Hart, P. (2016). The geology of the Te Aroha mining district. (Te Aroha Mining District Working papers, No. 2), Hamilton, New Zealand: Historical Research Unit, University of Waikato.
Abstract
When gold was discovered on the slopes of Te Aroha mountain, its geology was unknown to geologists and miners alike. After initial hasty examinations, later investigations produced more reliable details, and by late in the twentieth century much more detailed and technical information was available. Originally, prospectors hoped to find alluvial gold, but instead discovered that, through volcanic action, the minerals permeated the quartz.
Despite intensive prospecting, payable ore was rarely found. At Waiorongomai, the large main lode was mostly a buck reef, the best patches of ore being found where it abutted side reefs. Hopes for a prosperous field soon faded because the various battery processes were unable to treat the ore profitably, a failure largely explained by its poverty and complexity. The output from the Te Aroha district proved to be one of the lowest of the Hauraki fields.
Publisher
Historical Research Unit, University of Waikato
