Cunningham Creek

The Cunningham 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: Cunningham Creek

Commodity

Primary: Gold
Secondary: Lead
Secondary: Silver

Location

State: Alaska
District: Fairhaven

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

Not available

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Galena
Ore: Gold
Ore: Pyromorphite
Gangue: Pyrite

Comments

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Cobb, 1975 (OFR 75-429)

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary

Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Open-cut surface placer mine workings are locally present between the confluence with Hannum Creek and the mouth of Harrys Creek.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Material = lead carbonates

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

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Placer gold mining took place as early as 1901 on Cunningham Creek when $1,200 (about 70 ounces) was said to have been recovered near its mouth (Moffit, 1905). Herried (1966) shows placer mine workings to be present 500 feet downstream of the mouth of Harrys Creek but other workings may be present between here and the confluence with Hannum Creek (Cobb, 1975, OFR 75-429). Anderson (1947) reports that a placer concentrate produced by drift mining in 1942 contained lead carbonates, pyromorphite, and galena and assayed 50 % Pb and 5.7 ounces/ton Ag. Mining from near Harrys Creek produced coarse gold and abundant galena and pyrite (Mulligan, 1965). Sulfides are also apparently present in colluvial materials along stream. Galena- and sphalerite-bearing lode deposits are present on Harrys Creek (BN055) and Hannum Creek (BN056). Bedrock of the area is a metasedimentary schist and marble sequence of Lower Paleozoic age (Till and others, 1986). Quaternary/Teritiary basalt flows locally cap ridges along stream valleys.

References

Reference (Deposit): Moffit, F.H., 1905, The Fairhaven gold placers, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 247, 85 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Bendeleben quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-417, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1975, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Bendeleben quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 75-429, 123 p.

Reference (Deposit): Mulligan, J.J., 1965, Examination of the Hannum lead prospect, Fairhaven district, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 6-65, 16 p.

Reference (Deposit): Anderson, Eskil, 1947, Mineral occurrences other than gold deposits in northwestern Alaska: Alaska Territorial Division of Mines Pamphlet 5-R, 48 p.

Reference (Deposit): Herried, G.H., 1965, Geology of the Omilak-Otter Creek area, Bendeleben quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Geological Report 11, 12 p.

Reference (Deposit): Till, A.B., Dumoulin, J.A., Gamble, B. ., Kaufman, D.S., and Carroll, P.I., 1986, Preliminary geologic map and fossil data, Soloman, Bendeleben, and southern Kotzebue quadrangles, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 86-276, 10 p., 3 plates, scale 1:250,000.

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