Ophir Creek

The Ophir Creek is a 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

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Site Name

Primary: Ophir Creek

Commodity

Primary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Aniak

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

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

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer Au-PGE

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Name: Silt
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Holocene

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Gold

Comments

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Surface prospecting, sinking of shafts to depths of at least 38 feet, and some drilling and trenching have been done along Ophir Creek. The upper 10 miles of the creek and its tributaries have been staked.

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary.

Comment (Exploration): Status = Probably inactive

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Maddren, 1915

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Maddren (1915) reported that fine colors of gold were found along upper Ophir Creek as early as 1901-02, but serious prospecting did not start until 1913. The alluvial deposits along the upper 5 miles of the creek are coarse gravels that contain large cobbles and boulders. Farther downstream, the gravels become finer, and silt makes up a large part of the deposits. Alluvial fan deposits from tributary streams have been incised by Ophir Creek. The incised fan deposits are frozen, but the gravels of the present Ophir Creek floodplain are not. Prospect shafts as deep as 38 feet have been used to explore Ophir Creek, but the fine gold, although widespread along Ophir Creek and its tributaries, does not appear to be significantly concentrated. Mining has not been reported along Ophir Creek, but the entire upper drainage and its tributaries were once staked. Bedrock in upper Ophir Creek includes large areas of thermally metamorphosed Jurassic rocks along the northeast side of a large mid-Cretaceous granitic pluton (Box and others, 1993).

References

Reference (Deposit): Hoare, J M., and Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Russian Mission quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-444, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Box, S.E, Moll-Stalcup, E.J., Frost, T.P., and Murphy, J.M., 1993, Preliminary geologic map of the Bethel and southern Russian Mission quadrangles, southwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-2226-A, 20 p., scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Maddren, A.G., 1915, Gold placers of the lower Kuskokwim with a note on copper in the Russian Mountains: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 622-H, p. 292-360.

Reference (Deposit): Hoare, J M., and Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Russian Mission quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-444, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Hoare, J.M., and Cobb, E.H., 1977, Mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Bethel, Goodnews, and Russian Mission quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-156, 98 p.

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