The Sheep Creek-West is a copper, silver, zinc, and lead 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
Elevation:
Commodity: Copper, Silver, Zinc, Lead
Lat, Long: 62.34, -153.80889
Map: View on Google Maps
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.
Sheep Creek-West MRDS details
Site Name
Primary: Sheep Creek-West
Commodity
Primary: Copper
Primary: Silver
Primary: Zinc
Primary: Lead
Secondary: Cadmium
Secondary: Gold
Location
State: Alaska
District: McGrath
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: Polymetallic veins
Orebody
Not available
Structure
Not available
Alterations
Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Sulfides are highly oxidized with conspicuous cerrusite, iron oxides, and malachite replacements.
Rocks
Not available
Analytical Data
Not available
Materials
Ore: Cerussite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Galena
Ore: Malachite
Ore: Pyrrhotite
Ore: Sphalerite
Gangue: Epidote
Gangue: Garnet
Comments
Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Surface sampling was conducted by the reporter in 1981. Two chip-channel samples collected across a 3 meter width of the vein contained 0.85 percent copper, 1.01 percent lead, 0.58 percent zinc, 30 ppm cadmium, 86 grams/tonne silver, and 0.60 grams/tonne gold (Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982).
Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive
Comment (Commodity): Gangue = iron oxides
Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Polymetallic vein (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 22c).
Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The Sheep Creek-West prospect contains oxidized, sulfide mineralization in a steeply dipping, northeast-striking fault (?) zone, 2 to 3 meters wide that juxtaposes silty limestone against tan arkosic sandstone; both lithologies belong to the Lower to Upper Silurian Terra Cotta Mountains Sandstone, a formation within the Dillinger subterrane (Bundtzen, Harris, and Gilbert, 1997). The zone strikes northeast for a minimum distance of 135 meters and is marked by a distinctive notch along the steep sidehill. Sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite and pyrrhotite that are accompanied by a gangue of epidote, johannsenite, and garnet replace limestone in vug fillings and shear zones (Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982). Abundant malachite stain and replacements is locally abundant and a locally conspicuous feature along the fault zone. ? Two chip samples collected across about 3 meters of the zone contain up to 0.85 percent copper, 1.01 percent lead, 0.58 percent zinc, 30 ppm cadmium, 86 grams/tonne silver, and 0.60 grams/tonne gold (Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982). ? the vein appears to be spatially related to nearby polymetallic veins at the Dahl (MG053), and the Sheep Creek-South (MG057) prospects, within the Farewell Mineral Belt. The structurally controlled vein mineralization at the Sheep Creek-West prospect may be distally related to skarn mineralization observed throughout the Farewell Mineral Belt.
Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Bundtzen, Kline, and Clough, 1982
References
Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., Harris, E.E., and Gilbert, W.G., 1997, Geologic Map of the eastern McGrath quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Report of Investigations 97-14, 34 pages, one sheet, scale 1:125,000.
Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., Kline, J.T., and Clough, J.G., 1982, Preliminary geologic map of the McGrath B-2 quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Open-File report 149, 22 pages, one sheet, scale 1:63,360.
Reference (Deposit): Reed, B.L. and Elliott, R.L., 1968, Geochemical anomalies and metalliferous deposits between Windy Fork and Post River, southern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 596, 22 pages.
Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the McGrath quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-379, 1 sheet, 1:250,000 scale.
Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Iliamna, Lake Clark, Lime Hills, and McGrath quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-485, 101 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.
