Location 303
Location #303 - Antimony Mine - Buchan's Lode.
Map 0

Address

Area

Upper Pipeclay Creek

Description

Location #303 - Antimony Mine - Buchan's Lode. Carrick Range, antimony saddle. The north branch of Pipeclay and Upper Long Gully area at an altitude of 1037m


Still Standing

Yes


Never extensively worked

Construction Details

See description in the notes.

Location Type

Mine


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Interested Parties

The table below shows the groups of people that had an interest in this property, either as owners, residents, tenants or shareholders. Clicking on the 'Details' link will display a list of the individuals in the group along with any known historical information about them.

Group Date Description
1 1882 William Buchan and John Pryde Details
2 1979 Owen & Eric Hopgood Details

Notes

The table below shows any historical notes about the location.

Note Date Short Description Note Text
3090 1875 Mine Location The Carrick Range, Antimony Saddle. On the north branch of the Upper Pipeclay Gully and Upper Long Gully area. The mine is at an altitude of 1037m above sea level (M.S.L Dunedin) and occurs in four lodes.
3091 1875 Description of the mine These details were obtained from : Report on the Geology and Gold Fields of Otago. by F W Hutton (provincial geologist) and G H F Ulrich (consulting mining geologist and engineer). The lode lies about 1.5 miles (2.4km) east from Carricktown, very nearly on top of one of the highest spurs of the range, about 580ft (176m) above the nearest gully. It strikes east 15 degrees south and dips northwards at an angle of about 55 degrees. Although only superficially opened in a few places, it is traceable for over a mile in length round the top of the range towards Carricktown, and also some distance downhill. It's thickness varies in the workings from 6 inches to 2 feet, and as Mr Buchan who kindly showed me over the ground informed me, one block of the solid ore was worked out weighing above 3cwt (150 kg). In parts of the lode exposed however the ore is rather poor, being quartzose and mixed with impure oxide. As Mr Buchan found gold in the casing, Ithink there is, as in similar lodes in Victoria, every probability of the lode proving auriferous, wherever quartz makes its appearance in some quantity. It is very favorably situated for being opened in a strike at great depth by an adit level from the western slope of the mountain, and a short adit to prospect it, at 40 to 50 feet in depth, could easily be put in at right angles to this strike. A deep adit from the eastern side of the range, which I understand has been under consideration, would I think be both inadvisable and premature. For, although the lode is a promising one, the expense of carriage of the ore to the nearest market would be so high as lo leave but a small, if any, margin for the working expenses out of the price obtainable for it. Only in the case of its proving payably auriferous, for which I think there is some chance, the putting in of a deep adit would be warranted, but then it should take place as just indicated from the western slope of the mountain in the line of strike of the lode.
3092 1882-1883 Notes from NZ Geological Survey 1882-1883. These details were obtained from : New Zealand Geological Survey, Geological Reports of Geological Explorations 1882-1883 by Alexander McKay, government geologist. Mineralisation : Infilling of tracks of crush zones; antimony (stibnite), cervantite (yellow oxide), quartz, traces of gold and silver. Lode No 1. (southernmost) ----------------------------------- - strike west north west - dip 60 degrees north for 20-80m ore - width 0.2-0.25m - length 7.6-9.1m, well defined - slickensided on foot wall - ill defined on hanging wall Lode No 2. (intersects lode 1 at depth) -------------------------------------------------- - dip 45 degrees south for 18-24m ore - width 0.15-0.38m Lode No 3. (northernmost) ----------------------------------- - strike east west - dip 55 degrees north - opened up with tunnels and shafts - ore width 0.15m clean - length 6m - shaft gave ore to depth of 2.4-3m and again below depth of 6m where ore thickness on hanging wall became equal to that at the surface. Lode No 4. (succeeds lode no 2) ------------------------------------------ - strike 305 degrees paralell to lode 1 - dip 45 to 55 degrees north east - outcrop 24m - ore width 0.15-0.38m
