Cottonwood Canyon Nickel Deposit

The Cottonwood Canyon Nickel Deposit is a nickel and cobalt mine located in Churchill county, Nevada at an elevation of 4,751 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

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: Cottonwood Canyon Nickel Deposit

Commodity

Primary: Nickel
Primary: Cobalt
Tertiary: Copper

Location

State: Nevada
County: Churchill
District: Table Mountain District

Land Status

Land ownership: BLM Administrative Area
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.

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Type: Underground

Ownership

Not available

Production

Year: 1890
Time Period: 1882-1890
Material type: ORE CO NI
Description: Cp_Grade: ^26% Ni

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Year First Production: 1882
Year Last Production: 1907
Discovery Year: 1882
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Intermontane Plateaus
Physiographic Province: Basin And Range Province
Physiographic Section: Great Basin
Physiographic Detail: Basin And Mountains

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Limassol Forest Co-Ni

Orebody

Form: TABULAR

Structure

Type: R
Description: Regional Folding With Fold Axes Plunging West And Northwest.

Type: L
Description: N-Trending Normal Fault.

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Albitization; Silicification; Alteration Of Primary Ore Minerals To Chloanthite And Annabergite.

Rocks

Name: Gabbro
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Jurassic

Name: Gabbro
Role: Associated
Age Type: Associated Rock Unit
Age Young: Late Jurassic

Name: Gabbro
Role: Associated
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Late Jurassic

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: ANOTHER SAMPLE RAN 7.13% NI, 0.33% CU.
Analytical Data: SAMPLE FROM A 4-INCH STRINGER HAD 23.3% NI

Materials

Ore: Annabergite
Gangue: Quartz
Gangue: Albite

Comments

Comment (Location): ABOUT 3 MILES ABOVE MOUTH OF CANYON . INFO FROM LAND.ST :(1972)

Comment (Production): AMOUNTS PRODUCED UNKNOWN

Comment (Development): WORKED FOR 8 YEARS FROM 1882 TO 1890, WHEN MINE WAS CLOSED DUE TO LITIGATION. MINING RESUMED AGAIN IN 1904, BUT CEASED IN 1907.

Comment (Deposit): SHEARED CONTACT ZONE BETWEEN GABBRO AND 'ARENITE'. PRINCIPAL STOPES ARE ALONG A FLAT FISSURE DIPPING 20SW. NICKEL ORE OCCURS AS SMALL VEINLETS OCCUPYING FRACTURES IN THE ARENITE.

Comment (Workings): PRINCIPAL STOPES ARE ALONG A FLAT FISSURE WITH A DIP OF ABOUT 20SW. THIS WAS FOLLOWED FOR 100 FT AND STOPED FOR 50 FT.

Comment (Reserve-Resource): RESERVES UNKNOWN; STUDY NEEDED

Comment (Geology): GEOL.DESC: PRINCIPAL STOPES ARE ALONG A FLAT FISSURE WITH A DIP OF ABOUT 20 DEG. TO THE SW. THIS WAS FOLLOWED ALONG STRIKE FOR 100 FT.AND STOPED OVER 50 FT. THIS STRINGER PROBABLY YIELDED LARGE AMOUNTS OF NI BECAUSE SAMPLE TAKEN FROM 4-IN. VEIN OF GREEN MATERIAL AT END OF STOPE ASSAYED 23.3% NI

Comment (Deposit): FERGUSON BELIEVED THAT THE NI-CO DEPOSITS ARE RELATED TO NEARBY GOLD AND TITANIUM DEPOSITS AND TO THE INTRUSIVE BODY OF DIORITE, AND THAT IN THE FINAL STAGE OF MINERALIZATION BY MAGMATIC SOLUTIONS, SULFIDES AND ARSENIDES OF NI, CO, AND CU WERE INTRODUCED ALONG SMALL FISSURES IN THE ALREADY ALTERED COUNTRY ROCK ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT

References

Reference (Production): VANDERBURG, W.O. (1940); FERGUSON, H.G.,(1939).

Reference (Deposit): VANDERBURG, W.O., 1940, RECONNAISSANCE OF MINING DISTRICTS IN CHURCHILL CO., NEV: USBM I.C. 7093.

Reference (Deposit): RANSOME, F.L., 1909, USGS BULL 414

Reference (Deposit): WILLDEN,R. AND SPEED, R.C., 1974, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF CHURCHILL CO., NEV.: NBMG BULL 83

Reference (Deposit): FERGUSON, H.G., 1939, UNIV. NEVADA, RENO, BULL. 33, NO. 5.

Nevada Gold

Nevada has a total of 368 distinct gold districts. Of the of those, just 36 are major producers with production and/or reserves of over 1,000,000 ounces, 49 have production and/or reserves of over 100,000 ounces, with the rest having less than 100,000 ounces. Read more: Gold Districts of Nevada.