THE GULF FLUORITE MINE NEAR EMMAVILLE, NEW ENGLAND DISTRICT NSW AUSTRALIA

THE GULF FLUORITE MINE NEAR EMMAVILLE, NEW ENGLAND DISTRICT NSW AUSTRALIA

The Gulf Fluorite specimen 100mmX53mm Clifford Collection

Fluorite (calcium fluoride, Ca F₂), also called fluorspar) is found in many places in New England, but the area north-west of Emmaville, near the margin of the Mole Granite, known as The Gulf appears to be the place where there are the most reported occurrences. Of all of these, only that commonly called The Gulf Fluorite Mine (alternatively known as Shepherdly’s Mine or Shepherdly’s Fluorite Mine) came even close to being an economic source of the mineral.

There are a number of newspaper reports from February 1919 in Trove, near enough to identical and probably copied from a press release.

Most geological information also comes from this time as investigations were made into the economic possibilities of the mine. The remote location and the limited amount of mineral available soon led to its abandonment. However, the variety of minerals to be found there has made it a popular collecting locality over the years, so whenever access is possible (it is private property, so keep away at other times) there are always quite a few people keen to make the trip.

Minerals found at the Gulf Fluorite Mine

Field trips associated with Minerama (Glen Innes) and Gemfest (Emmaville) are the most likely ones that you can go on, so check out their websites for information (Google them and you will soon find them).

I have visited the place only once, in preparation for the 1997 Minerama field trip and the theme booklet on fluorite which appeared that year. You will find a copy of the book in this Blog (February 2024). We had quite a few problems with the book in 1997. Most of the colour plates are unsatisfactory and, to make matters worse, they aren’t all on the pages shown in the table of contents. Not only that, but I lost my copies of the original photos when I had

Heide Klingbeil and John Paix examining a chlorite specimen

computer problems in 2014. My most abiding memory of that reconnaissance is the large number of needle-like pale green beryl crystals scattered on the dumps. Hopefully there are still some left for present-day collectors!

In spite of these defects, the content was good and I have copied the section dealing with The Gulf Fluorite Mine into this blog. Here it is, with a description of the references if you wish to consult them. I have made a few very minor corrections to the original text.

“The only deposit in New England which produced fluorite on anything approaching a commercial scale is that at the Fluorite Mine, otherwise known as Shepherdly's Fluorite Mine. It is on ML

Mine locations at The Gulf (from the Mole Tableland map)

10, 22km northwest of Emmaville, Parish Muir, County Gough; GR 44783735, Inverell 1:250,000.

The mineralization at the Fluorite Mine occurs as small lenticular shoots in "shrinkage" veins in a coarse-grained granite. These were called "pipes and vughs in the granite" by Raggatt.

Reference 28, p 13. “The lode strikes 285⁰ and has an average width of 0.6m.The vein is made up largely of fluorite, sometimes in large masses (up to 0.6m of pure fluorite in places) with abundant quartz, feldspar, chlorite and greisen. Sulfides of arsenic, copper and zinc and a little beryl are the main accessory minerals. This deposit has been worked in the past for wolframite and fluorite. One main shaft was sunk in 1919 following a fluorite-rich ore shoot, 2m in diameter, which pitched steeply to the west. Another shaft 3m deep was sunk on fluorite 24m to the west of the old shaft. A sample of several tonnes of hand-picked ore contained 93.1% CaF₂. The fluorite is commonly extracted in large, bright-green masses, free from impurities. Both the fluorite and wolframite are very pure and the fluorite could be used for enamelling purposes. The remoteness of this deposit and the small reserves of ore make further production unlikely…. Total recorded production is 296 tonnes of which 203 tonnes were produced in 1919.”

Reference 25 p 372. "Fluorite has been won from what may be a pegmatitic vein or shoot in the

Cover photo from the 1997 Minerama book

granite…. It strikes at 105⁰. M, and is 0.6m wide along drives and 2m in diameter in a shoot which pitches steeply westerly..... It is of interest that the prolonged exposure to the atmosphere of fluorite on the dumps has resulted in a loss of colour."

