Page Index Toggle Pages: 1 Send TopicPrint
Normal Topic Wake County; Graphite (Read 13830 times)
JoeM
God Member
*****
Offline


I Love YaBB 2.5 AE!

Posts: 4178
Location: Wake County, NC
Joined: Sep 30th, 2010
Gender: Male
Wake County; Graphite
Nov 24th, 2013 at 7:47pm
Print Post  
As mentioned in another thread, there is a "belt" of graphite running through Wake County
that has been mined in different areas historically.
The quality of the graphite varies with the highest quality obviously
at the headwaters of Mine Creek northwest of present day Lead Mine Rd.
Production of graphite was apparently in full force on the Tucker property on Lead Mine Rd
by 1824 and remained consistent until around 1880. By 1906 it seems most graphite mining had ceased in Wake County or was not being recorded.

The following are excerpts from Geology and Mineral Resources of Wake County,
Bulletin #86, by John M. Parker, III, 1979.

"Mining seems to have been carried on intermittently at three principal locations;
(1). Lead Mine Hill, (Tucker property), on Mine Creek about 7 miles north of Raleigh.
(2). the so-called Old Lead Mines in north-west Raleigh along the ridge between
House Creek and present day Ridge Rd.
(3). The Goodwin Property some 4 miles southwest of Raleigh.
Information is too scanty to identify with assurance the owners and operators
or to permit allocation of production to specific localities.
All mine workings have been partly or wholly obliterated by grading and backfilling.

"The most extensive mining appears to have occurred at the Lead Mine Hill
or Tucker property on the ridge just west of Lead Mine Rd, (SR 1820),
between its intersection with Lynn Rd.,(SR1812), and a branch of Mine Creek to the north.
The workings extended northward along the east edge of the ridge for about 800 feet
and included at least 4 shafts and 2 adits.
Mining evidently went down to about the level of the creek at the north end,
where water drained out slowly in 1950.
The workings were largely backfilled and graded over in the 1960's."

" The House Creek Lead Mines included several small workings opened at intervals
along some 2000 feet along the ridge east of House Creek from near present Sandia Drive
to Westmoreland Drive. These are likely to include the mine reported in the Tenth Census (1880)(p. 841 and 984),
as the Heron Mine, operator Carter, Pullen, and Tucker, employing five hands.
The workings comprised at least five shafts and drift adits which apparently
exploited the deposits to depths of perhaps 50 feet.
The small size of the dumps indicates the production of graphite was not large.
Ten tons sold for paint was reported for the Heron Mine in 1887."

"A little mining was done at the Goodwin property southwest of Raleigh
on the ridge just southeast of US Hwy 1-64 and west of Jones-Franklin Rd.,(SR 1319),
0.35 mile S. 65Degrees W of their interchange.
The workings seem to have been little more than a short drift adit into the hillside.
The graphite here is in the eastern zone of the western belt, that is,
the same unit mined to the northeast but at this point exposed on the west flank of the Raleigh anticline."

Mr. Parker goes on to mention other prospects in the Avent Ferry Rd to
Western Blvd areas of Raleigh.

"Emmons (1856,p. 225) reports it was used in paints for roofs, stoves, and ships and as lubricant on wagon axles."
It has been said that the wagons that settled the west got there with graphite lubricant from Wake County! Wink

I hope you will find this information helpful.
I look forward to exploring the remnants of this enterprise more closely!

Joe





  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
Tim4d
God Member
*****
Offline


I like creeks & rivers
to do the digging for
me.

Posts: 658
Location: Chester, VA
Joined: Feb 24th, 2011
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #1 - Dec 5th, 2013 at 1:40pm
Print Post  
Thanks, Joe.  Knowing the history always adds value to present-day exploration.
  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
L82Play
Full Member
***
Offline


RockHoundLounger

Posts: 195
Joined: Jul 10th, 2013
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #2 - Dec 29th, 2014 at 9:11pm
Print Post  
Hi,

I saw an segment on TV about Graphene and found some interesting reading about it in Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphene

I've generally avoided the large chunks of graphite in Mine Creek cause it is so messy to handle...gets smudges on everything.  But now sounds like it could be the base form of the material of the future...makes me think I might start collecting the graphite in Mine Creek after all and/or start digging to open the Mine back up - graphite might be as good as gold someday.  Roll Eyes

cheers,
r
  

MonkeyHead2_001.jpg ( 129 KB | 212 Downloads )
MonkeyHead2_001.jpg

sung to the tune of 'Green Acres'
Erosion is the thing for me
I just don't like to dig - you see
Picking rocks up right off the ground
is good enough for this lucky old rockhound
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
dan
Full Member
***
Offline


I Love YaBB 2.5 AE!

