A recent enquiry about the Poltimore Copper and Gold Company's activity in
the 1850s, and the failure of the scheme to work auriferous gossans at the
Bampfylde Mine, North Molton, Devon, stirred my memory into action.
Apparently Oxland, the Plymouth chemist and metallurgist, was engaged to
analyse the Poltimore gossan and ancient slag found on the Bampfylde Mine
site - the company were interested if the latter had been smelted for copper
or gold (North Devon Journal 17/2/1853 - quoting the Devonport Independent)
- but the results were never published and I daresay he would have distanced
himself from the company once the on-site gold recovery failed.
I did try to trace Oxland's papers some years ago, without success. Does
anyone know of material relating to Oxland or references to his work on the
Bampfylde material?
Peter
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Peter Claughton, Blaenpant Morfil, Rosebush, Clynderwen,
Pembrokeshire, Wales SA66 7RE.
Tel. 01437 532578; Fax. 01437 532921; Mobile 0831 427599
University of Exeter, Dept. of Economic and Social History
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Co-owner - mining-history e-mail discussion list.
See http://www.mailbase.ac.uk/lists/mining-history/ for details.
Mining History Pages - http://www.exeter.ac.uk/~pfclaugh/mhinf/
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