Smith (Reference 29 p 76) also refers to the Fluorite Mine. "There are several localities in which the fluorite is found of the same quality. It is sometimes roughly crystallised, very translucent, and always of a rich green colour, except when associated with the copper ore, when it is less distinct in colour. The locality in which it is found is about three-quarters of a mile west to 3 miles north-west of the Gulf. ... Several inquiries were recently made for pure fluorite for purposes for which inferior material would be unsuitable, and as samples had  been forwarded to Mr. Card (Ed. - the N.S.W. Government Analyst), inquiries were readily satisfied as to quality. This has resulted in the mining of considerable quantity - over 100 tons - and the establishment of the enamelling industry in Sydney."

Front cover specimen with fluorite necklace

According to David (Reference 11 p 111), “Gaden's Lode, the furthest west of the above-mentioned lodes (Ed. - the Gulf Lodes) is situated in portion 33, parish Muir, county Gough. The vein is from 2 to 3 feet wide, and strikes 40⁰ east of north and west of south, dipping about 82⁰ south-easterly. Veinstone chlorite and quartz with vughs filled with purple fluorspar. The walls are not defined, the veinstone merging into a very quartzose ternary granite, becoming less quartzose at a distance from the vein."

Reference 10 p 54. “Davison's Lode. West of Gulf Creek, Parish Muir, County Gough. Strike N.E. Shaft sunk about 20 feet in chloritic quartzose lodestuff containing wolfram, copper pyrites and fluorspar."

Reference 10 p 59. “Hutton's Wolfram Lode. West of Gulf Creek, The Gulf, Parish Muir, County Gough. Strike N. 60⁰h E. Opened for a length of about 4 chains. Fluorspar conspicuous, also chalcopyrite. Occurs in chloritic veinstone with crystalline quartz in vughs and small veins. Width from a thread to 2 feet. The Gulf Stream Lode. (Portion 60, Parish Land’s End, County Gough; GR 450374, Inverell 1:250,000) is a fissure vein up to 2m wide, but averaging 0.6m. It was worked for tin. Like the other lodes in The Gulf district, fluorite and wolframite are both present in the vein, which consists mostly of quartz, chlorite and decomposed felspar. Balmain and Rumsby’s mine is located at GR 44883721, Inverell 1:250,000.”

Reference 25 p 372 states that "Minerals present in the lode include major chalcopyrite with wolframite and pyrite, and minor arsenopyrite, scheelite, galena, beryl, fluorite and tourmaline."

Reference 10 p 66.”Rumsby's Lode, south-west of the Yankee Tin Lodes, The Gulf, Parish Muir, County Gough. ... The pipe measured 10 feet by 8 feet in its strongest part. The veinstone is chloritic and soft. The wolfram occurred in masses of great purity, accompanied by large bunches of rich green fluorspar, and lesser quantities of mispickel and copper pyrites."

Garths Lode (ML 4 in Portion 11, parish Flagstone, County Gough; GR 45833706, Grafton 1:250,000) is a complex and interesting ore deposit. Reference 23 p 15 states that it is "a fissure lode about 1m wide in granite about 50m from the sedimentary contact.  Cassiterite, biotite, chlorite, ferberite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite, tourmaline, monazite, topaz, quartz, green and purple fluorite, and torbernite are present. The deposit was worked for tin."

Reference 25 p 371. “Garth's or Gayden's lode consists of the usual quartz-chlorite with cassiterite,

Specimen from The Gulf with fluorite carvings

chalcopyrite, minor green fluorite and rare monazite and torbernite. Strike is 013⁰, dip is near vertical, known length is 200m, and average width is 0.75m. Heisers Lode (ML 68 in Portion 11, Parish Flagstones, County Gough; GR 458370, Grafton 1:250,000) is a greisenous lode adjacent to Garth's Lode. According to Reference 23 it "is developed within siliceous granite at the granite/metasediment contact. Cassiterite, ferberite and pyrite occur in a gangue made up of quartz, chlorite, chrysocolla, stilbite, biotite, magnetite, tourmaline and fluorite, with traces of torbernite. This lode was mainly worked for tin."

