The recent announcement of new jobs around Gordonsville’s Zinc Mine a reminder of the natural wonder located in the Upper Cumberland.
Korea Zinc will invest $6 billion, creating some 740 jobs in the area in two sites, including Gordonsville. Smith County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bill Woodard said the company will smelt down Gordonsville zinc to extract germanium and gallium.
“They’ve just been kind of a byproduct and they would ship them elsewhere to be extracted out,” Woodard said. “If this plan goes according to what they are projecting, they will build this mill up there and they will start extracting.”
Woodard said New Jersey Zinc Company came to Jackson County, exploring around Flynns Lick. Woodard said there had been an outcrop of zinc located in the region, leading them to believe there would be more in the vicinity. The company commissioned a drilling company to make exploration holes, leading them down to Smith County. The company stumbled upon Elmwood, where they uncovered a giant, 34 ore body.
“Came all the way from the top of the Knox Formation, which is below the water, or just below the limestone that is here prevalent in Tennessee, down through to about 2,000 feet,” Woodard said.
Woodard said from about 700 feet to about 1,400 feet, the ground was rich with zinc. Woodard said the company sunk the Elmwood region mine shaft next to that ore body in 1964. Woodard said the company had a community lease, paying everyone a portion of the mineral for what they extracted. The mine began in 1969, taking about four years to develop.
“There’s no ore, no zinc ore, above the Knox Foundation as a general rule, and the only time you would find it is where you would find it is where it, the Knox Formation actually outcrops there at Flynns Lick,” Woodard said. “And that’s how they were able to find it, otherwise they may never have known the zinc was here.”
The mine had a significant financial impact on the county. Woodard said the mine has provided anywhere from 50 to 500 jobs to the county. Woodard said the mine has remained one of the highest paying employers in the county. Woodard said the mine rivals Bonnell Aluminum in employment numbers, putting many dollars into the county.
Woodard said the mine management moved into the towns of Carthage and Gordonsville, attending community schools and civic clubs.
“There was a large impact from a social standpoint,” Woodard said.
Woodard said for decades, New Jersey Zinc Company operated the mine before selling, as many companies continued to own and operate the mine. Woodard said the mine can still be a large employer for the county.
Korea Zinc will create over 320 production jobs in Smith County and the surrounding area over the next 5 years.
Woodard said the Gordonsville Zinc Mine has always attracted business and financial success to the town, creating jobs and furthering growth in the smaller area.
Woodard said interstate travel had not been popularized in the county until the mine settled in, as there was not much to do in the surrounding area.
“They have always been, no matter who the operator was, involved in the social fabric of what we have here in Smith County,” Woodard said. “They still sponsor a lot of the events that go on around here.”