Premetamorphic hydrothermal origin of the Tungsten Queen vein, Hamme District, North Carolina, as indicated by mineral textures and minor structures

The Hamme Tungsten district is a 13-km long, 2-km wide, northeast-trending belt located in northern Vance County, North Carolina and southern Mecklenburg County, Virginia (Fig. 1). The district contains the largest quartz-wolframite-type vein deposits in the United States. Over 50 tungsten-bearing veins occur in this area (Espenshade, 1947), from which more than 1 million short ton units of WO₃ have been produced since World War II Mining terminated in 1971 after a sharp drop in the price of tungsten; currently, the district is inactive.