The Original Amador is a gold mine located in Amador county, California.
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
Satelite View
MRDS mine locations are often very general, and in some cases are incorrect. Some mine remains have been covered or removed by modern industrial activity or by development of things like housing. The satellite view offers a quick glimpse as to whether the MRDS location corresponds to visible mine remains.
Original Amador MRDS details
Site Name
Primary: Original Amador
Secondary: Eclipse
Secondary: Little Amador
Commodity
Primary: Gold
Location
State: California
County: Amador
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
Not available
Ownership
Owner Name: J. W. Bullock
Home Office: C/O C. E. Crandall
Production
Not available
Deposit
Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Year: 1852
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: M
Physiography
General Physiographic Area: Pacific Mountain System
Physiographic Province: Cascade-Sierra Mountains
Physiographic Section: Sierra Nevada
Mineral Deposit Model
Not available
Orebody
Form: PINCH AND SWELL
Structure
Type: L
Description: Reverse Faulting Along Vein Fissure Is Probably More Clearly And Accurately Measurable In The Original Amador Than Any Other Mine On The Mother Lode, It Amounts To 180 Ft.
Alterations
Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: In Places On The Vein, The Quartz Commonly Sploched With Aggregates Of Muscovite Formed By Hydrothermal Alteration Of Inclosed Filaments Of Schistose Greenstone.
Rocks
Not available
Analytical Data
Not available
Materials
Ore: Gold
Comments
Comment (Workings): MINE OPENED BY INCLINED SHAFT 1,240 FT WITH 9,720 FT OF DRIFTS, 7,025 FT OF CROSSCUTS, AND 27,450 FT OF RAISES. SHAFT ON VEIN FROM SURFACE TO 300 FT LEVEL, WHERE VEIN PASSES INTO FOOTWALL.
Comment (Geology): GEOL.DESC: BLACK SLATE IN UPPER LEVEL OF WORKINGS, PASSES INTO GREENSTONE AT DEPTH AS QUARTZ VEIN FLATTENS. CONTACT EXPOSED A SHORT DISTANCE WEST OF MAIN SHAFT COLLAR. AURIFEROUS GREENSTONE OCCURS ON HANGING WALL WHERE QUARTZ VEIN BRANCHES. CROSSCUT VEINS, RARE IN OTHER MOTHER LODE MINES ARE PARTICULARLY WELL EXPOSED AT 700 FT LEVEL, AND THEIR COURSES ARE IRREGULAR. THESE VEINS RANGE FROM 40 TO 90 FT AND CROSS STRATIGRAPHIC CONTACT WITHOUT ANY DISPLACEMENT.
Comment (Deposit): ORIGINAL AMADOR MINE COMPRISES FOLLOWING CLAIMS: ORIGINAL AMADOR, EAST AMADOR, AMADOR WEDGE, GREAT EASTERN, ECLIPSE EXTENSION, AND LAST CHANCE.
Comment (Production): WORKED 1852-1874; PROSPECTED INTERMITTENTLY UNTIL 1898. BETWEEN 1898 AND 1918 OPERATED BY ORIG. AMADOR CONS. MINES CO. AND FROM 1910-1918 PRODUCED BETWEEN $90,000 AND $130,000 PER YEAR. IDLE UNTIL EARLY 1935 WHEN IT WAS REOPENED AND WORKED UNTIL MIDDLE OF 1937. THE TOTAL PRODUCTION IS ESTIMATED AT $3,500,000. ORE WAS OBTAINED FROM THE ORIGINAL AMADOR QUARTZ VEIN AND FROM LARGE IRREGULAR MASSES OF AURIFEROUS GREENSTONE. MINE IS A CONSOLIDATION OF SIX CLAIMS
Comment (Deposit): ORE SHOOTS IN QUARTZ VEINS LENTICULAR IN SHAPE.
References
Reference (Deposit): CARLSON, W.D., AND CLARK, W.B., 1954 , MINES AND MIN. RES. OF AMADOR COUNTY: CJMG VOL. 50 , P 188 .
Reference (Deposit): KNOPF, ADOLPH, 1929 , THE MOTHER LODE SYSTEM OF CAL.: U.S.G.S. PROF. PAPER 157 , P. 56 - 59
Reference (Deposit): TUCKER, W.B., 1914 , AMADOR COUNTY: CMB REPT. 14 , P. 39
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.
