Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1896-10-16
THE VERsHlRe COPPER MINES.
From Miss Hemenway's Gazetteer

IOWnS. Inc VEIN WHICH is WORKED III |
this town seems TO be the same, or a
parallel to those opened 10 STAFFORD and
Corinth. 1t is about 30 years since it
was accidentally discovered. Many OPP
erations were commenced to develop
the resources of the mine, but all failed
for want Of capital and the necessary
mining knowledge, until it came into the
hands'of the present company.
The Vermont Copper Mining company |
was incorporated by act of legislature,
Nov. Is, 1853. The following names APP
pear in the act granting the charter of |
the company, viz Henry Barnard, J.
! Elnathan Smith, Joseph j. Bicknell. |
Fulton Cutting, ). l.. Mitchell and Lor |
ing l.. Lombard, and their associates and !
successors.
The following, from the Geology of
/ Vermont, presents so concise and yet so
good a history, that copy part, only
making such alterations as have been
made since that was written:
This mine is about two miles from
West Fairlee village and seven from the
IdllIOdu SldllOl III lDtllOlNs it Nt
composing sulphurets of iron and cop
per at the surface and the unusual APP
pearance of the earth that overlap the
ore. excited the curiosity Of the people
in the vicinity and gave rise to reports
that smothering fires, fire-balls, smoke,
&c, were seen there, and induced them
to make excavations to learn the cause.
Upon reaching the y bedrock iron and
copper pyrites were found. the former
quite abundant; and, IN accordance with
tie adage of the Cornish miners, that
"Mundc (mundlc is an impure sulphuret
of iron. usually found with copper pyri-
tps) always rides a good horse, people
were led to believe that valuable copper
ore existed in that hill.
Accordingly company was formed.
consisting mostly of people who resided
in the neghhorhood with the view of
working The mine, which was styled
the Farmers company" Excavations
were made on the vein and iron and
copper pyrites obtained, when rude
smelling furnace was erected. But IN
consequence of the ineXperience OF those
having the business in charge, little or
no copper was ever obtained from the
ore smelted.
Col. Bnney of Boston and Isaac Tv-
son. Esq, OF Baltimore, Nd, were the
next to engage in the enterprise of work
ing the mines. The outcrop of rock
> containing the ore being upon the south
era slope of hill and about 400 feet
! above the valley adjacent, they very
Q wisely concluded. the only proper way
of working copper mine thus situated,
was to drive in an adit, so as to strike
the bed at considerable distance below
the outcrOp at the surface; hence they
8 at once commenced the work of driving
, cross-cut adit and pushed it vigorously
for more than two years. Having pen
etroted the rock horizontally 81 feet
4 and not striking the ore or bed. they be-
l came discouraged and the work was
abandoned.
a In 1853 some gentlemen of New York
u city purchased the mines and DIS acres
u of land adjacent. In the fall the charter
L before named was granted by the legis
= lature of Vermont. constituting them a
J. body corporate, under the name of the
l. Vermont Copper Mining company, with
o "A capital of 100000. In the spring OF
@ 1891 the work was Systematically com
menced, under the superintendent OF
J Capt. Thomas Pollard, an intelligen
c and experienced Cornish miner, since
u which time the work has continued un
l. der the supervision Except 1861, 'G2
$50 and attended with the most crafty
u ing results. The crOss-cut adit aban
70 dOned by Messrs. Binney and Tyson wa
at once entered by the workmen anC
u driven in the direction of the ore an'
n they had not proceeded four feet before
N it was reached. The bed was found t
10 consist of copper pyrites. associate,
- with mundic, and was from to 10 fee
G. in thickness and had dip of about II
/ east.
+, Indications of ore exist at the surfac
10 of the ground for the distance or abOu
Il One-fourth of a mile, in a line with tn
~ strata of the rocks. 1t occurs in tn
ct calcareOus mica schist. which assumes
So gnelssod appearance in the vicinity o
IS the mines.
These are situated on the sOuther
n, slope of hill and the drifts of adits are
~ with the exception of the cross-cut adj
Il, before named, all in or near the line q
III the ore. 81 The ore, as beior
ne stated, occurs in continuous bed, cor
OF formable with the schist enclosing
H. and has an average thickness of about
90 feet.
m But little birthstone is seen aud the or
~, occurs nearly Independent of rock q
III other impurities, except the sulphuret G
H. iron and occasional veins of concretior
We airy masses of quartz.
re- On descending into the earth the be
ur is found to change in appearance an
IN improve in quality. At, ana near tn
surface, "gossan'' is found, overlyin
", the mundc and copper ore, bur upo
M reaching the solid bed or vein. the mul
nu die thns out and the pure ore is MOI
VI abundant.
he The sulphuret obtained at this min
ng yields about 30 per cent of copper-whe
'e5 pure ore is subjected TO analysis-bl
Ell the ore sent TO market yields on an ave
5w age about or 10 per cent. Shipmen
ed of ore from this mine have been mac
is tbot yielded II nor cont hnt If l. usuall
Ia co,sjlored batter NOR to s.oob'' or ..dress
by tha orc sn rs IN have If vieId more tha
M ten per cent. as much good ore is lost
he tho refuse thrown AWAY and the add
iat tt,,,l l.,,,. ',.o,,,;rod 10 eanarotn tho a