Magalia District

Site Name

Primary: Magalia District

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Commodity

Primary: Gold

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Location

State: California
County: Butte
District: Magalia District

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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: District
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: Stream placer
Operation Type: Surface-Underground
Discovery Year: 1849
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: M

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Physiography

Not available

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Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Placer Au-PGE

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Orebody

Form: Irregular

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Structure

Not available

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Alterations

Not available

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Rocks

Name: Sand and Gravel
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Tertiary

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Analytical Data

Not available

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Materials

Ore: Gold
Gangue: Quartz

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Comments

Comment (Geology): REGIONAL GEOLOGY The Magalia District is situated at the western edge of the Sierra Nevada geologic province. This province is characterized by extremely complex lithologies and structures that were assembled through various plate-tectonic processes. Paleozoic-Mesozoic metamorphic complexes intruded by various Mesozoic plutons compose the basement of the province. This basement is overlain locally by erosional remnants of Cenozoic volcanic and sedimentary rocks, including gravels. Most of these various lithologies contain gold in places. Structurally, the metamorphic rocks and some of the plutonic rocks have been deformed by folding and faulting. The major fault zones typically trend northerly or northwesterly, although in places intrusion of the younger plutons has deformed some of the zones so as to assume other trends as well. In contrast, the overlying Cenozoic rocks are relatively undeformed. LOCAL GEOLOGY The district is on a northerly trending ridge between Butte Creek on the west and the West Branch of the Feather River on the east. This relatively flat-topped, sloping ridge is capped by volcanic rocks of the Tertiary Tuscan Formation, which cover a series of older gravel-filled Tertiary channels that drained in a southerly to southwesterly direction when active. It is these channel deposits that were mined for placer gold. The longest is the Magalia, or Mammoth, Channel, which is along the east side of the district. Also important is the Emma Channel, which is along the west side. Underneath these channel deposits, and exposed at places in the bottoms of the canyons of Butte Creek and the West Branch of the Feather River, are various metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks as well as ultramafic rocks. At a few locations, Cretaceous sedimentary rocks overlie these basement rocks. Faulting of the Tertiary gravels has been observed in several drift mines in the district.

Comment (Identification): The district includes the following mines of note: Magalia (Perschbaker), Emma, Indian Springs, and Royal.

Comment (Location): Location selected for latitude and longitude is approximately the Magalia Mine shaft symbol on the USGS 15-minute Paradise quadrangle.

Comment (Workings): Most production was from drift mining, with lesser amounts from hydraulic mining. Excess water has always been a problem in the drift mines.

Comment (Commodity): Gangue Materials: Quartz, metamorphic rock, igneous rock (as clasts)

Comment (Deposit): The district is developed in gold-bearing alluvial gravels of Tertiary age that were deposited in a number of south-southwest-trending steep, narrow, and rich channels. The longest channel is the Magalia, or Mammoth, Channel.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Materials: Native gold

Comment (Development): Very little has been published on the geology and production of the mining districts in Butte County. This region was extensively mined during and after the gold rush. Large-scale mining continued until the 1890?s; there was some activity from the early 1900?s through the 1930?s. O?Brien (1949) reported some work at the Magalia Mine in the mid-1940?s. The 54-pound troy Willard (Magalia) Nugget, which was found in this district in 1859, is the largest true gold nugget known to have been discovered in California.

Comment (Economic Factors): Koschmann and Bergendahl (1968) reported a minimum of 66,000 ounces of gold produced from this district, but this amount is considered to be much less than the actual production. Clark (1970) estimated that total production for this district was in excess of $25 million.

Comment (Commodity): Commodity Info: the gold was extremely coarse, and a number of large nuggets were found here, including the famous 54-pound troy Willard (Magalia) Nugget.

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References

Reference (Deposit): Clark, W.B., 1970, Gold districts of California: California Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin 193, p. 88.

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): Lindgren, W., 1911, Tertiary gravels of the Sierra Nevada: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 73, p. 90-93.

Reference (Deposit): Logan, C.A., 1930, Butte County: California State Mining Bureau, 26th Report of the State Mineralogist, p. 360-412.

Reference (Deposit): O?Brien, J.C., 1949, Mines and mineral resources of Butte County, California: California Journal of Mines and Geology, v. 45, no. 3, p. 417-454.

Reference (Deposit): Saucedo, G.J. and Wagner, D.L., 1992, Geologic map of the Chico Quadrangle, California: California Department of Conservation, Division of Mines and Geology Regional Geologic Map Series, Map No. 7A, scale 1:250,000.

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California Gold

"Where to Find Gold in California" looks at the density of modern placer mining claims along with historical gold mining locations and mining district descriptions to determine areas of high gold discovery potential in California. Read more: Where to Find Gold in California.