Frank pit (Farmers diggings; Farmer diggings), Cole Co., Missouri, USAi

Regional Level Types
Frank pit (Farmers diggings; Farmer diggings)	Mine
Cole Co.	County
Missouri	State
USA	Country

These are located about a mile and a half southeast of Hickory Hill, on the north side of Bois creek valley. Work was in progres when the locality was visited by Mr. Robertson in 1891. The galena was found in masses varying in size from small crystals and fragments less than an inch in diameter, to masses weighing upward of 200 lbs. These occur in residuary clay which is from 10 to 20 ft. thick. About 40 tons of ore bad been raised at that time. The shafts are generally not over 20 ft. deep, though one of 50 ft had been sank.

From a description given the writer by the operator, it appears that, this deposit is one of the so called "circle” diggings, which are of quite frequent occurrence in this district. The open ground or clayey breccia in which the ore is found, is shown by the diggings to be surrounded by a wall of limestone, approximately of the shape represented in figure 253. Sheets of galena are said to have lain close to the wall, with a clayey selvage between; the marginal zone of the circle contained most galena, bedded in clay between blocks of limestone and chert; in the center, the limestone blocks were more abundant and there was little or no ore.