Fortune Mine (Glen Roebourne; Aurora Australis), Roebourne, City of Karratha, Western Australia, Australiai
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Fortune Mine (Glen Roebourne; Aurora Australis) | Mine |
| Roebourne | - not defined - |
| City of Karratha | Shire |
| Western Australia | State |
| Australia | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
20° 49' 42'' South , 117° 4' 28'' East
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Locality type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Roebourne | 2,112 (2013) | 9.7km |
| Point Samson | 273 (2014) | 25.3km |
| Karratha | 11,728 (2011) | 25.8km |
| Millars Well | 2,197 (2014) | 28.4km |
| Nickol | 4,289 (2014) | 30.4km |
Surrounding Roebourne were a number of gold and copper mines, but most never amounted to a great deal. Little remains of most. The Fortune is a good example, active spasmodically late 19th, early 20th Centuries, the site now amounts to half a dozen old shafts. The location is 10 kilometres south-west of Roebourne, a few hundred metres south of the road to the Andover Mine, hidden in a valley between low hills.
The mine was originally known as Glen Roebourne, but the name was changed to the Fortune. However the area in general was still known as Glen Roebourne.
There was a large quartz blow in the middle of the valley with a north-east to south-west reef from it, dipping shallowly north, up to 20 feet wide, averaging 4-6 feet wide, of quartz stained with Fe and malachite.
Mainly copper, with some gold values said to be 4 dwt. One source states the site was active from 1873, although this seems too early. The mine contains bornite, chalcopyrite, azurite, malachite, chrysocolla, and chalcocite, although this list is likely incomplete.
The earliest date found was 1896, although it only states the mine was on exemption. In 1906, J.R. North had produced 40 bags of copper, while the following year Clark and Mcleod are noted with 30 tonnes awaiting transport by ship from the Cossack wharf.
In 1913, the six shafts are noted on a lode varying from 2 to 55 feet wide, the workings down to 54 feet, the water level. The following year the mine is shut for want of capital. Herbert Sleeman had purchased the mine in 1910, from a prospector called Watson, who was said to be eccentric, although no mention is made as to why. Herbert Sleeman was linked to the major Whim Creek mine. A.J. Barnes was mine manager. Five men had been employed over part of the period doing development work. The mine was then let on tribute to Winch and mate producing 30 tonnes of copper at 30%Cu.
H.S. Shaw is mentioned at the mine in 1921, and the mine is shut down again in 1924. In 1933, a company was formed in Adelaide to take over the Weerianna gold mine and Fortune copper mine. The Glen Roebourne Gold Mining Company was formed for the latter. They state a year later a good lode had been found showing gold, but little further information is forthcoming, and the company folds in 1937.
The lease immediately west of the Fortune was called Aurora Australis West GML 94, and east Aurora Australis GML 93. Just south was the Surprise lease GML 132. Little happened at this location due to the poor values of copper and gold, in the discontinuous reef across a half mile length.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsMineral List
10 valid minerals.
Rock Types Recorded
Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!
Select Rock List Type
Alphabetical List Tree DiagramDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Azurite Formula: Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Bornite Formula: Cu5FeS4 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Chalcocite Formula: Cu2S Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Chrysocolla Formula: Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Gold Formula: Au Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Malachite Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
| ⓘ Marcasite Formula: FeS2 Reference: Simpson, E.S. (1948), Minerals of Western Australia, Vol 3, p 405 |
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 Reference: Simpson, E.S. (1948), Minerals of Western Australia, Vol 3, p 405 |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 Reference: Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908 |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Gold | 1.AA.05 | Au |
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
| ⓘ | Bornite | 2.BA.15 | Cu5FeS4 |
| ⓘ | Chalcocite | 2.BA.05 | Cu2S |
| ⓘ | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ | Marcasite | 2.EB.10a | FeS2 |
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates | |||
| ⓘ | Azurite | 5.BA.05 | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| ⓘ | Malachite | 5.BA.10 | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| Group 9 - Silicates | |||
| ⓘ | Chrysocolla | 9.ED.20 | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| H | Hydrogen | |
|---|---|---|
| H | ⓘ Azurite | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| H | ⓘ Malachite | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| H | ⓘ Chrysocolla | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
| C | Carbon | |
| C | ⓘ Azurite | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| C | ⓘ Malachite | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| O | Oxygen | |
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| O | ⓘ Azurite | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| O | ⓘ Malachite | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| O | ⓘ Chrysocolla | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
| Al | Aluminium | |
| Al | ⓘ Chrysocolla | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Si | ⓘ Chrysocolla | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
| S | Sulfur | |
| S | ⓘ Bornite | Cu5FeS4 |
| S | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Chalcocite | Cu2S |
| S | ⓘ Marcasite | FeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Fe | Iron | |
| Fe | ⓘ Bornite | Cu5FeS4 |
| Fe | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Fe | ⓘ Marcasite | FeS2 |
| Fe | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Cu | Copper | |
| Cu | ⓘ Bornite | Cu5FeS4 |
| Cu | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Cu | ⓘ Azurite | Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 |
| Cu | ⓘ Malachite | Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 |
| Cu | ⓘ Chrysocolla | Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1 |
| Cu | ⓘ Chalcocite | Cu2S |
| Au | Gold | |
| Au | ⓘ Gold | Au |
References
Sort by
Year (asc) Year (desc) Author (A-Z) Author (Z-A)Northern Times newspaper (Carnarvon) (1913), The Fortune. A Highly Promising Show, 15/03/1913
Sunday Times newspaper (Perth) (1914), Round About Roebourne, 12/07/1914
Northern Times newspaper (Carnarvon) (1924), Roebourne News, 05/09/1924
The Sun newspaper (Kalgoorlie) (1910), Mining Around Roebourne, 11/09/1910
The Age newspaper (Melbourne) (1896), Roebourne Mining News, 17/04/1896
The Evening Star newspaper (Boulder) (1906), Roebourne, 13/11/1906
Northern Times newspaper (Carnarvon) (1907), Roebourne News, 27/07/1907
Northern Times newspaper (Carnarvon) (1921), Roebourne Notes, 25/06/1921
Northern Times newspaper (Carnarvon) (1933), Mining Roebourne District, 16/08/1933
Gibb-Maitland, A. (1908), The Geological Features and Mineral Resources of the Pilbara Goldfield, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1908
Gibb-Maitland, A. (1919), The Copper Deposits of Western Australia, Geological Survey of Western Australia, State Government of Western Australia, 1919
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Australia
- Western Australia
- Pilbara CratonCraton
- Radio Hill Nickel Metallogenic ProvinceGeologic Province
- Ruth Well Nickel Metallogenic ProvinceGeologic Province
- Warakurna Large Igneous ProvinceGeologic Province
- West Australian ElementCraton
Australian PlateTectonic Plate
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