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Mount Morgan Mine was a copper, gold and silver mine in
In October 1886, the syndicate became the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited, with James Wesley Hall, the younger brother of Walter Russell and Thomas Skarratt Hall, as the first general manager. The Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited operated using underground mining methods until 1927 when fire destroyed underground workings. The company deliberately flooded its underground workings in response to the fire and went into liquidation.
By 1907 the mine had produced $60,000,000 worth of gold, making it one of the most productive in the world.
CQUniversity: CQUniLibrary: Mount Morgan Mine Manuscript Collection
* ttp://www.wehi.edu.au/ Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research Gold mines in Queensland Silver mines in Queensland Copper mines in Queensland Mines in Central Queensland Queensland Heritage Register 1882 establishments in Australia 1981 disestablishments in Australia
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, Australia. Mining began at Mount Morgan in 1882 and continued until 1981.
Over its lifespan, the mine yielded approximately of gold, of silver and of copper. The mine was once the largest gold mine in the world.
The Mount Morgan Mine also operated assay laboratories, brickworks, foundry, power house and workshops (including carpentry, electrical and plumbing) as part of its operations. The Mount Morgan Mine also contained Fireclay Caverns excavated to provide clay for the mine brickworks.
Wealth from the Mount Morgan mine funded Persian oil exploration, establishing the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, which became BP in 1954. Wealth from the Mount Morgan mine was also bequeathed in 1912 to establish the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
WEHI (), previously known as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, and as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, is Australia's oldest medical research institute. Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, who won the Nobel Prize in 1960 for ...
.
Resources
The area near the mine contains sedimentary and igneous rocks. The gold was rated 0.998 fine.History
The Beginning (1882 to 1886)
In 1882, a syndicate was created to open a gold mine at Ironstone Mountain, south of Rockhampton,Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
. The syndicate comprised William Knox Darcy (later influential in establishing the Anglo Persian Oil Company), Walter Russell Hall
Walter Russell Hall (22 February 1831 – 13 October 1911) was an Australian businessman and philanthropist.
Biography
Hall was born in Kington, Herefordshire, England, eldest son of Walter Hall, glover (later a miller), and his wife Elizabeth ...
(later influential in establishing the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
WEHI (), previously known as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, and as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, is Australia's oldest medical research institute. Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, who won the Nobel Prize in 1960 for ...
), Thomas Skarratt Hall, and Thomas, Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Nobility
Anhalt-Harzgerode
*Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
Austria
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198
* Frederick ...
and Edwin Morgan. Ironstone Mountain was later renamed Mount Morgan after the Morgan members of the syndicate.
Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited (1886–1928)
In October 1886, the syndicate became the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited, with James Wesley Hall, the younger brother of Walter Russell and Thomas Skarratt Hall, as the first general manager. The Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Limited operated using underground mining methods until 1927 when fire destroyed underground workings. The company deliberately flooded its underground workings in response to the fire and went into liquidation.
By 1907 the mine had produced $60,000,000 worth of gold, making it one of the most productive in the world.
Mount Morgan Limited (1928–1990)
The Mount Morgan Mine was reestablished using open-cut mining methods in 1928, operating as Mount Morgan Limited. Conversion to open-cut operation included substantial modernization of Mount Morgan’s mining infrastructure and mining techniques. Mount Morgan Limited became a subsidiary ofPeko-Wallsend
Peko-Wallsend was an Australian mining company.
History
Peko-Wallsend was founded in 1961 when Peko Mines merged with Wallsend Investments. In 1962 Peko-Wallsend purchased Toll Transport. In January 1968, Peko-Wallsend acquired a majority share ...
in 1968 and continued operations until 1974, when Mount Morgan Limited began to reach the end of its ore body. Mount Morgan Limited progressively scaled back its workforce and operations until it reached the end of its ore body in 1981.
From 1982 to 1990, Mount Morgan Limited began processing tailings of its previous operations at the Mount Morgan mine site. In parallel, Mount Morgan mine facilities were used to process materials from other Peko-Wallsend operations. At the end of both such operations in 1990, the Queensland Government
The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended f ...
began negotiating with Mount Morgan Limited regarding terms of closure.
Recent
TheQueensland Government
The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended f ...
began administration of the site in 1992. Perilya/Aumin NL commenced further exploration in 1992 leading to plans for potential further reprocessing at the Mount Morgan mine site in the future. Since 2007 the mine and mining leases have been owned by Norton Gold Fields. An estimated of gold still exist at the site.
Broader influence of the mine
BP
William Knox Darcy, an original member of the Mount Morgan gold mine syndicate, used proceeds from the Mount Morgan gold mine to fund oil exploration inPersia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. The exploration made successful oil discovery in 1908 and commenced the Anglo Persian Oil Company. The company became The British Petroleum Company ( BP) in 1954.
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
Walter Russell Hall
Walter Russell Hall (22 February 1831 – 13 October 1911) was an Australian businessman and philanthropist.
Biography
Hall was born in Kington, Herefordshire, England, eldest son of Walter Hall, glover (later a miller), and his wife Elizabeth ...
was also a member of the original Mount Morgan Gold Mine syndicate. Substantial personal wealth of Walter Russell Hall
Walter Russell Hall (22 February 1831 – 13 October 1911) was an Australian businessman and philanthropist.
Biography
Hall was born in Kington, Herefordshire, England, eldest son of Walter Hall, glover (later a miller), and his wife Elizabeth ...
was bequeathed on his death in 1912 to establish the Walter and Eliza Hall Trust. The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
WEHI (), previously known as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, and as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, is Australia's oldest medical research institute. Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, who won the Nobel Prize in 1960 for ...
was established from the trust in 1915.
Today
The Mount Morgan mine site is currently a tourist attraction in the Central Queensland region. The site contains remaining structures of its mining operations including the General Office, Gold Rooms and Main Stack. The Arthur Timms lookout overlooks remaining mine buildings and the Mount Morgan township. According to former Queensland Minister for Mining, Stirling Hinchliffe, water in the pit contains elevated levels of copper, aluminium, magnesium and other metals. The site contains a lime dosing water treatment plant and onsite evaporators. Controlled water releases done to prevent an uncontrolled release during heavy rainfall events has been done twice in March 2011, once in January 2013 and again in February 2013. In June 2011, the Government of Queensland announced $24.2 million in funding for site rehabilitation and management. On 26 January 2013, the mine filled with water and overflowed in the Dee River for the first time ever. Although mining company Carbine Resources announced plans in 2014 to extract gold, copper and pyrite from tailings and improve the mine'sacid mine drainage
Acid mine drainage, acid and metalliferous drainage (AMD), or acid rock drainage (ARD) is the outflow of acidic water from metal mines or coal mines.
Acid rock drainage occurs naturally within some environments as part of the rock weathering ...
problem, it withdrew the proposal in March 2018 due to its doubts over the financial viability of the project.
Estimates for a partial rehabilitation of the toxic environmental legacy of the old gold mine start at $450 million, but no costings of a full rehabilitation of the site have yet been carried out.
See also
*Mining in Australia
Mining in Australia has long been a significant primary sector industry and contributor to the Australian economy by providing export income, royalty payments and employment. Historically, mining booms have also encouraged population growth ...
* G. A. Richard, general manager of the mine 1903–1912
References
External links
{{Commons category, Mount Morgan MineCQUniversity: CQUniLibrary: Mount Morgan Mine Manuscript Collection
* ttp://www.wehi.edu.au/ Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research Gold mines in Queensland Silver mines in Queensland Copper mines in Queensland Mines in Central Queensland Queensland Heritage Register 1882 establishments in Australia 1981 disestablishments in Australia