Posts: 248
Joined: Feb 14th, 2011
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #3 - Dec 29th, 2014 at 9:29pm
Print Post  
I have been reading about the geology of North Carolina again recently and the graphite is a part of the Raleigh Belt.  What is amazing is that the belt dates back over 800 million years.  The numbers are from my memory since I am not at home right now but the "oldness" of the belt just is outstanding.
  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
Raleigh Rockhound
Senior Member
****
Offline


www.RockHoundLounge.
com

Posts: 352
Joined: May 14th, 2012
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #4 - Dec 30th, 2014 at 11:03am
Print Post  
"Emmons (1856,p. 225) reports it was used in paints for roofs, stoves, and ships and as lubricant on wagon axles."


Does the name ring a bell Joe?
  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
L82Play
Full Member
***
Offline


RockHoundLounger

Posts: 195
Joined: Jul 10th, 2013
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #5 - Dec 30th, 2014 at 10:29pm
Print Post  
Yep, I've heard of a folly or two of his  Wink

...but Dan's comment down right amazes me!

As pointed out in another thread, I spend time most every morning the weather permits discussing different topics with that monkey-head-looking graphite rock I posted above as I drink a cup of coffee and enjoy back yard nature.  The rock is a great listener and in between long pauses of silence, he'll occasionally respond with a deep inspirational thought...which must, as I know now, be based on some powerful ancient wisdom!

I guess all rocks are old, but thinking in terms of 800 million years old just kinda blows me away... Shocked

cheers,
r
  

sung to the tune of 'Green Acres'
Erosion is the thing for me
I just don't like to dig - you see
Picking rocks up right off the ground
is good enough for this lucky old rockhound
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
JoeM
God Member
*****
Offline


I Love YaBB 2.5 AE!

Posts: 4178
Location: Wake County, NC
Joined: Sep 30th, 2010
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #6 - Dec 30th, 2014 at 10:49pm
Print Post  
Adds a new dimension to the "Big Picture" don't it, Robert.
Now you can sit there on your back porch drinking your coffee and talking with your buddy,
and wonder what was going on 800 million years ago. Wink
  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
Scott LaBorde
RHL Administrator
*****
Offline


"Rock it" science!

Posts: 2960
Location: Wake Forest, NC
Joined: Sep 28th, 2010
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #7 - Dec 31st, 2014 at 8:25am
Print Post  
Monkey head -- "Well you know I always wanted to be just like my uncle who became a full fledged diamond, but the pressure was just too much for me."

Robert -- "What was your uncle like?"

Monkey head -- "He was very hard headed and transparent!"

ba dump bump

  

Scott LaBorde
RockHoundLounge Creator
Back to top
IP Logged
 
Dennis
Senior Member
****
Offline


Beryl is good!

Posts: 358
Location: Morganton, NC
Joined: Oct 2nd, 2010
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #8 - Dec 31st, 2014 at 9:09am
Print Post  
And, for an uncle, he had great cleavage and many facets to his personality...........!
  
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
L82Play
Full Member
***
Offline


RockHoundLounger

Posts: 195
Joined: Jul 10th, 2013
Gender: Male
Re: Wake County; Graphite
Reply #9 - Dec 31st, 2014 at 12:10pm
Print Post  
LOL  - I'll have to look harder and find that uncle, but basically you guys have both captured the nature of our morning conversations exactly  Grin

cheers,
r

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL
  

sung to the tune of 'Green Acres'
Erosion is the thing for me
I just don't like to dig - you see
Picking rocks up right off the ground
is good enough for this lucky old rockhound
Back to top
 
IP Logged
 
Page Index Toggle Pages: 1
Send TopicPrint