Birch Creek

Site Name

Primary: Birch Creek

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Commodity

Primary: Gold
Secondary: Silver

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Location

State: Alaska
District: Circle

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Land Status

Not available

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Holdings

Not available

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Workings

Not available

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Ownership

Not available

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Production

Not available

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Deposit

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

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Physiography

Not available

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Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer Au-PGE

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Orebody

Not available

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Structure

Not available

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Alterations

Not available

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Rocks

Not available

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Analytical Data

Not available

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Materials

Ore: Gold

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Comments

Comment (Production): Production Notes = During the spring of 1894, about a half ounce of gold per man per day was being taken from Pitka's Bar (Dunham, 1898). In the 1980's in the upper part of Birch Creek near the Steese Highway, 2,000 cubic yards of gravel per day yielded 0.005 to 0.0075 ounces per cubic yard (Yeend, 1991, p.26, Lampright, 1996, p. 56). Most Birch Creek production has been from river bars with Buckley Bar probably being the most productive (Ellsworth and Davenport, 1913, p. 213). Battest Mining reported mining operations on Birch Creek in 1985 (Bundtzen and others, 1986).

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Placer gold deposit (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Yeend, 1991

Comment (Deposit): Other Comments = Gold in small quantities can still be panned from just about anywhere along the upper 160 km of Birch Creek (Yeend, 1991, p. 26).

Comment (Exploration): Status = Inactive

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Birch Creek is approximately 560 km long, originating just east of Mastodon Dome and emptying into the Yukon River approximately 50 km below Fort Yukon. Birch Creek flows over quartzite and quartzite schist before crossing into the Tintina fault trench where it then flows within the broad lowlands of the Yukon River over Pleistocene and Holocene surficial deposits. The flood plain of the upper and middle portions of the creek is composed of pebble-to-cobble gravel that contains a few boulders composed primarily of quartz and quartzite. A pebble count of gravel in Birch Creek between the mouth of Gold Dust and Butte Creeks reveals a composition of 72 percent quartzitic schist, 20 percent quartz, and 8 percent schist. Panned concentrates are low in magnetite and ilmenite, and rich in garnet (Yeend, 1991, p. 26). The only early placer production recorded from Birch Creek was from river bars, of which Buckley Bar was probably the most productive (Ellsworth and Davenport, 1913, p. 213). A bench about a mile below Twelvemile Creek was unsuccessfully mined in 1911 (Cobb, 1976, p. 7). Mining operations using heavy equipment with modern high-volume sluiceboxes were active along the upper part of Birch Creek in the 1980's (Yeend, 1991).

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Other than during the discovery period of the late 1800's, little mining was done on Birch Creek until the 1980's. Mining operations using heavy equipment with modern high-volume sluiceboxes were active along the upper part of Birch Creek in the 1980's (Yeend, 1991). A bench about a mile below Twelvemile Creek was unsuccessfully mined in 1911 (Cobb, 1976, p. 7, [OFR 76-633]).

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References

Reference (Deposit): Yeend, W.E., 1991, Gold placers of the Circle district, Alaska - past, present, and future: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1943, 42 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Circle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-633, 72 p.

Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., and Henning, M.W., 1978, Barite in Alaska: Mines and Geology Bulletin, v. 27, no. 4, p. 1-4.

Reference (Deposit): Yeend, W.E., 1985, Trace elements of placer gold: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 945, p. 4-7.

Reference (Deposit): Eakins, G.R., Jones, B.K. and Forbes, R.B., 1977, Investigation of Alaska's uranium potential: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Open-File Report 109, 213 p., 10 sheets, scale 1:40,000.

Reference (Deposit): Menzie, W.D., Foster, H.L., Tripp, R.B., and Yeend, W.E., 1983, Mineral resource assessment of the Circle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 83-170-B, 61 p., 1 sheet, 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Circle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Misc. Field Studies Map MF-391, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Mertie, J.B., Jr., 1932, Mining in the Circle district: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 824, p. 155-172.

Reference (Deposit): Mertie, J.B., Jr., 1938, Gold placers of the Fortymile, Eagle, and Circle districts, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 897-C, p. 133-261.

Reference (Deposit): Koschmann, A.H. and Bergendahl, M.H., 1968, Principal gold producing districts of the United States: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 610, 283 p.

Reference (Deposit): Brooks, A.H. and Capps, S.R., 1924, Mineral industry in Alaska, 1922: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 755, p. 1-56.

Reference (Deposit): Ellsworth, C.E., and Davenport, R.W., 1913, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 542, 303 p.

Reference (Deposit): Brooks, A.H., 1907, The Alaskan mining industry in 1906: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 314, p. 19-39.

Reference (Deposit): Ellsworth, C.E., and Parker, G.L., 1911, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 480, 325 p.

Reference (Deposit): Ellsworth, C.E., 1912, Placer mining in the Fairbanks and Circle Disctricts: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 520, p. 240-245.

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