McKinley Creek Falls

The McKinley Creek Falls is a zinc and 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: McKinley Creek Falls

Commodity

Primary: Zinc
Primary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Juneau (Skagway subdistrict)

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: Polymetallic veins
Model Name: Polymetallic replacement

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Silica-carbonate units which are cut by or parallel the quartz-sulfide veins are probably altered mafic dikes (Still and others, 1991). Questionable mariposite may be due to alteration of mafic minerals (Bundtzen and Clautice, 1986).

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Gold
Gangue: Quartz

Comments

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Still and others, 1991

Comment (Exploration): Status = Probably inactive

Comment (Geology): Age = Unknown, but probably Cretaceous or younger based on age of intrusives in area (MacKevett and others, 1974).

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = There is little information but the brief description by Still and others (1991) who refer to polymetallic veins in dikes and replacement mineralization in adjacent limy sediments (Cox and Singer, 1986; models 22c and 19a).

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = The rocks in the area consist of slate with interbedded limestone that is cut by altered, tan dikes. Narrow, discontinuous quartz-sphalerite veins or silicified bands are in the dikes and, to a lesser extent, in the slate and limestone. Selected high-grade samples of quartz-sphalerite veins in dikes, contained up to 13.4% zinc and 8.9 ppm gold. A 2.5-foot-long chip sample across a limy silicified band in limy slate contained 24.8 ppm gold and 280 ppm zinc (Gilbert and others, 1991; Still and others, 1991). This prospect is similar to the Golden Eagle prospect (SK047). It occurs within a northwest-trending zone of quartz-sulfide veining in sediments and slates in the Skagway B-4 quadrangle that is described by Wright (1904 [B 225 and B 236]), Eakin (1918 and 1919), and MacKevett and others (1974) and is considered to be the source of placer gold in this area.

References

Reference (Deposit): Eakin, H.M., 1918, Gold placer mining in the Porcupine district: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 662-B, p. 93-100.

Reference (Deposit): MacKevett, E.M., Jr., Robertson, E.C., and Winkler, G.R., 1974, Geology of the Skagway B-3 and B-4 quadrangles, southern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 832, 33 p.

Reference (Deposit): Eakin, H.M., 1919, The Porcupine gold placer district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 699, 29 p.

Reference (Deposit): Wright, C.W., 1904, The Porcupine district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 236, 35 p.

Reference (Deposit): Gilbert, W.G., Still, J.C., Burns, L.E., Wier, K.R., and Redman, E.C., 1991, Geochemistry of Haines-Klukwan-Porcupine area, southeastern Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Report of Investigations 91-5, 1 sheet, scale 1:63,360, 75 p.

Reference (Deposit): Wright, C.W., 1904, The Porcupine placer mining district, Alaska in Emmons, S.F., and Hayes, C.W., eds., Contributions to economic geology 1903: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 225, p.60-63.

Reference (Deposit): Gilbert, W.G., and Redman, E.C., 1989, Lode deposits, prospects, and occurrences of the Porcupine mining area, southeast Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 17-89, 1 sheet, scale 1:39,600.

Reference (Deposit): Still, J.C., 1991, Bureau of Mines mineral investigations in the Juneau mining district, Alaska, 1984 - 1988, v. 2, Detailed mine, prospect, and mineral occurrence descriptions, section A, Haines-Klukwan-Porcupine subarea: U.S. Bureau of Mines of Mines Special Publication, 214 p.

Reference (Deposit): Still, J.C., Hoekzema, R.B., Bundtzen, T.K., Gilbert, W.G., Wier, K.R., Burns, L.E., and Fechner, S.A., 1991, Economic geology of Haines-Klukwan-Porcupine area, southeastern Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Report of Investigations 91-4, 156 p., 5 sheets, scale 1:63,360.

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