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Daly River Copper Mine, Daly River mineral field, Victoria-Daly Region, Northern Territory, Australiai
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Daly River Copper Mine | Mine (Abandoned) |
| Daly River mineral field | Mining Field (Abandoned) |
| Victoria-Daly Region | Region |
| Northern Territory | Territory |
| Australia | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
13° 40' 24'' South , 130° 41' 44'' East
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Mine (Abandoned) - last checked 2026
Deposit first discovered:
1882
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide River | 435 (2011) | 65.6km |
The Daly River Copper Mine is the largest of several smaller mines and prospects in the area, which include:
Wheal Danks Group
Wallaby Copper Mine
Empire Copper Mine
Warr's Copper Prospect
Wallaby Silver-Lead Prospect
Knowle's Silver-Lead Prospect
Copper was found at the site in 1882 by a party of three prospectors. The Daly River Copper Company Ltd was formed to work the find. A few months later two of the original discoverers were murdered by local aboriginal men, while working at the mine on 3rd September 1884. This was apparently in retaliation for the treatment of Aboriginal women in the area. Reprisals by the mine manager and police were brutal and resulted in the murder of an estimated 150-200 aboriginal men, women and children and became known as the Coppermine massacre. An inquiry was held into the incident in 1886, but no one was ever found guilty of wrong doing.
Mining continued on a very small scale until 1904, when the South Australian Government built a reverberatory smelter near the mine to reduce the costs of transporting ore to market. It ceased operation in 1909. Approximately 5000 tons of copper ore was produced from the mine up to 1912. There was further spasmodic mining until 1918, after which the field has remained abandoned.
The mine consists of several shafts, the deepest being about 76 metres, and an open-cut which followed the outcropping mineralisation downwards. The mineralisation seems to occupy a zone surrounding a shear zone. Practically all the ore mined was oxidised, but the sulphide zone was reached.
Coordinates reflect the open pit of the Daly River Copper Mine.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsMineral List
6 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:
| ⓘ Chalcocite Formula: Cu2S References: Tate Museum collection # 30745Identified by Peter Keller: Visual Identification, Dealer/Collection Label |
| ⓘ Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ Cuprite Formula: Cu2O |
| ⓘ Hematite Formula: Fe2O3 |
| ⓘ 'Limonite' |
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Chalcocite | 2.BA.05 | Cu2S |
| ⓘ | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Cuprite | 4.AA.10 | Cu2O |
| ⓘ | Hematite | 4.CB.05 | Fe2O3 |
| ⓘ | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| Unclassified | |||
| ⓘ | 'Limonite' | - | |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| O | Oxygen | |
|---|---|---|
| O | ⓘ Cuprite | Cu2O |
| O | ⓘ Hematite | Fe2O3 |
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| S | Sulfur | |
| S | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Chalcocite | Cu2S |
| S | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Fe | Iron | |
| Fe | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Fe | ⓘ Hematite | Fe2O3 |
| Fe | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Cu | Copper | |
| Cu | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Cu | ⓘ Chalcocite | Cu2S |
| Cu | ⓘ Cuprite | Cu2O |
Other Databases
| Wikipedia: | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daly_River_(Northern_Territory) |
|---|---|
| Wikidata ID: | Q21955561 |
| GeoNames ID: | 8236188 |
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Australia
- North Australian ElementCraton
- Northern Territory
- Kalkarindji Igneous ProvinceGeologic Province
- Pine Creek OrogenOrogen
- Victoria-Daly Region
- Daly River mineral fieldMining Field
Australian PlateTectonic Plate
- North Australian Craton
- Tennant Creek TerraneShield
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Daly River Copper Mine, Daly River mineral field, Victoria-Daly Region, Northern Territory, Australia