Round Mountain Placers

Site Name

Primary: Round Mountain Placers
Secondary: Round Mountain Gold Dredging Corp.

---

Commodity

Primary: Gold
Secondary: Silver

---

Location

State: Nevada
County: Nye
District: Round Mountain District

---

Land Status

Land ownership: Private
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.

---

Holdings

Not available

---

Workings

Type: Surface

---

Ownership

Owner Name: Round Mountain Gold Dredging Corp.
Years: 1951 -

Owner Name: Round Mountain Gold Dredging Co. (1950s)
Info Year: 1950

---

Production

Not available

---

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: placer
Operation Type: Placer
Mining Method: Alluvial Mining
Year First Production: 1906
Year Last Production: 1970
Discovery Year: 1906
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: M

---

Physiography

Not available

---

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer Au-PGE

---

Orebody

Form: blanket

---

Structure

Not available

---

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: There has been very little enrichment by oxidation, as the gravels have not been transported much distance.

---

Rocks

Name: Alluvium
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Quaternary

Name: Gravel
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Quaternary

---

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: Fineness ranges from 574 to 696

---

Materials

Ore: Magnetite
Ore: Scheelite
Ore: Gold

---

Comments

Comment (Location): The Round Mountain placer operations were located mainly on the south and west sides of Round Mountain with lesser placers on the east side. The major dredging activity of the 1950s was centered about 0.75 mile west of the town of Round Mountain.

Comment (Workings): Workings consist of the North Pit and the South Pit as well as other pits in vicinity of the main vein and stringer ore zones.

Comment (Deposit): The deposit is a blanket of erosional material derived from primary veins and stringer zones in the Round Mountain lode gold deposit. Gold is distributed throughout the gravels, but the best values were found on bedrock. Gravels are about 30 feet thick on Round Mountain, thickening to more than 200 feet thick in the valley less than a mile west. The gold is coarse and angular.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Materials: native gold

Comment (Commodity): Gangue Materials: magnetite, scheelite

Comment (Development): The first placering in the district was done by dry-washing. From 1906 to 1915 all work was done by lessees. In 1907, Round Mountain Hydraulic Company was organized and pumped in water from Jefferson and Shoshone creeks. In 1914, Round Mountain Mining Co constructed a pipeline from Jett Canyon and began hydraulic operations. Placering continued with varying degrees of intensity, until 1940. It was reactivated in 1950 by Round Mountain Gold Dredging Co. which used large-scale dredging and draglines to mine in 1950-1952 and 1958-1959, operating as one of the largest and most productive placer operations in the history of dry placer mining in the southwestern US, producing about 145,000 ounces of gold. Small scale placering resumed from 1960 through 1968, and from 1970 to 1972, Copper Range Exploration Company and Ordrich Gold Reserves Company renewed exploration of both the lode and placer prospects in the district. These have been the state's most productive placer deposits in the 20th century.

Comment (Economic Factors): Total production from the Round Mountain placer operations is estimated at more than 232,000 ounces of gold.

Comment (Identification): This record is an updated version of MRDS record # M231739 including all information from it plus additional information.

Comment (Deposit): MAIN PLACER PITS FLANK THE ALLUVIAL/RHYOLITE BEDROCK CONTACT AREA ON WEST AND NORTH SIDES OF ROUND MTN, MOSTLY IN SE1/4 SEC. 19, T. 10 N., R. 44 E. FROM 1946 TO 1960 MATERIAL WAS HAULED BY CONVEYORS TO A STATIONARY WASH PLANT IN SE1/4, SEC. 24, T. 10 N., R. 43 E AND THE TAILINGS WERE STACKED INTO TWO LARGE ELONGATE TAILINGS PILES IMMEDIATELY NORTH AND NORTHWEST OF THE PLANT. ONLY THE DUMPS ARE VISIBLE IN 1994. SEE ROUND MOUNTAIN MINE 0320230149 FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION ON THIS PROPERTY. ALSO SEE MINES & RESPONDENT ID 2600594, MINERAL PROPERTY FILE 30.21. AREAS OF DEVELOPMENT INTEREST IN THIS PART OF THE TOQUIMA RANGE ARE ADMINISTERED AS TOIYABE NATIONAL FOREST.

---

References

Reference (Deposit): Vanderburg,W. O.,1936, NBMG Bull. 27, p.133-146

Reference (Deposit): USGS Bull. 1356, p. 64-68.

Reference (Deposit): Long, K.R., DeYoung, J.H., Jr., and Ludington, S.D., 1998, Database of significant deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States; Part A, Database description and analysis; part B, Digital database: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-206, 33 p., one 3.5 inch diskette.

Reference (Deposit): Kleinhampl, F. J. and Ziony, J. I., 1988, Geology and Mineral Deposits of Northern Nye County: NBMG Bull. 99A and 99bB.

Reference (Deposit): Kral,V E., 1951, NBMG Bull. 50.

Reference (Deposit): PACKARD, G.A., ENGINEERING & MINING JOURNAL, JANUARY 19, 1907, P. 150-151.

---

Nevada Gold

Nevada has a total of 368 distinct gold districts. Of the of those, just 36 are major producers with production and/or reserves of over 1,000,000 ounces, 49 have production and/or reserves of over 100,000 ounces, with the rest having less than 100,000 ounces. Read more: Gold Districts of Nevada.