Montezuma Mine

The Montezuma Mine is a silver and lead mine located in Dolores county, Colorado at an elevation of 8,950 feet.

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: Montezuma Mine

Commodity

Primary: Silver
Primary: Lead
Secondary: Copper

Location

State: Colorado
County: Dolores
District: Pioneer (Rico) District

Land Status

Land ownership: National Forest
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.
Administrative Organization: San Juan N. F.

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: Contact Metamorphic
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Intermontane Plateaus
Physiographic Province: Colorado Plateaus
Physiographic Section: Canyon Lands

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Type: R
Description: San Juan Uplift, Paradox Basin

Type: L
Description: Rico Dome, Smelter Fault

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Name: Monzonite
Role: Associated
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Paleocene

Name: Monzonite
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Pennsylvanian

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Pyrite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Gangue: Quartz
Gangue: Dolomite
Gangue: Chlorite
Gangue: Epidote
Gangue: Pyroxene
Gangue: Hornblende

Comments

Comment (Deposit): 2-FT-THICK PYRITE BODY IN CHLORITE MATRIX.

Comment (Workings): UPPER TUNNEL PROBABLY DRIVEN GENERALLY NW, EXTENT UNKNOWN. LOWER TUNNEL DRIVEN N 55 W FOR ABOUT 150 FT, THENCE N 70 W FOR ABOUT 150 FT.

Comment (Location): (LAND STATUS AND ADMINISTRATIVE AREA LOCATIONS CALCULATED USING GIS OVERLAY ANALYSIS FOR SAN JUAN N. F.). ON WEST SIDE OF DOLORES RIVER AT NORTH END OF RICO (UNSURVEYED SECTION). ELEV AND LAT-LONG GIVEN ARE FROM MCKNIGHT, 1974, PL. 1 (1930 BASE). ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1975

Comment (Deposit): JUST NORTH OF CREST OF RICO DOME AND VERY NEAR EAST END OF MONZONITE STOCK, NW-CURVING WEST END OF SMELTER FAULT HAS UPTHROWN PRECAMBRIAN GREENSTONE AND METADIORITE ON NE AGAINST LARSEN QUARTZITE (PENNSYLVANIAN) AND LOWER HERMOSA FM ON SW. MONTEZUMA TUNNEL DRIVEN IN LARSEN QUARTZITE AND PROBABLY CORRESPONDS TO WHAT RANSOME (1901) BELIEVED WAS DEVONIAN QUARTZITE; TUNNEL ALSO CUTS SHEET OF MONZONITE FROM STOCK TO SW. RANSOME NOTED NW-TRENDING VEIN DIPPING ABOUT 70 SW FROM WHICH EXTENDED IRREGULAR BLANKET REPLACEMENT ORE IN CRUSHED LIMESTONE ZONE AT CONTACT BETWEEN QUARTZITE AND HERMOSA FM; RANSOME INTERPRETED THIS AS BEDDING FAULT PARTLY REPLACED BY ORE CONSISTING OF PYRITE, CHALCOPYRITE, AND GALENA IN GANGUE OF QUARTZ AND CHLORITE. UNDERLYING QUARTZITE AND PORPHYRY ARE IMPREGNATED WITH PYRITE. QUARTZITE SHOWS METAMORPHISM CHARACTERIZED BY HORNBLENDE, PYROXENE, EPIDOTE, AND IN OTHER PLACES BY COARSE PYRITE, QUARTZ, CHLORITE, AND DOLOMITE. UPPER TUNNEL FOLLOWS SMALL VEIN AND FLAT, 1- TO

References

Reference (Deposit): MCKNIGHT, E.T., 1974, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE RICO DISTRICT, COLORADO: USGS PROF. PAPER 723.

Reference (Deposit): PRATT, W.P., AND OTHERS, 1969, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE RICO QUADRANGLE, DOLORES AND MONTEZUMA COUNTIES, COLORADO: USGS MAP GQ-797.

Reference (Deposit): RANSOME, F.L., 1901, THE ORE DEPOSITS OF THE RICO MOUNTAINS, COLORADO: USGS 22D ANN. REPT., PT. 2, P. 363-364.

Colorado Mining Photos

Check out this collection of Colorado's best historic mining photos: Incredible Photos of Colorado Mining Scenes.