The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1890-02-06
The South River Mineral District.
Correspondence of the VIReINIAN.l


GREENvIILE, February 81, 1890.
Mess1s. Editors Having read with interest thu
reports published in your columns by CORES
pohdents about the minerals i'll this section o
bhe county, I have concluded to give to YOU
readers a brief sketch of the mineral belt that
AN familiar with along the base ana upon The
south mountain, or rather the Blue Ridge. IN tht
7 hfst place, will begin at the Kennedy property
winch Is owned by yourself and others On thiS
tlere is us some as fine Brown iematite iroi
( ore as can be found anywhere, and also manga
hese Of good quality This property has good
SHOW for these minerals for distance of about
seven miles
me next property going south is the Shields
brothers. 1t has a fine show for both manga
nese and iron, but has never been worked or
open ID.
Then still going south, we come to the cele-
DRAFTED Bear ore bank owned by the Cotopaxi
Furnace Company This is a large deposit of the
very best Brown Hematite iron ore yielding
~ per cent. metallic iron by Prof. Fountains re-
port.
The nextproperty reached is the Lotion iron
ore mine, owned by the estate of Isaac Newton
ana the Vines Brothers, and now leased to j
Ross Smith and Milton II. Lightner two enter
prsing young men of this neighborhood, Who
Wlllsbegin work at once. This is q very fine ore
ana Yields % per cent. metallic IRON
The next property we come to is the Blue
Bank, owned by Mrs .Iuett Vines. On this prop
erty there is a good show for manganese ana
IRON ore of good quality.
Thr next property is the Black rock mines now
worked by Messrs. Steele & Pelter who are ship
ping large quantity of fine ore. I do not know
the analysis of it.
The next property is the Fauber manganese
mines. that We're worked before the war They
are not worked now.
That brings me to the Rockbridge county line,
and in that county will only name the mines
as far as know, viz: the Cold Short Bank, KEEL
lys Bank, Patterson Bank, ana the McClung
Bank. These last Banks all belong to Messrs.
Bell and Catett of your city.
viii now take a east course up the South
River. Above the Cotopaxi Furnace, about *
miles, you come to the mine ore bank There is
a large deposit of iron ore and manganese on
this property 1t is owned by the estates of
Newton and Vines, and from that tract for three
miles up the river, there can be found iron ore
manganese, and some very fine specimens of
both. Prof. Fountain describes these proper
ties in his report. and makes them very plain as
being very valuable property.
Now as some people are talking about booms,
why can we not have one here? The property
that have named does not extend farther
south from Basic City at Waynesboro than 20
miles to the farthest, and most all, and in fact
all, but the mine bank and the property above
that is in close proximity to the Shenandoah
Valley Railroad, ana could be worked to a great
advantage. Now let us have a mining boom
here. so as when the furnaces and steel plants
are built at Basic City, we can supply the ore
and manganese for all purposes that may be
wanted, as in my humble opinion that I have
,aIo ;etI
i'll the State of Virginia.
Yours Respectfully J. A. II.