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Science of the Comstock - Tour

Tour Topics:
Introduction
Mining Tour
QTVR
Vocabulary

Vocabulary

Adit - A horizontal mine working that has only one portal.

Bonanza - Large pocket of valuable rock, with highly concentrated amounts of gold and/or silver.

Drift - A horizontal mine working, or to advance a mine working forward.

Explore - To look for a new ore deposit.

Gangue - Worthless minerals contained in the ore.

Geologist - A person who studies the Earth.

Giant Powder - Dynamite.

Glory Hole - A stope that reaches the surface.

Gouge - Broken or sheared rock, commonly found in a fault zone or at the margin of a lode.

Incline - An inclined or slanted mine working.

Leaverite - Rock of no value, "leave 'er right there" (not a real rock name).

Lode - A crack in the Earth that has been filled with minerals and contains ore; a vein or massive ore body.

Mill - A place where ore is processed to extract its contained valuables such as gold and silver.

Mine - A place where rock is removed for its value; or the act of removing ore and associated waste from the Earth.

Mine Dump - A surface pile of mine waste.

Miner - A person who extracts ore and waste from the Earth with the intention of making a profit.

Mining Promoter - A person who extracts money from investors in order to mine or explore.

Ore - Rock that can be mined for profit.

Pay Dirt - Ore.

Pie Can - A miner's lunch box.

Portal - An opening to a mine working.

Prospect - A promising mining property or a shallow hole dug into the ground; or to explore for such property.

Scam - A ploy by a shyster to raise money.

Shaft - A vertical mine working.

Show - A promising occurrence of metal-bearing rock.

Shyster - A mining promoter who mines the investor's bank account and not the ground.

Stope - To remove ore from a lode; or the opening left behind from removing ore along a lode.

Timber - Supporting material that keeps mined ground from caving in.

Tommy Knocker - Magical mythical people who warn miners of impending danger.

Tunnel - A horizontal mine working that has two or more portals.

Virginia City, Nevada - The world's greatest "living" ghost town, where riches of gold and silver were found in extreme amounts.

Waste - Rock that has to be moved to get to ore.