Sterling Hill Mining Museum
Encyclopedia
The Sterling Hill Mine, now known as the Sterling Hill Mining Museum, is a former iron and zinc mine in Ogdensburg, New Jersey
. It was the last working underground mine in New Jersey when it closed in 1986. It became a museum in 1989. Along with the nearby Franklin Mine
, it is known for its variety of minerals, especially the fluorescent varieties. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on 1991.
granted the property to William Alexander, titled Lord Stirling. Stirling sold it to Robert Ogden in 1765. It went through several owners until the various mines were combined into the New Jersey Zinc Company
in 1897. The mine closed in 1986 due to a tax dispute with the town, which foreclosed for back taxes in 1988 and auctioned the property to Richard and Robert Hauck for $750,000. It opened as a museum in August 1990.
massif; the ores are contained within the Franklin Marble. This was deposited as limestone in a Precambrian
oceanic rift trough. It subsequently underwent extensive metamorphosis during the Grenville orogeny
, approximately 1.15 billion years ago. Uplift and erosion during the late Mesozoic
and the Tertiary
exposed the ore bodies at the surface; the glaciers of the Pleistocene
strewed trains of ore-bearing bouldrs for miles to the south, in places creating deposits large enough to be worked profitably.
In the area of the Franklin and Sterling Hill mines, 357 types of minerals are known to occur; these make up approximately 10% of the minerals known to science. Thirty-five of these minerals have not been found anywhere else. Ninety-one of the minerals fluoresce.
There are 35 miles (56.3 km) of tunnels in the mine, going down to 2065 feet (629.4 m) below the surface on the main shaft and 2675 feet (815.3 m) on the lower shaft. The mine remains at 56 °F (13.3 °C) constantly.
The walk goes through a new 240 feet (73.2 m) section called the Rainbow tunnel which they blasted in 1990 using 49 blasts and at a cost of $2 a foot. In the Rainbow room, black lights are turned on to demonstrate the entire tunnel and various sample glowing with phosphorescence.
The mine is also home to the Ellis Astronomical Observatory, the Thomas S. Warren Museum of Fluorescence, and a collection of mining equipment.
The museum periodically arranges public mineral collecting sessions as well as more private and behind the scene events for local geology clubs.
Ogdensburg, New Jersey
Ogdensburg is a Borough in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 2,638.The borough was formed based on an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 26, 1914, from part of Sparta Township, based on the results of a referendum...
. It was the last working underground mine in New Jersey when it closed in 1986. It became a museum in 1989. Along with the nearby Franklin Mine
Franklin Furnace
Franklin Furnace, also known as the Franklin Mine, is a famous mineral location for rare zinc, iron, manganese minerals in old mines in Franklin, New Jersey, USA. This locale produced more species of minerals and more different fluorescent minerals than any other location...
, it is known for its variety of minerals, especially the fluorescent varieties. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on 1991.
History
Mining began at the site in 1730, when it was mistakenly thought to be a copper deposit. George III of the United KingdomGeorge III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
granted the property to William Alexander, titled Lord Stirling. Stirling sold it to Robert Ogden in 1765. It went through several owners until the various mines were combined into the New Jersey Zinc Company
New Jersey Zinc Company
The Horsehead Corporation , formerly the New Jersey Zinc Company, is an American producer of zinc and related materials.The New Jersey Zinc Company was for many years the largest producer of zinc and zinc products in the United States. The company thrived in the period from 1897 to 1966, at which...
in 1897. The mine closed in 1986 due to a tax dispute with the town, which foreclosed for back taxes in 1988 and auctioned the property to Richard and Robert Hauck for $750,000. It opened as a museum in August 1990.
Geology
The ore bodies at the Sterling Hill mine lie within a formation called the Reading ProngReading Prong
The Reading Prong is a physiographic subprovince of the New England Uplands section of the New England province of the Appalachian Highlands. The prong consists of mountains made up of crystalline metamorphic rock.-Location:...
massif; the ores are contained within the Franklin Marble. This was deposited as limestone in a Precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
oceanic rift trough. It subsequently underwent extensive metamorphosis during the Grenville orogeny
Grenville orogeny
The Grenville Orogeny was a long-lived Mesoproterozoic mountain-building event associated with the assembly of the supercontinent Rodinia. Its record is a prominent orogenic belt which spans a significant portion of the North American continent, from Labrador to Mexico, as well as to Scotland...
, approximately 1.15 billion years ago. Uplift and erosion during the late Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
and the Tertiary
Tertiary
The Tertiary is a deprecated term for a geologic period 65 million to 2.6 million years ago. The Tertiary covered the time span between the superseded Secondary period and the Quaternary...
exposed the ore bodies at the surface; the glaciers of the Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
strewed trains of ore-bearing bouldrs for miles to the south, in places creating deposits large enough to be worked profitably.
In the area of the Franklin and Sterling Hill mines, 357 types of minerals are known to occur; these make up approximately 10% of the minerals known to science. Thirty-five of these minerals have not been found anywhere else. Ninety-one of the minerals fluoresce.
There are 35 miles (56.3 km) of tunnels in the mine, going down to 2065 feet (629.4 m) below the surface on the main shaft and 2675 feet (815.3 m) on the lower shaft. The mine remains at 56 °F (13.3 °C) constantly.
Museum
The tour spends about 30 minutes inside the Exhibit hall which contains a wide variety of mining memorabilia, mineralogical samples, fossils, and meteorites. It then leads into the mine for a 1300 feet (396.2 m) walk on level ground through the underground mine.The walk goes through a new 240 feet (73.2 m) section called the Rainbow tunnel which they blasted in 1990 using 49 blasts and at a cost of $2 a foot. In the Rainbow room, black lights are turned on to demonstrate the entire tunnel and various sample glowing with phosphorescence.
The mine is also home to the Ellis Astronomical Observatory, the Thomas S. Warren Museum of Fluorescence, and a collection of mining equipment.
The museum periodically arranges public mineral collecting sessions as well as more private and behind the scene events for local geology clubs.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Sussex County, New Jersey
- Backwards TunnelBackwards TunnelBackwards Tunnel, also known as the Ogdensburg Railroad Arch, is located in Ogdensburg, New Jersey. The tunnel was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 28, 2005.-History:...
, located nearby the mine and also on the National Register of Historic Places.