The Shipman Mine was hard to access. After walking through the woods and crossing two streams we finally ended up on what seemed to be an ATV trail. We walked up and down multiple trails for hours and found nothing. In our last hope we took this narrow path which led to a cabin in the woods. After examining the cabin, we found the opening to the Shipman Mine about 50 meters away from the cabin. The mine is flooded inside and has two parallel openings.
The following historical information was written and provided by Mindat. "An iron mine operated in the 1800's in Lot 19, Concession II, in Elizabethtown Township which ceased operations in 1875. Main claim to mineralogical fame as the Dana Locality for twinned pyrrhotite crystals. The Brockville Chemical Company operated the mine and a plant (from 1869) that produced sulphuric acid (in Brockville). The acid plant continued after the mine closed, using U.S. pyrite, until 1884. A tunnel, started near the foot of the hill, was run S about 10 ft where a raise was cut to meet the bottom of the open pit, near the top of the hill. The main pit was sunk to 250 ft and a shaft, at the bottom of a 50 ft pit, was sunk about 200 ft. From this shaft levels were run to the SW (the Big Drift), S (Gardener Drift) and E. The Big Drift was over 400 ft long and, in one place, over 300 ft wide. In the Gardener Drift the ore was lost. In the E drift calcite and ore were abundant but it had to be abandoned due to water and unsafe walls (no timbering). Mining of open-cuts appears to have been carried out in a piecemeal and unsafe fashion. Abandoned pyrite mine which ceased operations in 1875. Pyrite was mined from an irregular pit 40 x 30 ft. A tunnel, started near the foot of the hill, was run S about 10 ft where a raise was cut to meet the bottom of the open pit, near the top of the hill. It is claimed that the reason for closing the mine was the high % of pyrrhotite mixed with the ore. An iron mine operated in the 1800's in Lot 19, Concession II, in Elizabethtown Township. Main claim to mineralogical fame as the Dana Locality for twinned pyrrhotite crystals. The Brockville Chemical Company operated the mine and a plant (from 1869) that produced sulphuric acid (in Brockville). The acid plant continued after the mine closed, using U.S. pyrite, until 1884. The main pit was sunk to 250 ft and a shaft, at the bottom of a 50 ft pit, was sunk about 200 ft. From this shaft levels were run to the SW (the Big Drift), S (Gardener Drift) and E. The Big Drift was over 400 ft long and, in one place, over 300 ft wide. In the Gardener Drift the ore was lost. In the E drift calcite and ore were abundant but it had to be abandoned due to water and unsafe walls (no timbering). Mining of open-cuts appears to have been carried out in a piecemeal and unsafe fashion."
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