theodolite

Bunmahon/Bonmahon was a copper mining area. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunmahon Old OSI map shows lots of disused mines. No idea where this new mine could be. maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,642741,598456,7,9 The men are standing on the rickety headstocks, probably salvaged from another mine. One of a pair of winding wheels is lying in the foreground. There is a substantial winding house on the right, with a temporary steam sinking winch. Once the shaft sinkers had got down to the copper seams, more substantial headstocks would be built over the shaft. Here are some coal mine sinkers www.flickr.com/photos/53560486@N04/6221476026/

blackpoolbeach knows a lot more about mining than I do and thank you for the information, it makes sense of the shot. Another example of a health and safety nightmare today but the norm in those days. Theres an awful lot of people standing on a flimsy looking frame. It looks as though this was a new mine about to be opened or an old mine about to be closed. I suspect the former given the condition of the piping on the right foreground. I was looking at the frame and wondering if it could withstand the pull from winch but if you look closely you can see the supports on that side are angled out to brace it against the pull of the winch! Lord how things have changed in 100 years!

The Times (London) of Nov 25 1905 reported a speculative venture to reopen mines at Bunmahon . Could the picture be showing one of these mines in the process of being reopened? The Bonmahon Copper Mines Development Syndicate (Limited) has a capital of £30,000 in £1 shares, of which 12,500 shares are reserved for working capital, and subscriptions are invited for the balance. The company is formed to acquire the mineral and mining rights, free from all royalties and charges, of the Knockmahon and Tankardstown Copper Mines, to reopen the mines, and afterwards (if deemed advisable) to form a larger company to work and develop the property on an adequate scale. The purchase consideration to be paid for the property is £16,250, of which £5,000 is payable in cash and the balance in shares. The venture is frankly speculative, but it is interesting from the point of view of the possible revival of a once important Irish industry, and the present position of the copper market is in its favour. A short youtube clip about one of the Bunmahon mines here.

The venture to reopen the mines seems not to have been a success - the company was wound up in 1907, and the investors, many from the Waterford area, lost their money. There seem to have been big problems removing water from the mines. TheTankardstown mine went a considerable distance under the sea. In 1910 the man behind the attempted reopening, a Mr Herbert Tristman Marks, was criticised in a magazine article, which suggested the prospectus had misled investors. He sued the magazine, lost the case, then lost an appeal, and was then declared bankrupt.

John Spooner Very interesting video. Shaft sinkers were a breed apart. They went up and down shafts in a large bucket until their work was finished. Only then were cages fitted for hauling coal or man-riding. The Hartley Colliery disaster of 1862 brought legislation so that there were 2 shafts to give miners an escape route. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartley_Colliery_Disaster Non-ferrous mines (lead, tin, copper) seemed to be less regulated than coal mines. What is the difference between a well and a mine? With a well you dig a shaft to look for water.

Thank you for the readable name tag, SDASM.

I don't know what manufacturer makes this theodolite. It might be a Zeiss? If you know, please add a tag.

Which Q. A. lab this guy works in is unclear. There are some Saltarellis in Tustin city government. There are two in the San Diego phone book but no Phillip.

That looks like a tripod mounted theodolite on the balcony.

Yes, it does. I'll see if I can find a larger version of this image so we can get a bit more detail....DONE!

A larger version will also help to show the built up area on the background hill. I originally thought this was Kosciusko, but no way is that the case with those buildings in the background. Buildings also make it likely there is a local historical society somewhere that has a good idea where this is. @Wragge on twitter (Dr. Tim Sherratt) also knows a good deal about the history of meteorology in Australia. We may need to tap him for this one.

Thanks and for those following these comments @wragge on Twitter was a great help and believes this to be a surveying station rather than a weather station. We will contact the Observatory as advised and see what else we find out.

I think that is Sydney town in the right distance - no NSW country town would have so many spires and large houses. We are looking west-ish (see shadows) from some surveying spot near Bondi. Maybe something to do with the Bondi sewage outfall? The large size image certainly helps. I am amused that with all that surveying equipment etc, they could not get the camera level!