Nickel Plate Stamp Mill Water Tower - Hedley, BC
Posted by: T0SHEA
N 49° 21.382 W 120° 04.667
10U E 712195 N 5471180
One of the few remaining structures from the Nickel Plate Mine's Stamp Mill.
Waymark Code: WMFWV9
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 12/09/2012
Views: 5
Though the Nickel Plate Mine was in production slightly earlier, the stamp mill near the bottom of the mountain below it wasn't built until 1903. It then operated continuously for almost 50 years.
This water tower, the usual octagonal wood clad structure, was fed by way of a 3 mile long flume from 20 Mile Creek, the water from which also produced hydroelectric power for the mine and the mill, if only sporadically. The water tower served as a reservoir for times when the water supply may be interrupted.
The Nickel Plate was located at the top of Nickel Plate Mountain and ore was relayed 3400 vertical feet to the stamp mill on an aerial tramway down grades as steep as 69%, a total distance of 10,000 feet.
Due to the difficulty of the terrain for an old foggy such as myself, coordinates are for the viewing location, which is in front of the Hedley Heritage Museum. The Google Maps satellite view at N 49° 21.345 W 120° 04.430 allows one to actually count the number of sides of the building.