Dowry Creek

The Dowry Creek is a 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: Dowry Creek

Commodity

Secondary: Gold

Location

State: Alaska
District: Goodnews Bay

Land Status

Not available

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Not available

Production

Not available

Deposit

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

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer PGE-Au

Orebody

Not available

Structure

Not available

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Not available

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Chromite
Ore: Tulameenite
Ore: Osmium
Ore: Iridarsenite
Ore: Irarsite
Ore: Sperrylite
Ore: Magnetite
Ore: Ilmenite
Ore: Gold
Ore: Xingzhongite

Comments

Comment (Exploration): Status = Active?

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = Platinum on Dowry Creek was probably discovered in 1928, the year it was discovered on nearby Clara Creek (HG010). At least some mining occurred in 1935 and a dragline, first installed on Clara Creek in 1935, was probably moved to Dowry Creek and worked the paysteak out by 1941. It has been placer mined over about 0.6 mile of its one-mile length, from its confluence with the Salmon River upstream to an elevation of 450 feet.

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary.

Comment (Reserve-Resource): Reserves = An unmined alluvial deposit in the upper part of the creek is estimated to contain 7,000 cubic yards of material containing 0.0125 ounce of PGM per cubic yard (Fechner, 1988, p. 74).

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Fechner, 1988

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Dowry Creek, a west tributary to upper Salmon River, flows eastward from headwaters on the northeast flank of the Red Mountain ultramafic pluton. It has been placer mined over about 0.6 miles of its one-mile length, from its confluence with the Salmon River upstream to an elevation of 450 feet. Platinum on Dowry Creek was probably discovered in 1928, the year it was discovered on nearby Clara Creek (HG010). At least some mining occurred in 1935 and a dragline, first installed on Clara Creek in 1935, was probably moved to Dowry Creek and worked the paysteak out by 1941. Bedrock in Dowry Creek is mostly dunite of the Red Mountain ultramafic pluton. Dowry Creek contained about 5 feet of gravel and about 90,000 cubic yards were placer mined. The mean of 5 analyses of Pt-rich samples from Dowry Creek, recomputed free of impurities, is 87.56% Pt, 7.34% Ir, 1.47% Os, 0.12% Ru, 1.25% Rh, 0.46% Pd, and 1.80% Au (Mertie, 1976). Serpentinized dunite at the head of the creek is overlain by a 120-foot-wide and 2-foot-thick unmined deposit of cobbles, boulders, and clay that contains 0.0215 ounce of PGM and 0.0006 ounce of Au per cubic yard (Fechner, 1988, p. 73). Gold particle fineness measurements were 738 and 828. A sample of 3 feet of bank material at an elevation of 600 feet contained 0.0035 ounce of PGM per cubic yard, and two samples of placer mine tailings contained 0.0007 and 0.0015 ounce of PGM per cubic yard (Fechner, 1988, p. 73). Microprobe analyses of platinum-rich grains showed 0.8 to 1.5 percent Rh, 0.4 to 0.9 percent Ru, 63.4 to 80.2 percent Pt, 7.2 to 18 percent Ir, 1.2 to 6.8 percent Os, and 6.6 to 7.5 percent Fe. The grains consisted of iron-platinum alloy containing 8 to 30 percent Fe; iron-platinum alloy with minor osmiridium inclusions; and osmiridium, hollingsworthite, osmium, xingzhongite, iridarsenite, irarsite, sperrylite, and tulameenite.

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

References

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Hagemeister Island quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-362, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Fechner, S.A., 1988, Bureau of Mines mineral investigation of the Goodnews Bay mining district, Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 1-88, 230 p.

Reference (Deposit): Mertie, J.B., Jr., 1976, Platinum deposits in the Goodnews Bay district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 938, 42 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1980, Summaries of data and lists of references to metallic and selected nonmetallic mineral deposits in fifteen quadrangles in southwestern and west-central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 80-909, 103 p.

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