The Nukalaska 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
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.
Nukalaska MRDS details
Site Name
Primary: Nukalaska
Secondary: Honolulu Group
Commodity
Primary: Gold
Secondary: Tellurium
Secondary: Silver
Secondary: Copper
Location
State: Alaska
District: Homer
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: Low-sulfide Au-quartz vein
Orebody
Not available
Structure
Not available
Alterations
Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: None reported although Borden and others (1991) report other veins in the Nuka Bay district show carbonization, sulfidization, sericitization, and silicification of the wall rock adjacent to the veins.
Rocks
Not available
Analytical Data
Not available
Materials
Ore: Tetrahedrite
Ore: Sylvanite
Ore: Gold
Ore: Galena
Ore: Chalcocite
Ore: Arsenopyrite
Ore: Covellite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Gangue: Quartz
Comments
Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Capps, 1938; Richter, 1970
Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive
Comment (Production): Production Notes = The gold occurred in very high-grade shoots. Ore mined in 1936 yielded $100 per ton ($35 per ounce gold) even though two-thirds of the mill feed was country rock (Capps, 1938, p.27-29). The total production for this mine is unknown.
Comment (Geology): Age = Tertiary; Boden and others (1991) report other veins in the district are about 55 m.y. old.
Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The host rocks of the mine are slate and graywacke of the Cretaceous Valdez Group that have been cut by quartz diorite dikes of Tertiary age (Richter, 1970). The deposit consists of a 10- to 18-inch-thick banded quartz vein that occurs along the footwall of a 12-foot-thick quartz diorite dike. The vein is younger than the dike; low-grade veinlets that divert into the dike are common. The vein strikes almost due east at a right angle to the graywacke country rock and dips 80S. The ore consists of somewhat banded quartz with free gold, arsenopyrite, pyrite, galena, and chacopyrite. Microscopic examination by Yewell (Capp,1938) also identified tetrahedrite, chalcocite, and covellite. The gold appears to be localized within high-grade shoots within the vein. ? From the top of the tramway the main haulage drift was driven 235 feet to intersect the vein. Two drifts were driven both east and west along the vein. The east drift was driven 200 feet but no significant mineralization was encountered. All the production came from the west drift. In 1936, the west stope was 140 feet long and 80 feet high along the 12- to 18-inch-wide vein. Concentrates from this stope carried 21 to 51 ounces of gold per ton; even though two-thirds of the mill feed was wall rock (Capps, 1938).
Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = This mine is within Kenai Fjords National Park; the area is closed to mineral entry.
Comment (Reserve-Resource): Reserves = None reported.
Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The mine was discovered in 1926 and developed in 1934-35. It produced from 1935 to 1940. In 1936, the west stope was 140 feet long and 80 feet high along the 12- to 18-inch-wide vein. Concentrates from this stope carried 21 to 51 ounces of gold per ton; even though two-thirds of the mill feed was wall rock. (Capps, 1938). A fire in 1938 and snow slides in 1939 hampered mining. World War II closed the mine in 1942 and an attempt to reopen the mine after the war failed (Richter, 1970).
Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Low-sulfide, Au-quartz vein (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 36a)
References
Reference (Deposit): Richter, D.H., 1970, Geology and lode-gold deposits of the Nuka Bay area, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 625-B, p. Bl-B16.
Reference (Deposit): MacKevett, E.M., Jr., and Holloway, C.D., 1977, Map showing metalliferous and selected non-metalliferous mineral deposits in the eastern part of southern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-169-A, 99 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:1,000,000.
Reference (Deposit): Smith, P.S., 1939, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1937: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 910-A, p. 1-113.
Reference (Deposit): Capps, S.R., 1938, Lode mining in the Nuka Bay district, in Smith, P.S., Mineral industry of Alaska in 1936: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 897-A, p. 25-32.
Reference (Deposit): Smith, P.S. 1939, Mineral industry in Alaska in 1937: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 910-A, p. 1-113.
Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1979, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than minerals fuels and construction materials) in the Seldovia quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-file Report 80-87, 47 p.
Reference (Deposit): Berg, H.C., and Cobb, E.H., 1967, Metalliferous Lode Deposits of Alaska. U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1246, 254 p.
Reference (Deposit): Borden, J.C., Goldfarb, R.J., Gent, C.A., Burruss, R.C., and Roushey, B.H., 1992 Geochemistry of lode-gold deposits, Nuka Bay district, southern Kenai Peninsula: Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1991: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 2041, p. 13-21.
Reference (Deposit): Smith, P.S., 1941, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1939: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 926-A, p. 1-106.
The Top Ten Gold Producing States
These ten states contributed the most to the gold production that built the West from 1848 through the 1930s. The Top Ten Gold Producing States.