3093 1908 Notes from James park 1908. These details were obtained from : The New Zealand geological Survey, bulletin No 5 (new series), The Geology of the Cromwell Subdivision Western Otago Division. James Park - director of school of mines, Otago University 1908. The country rock consists of moderately soft flaky mica-shist, passing into phyllite. It belongs to the upper part of the Maniototo series, and being less altered than the Bendigo schists, it is not easily distinguished from the upper schists. Lode No 1. -------------- The lode outcrops a few chains (approx 20m) south of the Antimony Saddle. It strikes 75 degrees (true) and dips northward at an angle of about 45 degrees. The lode matter as seen in the prospecting hole on he spur consists of crushed rock 0.3-0.6m wide, with an irregular streak of quartzose antimonite on each wall. The walls are well defined, the hanging wall showing slickensided surfaces. The ore veins on the walls vary from 25-75mm thick and carry a considerable proportion of antimonite and cervantite (the yellow oxide of antimony). very little prospecting has been done on this lode (visited in 1907). Lode No 2. -------------- The lode out crops about 60m south of lode 1 on the steep rising ground. It appears on the surface in several places, and has been worked to some extent by trenches and underhand stopes. in the underhand stope 60m from the boundary fence, the walls are from 0.6-1.2m apart, but no ore is to be seen, the lode-matter in the portion left standing consisting of mainly clay and crushed rock, with a little of the yellow oxide of antimony scattered throughout. At this place the lode is cut off sharply by a small thrust-plane, showing a horizontal displacement of about 1.2m. Lying on the mullock-tip there are numerous pieces of antimonite and cervantite, mostly quartzose and low grade. (when visited in January 1907 it appears that no work had been done on Buchan's lode for some considerable time.)
3094 1872 Discovery of the antimony lode. The antimony lodes on Antimony Saddle on the Carrick Range are said to have been discovered by Thomas Hall (from Heart of the Desert, J C Parcell)
3095 1873 Cromwell Argus. 11 July 1882 - Antimony smelter opening. In a speech by Mr Buchan at the antimony smelter opening, he states that he and john Pryde discovered the antimony 9 1/2 years ago ( i.e. in 1873).
3096 1874 William Buchan opened up a lode. Mr William Buchan opened out a lode and forwarded samples to Dunedin for analysis. The ore was found to contain 50-54 percent of antimony (stibnite). (from Park 1908).
3097 1875 General note. (Hutton & Ulrich) 'Mr Buchan informed me that one block of solid ore was worked out weighing above 3cwt (150kg)'
3098 unknown Notes from Heart of the Desert. (J C Parcell) Thomas Hall and John Pryde wnet into partnership to open up the lode, however they did not have the money to construct a road to access the lode. With the aid of George Wilson of Dunedin, they formed the Otago Antimony Mining Company. The company provided the finance to construct a pack track and took out 10 tons of ore which was smelted at Port Chalmers. The antimony was sent to England but returns averaged on twelve pound per ton. With such low returns, the company failed.
3099 1882 From Cromwell Argus 4 Mar 1882. In March, William Buchan and John Pryde floated the Carrick Range Antimony Company. The lode area was opened up with the help of William Watson. A large prospecting area was taken up on Antimony Saddle. Twenty miners were employed to open up Buchans lode. A road up to the mine was constructed to replace the old pack track using the services of twenty men. A rough sample contained in 100 bags had been sent 'home' (to England) and returned 12 pounds per ton. It was claimed that there were 300 tons of ore on hand, worth twenty two pound per ton. When smelted this ore would return 55 to 60 pounds per ton. The company proposed to build a smelter. John Pryde purchased the Excelsior Coal Mine (location #179) on behalf of the company. The smelter was to be fueled on coal from the Excelsior Mine and sited 50 yards away on the northern side of Slaughteryard Hill. (see location #352, smelter, and #353, chimney)
3100 1979 A new prospecting licence was taken up for Buchans Lode. Two Cromwell men, Owen and Eric Hopgood (who had mined sheelite and gold) took up a prospecting licence for Buchan's lodes. The lodes were opened up by bulldozer cuts and samples were taken. The samples were sent to England for evaluation. Unfortunately it proved to be uneconomic to open up an antimony mine on the Carrick Range.
3101 For further information on antimony deposits, see locations #304 and #394. For further information on antimony deposits, see locations #304 and #394.

Images

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Image Id Source Date Short Description
2153 Otago Witness 3 Jul 1875 Buchan's Antimony Lode - Carrick Range View Image