Sheep Creek

The Sheep Creek is a lead and zinc 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: Sheep Creek
Secondary: Gossan Peak

Commodity

Primary: Lead
Primary: Zinc
Secondary: Tin
Secondary: Silver

Location

State: Alaska
District: Bonnifield

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Prospect
Operation Type: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant:

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Massive sulfide, kuroko

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Alteration consists of sericitized schist in both the hanging and footwall of the deposit.

Rocks

Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Paleozoic

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Stannite
Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Pyrite
Ore: Galena
Ore: Cassiterite
Gangue: Sericite
Gangue: Quartz

Comments

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = At least three drill holes to a maximum depth of 470 feet were completed in the 1970's (O'Connor and others, 1989). Channel sampling and grab samples contain up to 11% combined lead and zinc, and 10 grams of silver per ton. Zones up to 1 meter wide contain 1% tin (Nokleberg and others, 1994).

Comment (Geology): Age = Mineralization is syngenetic with the Paleozoic host rocks.

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = O'Connor and others, 1989

Comment (Reserve-Resource): Reserves = Based on limited data a tentative resource of 5.5 million pounds of tin has been identified (O'Connor and others, 1989). There are no estimates of base metal reserves.

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The Sheep Creek deposit is in the Totatlanika Schist near its contact with the Keevy Peak Formation (Nokleberg and others, 1994). The Totatlanika Schist ranges in age from Early Mississipian to Middle Devonian and consists mostly of felsic and mafic metavolcanic and metavolcaniclastic rocks (Wilson and others, 1998). The deposit is 200 feet thick and 2,000 feet long, and consists of isoclinally folded, stratabound lenses of massive sulfides in tuffaceous chlorite schist and chert (O'Connor and others, 1989). The sulfides are fine-grained sphalerite, galena, and pyrite. This deposit has high values of Sn, reported as either cassiterite or stannite. Channel sampling and grab samples contain up to 11% combined lead and zinc, and 10 grams of silver per ton. Zones up to 1 meter wide contain 1% tin (Nokleberg and others, 1994).

Comment (Exploration): Status = Active

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Kuroko massive sulfide (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 28a)

References

Reference (Deposit): Cox, D.P., Light, T.D., Csejtey, Bela, Jr., and Campbell, D.L., 1989, Mineral resource assessment map of the Healy quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map, MF-2058-A, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., Eakins, G.R., Clough, J.G., Lueck, L.L., Green, C.B., Robinson, M.S., and Coleman, D.A., 1984, Alaska's Mineral Industry, 1983: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 33, 56 p.

Reference (Deposit): Nokleberg, W.J., Bundtzen, T.K., Berg, H.C., Brew, D.A., Grybeck, D.J., Robinson, M.S., Smith, T.E., and Yeend, W., 1987, Significant metalliferous lode deposits and placer districts of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1786, 104 p.

Reference (Deposit): Wilson, F.H., Dover, J.H., Bradley, D.C., Weber, F.R., Bundtzen, T.K., and Haeussler, P.J., 1998, Geologic map of central (interior) Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-133, 17 p., 2 sheetsm, scale 1:500,000.

Reference (Deposit): Nokleberg, W.J., and others, 1994, Metallogeny and major mineral deposits of Alaska and Metallogenic map of significant metalliferous lode deposits and placer districts of Alaska, in Plafker, G. and Berg, H.C., eds., The Geology of Alaska: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America: The Geology of North America, v. G1, p. 855-904 and v. G1, Plate 11, scale 1:2,500,000.

Reference (Deposit): Wahrhaftig, Clyde, 1970, Geologic map of the Healy D-3 quadrangle: U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Quadrangle Map GQ-805, scale 1:63,360.

Reference (Deposit): O'Connor, W.K., Dahlin, D.C., and Warner, J.D., 1989, Characterization of the Sheep Creek Pb-Zn-Ag-Sn prospect, north-central Alaska Range: U.S. Bureau of Mines Report of Investigations 9256, 15 p.

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