Edgemont District
Overview
Other Names: Bull Run, White Rock, Centennial
County: Elko
Discovered: 1890s
Commodities: gold, silver, lead, copper, zinc, tungsten, molybdenum, uranium, arsenic
Comments
This district covers the west slope of the Bull Run (Centennial) Mountains and includes the western portion of the original Bull Run district. The site of the early town of White Rock is located in the northwest corner of the district and the town of Edgemont was located near the west center. The Edgemont name came into use for the western part of the historic Bull Run district following activity in the 1890s. The eastern part of the old Bull Run district is now within the Aura district.
References
Emmons, 1910, p. 69; Lincoln, 1923, p. 43; Stoddard, 1932, p. 30; Lotz, 1934, p. 18; Gianella, 1945, p. 40; Granger and others, 1957, p. 52; La Heist, 1964, p. 66; Smith 1976, p. 57; Stager and Tingley, 1988, p. 56; LaPointe and others, 1991, p. 86
Edmonton District
Overview
County: Nye
Comments
Located south of Silver Peak, the exact location is not known.
References
Stretch, 1867, p. 59
El Dorado District
Overview
County: Nye
Comments
Located in southern Toiyabe Range; the exact location is unknown. Carlson (1974) mentioned a settlement of El Dorado, served by the Belmont Post Office, but if the district had been near Belmont, it would have been in the Toquima and not the Toiyabe Range.
References
Browne, 1868, p. 418; Carlson, 1974, p. 106
Eldorado District
Overview
Other Names: El Dorado, El Dorado Canyon, Eldorado Canyon, Colorado, Nelson, Gold Eagle, Capital Camp
County: Clark
Discovered: 1857
Organized: 1861
Commodities: silver, gold, lead, zinc, copper, mercury, uranium, beryllium, thorium and rare earths
Comments
The Eldorado district is located in the vicinity of the town of Nelson in Eldorado Canyon west of Lake Mead. The district includes a large area bordering on the Colorado River, embracing El Dorado Canyon. Wheeler (1872) included the area in a larger Colorado district which also included the present Searchlight district. Averett (1962) described a Gold Eagle district, laid out in January 1900 “south of Eldorado Canyon” that may have been in this district (Eagle Wash is south of Eldorado Canyon). Capital Camp was located further to the south, between Eagle Wash and Aztec Wash.
References
General Land Office, 1866; Wheeler, 1872, map; White, 1869, p. 85; White, 1871, p. 103; Whitehill, 1873, p. 96; Angel, 1881, p. 484; Hill, 1912, p. 201, Lincoln, 1923, p. 19; Stoddard, 1932, p. 24; Vanderburg, 1937b, p. 26; Bailey and Phoenix, 1944, p. 53; Gianella, 1945, p. 24; Averett, 1962, p. 21, 46; Griffiths, 1964, p. 72-73; Longwell and others, 1965, p. 116; Garside, 1973, p. 37; Wyman, 1987, p. 109
Eldorado (Canyon) Placer District Description
Location
Along Eldorado Canyon, between Nelson and the Colorado River and adjacent banks of the Colorado River, T. 26 S., Rs. 64 and 65 E.
Topographic Maps
Mount Perkins and Nelson 15-minute quadrangles.
Geologic Maps
Longwell, 1963, Geologic map and sections of area along Colorado River between Lake Mead and Davis Dam, Arizona-Xevada (pi. 1), scale 1:125,000.
Access
From Las Vegas, 31 miles southeast on U.S. Highway 95 to junction with State Highway 60, then east on State 60 12 miles to Nelson. State Highway 60 follows Techatticup Wash paralleling Eldorado Canyon on the north for 8 miles east from Nelson to the Colorado River.
Extent
Small amounts of placer gold have been found in the gravels of Eldorado Canyon, a major east-trending tributary of the Colorado River, and in bars along the Colorado River, for an unspecified distance south of Eldorado Canyon. The gold recovered from the bars along the river was fine grained and erratically distributed.
Production History
Recorded placer gold production attributed to the Eldorado Canyon district has been small; the bulk of the production was recovered between 1932 and 1933 from small-scale operations in bars along the Colorado River. Before the 1930's, little work was done on placer deposits in the area. Placer gold valued at $6,000 was recovered in the 1890's, but no further production was recorded until the 1930's.
In 1909 a large dredge was constructed to work gravels on the Arizona side of the Colorado River opposite Eldorado Canyon. This operation was a failure. In recent years, very small amounts of placer gold have been recovered from the Eldorado Canyon placers, mostly from the Gresh Group of claims in the upper canyon near Nelson (sec. 4, T. 26 S., R. 64 E., Nelson quadrangle).
Source
The source of the placer gold is probably the lode mines near Nelson. The principal ores of the mines occur in fissures in Tertiary quartz monzonite. Much of the gold is contained in sulfides, and, except where the veins are oxidized, there is little free gold. The paucity of free gold and its small particle size may account for the limited placers in the area.
Literature
U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1965: Placer-mining operations; placer claim named; production.
Vanderburg, 1936a: Extent; placer-mining operations; production.
Elk Mountain District
Overview
County: Elko
Discovered: 1890
Commodities: tungsten, copper, gold, silver, molybdenum, antimony
Comments
The Elk Mountain district includes a small area in T47N, R61E just south of the Idaho state line and about midway between Jarbidge and Contact. The district includes both Elk Mountain and White Elephant Butte.
References
Hill, 1912, p. 204; Stoddard, 1932, p. 30; Granger and others, 1957, p. 57; Lawrence, 1963, p. 63; Smith, 1976, p. 60; Stager and Tingley, 1988, p. 57; LaPointe and others, 1991, p. 89
