Sunrise Mine

Site Name

Primary: Sunrise Mine
Secondary: Patented Claim: Sunrise
Secondary: Ms 16001

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Commodity

Primary: Copper
Primary: Silver
Tertiary: Manganese

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Location

State: Colorado
County: Montrose
District: La Sal (Paradox Valley) District

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Land Status

Land ownership: Private
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.

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Holdings

Not available

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Workings

Not available

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Ownership

Not available

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Production

Not available

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Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Year: 1902
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

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Physiography

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

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Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

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Orebody

Not available

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Structure

Type: R
Description: Paradox Basin Fold And Fault Belt

Type: L
Description: Paradox Anticline, Paradox Valley Graben, Unnamed Fault

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Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Oxidation Of Sulfides To Carbonates And Oxides

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Rocks

Not available

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Analytical Data

Not available

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Materials

Ore: Bornite
Ore: Covellite
Ore: Chrysocolla
Ore: Malachite
Gangue: Limonite
Gangue: Calcite
Gangue: Barite

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Comments

Comment (Workings): MINE DEVELOPED BY TWO TUNNELS: LOWER TUNNEL DRIVEN ALONG VEIN FOR AT LEAST 300 FT TO CAVED AREA; UPPER TUNNEL LIES 80 FT HIGHER THAN LOWER, DRIVEN ON VEIN FOR AT LEAST 50 FT TO CAVED AREA.

Comment (Deposit): FILLS VEIN AND REPLACES GANGUE (CALCITE), WITH SOME SMALL REPLACEMENT BY CHALCOPYRITE, COVELLITE, MALACHITE, AND CU PITCH.

Comment (Commodity): COPPER PITCH DEFINED AS MIXTURE OF TENORITE, MALACHITE, CHRYSOCOLLA, LIMONITE, AND MN OXIDE

Comment (Location): MINE LIES ON NE SIDE OF PARADOX VALLEY AND BELOW RIM OF CARPENTER RIDGE ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1975

Comment (Deposit): DEPOSITED ON NE RIM OF PARADOX VALLEY ALONG NORMAL FAULT TRENDING GENERALLY N 35 E, 80 SE AND CUTTING POORLY CEMENTED, FRIABLE VINGATE SANDSTONE. FAULT EXTENDS NE FROM BULGE IN INTRUSIVE CORE OF PARADOX VALLEY SALT ANTICLINE. IN UPPER LEVEL, ORE IS PRIMARILY MASSIVE CHALCOPYRITE WITH LESSER AMOUNTS OF INTERGGROWN CHALCOPYRITE-BORNITE-LUZONITE. ORE FROM LOWER LEVEL COMPOSED OF MASSIVE CHALCOCITE WHICH FILLS VEINS AND OPEN FRACTURES, WITH OR WITHOUT CALCITE-BARITE GANGUE. BOTH ORES OXIDIZED: CHALCOPYRITE ALTERED TO CU PITCH, MALACHITE, AND LIMONITE; CHALCOCITE ALTERED TO MALACHITE AND CU PITCH. MASSIVE CHALCOPYRITE APPEARS TO HAVE REPLACED SANSTONE NEAR FAULT; BRECCIATED AND REPLACED BY LATER CHALCOCITE AND THEN BY CU PITCH. ORE CHARACTERIZED BY NODULAR OR BOTRYOIDAL MASSES OF BORNITE WITH CONCENTRIC BANDS OF CHALCOPYRITE AND COLLOFORM INTERGROWTHS OF CHALCOPYRITE AND LUZONITE. CU PITCH SELECTIVELY REPLACES LUZONITE IN CENTERS OF COLLOFORM MASSES. BLUE AND WHITE MASSIVE CHALCOCITE ORE

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References

Reference (Deposit): COFFIN, R.C., 1921, RADIUM, URANIUM, AND VANADIUM DEPOSITS FO SOUTHWESTERN COLORADO: CGS BULL. 16, P. 220.

Reference (Deposit): SHOEMAKER, E.M., 19568 GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE ROC CREEK QUADRANGLE, COLORADO: USGS MAP GQ-83.

Reference (Deposit): FISCHER, R.P., 1936, PECULIAR HYDROTHERMAL COPPER-BEARING VEINS OF THE NORTHEASTERN COLORADO PLATEAU: ECON. GEOLOGY, V. 31, NO. 6, P. 588-593.

Reference (Deposit): BLM MINERAL SURVEY MS 16001

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