Quartz reef mining
This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2007) |
Quartz reef mining is a type of gold mining in "reefs" (veins[1]) of quartz. Quartz is one of the most common minerals in the Earth's crust, and most quartz veins do not carry gold, but those that have gold are avidly hunted by prospectors. In the shallow, oxidized zones of quartz reef deposits, the gold occurs in its metallic state, and is easily recovered with simple equipment. Quartz reef mining played an important role in 19th century gold-mining districts such as
Mining
All the ore was hoisted to the surface for processing. Water had to be removed by pumping. Big hoisting engines were installed to hoist lifts and buckets up the shafts.
On the surface above the shaft stands a building known as the headframe. This contained a wheel called a gin wheel which lifted buckets of rock up to a raised platform called a brace. Wheeled buckets then carried the rock along elevated tracks to waste dumps or processing works. The steel cable that hoisted the bucket passed over the gin wheel.
Processing
The gold was brought to the surface as small particles embedded in lumps of quartz. The quartz was then crushed into a fine dust by stamping batteries in a
After crushing, the quartz was mixed with water to make
Quartz mines
- Victoria, Australia(Its deepest shaft used to mine a quartz reef was almost a kilometre and a half deep.)
- Gold Hill (Nevada County, California), USA (This site of one of the first discoveries of quartz gold in California,[4] and now California Historical Landmark No. 297: "...this discovery created the great excitement that started the development of quartz mining into a great industry."[5]
References
- ISBN 9780521083034.
- ^ Mining Technology: Overview
- ^ Central Deborah’s History)
- ISBN 0665167377.
- ^ "NO. 297 SITE OF ONE OF THE FIRST DISCOVERIES OF QUARTZ GOLD IN CALIFORNIA". ohp.parks.ca.gov. Retrieved 2008-08-20.