10. (1912). The Tungsten Mining Industry in New South Wales. Miner. Resour. geol. Surv. N.S.W.15 102 pp.

11. DAVID T.W.E. (1887). Geology of the Vegetable Creek Tin-Mining Field, New England District New South Wales. Mem. geol. Surv. N.S.W., Geol. 1 169 pp.

25. MARKHAM N.L. and BASDEN H. (Editors) (1974). The Mineral Deposits of New South Wales. Geol. Survey of N.S.W. 682 pp.

28. RAGGATT H.G. (1924). Asbestos, Emery, Fluorspar, Fuller's earth, Graphite, Phosphates, Talc and Soapstone. Bull. geol. Surv. N.S.W. 14.

29. SMITH G. (1919). The Occurrence of pure fluorspar in New South Wales. A. Rep. Dep. Mines N.S.W. for 1918.

There is more recent material in the various metallogenic maps and surveys (Mole Tableland, Inverell and Grafton) which would help you to locate the above mentioned sites and others mines and prospects in the vicinity. These are all downloadable from DIGS, as are the references listed above.

Happy collecting! It would be of benefit to all future readers of this blog if you could add a comment telling of your collecting experiences at this interesting old mining locality.

Mindat record of the Gulf Fluorite Mine here. 

Geological Survey of NSW report on Fluorite (1973) here.

https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html All Blue Mountains blogs and videos

https://johnsnewenglandminerals.blogspot.com/2013/12/list-of-all-blog-entries-to-date.html

All New England and other Geology blogs and videos

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1325599670344725659?pli=1

Limestone Caves of NSW

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1147003616874115974/2430103125095714141

Song Studies. Bible studies based on hymns and songs

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1515863000684737715

Shoalhaven District Geology.

WEBB’S CONSOLS AND RELATED MINES, STRATHBOGIE NEAR EMMAVILLE

WEBB’S CONSOLS AND RELATED MINES, STRATHBOGIE NEAR EMMAVILLE

Mine cluster south of Strathbogie

A group of sulfide ore bodies has been mined or prospected about 15 km south west of Emmaville. I have not visited any of these places; I assume that they are all on private property and under mining leases or covered by exploration licences. If any reader can provide information about accessing these locations, please advise us in the comments area at the end of this blog.

Here is a list of prospects I have come up with – all appear to be in the same general area. Webb’s Consols, Wellingrove Silver Mine, Mt Galena, Matthews Mine, Seaton’s Mine, Munsies Prospect, Lucky Lucy, Castlereagh, Barton’s Quarry and Tangoa. In every case, there appears to be an association with the Webb’s Consols Leucogranite, most often by way of quartz rich veins and pipe-like structures. Some of the ore bodies have actually formed in the Permian volcanic rocks which the leucogranite has intruded. The map from which the extract opposite is taken is included in the downloadable report "Inverell Metallogenic Map 1:250 000" (DIGS reference R00050906).

Minerals recorded include galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, chalcopyrite and pyrite. Silver is almost always present in the ore in significant percentages and its presence was the main reason for mining.

The Webb’s Consols mine has been the most productive to date, though more than one hundred years have passed since profitable mining took place there. At least 19 000 tonnes of ore were extracted (yielding 100 000 ounces of silver), most of this before 1901.

The earliest reference I have found is in the Annual Report of the Department of Mines for 1875, page 111. It reads as follows. “About 14 or 15 miles westward of Glen Innes, in the neighbourhood of Wellingrove, a lode was found which showed on the surface indications of copper, and when sunk upon to a depth of 14 feet a vein of pure galena was met with and worked, but carriage of the ore to the coast being too expensive to allow a profitable return, operations are at present in abeyance.”  This is well before the coming of the railway to Glen Innes, so the ore would have had to be sent to Grafton, a long and expensive process. No doubt the reference is to the Wellingrove Silver Mine.

Share Certificate from an early company

A problem common to all these mines was the difficulty experienced in separating the lead ore (galena) from the zinc (sphalerite). This was the same problem experienced at Broken Hill, where for many years the zinc concentrate was dumped, despite its containing valuable lead and silver. The flotation process, now normal practice in the industry, was unknown when these small mines were active, though to what extent it would have helped is unclear, considering the relatively small quantities of ore available.

