ESCR - Milltown, Strabane

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Summary Full report
Milltown, Strabane	Tyrone

Site number:	544
ESCC:	EM
Locality Type:	Adit	Status:	local interest
Grid Reference:	H351967 Approximate
Google maps:	54.81735,-7.45398
County:	Tyrone	Council area:	Derry City & Strabane District Council
Lithostrat:	Newtownstewart Formation

Site Description
Milltown, Strabane, Co.Tyrone, June 1997.
Highlights:
Former lead trial adits with in situ galena-bearing vein.
Introduction:
The locality is on the east bank of the River Mourne 1km upstream of Strabane Bridge. A path descends to the bank of the river from opposite the entrance to Milltown House (Strabane Grammar School). The heavily overgrown entrance to the mine trial is located 10m from the bottom of steps where this path ascends to below the road.
Description:
Milltown, Strabane, Co.Tyrone, June 1997: upper adit. Two adits can be discerned: the lower adit (purported to be 15m in length) is almost completely flooded and only the roof is visible; and the upper adit, which is accessible, located c.1m above and to the south of the lower adit. The upper adit extends some 2.5m into the rock face, which comprises massive quartzite of the Newtownstewart Quartzite Formation. Two veins of white quartz each 4-8cm in thickness and carrying patchy, coarse pyrite and galena, are visible and one can be traced up to the right from the top of this adit. These veins trend 070° and dip 70° NW. They are cut by barren quartz veins with a shallower dip, and then by dextral faults trending 160°. According to Old (DATE), the mineralization assayed 4-11 g/t gold.
Importance:
One of many small nineteenth century lead trials, however this has significance in the context of the regional metallogeny of NW Northern Ireland (Earls et al., 1996) and is highly accessible due to its location close to a public path, a school and a town.

Keywords
Minerals:	Galena, Gold, Pyrite, Quartz
Rocks:	Quartzite
Structures:	hydrothermal vein

Access
Management:
Clearance of vegetation and mud and perhaps laying a path to the adits would allow the site to be reached more easily. An interpretative board should be considered.


Record type:	ESCR report	Recorded by:	R. Nawaz and N.R. Moles
Entered by:	E M Porter
Last updated:	07 MAY 68

Enlander, I., Dempster, M. & Doughty, P., 2026. Milltown, Strabane, County Tyrone, site details. [In] Earth Science Conservation Review.
https://www.habitas.org.uk/escr/site.php?item=544. Accessed on 2026-11-06.

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