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Kinsey Talc Mine Cherokee County, NC March 2023 |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2023) |
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Kinsey Talc Mine Cherokee County, NC March 2023 |
All Text & Images: Copyright (2023) |
| I took my friends Alan and Noah to photograph the site of a Native American soapstone bowl quarry. The clear skies made for difficult photo condtions, so Alan waited for some sporadic clouds to move in. Since I had already photographed the site, Noah and I went off to investigate an old nearby talc mine. |
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"300 feet northeast of Kinsey, an abandoned marble quarry now occupies the approximate site of the old Kinsey Talc Mine. A number of old caved shafts or pits can be seen for 100 feet southeast of the quarry... When J. H. Pratt visited the Kinsey Mine around 1900, he reported that the talc lay in flat lenses wholly within the marble. There were two tunnels, one 75 feet long, at levels 10 feet apart." |
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| Due to the poor lighting conditions and limited time, I only took a few pics here. I'll have to return for further explorations. |
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| Mine waste / spoilings piles |
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| Mining cuts on either side of bank. |
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| Nearby were several groups of daffodils, indicating former habitation sites. |
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| A large flat area revealed the former site of the Kinsey community. This rock lined pit or cellar was near the center. |
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| Section of the rock wall in the pit / cellar. |
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| One of the quarried soapstone boulders. Two bowl preforms can be seen here. For my earlier photos of the soapstone quarry, click here. |
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| We noticed an unusual lichen covering many of the rocks here. |
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| Smokey-eyed Boulder Lichen (Porpidia albocaerulescens) (zoomed in) |