Lone Star

The Lone Star is a copper mine located in Graham county, Arizona at an elevation of 5,000 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: Lone Star
Secondary: Safford Kennecott

Commodity

Primary: Copper

Location

State: Arizona
County: Graham
District: Lone Star District

Land Status

Land ownership: Private
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.

Holdings

Type: Patented
Type: Fee Ownership

Workings

Type: Surface

Ownership

Owner Name: Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold Inc.
Home Office: Phoenix, AZ 85004
Info Year: 2007
Years: 2007 -

Owner Name: Phelps Dodge Corp. 2600 N Central Ave, Phoenix, Az 85004
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Arizona
Info Year: 1990

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Deposit
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: Porphyry Cu-Au
Operation Type: Leach
Mining Method: In Situ Leach
Milling Method: Leach-Solvent-Extract-Precipitation
Discovery Year: 1950
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Intermontane Plateaus
Physiographic Province: Basin And Range Province
Physiographic Section: Mexican Highland

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Porphyry Cu-Au

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Type: R
Structure: NW striking Butte Fault

Type: L
Structure: Lone Star Shear Zone 6000 Ft Wide And 16,000 Ft Long, Strikes N50- 65e

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration: Pyritization

Alteration Type: L
Alteration: Hypogene Alteration and Supergene Enrichment

Rocks

Name: Quartz Diorite
Role: Associated
Description: Mainly quartz diorite with minor granodiorite and quartz monzonite
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Early Paleocene
Age Old: Late Cretaceous

Name: Quartz Diorite
Role: Host
Description: Dike swarms
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Eocene

Name: Dacite
Role: Host
Description: Dike swarms
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Eocene

Name: Quartz Latite
Role: Host
Description: Dike swarms
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Eocene

Name: Rhyolite
Role: Host
Description: Dike swarms
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Eocene

Name: Andesite
Role: Host
Description: metamorphosed hornblende and pyroxene andesite flows, breccias, agglomerates, wackes and mud flows with some dacites, dacite tuffs and latites
Age Type: Host Rock Unit
Age Young: Paleocene
Age Old: Cretaceous

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Pyrite
Ore: Molybdenite
Ore: Bornite
Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Tetrahedrite
Ore: Galena
Unknown: Cuprite
Unknown: Brochantite
Unknown: Malachite
Unknown: Chrysocolla

Comments

Comment (Production): THE PERCENT RECOVERY IN THE YIELD DATA SET IS AN OVERALL RECOVERY OF 90%(SX) X 99%(EW).

Comment (Deposit): KENNECOTT SHUT DOWN PILOT PLANT STUDIES IN JUNE, 1978 DUE TO POOR PENETRATION AND RECOVERIES FROM LEACHING SOLUTIONS. THE PROJECT WAS COSTED BASED ON A SULFURIC ACID IN-SITU LEACH SOLVENT EXTRACTION AND ELECTROWINNING COMPLEX. RECOVERY ORE TO SOLUTION=30% PROPERTY UPDATED JULY 1987.

Comment (Reserve-Resource): COMPANY NAME CHANGED FROM KENNECOTT MINERALS CO. TO BP MINERALS AMERICA. SOLD TO PHELPS DODGE CORP. IN 1988. ALSO KNOWN AS SAFFORD KENNECOTT. RESERVE FROM PHELPS DODGE SEC FM-10K RPT. 12/31/94. P10. (COPPER GRADE REPORTED AS ACID-SOLUBLE)

Comment (Reserve-Resource): WORLD MINING, SEPT 1977 P. 110. THE TONNAGE IN MATRIX 1 INCLUDES SULPHIDE AND OXIDE ORE. THE OXIDE ORE IS ASSUMED TO LAST THE LIFE OF THE PROPERTY.

Comment (Identification): *****SEE ASSOCIATED DEPOSIT-Dos Pobres Mine- Deposit ID 10096999

Comment (Production): Production restarted at Safford in late 2007. http://www.fcx.com/operations/USA_Safford.htm

References

Reference (Reserve-Resource): PHELPS DODGE CORP SEC FM 10-K REPT. 12/31/93., P. 10.

Reference (Geology): The Lone Star and Safford webpages at portergeo.com contain geological descriptions. http://www.portergeo.com.au/
URL: http://www.portergeo.com.au/

Reference (Reserve-Resource): WORLD MINING MAGAZINE. MAY 1981, P. 51.

Reference (Ownership): JUST SIMPLY KENNECOTT, SALT LAKE CITY TRIBUNE, MARCH 19,1983.

Reference (Deposit): KENNECOTT TRYING SOLUTION MINING AT SAFFORD PROSPECT, PAY DIRT 8/25/75 P42

Reference (Geology): Williams, S.A., and Forrester, J.D., 1995, Characteristics of porphyry copper deposits, in Pierce, F.W., and Bolm, J.G., eds., Porphyry copper deposits of the American Cordillera: Tucson, Arizona Geological Society Digest 20, p. 21?34

Reference (Deposit): KENNECOTT INVESTIGATES SOLUTION MINING POTENTIAL OF DEEP CU DEPOSIT E/MJ SEPT 1975 VOL 176 NO 9 P37

Reference (Reserve-Resource): PHELPS DODGE CORP. 1995 ANNUAL REPORT, P.23.

Reference (Deposit): SLOOP, JUNE 1,1967, ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION AVAIL FROM CLEARINGHOUSE FOR FED SCIENT AND TECH INFO, SPRINGFIELD VA

Reference (Reserve-Resource): PHELPS DODGE CORP., 1994 10-K, P.14.

Reference (Deposit): SW PAY DIRT, 2-95, P.10A.

Reference (Deposit): SKILLINGS' MINING REVIEW, 11-30-96, P.6.

Reference (Deposit): HANSEN, S AND RABB, D , SEEK PROFITABILITY ANSWER TO NUCLEAR IN-SITU COPPER LEACHING AT SAFFORD, WORLD MINING, JAN 1978,V 4 NO 1, P 24-27

Reference (Deposit): ROBINSON, R.F. AND COOK, A.,1966, THE SAFFORD COPPER DEPOSIT, LONE STAR MINING DISTRICT, GRAHAM COUNTY, ARIZONA, IN: GEOLOGY OF THE PORPHYRY COPPER DEPOSITS Southwestern North America, EDITED BY TITLEY, S.R AND HICKS, C.L. THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA PRESS, TUCSON, ARIZ., P. 251-266

Reference (Geology): Langton, J.M., and Williams, S.A., 1982, Structural, petrological and mineralogical controls for the Dos Pobres orebody, Lone Star mining district, Graham County, Arizona, in Titley, S.R., ed., Advances in geology of the porphyry copper deposits, southwestern North America University of Arizona Press, Tucson pp 335-352

Arizona Gold

"Where to Find Gold in Arizona" looks at the density of modern placer mining claims along with historical gold mining locations and mining district descriptions to determine areas of high gold discovery potential in Arizona. Read more: Where to Find Gold in Arizona.