Castle of Old Wick Mine

NGR:	ND 37000 48800
WGS84:	58.42298, -3.08027
Length:	Not recorded
Vert. Range:	Not recorded
Altitude:	Not recorded
Geology:	Copper, Lybster Flagstone Formation - Siltstone, Mudstone And Sandstone
Tags:	Mine, ManMade, Archaeo, Lost
Registry:	second

Near the Castle of Wick, in the face of a rock, a copper mine was discovered; and from the appearance of the ore, some miners wentered into a contract with the proprietor, and had begun to work it, but the scheme was dropped, for reasons which are not at present known. [OSA]

Notes: This mine dates from about 1760. The exact location is unknown to me but there are several caves marked on the 1:25000 maps, any could be the old workings. [Gazetteer]

References in antiquarian sources to copper ore deposits around the castle are unlikely to relate to the castle's occupation (no reference to mineral extraction appears in the documents). [HES]

Links and Resources:

aditnow.
Gazetteer of Metal Mines of Scotland, p. 12.
Historic Environment Scotland, Castler of Old Wick, Statement of Significance.
Williams, John, 1810, The Natural History of the Mineral Kingdom: Relative to the Strata of Coal, Mineral Veins and the Prevailing Strata of the Globe, Volume 1, pp. 365-366.
Wilson, G. V., Special Reports on the Mineral Resources of Great Britain, Vol. 17: The lead, zinc, copper and nickel ores of Scotland.
1st or Old Statistical Account of Scotland, Vol. X, No. 1, Rev. William Sutherland, p. 15.

This entry was last updated: 2021-04-06 22:04:42

Errors or omissions in this information? Submit corrections/additions/comments for this entry to the registrars.

Other Sites Within 500m