Mancos River Black Sand Deposit

The Mancos River Black Sand Deposit is a titanium, metal, uranium, thorium, and zirconium mine located in Montezuma county, Colorado at an elevation of 6,152 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: Mancos River Black Sand Deposit
Secondary: Shiprock Group

Commodity

Primary: Titanium, Metal
Primary: Uranium
Primary: Thorium
Primary: Zirconium
Secondary: Iron
Tertiary: REE

Location

State: Colorado
County: Montezuma

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Occurrence
Deposit Type: Fossil Placer
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Year: 1912
Discovery Method: Geophysical Anomaly
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Type: R
Description: San Juan Basin, Four Corners Platform

Type: L
Description: Mesa Verde Basin, Mcelmo Dome

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Fe Oxidation And Cementation

Rocks

Name: Sandstone
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Cretaceous

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: AEC REPORTS SHOW GRAB SAMPLE ASSAYS OF 0.01 TO 0.06% EQUIV U308. DOW AND BATTY (1961) ANALYZED BLACK SANDSTONE FROM THE MENEFEE FM AND FOUND: AVG. 0.2 TO 0.5% TI02 (HIGH 5.5%), 0.05% ZR02, 2.2 TO 11.6% FE, 0.01 TO 0.06% EQUIV TH02. VALUES FROM PALMER MESA WERE 2.8% TI02, 0.42% ZR02, 12.8% FE, 0.03% EQUIV TH02

Materials

Ore: Ilmenite
Ore: Monazite
Ore: Anatase
Gangue: Hematite
Gangue: Jarosite
Gangue: Limonite

Comments

Comment (Workings): GEOPHYSICAL ANOMALIES AND SURFACE PROSPECT PITS (AIRBORNE RADIOACTIVE ANOMALIES: SURFACE EXPOSURES

Comment (Location): ANOMALIES LIE EAST OF U.S. ROUTES 666 AND 164 WITHIN UTE MOUNTAIN INDIAN RESERVATION AND ON MESA VERDE, SHORT MESA, COWBOY MESA, AND TANNER MESA. ANOMALIES ALSO EXTEND ONTO TANNER MESA (1966) QUAD. ELEV AND LAT-LONG GIVEN ARE FOR APPROX CENTER OF NORTHERN CLUSTER OF ANOMALIES, COMMON CORNER OF SECS. 01, 02, 11, AND 12, T33N, R17W. ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1975

Comment (Reserve-Resource): DOW AND BATTY, 1961

Comment (Development): BLACK SANDS KNOWN SINCE EARLY 1910S, BUT AIRBORNE RADIOACTIVE ANOMALIES DISCOVERED AND EXAMINED ON GROUND IN MID 1950S. FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS FOR TI AND OTHER HEAVY-MINERAL RESOURCE APPRAISAL IN LATE 1950S AND 1970S.

Comment (Deposit): BEACH PLACERS FORMED DURING MARINE REGRESSION IN LATE CRETACEOUS TIMES. TYPICAL BLACK SANDSTONE DEPOSIT DESCRIBED BY HOUSTON AND MURPHY (1977) IS BLACK SANDSTONE UNDERLAIN BY WHITE, NEARSHORE MARINE SANDSTONE AND OVERLAIN BY NONMARINE SANDSTONE, CARBONACEOUS SHALE, COAL, AND COMMONLY OYSTER-BEARING BEDS OF LAGOONAL AND SWAMP ORIGIN. HEAVY MINERALS SUPPOSEDLY ORIGINATED FROM STREAMS ERODING THROUGH PLUTONIC AND VOLCANIC ROCKS FARTHER INLAND AND DEPOSITING SEDIMENT IN DELTAS AND DISTRIBUTARIES WITH SUBSEQUENT CONCENTRATION ON LEE SIDES WITH RESPECT TO LONGSHORE CURRENT DIRECTION. HEAVY MINERALS CONCENTRATED IN REGRESSIVE BACKSHORE AND UPPER FORESHORE WHERE MORE PROTECTED FROM EROSION. AEC REPORTS DESCRIBE ROCK AT SITES OF AIRBORNE ANOMALIES AS DARK YELLOWISH-BROWN, LIMONITE-CEMENTED, VERY FINE-GRAINED SANDSTONE ZONES (LENSES) IN LIGHT YELLOWISH-GRAY TO LIGHT GRAY, MASSIVE, CROSS-BEDDED, FINE- TO MEDIUM-GRAINED SANDSTONE.

Comment (Deposit): Discovery Year: EARLY 1910S

References

Reference (Deposit): NELSON-MOORE, J.L., AND OTHERS, 1978, RADIOACTIVE MINERAL OCCURRENCES OF COLORADO AND BIBLIOGRAPHY: CGS BULL. 40, P. 277-281.

Reference (Deposit): HOUSTON, R.S., AND MURPHY, J.F., 1977, DEPOSITIONAL ENVIRONMENT OF UPPER CRETACEOUS BLACK SANDSTONES OF THE WESTERN INTERIOR: USGS PROF. PAPER 994-A, 29 P.

Reference (Deposit): HOUSTON, R.S., AND MURPHY, J.F., 1970, FOSSIL BEACH PLACERS IN SANDSTONES OF LATE CRETACEOUS AGE IN WYOMING AND OTHER ROCKY MOUNTAIN STATES: WYOMING GEOL. ASSOC. 22D ANN. FIELD CONF. GUIDEBOOK, P. 241-249.

Reference (Deposit): DOW, V.T., AND BATTY, J.V., 1961, RECONNAISSANCE OF TITANIFEROUS SANDSTONE DEPOSITS OF UTAH, WYOMING, NEW MEXICO, AND COLORADO: USBM RI-5860.

Reference (Deposit): AEC, 1955, PRELIMINARY RECONNAISSANCE REPORTS: ED/R-465 THROUGH 471 AND ED/R-493 THROUGH 500.

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