Segura Ranch, Seigel, Seven Troughs Districts

Publication Info:
Nevada Mining Districts (Compiled Reports)
The Districts Described in This Section are from the following publications:

Mining Districts of Nevada - Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology Report 47 (updated 1998); Placer Gold Deposits of Nevada - USGS Bulletin 1356 (1973)

Table of Contents

Segura Ranch District

Overview

County: Nye

Commodities: silver

Comments

Located northeast of Segura Ranch in the Antelope Range.

References

Kleinhampl and Ziony, 1984, p. 187

Seigel District

Overview

Other Names: Aurum, Schell Creek, Queen Springs, McCurdy’s, Gilbert

County: White Pine

Discovered: 1870

Organized: 1872

Commodities: silver, lead, manganese, zinc, gold, tungsten, arsenic

Comments

The Seigel district is located at the crest of the Schell Creek Range the head of McCurdy Creek, and extends south to include the Seigel Creek area near the sites of the old camps of Centerville and Seigel. Seigel is the second from the north of the five small districts sometimes grouped into the large Aurum district, covering all of the northern Schell Creek Range. The Queen Springs area is situated on Queen Springs Mountain and embraces part of what was formerly known as McCurdy’s district.

The historic McCurdy’s district extended 6 miles north and 6 miles south from Queen Springs between Spring Valley on the east and Steptoe Valley on the west. The Seigel area was included in the original Schell Creek district (1871). The Territorial Enterprise (1870) described a Gilbert district “on the east slope of the Schell Creek Mountains 5 miles west of Spring Valley Station” that probably covered this district.

References

Territorial Enterprise, May 1, 1870, 2:5; Whitehill, 1873, p. 144; Whitehill, 1875, p. 88; Angel, 1881, p. 655, 657; Hill, 1912, p. 226; Hill, 1916, p. 194; Lincoln, 1923, p. 241; Stoddard, 1932, p. 85; La Heist, 1964, p. 66; Hose and others, 1976, p. 43; Stager and Tingley, 1988, p. 206

Seven Troughs District

Overview

Other Names: Vernon, Mazuma, Farrell

County: Pershing

Discovered: 1905

Organized: 1906

Commodities: gold, silver, lead, copper, zinc, tungsten, antimony, uranium, arsenic

Comments

This district covers the central and southern parts of the Seven Troughs Range. The original district was mainly on the eastern slope of the range and included the camps of Seven Troughs and Mazuma in Seven Troughs Canyon, Vernon to the south, and Farrell to the north. Farrell was organized as a separate district in 1908. The Seven Troughs district now includes all of the range except the northern tip and Farrell, which is a separate district.

References

Stuart, 1909, p. 121; Hill, 1912, p. 214; Lincoln, 1923, p. 216; Stoddard, 1932, p. 80; Vanderburg, 1936b, p. 27; Lawrence, 1963, p. 205; La Heist, 1964, p. 66; Shamberger, 1972, p. 12; Garside, 1973, p. 96; Johnson, 1977, p. 89; Stager and Tingley, 1988, p. 192

Seven Troughs Placer District Description

Location

East flank of the Seven Troughs Mountains, T. 30 N., Rs. 28 and 29 E.

Topographic Maps

Lovelock 2-degree sheet, Army Map Service.

Geologic Maps

Tatlock, 1969, Preliminary geologic map of Pershing County, Nevada, scale 1:200,000.

Access

From Lovelock, 26 miles west on State Highway 48 to Vernon. Placers are accessible by dirt roads leading along flank of the mountains.

Extent

No descriptions of placers in the Seven Troughs district have been found, although placer gold was recovered periodically from 1913 to 1948. The placers are in the gulches and along the flanks of the range near many small gold and silver lode mines.

Production History

Except for the amount of placer gold produced, no information has been found describing placer mining in this district.

Source

The placer gold was derived from the gold veins in the area that contain free gold. Ransome (1909b, p. 22) states, "The valuable con-stituent of the lodes is native gold containing a considerable proportion of silver, and consequently of a rather pale color. In most of the rich ore the gold is visible either as clusters of small irregular particles or as coarse crystalline aggregates * * *.

Loose nugget-like masses up to an ounce in weight have been found in soft crushed vein matter in the Reagan lease." Erosion of such veins would account for the origin of the placers in the area.

Literature

Ransome, 1909b: Describes lode mines.

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