The Whalen Shaft is a silver, gold, and copper 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
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Whalen Shaft MRDS details
Site Name
Primary: Whalen Shaft
Commodity
Primary: Silver
Primary: Gold
Primary: Copper
Secondary: Bismuth
Secondary: Tungsten
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: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant:
Physiography
Not available
Mineral Deposit Model
Model Name: Skarn Cu
Orebody
Not available
Structure
Not available
Alterations
Not available
Rocks
Not available
Analytical Data
Not available
Materials
Ore: Allanite
Ore: Gold
Ore: Malachite
Ore: Scheelite
Ore: Silver
Gangue: Kyanite
Gangue: Pyroxene
Gangue: Tremolite
Gangue: Zircon
Comments
Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Copper-Gold skarn (Cox and Singer, 1986; model no. 18b)
Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The Whalen Shaft was driven to an unknown depth, but not below the water table, which was at about 400 feet.
Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive
Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = See Nixon Fork Mine (MD062).
Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The Whalen Shaft is mainly a tactite with gold-polymetallic mineral values. Ore from tactite contained the following: 25 percent biotite; 10 percent pyroxene; 10 percent tremolite; 10 percent carbonate; and 10 percent malachite (Herreid, 1966). The tactitie zone averaged: 1.24 ounces/ton gold, 2.9 ounces/ton silver, 1.11 percent copper, and 0.05 percent bismuth (Herreid, 1966). Age of mineralization is unknown, but probably related to the 68.0 Ma Nixon Fork monzonite pluton (Bundtzen and Miller, 1997).
Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Herreid, 1966
Comment (Production): Production Notes = Specific production figures are not known; the gold-copper production was lumped with the Nixon Fork Mine (MD062).
References
Reference (Deposit): Herreid, G.H., 1966, Geology and geochemistry of the Nixon Fork area, Medfra quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Geologic Report 22, 34 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:40,000.
Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., and Miller, M.L., 1997, Precious metals associated with Late Cretaceous-early Tertiary igneous rocks of southwestern Alaska, in Goldfarb, R.J., and Miller, L.D., eds., Economic Geology Monograph #9, Mineral Deposits of Alaska, p. 242-286.
Reference (Deposit): Mertie, J.B., Jr., 1936, Mineral deposits of the Ruby-Kuskokwim region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 864-C, 115-245.
Reference (Deposit): White, M.G., and Stevens, J.M., 1953, Reconnaissance for radioactive minerals in the Ruby-Poorman and Nixon Fork districts, west-central Alaska, in 1949: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 279, 19 pages.
Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1974, Synopsis of mineral resources and geology of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1307, 53 pages.
Reference (Deposit): Martin, G.C., 1922, Gold lodes in the Upper Kuskokwim region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 864D, p. 149-161.
Reference (Deposit): Brown, J.S., 1926, The Nixon Fork country: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 783. p. 97-144.
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