Some of these old mines, especially Webb’s Consols, are currently under investigation by Silver Mines Ltd, though the present (November 2014) price of silver is not exactly encouraging.

There are numerous references from which you may gather information. An interesting newspaper report from 1891 may be found here. There are many references in old Geological Survey reports. Go to DIGS (first find it!) and put in “Webb’s Consols” for location and you will find lots of information. One of the best of these is called “Webb's Consols - Wellingrove and Mount Galena Mines. Extracts of Annual Reports from 1875 to 1954”. The DIGS reference number is R00025719.

Another well-presented report is to be found in EF Pittman’s “The Mineral Resources of New South Wales”, 1901.  The DIGS reference number is R0005137. The section dealing with this group of mines begins on page 112. The photograph of the mine is also found in this book.

https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html All Blue Mountains blogs and videos

https://johnsnewenglandminerals.blogspot.com/2013/12/list-of-all-blog-entries-to-date.html

All New England and other Geology blogs and videos

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1325599670344725659?pli=1

Limestone Caves of NSW

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1147003616874115974/2430103125095714141

Song Studies. Bible studies based on hymns and songs

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1515863000684737715

Shoalhaven District Geology.

From the "Horse and Buggy" days, minus the horse

THE OTTERY MINE, TENT HILL NEAR EMMAVILLE NSW AUSTRALIA

THE OTTERY MINE, TENT HILL NEAR EMMAVILLE 

NSW AUSTRALIA

The site in December 1967

The Ottery Mine is one of the few places in NSW where the public can go and get a good idea of what went on at a mine in “the good old days”. Usually, such sites are out of bounds, being on current mining leases or private land or considered too dangerous to allow people in. The Ottery is different – a lot of money has been spent to make the old mine site accessible and provide good information so you can see for yourself how it all came together.

The mine is close to the Tent Hill-Torrington road just a few km from the old tin mining town of Emmaville, itself about 40km from Glen Innes. For more information on how to get there and what there is to see, I recommend the following websites: Aussietowns – Emmaville (here), the Northern NSW site (here) and Aussie Sapphire’s Blog (here).

The site in May 1991

Before I move on to more technical stuff, here are few personal observations which might enhance your visit.

I first saw this place in December 1967. The main features haven’t changed greatly since then – the chimney, the condensing chambers, the damaged environment (though this has been improved a lot by the mine site rehabilitation that has gone on since then.) In 1988 I collected specimens of pyrite and arsenopyrite there. You can still smell the sulphurous odour around the site. I observed (on the right near the car park) that there were a number of decaying wooden barrels which still contained a whitish substance. Maybe they are still there and perhaps it is refined arsenic oxide (as I first thought). More likely it is cement, which was delivered in barrels before the double paper bags of more recent years.

May 1991

On several occasions since then, I have been underground in the old workings (a potentially very dangerous thing to do), though most openings were blocked off even then. It was a real eye opener to catch a glimpse of the conditions in which the old time miners worked and to see the mineral veins in their natural condition in places in the rock walls.

As you will soon discover when you start reading about the Ottery, there were two main stages in the history of the mine. The tin stage began during the mining boom at Vegetable Creek (now called Emmaville) which commenced in 1872. Prospectors scoured the district, one of whom (Alexander Ottery) discovered the outcrop of the cassiterite-bearing veins sometime between 1875 and 1881. The mine was opened up in 1882 and the Glen Smelting Works was established to extract metallic tin. The site of the smelters is at the junction of the Emmaville-Deepwater and Torrington roads (Tent Hill).

From The Mineral Industry of NSW (EF Pittman 1901)

Eventually mining tin became unprofitable and the site passed into the hands of the firm William Cooper and Nephews (Australia), who then mined the arsenopyrite ore bodies to produce arsenic oxide which was widely used in the manufacture of sheep dip (1920’s on). This is the time when the surviving condensation chambers and chimney were constructed. There has been a lot of investigation of the site in more recent times and on several occasions when passing by on the way to Torrington I’ve observed drilling in progress on the hill. No doubt the price of tin is the key to any future mining there.

