Situk Beach

The Situk Beach is a pge, titanium, iron, and gold mine located in Alaska.

About the MRDS Data:

All mine locations were obtained from the USGS Mineral Resources Data System. The locations and other information in this database have not been verified for accuracy. It should be assumed that all mines are on private property.

Mine Info

Satelite View

MRDS mine locations are often very general, and in some cases are incorrect. Some mine remains have been covered or removed by modern industrial activity or by development of things like housing. The satellite view offers a quick glimpse as to whether the MRDS location corresponds to visible mine remains.

Site Name

Primary: Situk Beach

Commodity

Primary: PGE
Primary: Titanium
Primary: Iron
Primary: Gold
Secondary: Zirconium

Location

State: Alaska
District: Yakutat

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Occurrence
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant:

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Name: Sand and Gravel
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Holocene

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Gold
Ore: Zircon
Ore: Magnetite
Ore: Ilmenite
Gangue: Garnet

Comments

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The Situk beach was explored by auger holes and grab samples of heavy concentrate layers in the modern beach. An auger hole reported by Thomas and Berryhill (1962, sample number 25) contained 0.5 ppm gold, 53.9 pounds/cubic yard titania and 150.3 pounds/cubic yard iron. Three samples--localities 266, 267, and 268--were collected by Foley and others (1995, figure 16, Appendix A) . A sample of a modern heavy mineral concentrate layer (no. 267 - 0.3 meters) contained 1.298 grams/ton gold in head split along with 4.05 percent titanium and 2534 ppm zirconium. A spiral concentrate of the same sample contained 0.113 grams/ton gold, 4.86 percent titanium, and 3032 ppm zirconium. Four samples (series no. 266 of a total of 5.5 meters) were collected from the tidal beach; five samples (series no 267 of 9.4 meters) were taken of back beach material near a lagoon. Spiral concentrates of tidal flat samples contained up to 4.72 percent titanium and 0.198 grams/ton gold in the same interval. Back beach samples contained as much as 3.34 percent titanium and a trace of gold over 1.8 meters. One other head sample of the back beach had a trace of gold. There are no workings, but the beach is accessible from the village of Yakutat.? the area was also sampled by MacKevett and Plafker (1970).

Comment (Geology): Age = Holocene. Probably mainly derived from reworking of low-grade glacio-fluviatile deposits of Pleistocene and Holocene age.

Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = Historic mining activity; generally low-grade, but high-grade transient beach deposits exist.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Material = PGE

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Beach placer: single-cycle product of high-energy environment.

Comment (Exploration): Status = Probably inactive

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Foley and others, 1995.

Comment (Production): Production Notes = Probably some gold has been produced.

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The beach placer is developed on unconsolidated marine and terrestrial deposits of Holocene age and mainly consists of medium coarse sands with pebbly and rocky layers (Reimnitz and Plafker, 1976). When sampled by Foley and others (1995), there were transient layers as much as 0.3 meters thick that were rich in heavy minerals.? Samples collected by Thomas and Berryhill (1962) and Foley and others (1995) locally contained abundant heavy metals. Titania was found to almost 54 pounds/cubic yard; iron to about 150 pounds/cubic yard. Gold was found by Foley and others (1995, Appendix A) in several samples.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Material = Gold (native)

References

Reference (Deposit): Thomas, B.I., and Berryhill, R. V., 1962, Reconnaissance studies of Alaskan beach sands, eastern Gulf of Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Report of Investigations 5986, 40 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Yakutat quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-408, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Foley, J.Y., La Berge, R.D., Grosz, A.E., Oliver, F.S., and Hirt, W.C., 1995, Onshore titanium and related heavy mineral investigations in the eastern Gulf of Alaska region, southern Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 10-95, 125 p.

Reference (Deposit): Reimnitz, Erk, and Plafker, George, 1976, Marine gold placers along the Gulf of Alaska margin: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1415, 16 p.

Reference (Deposit): MacKevett, E.M., Jr., and Plafker, G., 1970, Geochemical and geophysical reconnaissance of parts of the Yakutat and Mount St. Elias quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1312-L, 12 p.

The Top Ten Gold Producing States

These ten states contributed the most to the gold production that built the West from 1848 through the 1930s. The Top Ten Gold Producing States.