Buffalo Gap Mines

Past Producer in Augusta county in Virginia, United States with commodity Iron
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. Controls for ore emplacement
  11. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  12. Land status
  13. Ownership information
  14. Links to other databases
  15. Bibliographic references
  16. General comments
  17. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10080672
MRDS ID W032008
Record type Site
Current site name Buffalo Gap Mines

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -79.24392, 38.17644 (WGS84)
Elevation 799
Relative position 1.1 KM (0.7 MI) WEST OF CHRISTIAN.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Augusta(county)

Virginia(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Churchville(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Staunton(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Charlottesville(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

South Fork Shenandoah(hydrologic unit)

Potomac(hydrologic accounting unit)

Potomac(hydrologic subregion)

Mid Atlantic(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Virginia Augusta

Comments on the location information

  • AT BUFFALO GAP ON THE CREST OF LITTLE NORTH MOUNTAIN: COORDINATES ABOVE REFER TO THE MINE 1.2 KM (0.75 MI) SOUTH OF STATE HIGHWAY 42. TWO OTHER WORKINGS ARE LOCATED ABOUT 0.8 KM (0.5 MI) NORTH OF STATE HIGHWAY 42 AT THE FOLLOWING UTM COORDINATES: N 4228585, E 654170 AND N 4228820, E 654225 (ZONE +17).

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Iron Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Goethite Ore
Limonite Ore
Quartz Gangue

Analytical data

Result ORE ANALYSIS FROM HOLDEN, 1907: FE- 41.95%, P- 0.31%

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
    Rock unit name Rose Hill Formation;Keefer Sandstone
    Rock description Rose Hill Formation;Keefer Sandstone
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Silurian

Nearby scientific data

(1) Brallier Formation

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Ne-Sw Trend
Type of structure Local
Structure description Fault

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fractures In The Sandstone

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1865
Year of first production 1867

Land status

Ownership category National Forest

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner George Washington National Forest (Nothern Mines)
  • Type Owner
    Owner Commonwealth Of Virginia (Southern Mine)

Comments on the workings information

  • IN 1981, WORKINGS CONSISTED OF OPEN CUTS AND PITS. A SMALL AMOUNT OF ORE WAS SEEN ON THE DUMPS.

Comments on development

  • WORKED AFTER THE CIVIL WAR. ORE SUPPLIED LOCAL FURNACES.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    HOLDEN, R.J., 1907, IRON IN WATSON, T.L., MINERAL RESOURCES OF VIRGINIA: LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, J.P. BELL CO., P. 402-491.

  • Deposit

    RADER, E.K., 1967, GEOLOGY OF THE STAUNTON, CHURCHVILLE, GREENVILLE, AND STUARTS DRAFT QUADRANGLES, VIRGINIA: VA. DIV. MIN. RES., REPT. OF INVESTIGATIONS 12, 43 P.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Discovery Year: 1860'S (?)

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1982 Trimble, David C. (Sweet, Palmer C.) Virginia Division of Mineral Resources

Beyond USGS

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