Adolphus William Copper Smelter, Heritage-listed copper smelter in Westwood, Australia

The Adolphus William Copper Smelter is a closed copper processing facility in Westwood with a standing brick chimney, several collapsed furnaces, and a large slag heap scattered across the site. The remains are spread throughout the grounds and clearly show the original layout of the production equipment.

Copper was found near Oaky Creek by William MacKinlay, head stockman of the Calliungal run, and the Scottish Australian Mining Company acquired mining rights in 1870. The Adolphus William mine opened about 1872 and a smelter was built about 1874. It operated until 1876, and the last copper mining in the area took place in 1940.

The smelter used Welsh reverberatory furnace technology, a masonry hearth with a roof and a firebox at one end. Skilled bricklayers and good firebricks were scarce in Australia then, so the furnace's durability depended on materials and craft knowledge brought from outside. Smelter men relied more on craft experience than written instruction, adapting methods to local conditions.

The smelter stands 45 kilometres (28 miles) southwest of Rockhampton, near Westwood and Oakey Creek, reached by unsealed roads. Ground around the ruins is uneven, with scattered slag and masonry, so sturdy footwear helps. The nearest services are in Westwood and Mount Morgan; plan fuel and water before setting out.

The two chimneys at Adolphus William were built to create the draught needed to smelt ore with wood fuel, and two small reverberatory furnaces were installed. The Welsh process used there suited the rich carbonate ores of early Queensland copper discoveries, with furnaces fired for up to twenty-four hours before matte and slag were drawn off.