Consolidated Mine
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The Consolidated Mine was a productive gold mine in Lumpkin County, Georgia, just east of Dahlonega. Like most of the area around Dahlonega, the placer mining on the land on which the mine is located probably started during the Georgia Gold Rush. By 1880, the placer deposits were exhausted and the land was down to hard rock. Gold was soon discovered in a huge quartz vein system, and mined. "The richest acre" was mined deep into the ground - and the resulting shaft became known as the "Glory Hole.”
After an interruption of operations at the mine, a group of investors purchased about 7,000 acres of land around the discovery sight and formed the Dahlonega Consolidated Gold Mining Co. in 1895. After constructing the largest stamp mill east of the Mississippi River at the Consolidated Mine property, the Mining Co. folded in 1906.
There is still gold to be mined here - but the cost of extracting the gold from the mine exceeds the value of the gold. Today, the mine remains open for tourists, who can tour portions of the “Glory Hole” underground and pan for gold. (Tourists panning for gold often find it -- but only specks or tiny nuggets worth little on today's market.) This mine and the Crisson Mine are the two mines in the Dahlonega area that remain open for tourists.
