Oregon Creek

Site Name

Primary: Oregon Creek

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Commodity

Primary: Gold
Secondary: Titanium
Secondary: Bismuth
Secondary: Tungsten

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Location

State: Alaska
District: Nome

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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: 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: Bismuth
Ore: Stibnite
Ore: Sphalerite
Ore: Scheelite
Ore: Rutile
Ore: Magnetite
Ore: Hematite
Ore: Gold
Ore: Galena
Gangue: Garnet

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Comments

Comment (Geology): Geologic Description = Gold was discovered in Oregon Creek and adjacent bench deposits before 1901 (Brooks and others, 1901, p. 69, 92-94); the deposits were worked extensively before 1918. Gold, accompanied by magnetite, garnet, bismuth, rutile, and scheelite, occurs in the placer deposits (Collier and others, 1908, p. 211-213; Cobb, 1975 [MR-66]; Anderson, 1947). Boulders of schist containing galena and sphalerite were found in the placer open cuts (Herreid, 1970). Stibnite and quartz boulders occur upstream in Mountain Creek, and stibnite was found in place in schist on the south side of Oregon Creek by Kennecott Exploration Company in 1992. Calcareous schist and schistose marble boulders containing galena and sphalerite are similar to rocks found upstream at the Aurora (NM140) and Christophosen (NM141) prospects. The boulders are either derived from these deposits or another deposit closer to the placer deposits. Boulders of gneiss, apparently derived from the Kigluaik Mountains, are also found at Oregon Creek. The placer deposit in the active creek was covered by only a few feet of gravel. Bench deposits were covered by about 20 to 25 feet of gravel. These deposits were mined both by drift and surface hydraulic methods. The pay zone on Oregon Creek was about 70 feet wide but less than 1 foot thick. Bedrock in the Oregon Creek area is mainly calc-schist, but outcrops on the north side of the creek appear to be a felsic schist, similar to the felsic schist unit exposed at Aurora Creek (Bundtzen and others, 1994).

Comment (Reference): Primary Reference = Collier and others, 1908

Comment (Workings): Workings / Exploration = The placer deposits have been worked by surface hand operations, hydraulic cuts, and drift mining. Placer mining began in 1900; the gold produced in 1900 from Oregon and nearby Nugget (NM147), Mountain (NM145) and Hungry Creeks (NM149) was estimated at about 2,400 ounces (Brooks and others, 1901, p. 69). Mining was reported by Moffit (1905), Collier and others (1908), in 1914 by Eakin (1915 [B 622-I, p. 369-370]), in 1916 (Mertie, 1918 [B 662-I, p. 455]), and in 1918 (Cathcart, 1920, p. 189). The area was worked by non-float mechanical methods in 1940 (Smith, 1942, p. 57). Some mining by open-cut methods on the patented claims occurred in the 1990's.

Comment (Reserve-Resource): Reserves = There is at least a small placer resource left in the area, especially in the bench deposits.

Comment (Production): Production Notes = Patented claims cover most of the bench placers.

Comment (Deposit): Model Name = Alluvial placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).

Comment (Exploration): Status = Active

Comment (Geology): Age = Quaternary.

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References

Reference (Deposit): Moffit, F.H., 1906, Gold mining on Seward Peninsula, Alaska, in Brooks, A.H., and others, Report on progress of investigations of mineral resources in Alaska in 1905: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 284, p. 132-144.

Reference (Deposit): Bundtzen, T.K., Reger, R.D., Laird, G.M., Pinney, D.S., Clautice, K.H., Liss, S.A., and Cruse, G.R., 1994, Progress report on the geology and mineral resources of the Nome mining district: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, Public Data-File 94-39, 21 p., 2 sheets, scale 1:63,360.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1975, Tungsten occurrences in Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Mineral Investigations Resource Map MR-66, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1978, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Nome quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File report 78-93, 213 p.

Reference (Deposit): Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Nome quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-463, 2 sheets, scale 1:250,000.

Reference (Deposit): Herreid, G.H., 1970, Geology and geochemistry of the Sinuk area, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Geologic Report 36, 61 p., 3 sheets, scale 1:42,000.

Reference (Deposit): Cathcart, S.H., 1920, Mining in northwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 712, p. 185-198.

Reference (Deposit): Anderson, Eskil, 1947, Mineral occurrences other than gold deposits in northwestern Alaska: Alaska Territorial Division of Mines Pamphlet 5-R, 48 p.

Reference (Deposit): Brooks, A.H., Richardson, G. B., and Collier, A. J., 1901, Reconnaissance in the Cape Nome and Norton Bay regions, Alaska, in 1900: U.S. Geological Survey Special Publication, p. 1-180.

Reference (Deposit): Eakin, H.M., 1915, Placer mining in Seward Peninsula: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 622-I, p. 366-373.

Reference (Deposit): Collier, A. J., Hess, F.L., Smith, P.S., and Brooks, A.H., 1908, The gold placers of parts of Seward Peninsula, Alaska, including the Nome, Council, Kougarok, Port Clarence, and Goodhope precincts: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 328, 343 p.

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