Having read the previous responses, and yours closing the discussion, I
think I need to pose some questions:
1. What date is the context?
If before c. 1850, it is unlikely that ore was carried far. Blast
furnaces were almost invariably sited close to ore sources. In the charcoal
era, it might be a few miles, except where the ore was carried by water.
Leeds is a long way from any obvious source of magnetite. After 1850, I
understand that ores were taken significant distances by railway. Swedish
and Norwegian ores were not imported until the same sort of period; indeed,
I suspect that the export from Sweden may have been illegal.
2. Is it possible that a magnetite material was formed in the source of an
industrial process? The normal ore for ironmaking around Leeds would be
argillaceous ironstone, which occurs as seams or nodules in the coal
measures. This is iron carbonate and was (I think) usually calcined to
produce iron oxide before smelting.
Peter King
49, Stourbridge Road,
Hagley
Stourbridge
West Midlands
DY9 0QS
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-----Original Message-----
From: mining-history [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Sallie Bassham
Sent: 03 September 2011 19:46
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: magnetite in Yorkshire
Dear All
I have had a query about magnetite found with industrial slag in the Leeds
area. Please can anyone help me answer this by telling me about known
magnetite sources in Yorkshire, or North Midlands say, which might have been
processed near Leeds?
Sallie
P.S. I am not being paid by anyone to do this and my enquirer is an amateur
archaeologist who is not being paid for his research work.
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