Ballacorkish mine |
Ballacorkish, or Rushen
mines as it had been better known, lies on the hillside above the
village of Colby and the only evidence of it's existence today is
marked by a chimney.
There has been reference to veins in
the area being worked in the eighteenth century but these were abandoned
before 1811. Work resumed when the mines were reopened in 1862 and
developed on two lodes. Two shafts had been sunk 600 yards apart and the
sett was worked as two separate mines which were known simply as North
and South with no connections being made underground. The North, or
Phosphate The chief mineral was lead but a significant amount of zinc and a small amount of copper was produced. The total production by 1894 was 3,600 tons of lead ore, 2,500 tons of zinc ore and 138 tons of copper ore. Although the mine was not highly productive and profit was low, there was no mention of loss.
The miners, at the beginning of a shift each day would meet at the adit level, which is also known as 'Clucas way' and is opposite the Colby garage. Today that part of the village is simply known as the Level. |