The Allah Cooper Mine is the only lead and zinc mine in Louisa County, Virginia.  This mine had remained relatively unknown and unexplored since its closure in 1918.  In 2002, the timber was cut and work on removing the stumps began to prepare the property for use as a development.  The owner allowed me to explore the mine and collect mineral samples, starting in February of 2003 when the first of three minerals new to Louisa County were discovered.  Although ownership of the property changed, I was still allowed by the present owners to continue searching the mine and it's dumps.  I would like to express my appreciation to the present owners of the Allah Cooper Mine for allowing me the access, which made the discoveries possible.  It is my hope that the mine site will be preserved in some way, due to its uniqueness.  The four years of searching samples with a microscope from 2003-2007 resulted in the publication of an article ("The Allah Cooper Mine Revisited" by Michael D. Dunn) in the May 2007 issue of Virginia Minerals, published by The Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy.  This article detailed the history of the mine, which included new, unpublished information and a description of the new minerals (pyromorphite, wulfenite, and pyrophyllite).

During the examination of mineral samples, a number of minerals unidentifiable by use of reference material were discovered.  The unidentified samples were taken to Dr. Lance E. Kearns, professor of geology at James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia, for analysis.  Dr. Kearns spent a great deal of time analyzing the samples, employing x-ray analysis and the SEM (scanning electron microscope). The results identified the samples as vauquelinite and mottramite, both new minerals to the state of Virginia.  Three other samples were analyzed to confirm their identity as wavellite, vanadinite, and opal.  One remaining sample does not match the chemical composition of any known mineral, and is a Pb-Mn-Fe oxide that forms tan botryoidal masses."  An article ("Vauquelinite and Mottramite from a New Locality: Louisa County, Virginia" by Lance E. Kearns and Michael D. Dunn) on these discoveries was published in the August 2008, Mineral News.

Dr. Lance E. Kearns presented a program on the new minerals at The Rochester Mineralogical Symposium, which was be held from April 23-26, 2009 in Rochester, New York.