND PRODUCTION IS THOUGHT TO BE LARGE, THOUGH NO FIGURES ARE AVAILABLE. THE MINE WAS REOPENED AT AN UNKNOWN LATER DATE, APPARENTLY BY THE BARIUM MINING CORPORATION, AND WORKED AS AN OPEN CUT UNTIL WORK WAS STOPPED IN 1933. THE BARIUM MINING CORPORATION THEN MOVED THE WASHING PLANT TO THE RAMSAY MINE IN PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY. IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THIS MINE YIELDED ABOUT 100,000 SHORT TONS OF BARITE. TO THE NORTHEAST OF MAIN PIT 50 TO 100 PROSPECT PITS AND TUNNELS HAVE BEEN DUG AND ONE DUMP PILE HAS BEEN LOCATED ON THE NORTHEAST END OF THE TEST PIT AREA. ABOUT 1964 (ALBERT) WOOD MINING COMPANY CAME IN AND BUILT A WASHER PLANT AND REWORKED THE DUMP. BARITE WAS RECOVERED AND SOME OF IT WAS SHIPPED BY THE RAILROAD. APPARENTLY

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

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

  • Deposit

    CLINE, T.L., 1907, SULFATES, IN MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA: LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, P.305-327.

  • Deposit

    WATSON, T.L., 1907, SULPHATES, IN MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA: LYNCHBURG, VA., PP. 305-327.

  • Deposit

    ESPENSHADE, G.H., 1954, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF THE JAMES RIVER-ROANOKE RIVER MANGANESE DISTRICT, VIRGINIA, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1008

  • Deposit

    CLINE, J.H., AND GRAVATT, C.M., 1916, REPORT ON THE HEWITT BARITE MINE: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY FILE, VIRGINIA DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES.

  • Deposit

    1874 DIREXPL ? - DUG PIT AND STARTED MINING

  • Deposit

    DIREXPL BARIUM MINING CORPORATION - MINED

  • Deposit

    1964 DIREXPL (ALBERT) WOOD MINING COMPANY - REWASHED DUMP

  • Deposit

    1974 RECON VA. DIV. OF MIN. RES. - INSPECTED SITE

  • Production

    ESPENSHADE (1954)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit DUMPS ALONG POWER LINE SHOWED SILVERY GRAY, LUSTROUS PHYLLONITE AND BOULDERS OF QUARTZ CONGLOMERATE CEMENTED BY BARITE AND MARBLE IN OLD, NOW WATER-FILLED QUARRY (NE CUT) QUARTZITE IS EXPOSED IN WESTERN WALL OF CUT, MARBLE VEINED WITH BARITE IN BOTTOM AND MICA SCHIST ON SOUTHEASTERN (HANGING WALL).
Deposit IT WAS LARGEST BARITE PRODUCER IN VIRGINIA. THE DUMPS ARE STILL EXTENSIVE BUT WAS NOT COMPETITIVE IN WORLD MARKET IN 1964. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1987 Trimble, David C. (Sweet, Palmer C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources
Updater 01-JUN-1987 Good, Richard S. 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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