From The Tin-Mining Industry in NSW (JE Carne1911)

You could never call the geology of a site like this “simple”, but basically there are at least 5 quartz veins associated with fissures in a body of granite which intrudes claystone and tuff. This granite is probably related to the Mole granite to the north around Torrington. Arsenopyrite (FeAsS) and cassiterite (SnO₂) were the main ore minerals extracted, but pyrrhotite (Fes) and pyrite (FeS₂) are also present. As is common with such ore bodies, many other minerals have been identified in the ore, but are unlikely to be found as hand specimens.

To gain a better understanding of this place, and to see how it fitted in to the wider mining field, there are many good references you can download. Here are just a few.

A compendium of documents assembled by the Geological Survey of NSW may be found in DIGS (reference number R00045777). Doing a search in DIGS using the location “Tent Hill” and keyword “Ottery” will turn up much more. Of particular interest in the compendium is a document written by Harry Julius, whose father was the mine manager in the arsenic mining days.

The Minerama book title Cassiterite (1984) may be downloaded from here (doesn't work). See the part dealing with Emmaville in particular.

The Tin-Mining Industry in NSW 1911 by JE Carne (DIGS reference R00050677) was written near the end of the tin mining stage and has a good section on the Ottery Mine.

https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html All Blue Mountains blogs and videos

https://johnsnewenglandminerals.blogspot.com/2013/12/list-of-all-blog-entries-to-date.html

All New England and other Geology blogs and videos

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1325599670344725659?pli=1

Limestone Caves of NSW

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1147003616874115974/2430103125095714141

Song Studies. Bible studies based on hymns and songs

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1515863000684737715

Shoalhaven District Geology.

The Ottery Mine in 1922. From Grafton/Maclean mine data information

THE BOTTOM END, YARROW CREEK NEAR GLEN INNES NSW AUSTRALIA

THE BOTTOM END, YARROW CREEK

 NEAR GLEN INNES NSW AUSTRALIA

Working the crack

This place takes its name from the simple fact that it is the bottom end of the property where we have often fossicked. Upstream from it is the place we call The Blockup and below, in the next property, is the Old Mine.

This stretch of the creek begins with a long pool, followed by a short section of rocky ground before the creek passes through another pool. After this there are more rocks and pools with some places where the creek vanishes beneath the rocks, before you come to the boundary fence.

The first pool looks deep but that’s about all I know about it. The first rocky section has been well fossicked but possibilities remain for new ground on the left bank. The landowner told me once that, years ago, the creek had been dammed in a dry season at the end of the first pool before the second pool had been pumped out. No doubt some good finds were made. You could hardly fail in a place like that. Not knowing about that event, I tried some of the more obvious spots and scored some cutters. One was a sapphire piece of 

The lower end of the first pool

around 10 carats which I told Sue was tourmaline until I took it up to her with the next sieve. As it turned out, one end was very dark, the rest was blue. I’ve been holding off writing this blog entry as I wanted to include a photograph of it. Sorry, I must have sold it with some other blues before we moved away from Glen Innes.

Minerama 2010 finds

Most of our fossicking here happened around 2002-3 and I have no photos of finds from that time. Probably our best find came immediately after Minerama in March 2010. A few good finds were made on the Monday trip just below the end of the first pool. Two weeks later I worked on a crack which crossed the creek, using a yabby pump to get all I could out of it. The first finds included some good clear quartz (no fossicker I know throws that back again) so I was confident that there were better things to follow. The photo shows that I wasn’t disappointed. The following week produced some more, but that was it for that particular crack. No doubt there is more to come.

See the Blog entries for The Blockup and the Old Mine for more information.

My You Tube video on The Bottom End may be found here . 

  https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html All Blue Mountains blogs and videos

https://johnsnewenglandminerals.blogspot.com/2013/12/list-of-all-blog-entries-to-date.html

All New England and other Geology blogs and videos

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1325599670344725659?pli=1

Limestone Caves of NSW

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1147003616874115974/2430103125095714141

Song Studies. Bible studies based on hymns and songs

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1515863000684737715

Shoalhaven District Geology.

