• Northern Territory HQ
• Memorable Darwin Fishing Northern Territory
• An Adventure Trip Driving Around The Northern Territory
• Take A Thrilling Fishing Adventure Northern Territory
• Beautiful and Fragrant Frangipani Farm Northern Territory
• Northern Territory
• Outback Town: Katherine Northern Territories Australia
• Northern Territories Copper Mines
• Northern Territory Jungles
• Northern Territory Geography
• Striking Northern Territory Opals
• Great Northern Territory Tourism
• Northern Territory Tourist Information
• The Excitement Of Soccer Northern Territories
• Wooliana Daly River Northern Territory
• Northern Territory HQ Resources

Northern Territories Copper Mines

Copper was first discovered in 1883 in the Daly river area and northern territory copper mines began commercial mining of copper in 1884. For a period of 26 years copper was mined sporadically in the northern territory copper mines.

In 1904 a government smelter was erected in order to make copper a viable project for the northern territory. However, by 1909 copper mining had ceased except for some small scale mining by individuals. In 1943, the remains of the smelter stack were destroyed in order to prevent the possible usage by the Japanese during the World War II.

To the aborigines the mine site is of importance as it was the site of major attacks on Europeans in a show of strength during the latter part of the nineteenth century in the northern territory.

Gold was first mined at Tennant Creek and since then the goldfields have produced more than 5 million ounces of gold and 345,000 tonnes of copper. This mining field is characterized by the high grade gold and copper deposits which have produced great profits for the company and the northern territories.

Tennant Creek is a copper and gold mining town and is also the regional center of a rich pastoral area. The memory and spirit of the gold rush lives on in this town with its underground mines, a gold processing plant and fossicking.

Australia is a major copper producer having its mining and smelting operations at Olympic Dam (SA) and Mt. Isa (Qld). Other copper mines include Northparkes, Tritton (NSW), Ernest Henry, Osborne, Mt. Gordon (Qld). Nifty, Golden Grove (WA) and Mt. Lyell (Tas). Copper and the copper alloys are used for electrical equipment such as electrical cables, building constructions, and industrial machinery and equipment.

The gold rushes of the 1850s made the Australian colonies world famous for mining. In the 1870s Australia became an important producer of tin after the metal was discovered at Mt. Bischoff in Tasmania. In the latter part of the 19th century, the first great mines were established silver, lead and zinc at Broken Hill in NSW, copper and gold at Mt. Morgan near Rockhampton in Queensland, iron ore at Iron knob and Iron Baron in South Australia.

However, in the early part of the 20th century, mining activity began to decline in spite of a continued rise in the value of mineral production. The only major finds were lead, zinc and copper deposits at Mount Isa, but it was only until 1950s that their full potential was realized. Australia is one of the world's leading mineral resources nations. It is the fifth largest producer of copper and silver. One of the biggest contributors to Australia's export trade is the mineral industry.

Copper discoveries were first made in the northern territories copper mines in Pine Creek in 1872, though mining did not commence until 1883 at the Daly River. However, marginal copper ventures later occurred in the Katherine area. After World War II mining took place in Tennant Creek district, ceasing in 1980s.