In message <001201c1b7a4$4abffc20$93d3403e@q0b3g0>, Alan Vickers
<[log in to unmask]> writes
>I have been reading in David Temple's book The Collieries of Durham, Volume 2,
>of the discovery in 1932 of witherite (barium carbonate) in Morrisn North pit,
>in County Durham, in sufficient quantities to be economically mined. The
>following year a new shaft was sunk at Morrison for the purpose of riding the
>men who were to extract the witherite.
>
>Temple says that this made the Morrison pit and Settlingstones in Northumberland
>as the only two pits in Britain to have discovered workable reserves of
>witherite.
>
>Can any list member tell me what witherite was used for?
>
>Alan.
I can point you at Chapter 14 of Dunham "Geology of the North Pennine
Orefield" Vol. 1: Tyne to Stainmore", entitled "Mineral Deposits: Durham
Coalfield">
This lists 237,000 tons of production at the Morrison Pit of South Moor
Colliery
It also gives details of deposits at
Craghead Colliery (NZ212505)
Tanfield Moor Colliery (NZ170544)
Lumley Sixth Pit (NZ310506)
New Brancepeth Colliery - Barytes and Witherite production 221,659 tons
Ushaw Moor Colliery (NZ220427) - mainly Witherite 22,000 tons
Esh Colliery (NZ195423)
Waterhouses Colliery (NZ186411)
Roddymoor Colliery (NZ158372) - 1700 tons of Witherite
Brandon Colliery (NZ244396)
Wooley Colliery (NZ179385)
See:
Ashburn, J. 1963. "Mining Witherite in N.W. Durham" Colliery Guardian
Vol. 207 pp269-276
E.W. Muddiman 1940. "Witherite and its Industrial Uses" Handbook issued
jointly by Holmside and South Moor Collieries Ltd. and the Owners of
Settlingstones Mine Ltd., Newcastle
R. Peel 1900. "Notes upon the occurrence of barytes in a twenty-fathom
fault at New Brancepeth Colliery". The Colliery Manager - Journal of
Colliery Engineering. Vol. 16 pp56-58
Wilson, G.V., Eastwood, T., Pocock, R.W., Wray, D.A. and Robertson, T.
1922. "Barytes and Witherite" "Special Report on the Mineral Resources
of Great Britain - Memoirs of the Geological Survey". 119pp.
--
Dave Williams - [log in to unmask]
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