Iron King Mine, Norseman, Dundas Shire, Western Australia, Australiai
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Iron King Mine | Mine |
| Norseman | Town |
| Dundas Shire | Shire |
| Western Australia | State |
| Australia | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
32° 14' 34'' South , 121° 48' 8'' East
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Locality type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Norseman | 982 (2012) | 5.5km |
Other/historical names associated with this locality:
Iron King Pyrite Mine; Iron King open pit
In order to encourage the mining of pyrite for sulphuric acid used in superphosphate the Commonwealth Government of Australia introduced a subsidy via the Sulphuric Bounty Act 1954, and Pyrite Bounty Act of 1960. Two mines opened in Australia on the back of this: Bruckunga in South Australia, and the Iron King at Norseman.
The mine was about 6 kilometres south of Norseman, developed by Central Norseman Gold, which operated gold mines also in the same area. Mining began in 1945, through a special government subsidy. The ore was transported to the Phoenix mill near Norseman, which had been adapted from gold to pyrite treatment. The pyrite ore was around 25% sulphur, and estimated reserves were put at 735 000 tonnes above a 25% sulphur cut-off of massive pyrite.
The mine had an appalling safety record, with Robert Sweet-Baseden in 1944, Hone Anderson Roberts in 1952, and lastly Sidney George Baker (30) in 1954, all meeting their deaths at the mine, Baker falling 200 feet down the shaft.
In the late 1960's, new cheaper sources of sulphur became available, mainly through the processing of sour natural gas in Canada. On 31 May 1972, the bounty was withdrawn, and the Iron King Mine closed the same day.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsCommodity List
This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.Mineral List
1 valid mineral.
Detailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 Reference: Fisher, N.H. (1945) Pyrite Production at the Iron King Mine, Norseman, Western Australia. Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics, Department of Natural Resources, Commonwealth of Australia, Report No. 1945/59. |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
References
Sort by
Year (asc) Year (desc) Author (A-Z) Author (Z-A)Broken Hill Prospecting Newsletter, February 2014.
The West Australian newspaper (Perth) (1954) Man Dies in Fall Down Shaft, 12/08/1954.
Kalgoorlie Miner newspaper (1949) The Pyrite Industry. Public Meeting at Norseman, 21/01/1949.
Fisher, N.H. (1945) Pyrite Production at the Iron King Mine, Norseman, Western Australia. Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics, Department of Natural Resources, Commonwealth of Australia, Report No. 1945/59.
External Links
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Australia
- Western Australia
- Kambalda Nickel Metallogenic ProvinceGeologic Province
- West Australian ElementCraton
- Yilgarn CratonCraton
Australian PlateTectonic Plate
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