Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1871-08-02
FACTS ABOUT EAST TENNESSEE.
A Letter From DucI4tOy,n.

er who is interested in such matters, some
idea of the immense wealth that has been,
and is yet to be developed in that locality
Any one on first visiting Ducktown
would very naturally ask Who're is the
torn and tCherc are the fec thousand in
hd6itdRts? Now the name 'Ducktownn
is not applied to "a closely compact town
nor to any town at all, as the name would
indicate. Ii applies to this whole mining
region comprising most of the "basinn
mentioned before. The inhabitants are
wonderfully scattered, owing to the loca.
ton of the different mines. The Hiwas-
see mine was the first opened and as the
result right around near 1t miners and la
borers erected their dwellings others
from the surrounding country moved here
thinking ii Il more successful place for 9TH
er occupations in process of time store
houses We're erected and opened and now
this particular place has assumed about the
proportions of Il town. 1t seems now to
be the acknowledged center, notwithstand-
ing mining operations have ceased here
and are being carried on altogether at other
points. The post office for all Ducktown
is here. As these other mines were opened
very naturally settlements sprang up
around them-being most of them a mile
or so apart. You now have the reason for
this scattered condition. Ducktown en-
braces all these places and the name is not
applied to any particular one.
am informed that man by the name
of John Lemons found the first copper at
Ducktown in a small branch near the pres
ent town of Hiwassee. The specimen
found was small piece of native copper
and ut first was supposed by Mr.. Lemon to
be gold. This was about the year 1S4S.
Whether this was at once made known
to any extent, or had anything to do with
the discovery of the copper veins and open
ing of mines afterwards, is hardly estab-
lshed. 1t is very probable, however, that
it had, ~ ii was only about three years
eral tons of black copper ore on the present
Hiwassee property, which was the first
taken out. This man Weaver bought up
all the boxes, barrels, &c., that he could i'm
the community, conveyed his ore in these
by wagon to Dalton, shipped it to some
point North, and in all probability had il
worked up. To meet the expenses incur
red in this, he borrowed several thousand
dollars from n gentleman then living near
here, of which money he still has the use,
and that without interest, as he has not
been heard of since.
The Hiwassee mine proper, in the year
49,, was first opened and worked by
Messrs. Low and Bowden, the former from
New York, and the latter an Englishman.
Soon after this they sold the property to
Tracy & Co., composed mostly of New
Workers, and known here as the Hiwassee
Company, reserving shares, however for
themselves. According to present infor-
nation, this company worked this mine
till either the year 1858 or 1859, when they
abandoned it and sold to the present Burr
Burr Company, composed partly of the
same individuals as the Hiwassee Compa-
ny, but chiefly of gentlemen from New
Orleans.
During this time they took out all eht
black ore, sunk a shaft 800 or $50 feet from
the surface and took out some yellow ore
-"yellow sulphuret." Judging from the
character of the mine, it must have aver
aged 10000 lbs. of fine copper" ingot I"
per month. IT is said that this mine,
when abandoned, was still paying the
company, and that it will yet pay, but this
is doubted by many, .-. .-,..
Following the vein struck at Hiwassee !
east you come next to Burr-Burr mine.
This was opened in the spring of 1860 !
From the time this State seeded up to
some time in 1868, ii was worked for the !
Confederate government or rather they |
worked it for themselves. In this year
QS63) operations at this mine ceased till |
the fall of 1865 when they were resumed |
again. Since then the work has been con !
stant. y vast amount of LACK ore has /
beed taken out, but now this portion of |
the vein is about exhausted of this kind of |
ore-they ara yet taking out small guam
titles. During the period the rebels had |
lbs. of fine copper per month, which was,
of course, If not a total, partial loss to |
the company and great exhaustion to the |
mine.
From 1865 till now about $4,000 lbs. of
line copper per month have been obtained |
from 1t. They are now sinking a
shaft at this place as a test for yellow ore.
A depth of about 220 feet has already been
attained and 1t is thought 80 feet more will
be sufficient for the test. 1t will require
about three months to extend the shaft to
that depth. The indications fora fine mine
OF yellow ore are good. The hopes and
expectations of Capt. James Bailey, who
has charge of this mine, and of other ex-
perienced miners are high. This vein is
what Is called IA fissure first, bed of
rock or ore called tgOssdp," which lies
next the surface and forms the out-crOp
second, the black ore, third, a layer of
slate, and fourth, the yellow ore with
small per cent. of copper at first. The
per cent Increases in descending or pass
ing further from the surface. Capt Bailey
showed me specimen OF this yellow ore
taken out about 100 feet below the black
ore, which, he says, il about 6 or I per cent
copper. lie also says il is increasing at
least from tO 1 per cent. every hundred
'eet, and that If 1t continues to increase
ana sufficient quantity eau be found il will
pay nnally. II this test proves n success
c VIII give employment to perhaps five
hundred additional miners and labOrers |
give an impetus tOOther tests, make Duck
own, ana be great benefit TO East Ten !