Good finds from the crack described above (one day's work)

BACK CREEK, PINKETT NEAR GLEN INNES, NSW AUSTRALIA

BACK CREEK, PINKETT NEAR GLEN INNES 

NSW AUSTRALIA

Back Creek is the first major creek south of Yarrow Creek on the Pinkett road, about 25km south east of Glen Innes. As seen from the road, there are numerous granite outcrops, especially on the eastern side. Near the point at which the creek moves away from the road, outcrops disappear and sand appears to make up the creek bed from here on. At the point where the Pretty Valley road crosses Back Creek there is nothing to be seen but sand. All this country is private property, needless to say, so access will need to be arranged for fossicking.

The above quote comes from the book “Exploration Data Package for the Glen Innes 1:100,000 Sheet Area” by RE Brown (1995). The DIGS reference is GS1995/231. It strongly suggests that good gemstones are to be found in these south eastern areas. Our numerous trips to Yarrow Creek confirm that this is indeed true; however there have been sapphire mines at various places along the Yarrow where sufficient accumulation of wash has happened. 

Yarrow Creek is shown as a sapphire bearing stream in the following references:

Sapphire in NSW 1983 DIGS reference Information Brochure 40, Sapphire in NSW 1995 DIGS Information Brochure 41, Quarterly Notes 103 (1997) DIGS reference QN 103, Records of the Geological Survey of New South Wales, Volume14, Part 1 by AA McNevin (1972) DIGS Records 14(1) . 

Back Creek topaz

Interestingly, neither Pretty Valley, nor Rainy Swamp nor Back Creek appear on any of the maps in these references. In the case of Rainy Swamp sapphires were certainly mined there. Pretty Valley appeared to be virgin when we first investigated it. Back Creek showed signs of old prospecting along both of its major tributaries upstream of the Pinkett road. Yet no trace could be found in DIGS of any mining or prospecting in these three areas. All three have produced good gemstones on our many visits.

I have mentioned in the Blog entries on both Rainy Swamp and Pretty Valley that their gemstones differ from those in Yarrow Creek, but resemble each other. The same is true for the gems from Back Creek. Indeed, I think it likely that the Rainy Swamp deposit is a former course of Back Creek. It would not be difficult to imagine Back Creek having formerly flowed where Bladey Grass Creek is today (Pretty Valley).

The typical wash from Back Creek produces a concentrate containing sapphire, zircon, spinel, tourmaline, topaz and cassiterite. There is a great deal of clear and smoky quartz. The topaz has been found in pieces up to 150 carats, mostly colourless but with some blue and apricot coloured stones. There is a lot of black tourmaline and I have seen one piece only of gemmy tourmaline. The sapphire is mostly opaque but clear stones of all the usual colours turn up. There is a little beryl to be found as well.

Gemmy tourmaline from Back Creek

I have seen two “bonanzas” found there when dozens of cutters suddenly appeared in a relatively small area. I was involved in finding a third and it was extraordinary to come upon wash peppered with all the gems mentioned when it was normal to see just a few in the sieve. That’s what gem hunting is all about and I have to say that it was a sad day when we lost access to the best part of the creek in 2002. This was the result of fossickers on a Minerama trip not filling in their holes.

If I ever had the opportunity to fossick again, Back Creek would be the place I would go.

I have no photos of fossicking at Back Creek, unfortunately, and just a few of some finds from there. I’m looking forward to reading about future successes by readers of this Blog. 

You can experience fossicking around Glen Innes through my You Tube site until you pay the area a visit. Click here. 

https://johnsbluemountainsblog.blogspot.com/2013/12/links-to-all-blog-entries-and-relevant.html All Blue Mountains blogs and videos

https://johnsnewenglandminerals.blogspot.com/2013/12/list-of-all-blog-entries-to-date.html

All New England and other Geology blogs and videos

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1325599670344725659?pli=1

Limestone Caves of NSW

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/1147003616874115974/2430103125095714141

Song Studies. Bible studies based on hymns and songs

https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/1515863000684737715

Shoalhaven District Geology.

Back Creek topaz