Hello
patrick hutton wrote:
> Peter Wilkinson's 'The Nent Force Level and Brewery Shaft' says that the
> Vielle Montagne Zinc Co erected a 5 story gravity mill in Nenthead in/after
> 1909. Most was demolished in 1965; the remaining (lower) part remained as
> Wright's Bus Co garage.
Interesting coincidence!
A few days ago, I investigated the remains of the zinc dressing
plant in Kelmis / La Calamine (Belgium) near Aachen.
The mines there used to be run by "Vielle Montagne".
Today, the 3 storey building is used for storage and exhibition
of bricks and tiled by a local company.
Unfortunately, all machinery is gone.
However, you will still find traces of the mines:
a pond and several waste tips are still there.
Once La Calamine was a very important supplier of zinc plates.
It is said, that the famous roofs of Paris were all made
there and you will still find many buildings with
zinc-covered walls in the area.
Due to the importance of the mines, Belgium and Germany
could not agree on the ownership of the village, so, that
La Calamine became a tiny independent 'state' for
a period of time.
Greetings Harald
--
Dr.-Ing. Harald Finster / Aachen Germany
http://www.finster-stahlart.de industrial history and architecture
http://www.astrid-aix.de gallery: watercolours and oil paintings
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