Shovel Creek

The Shovel Creek is a gold 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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Site Name

Primary: Shovel Creek

Commodity

Primary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Selawik

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: Placer Au-PGE

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Albitization of quartz monzonite adjacent to tourmaline veinlets.

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Gold

Comments

Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = Stream gradient approximately 250-300 feet per mile.

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Placer Au-PGE (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary.

Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Miller and Ferrians, 1968

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The creek has been placer mined on a small scale. The site was examined and some rock samples collected by the U.S. Geological Survey during the 1960's. One hundred lode claims were staked in the vicinity in 1972 (Grybeck, 1977).

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Shovel Creek heads in the Upper Cretaceous Purcell Mountain quartz monzonite pluton, and crosses a contact between Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous andesitic volcanic rocks and the quartz monzonite. No large zones of altered rock were observed in the area, but abundant cobbles of black tourmaline and of albitized quartz monzonite containing tourmaline veinlets occur in the placer tailings and stream gravels. The quartz monzonite appears to be altered adjacent to the veinlets. Analyses of two tourmaline-rich cobbles show 700 and 1,000 ppm copper but no detectable gold. Indications are that the placer gold may have come from the quartz-tourmaline veins (Miller and Ferrians, 1968).

References

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1977, Placer deposit map of central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-168B, 64 p., 1 map, scale 1:1,000,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1973, Placer deposits of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1374, 213 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1975, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in five quadrangles in west central Alaska (Hughes, Kotzebue, Melozitna, Selawik and Shungnak): U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 75-627, 58 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources of the Shungnak quadrangle, Alaska: USGS Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-448, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Eakins, G.R., Jones, B.K. and Forbes, R.B., 1977, Investigation of Alaska's uranium potential: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Open-File Report 109, 213 p., 10 sheets, scale 1:40,000.

Reference (Deposit): Eberlein, G.D., Chapman, R.M., Foster, H.L., and Gassaway, J.S., 1977, Map and table describing known metalliferous and selected nonmetalliferous mineral deposits in central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-168-D, 132 p., 1 map, scale 1:1,000,000.

Reference (Deposit): Miller, T.P. and Ferrians, O.J., Jr., 1968, Suggested areas for prospecting in the central Koyukuk River region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 570, 12 p.

Reference (Deposit): Grybeck, D.J., 1977, Known mineral deposits of the Brooks Range, Alaska: US Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-166C, 41 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:1,000,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1975, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in five quadrangles in west central Alaska (Hughes, Kotzebue, Melozitna, Selawik, Shungnak): U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 75-627, 58 p.

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