Pronto Plata Mine

The Pronto Plata Mine is a mercury mine located in Pershing county, Nevada at an elevation of 6,699 feet.

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

Name: Pronto Plata Mine  

State:  Nevada

County:  Pershing

Elevation: 6,699 Feet (2,042 Meters)

Commodity: Mercury

Lat, Long: 40.50889, -117.74333

Map: View on Google Maps

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.


Satelite image of the Pronto Plata Mine

Pronto Plata Mine MRDS details

Site Name

Primary: Pronto Plata Mine
Secondary: Includes Red Mill Claim
Secondary: NBMG Sample Site 2362


Commodity

Primary: Mercury


Location

State: Nevada
County: Pershing
District: Gold Banks District (Kennedy)


Land Status

Not available


Holdings

Not available


Workings

Not available


Ownership

Owner Name: H. W. Baldwin


Production

Not available


Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Year: 1939
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S


Physiography

Not available


Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Hot-spring Hg


Orebody

Form: BLANKET


Structure

Not available


Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Argillization Of Adjacent Sediments


Rocks

Name: Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic)
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Pliocene

Name: Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic)
Role: Associated
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Pleistocene


Analytical Data

Analytical Data: LOW GRADE ORE. SAMPLE 2362 OF SELECT CINNABAR-BEARING OPALITE CONTAINS 0.3 % FE, 0.02 % MG, 0.3 % TI, 150 PPM MN, 50 PPM B, 200-0 PPM BA, 1.5 PPM BE, 10 PPM CR, 50 PPM CU, 5 PPM NI, 100 PPM -SB, 15 PPM V, 150 PPM ZR.


Materials

Ore: Cinnabar
Gangue: Pyrite
Gangue: Quartz


Comments

Comment (Deposit): DISSEMINATED AND STREAKY CINNABAR OCCURS IN LIGHT GREY OPALITE. THE OPALITE IS PROBABLY A REPLACEMENT OF TUFF AND -PEBBLY TUFF. THE FINE-GRAINED OPALITE UNIT MAY BE ONLY 1-2 M T-HICK, ALTHOUGH IT IS NOT ANYWHERE COMPLETELY EXPOSED. ARGILLIZ-ED OLIVE TUFFACEOUS SEDIMENTS ARE ADJACENT TO THE OPALITE. THE- OPALITE UNDERLIES A RIDGE-CAPPING TERTIARY BASALT FLOW UNIT. -ORE IS PRESUMABLY AT THE SAME STRATIGRAPHIC HORIZON AS THAT AT- THE GOLDBANKS MINE, AND IT HAS THE SAME GENERAL CHARACTER WIT-H FINELY DIVIDED CINNABAR COLORING FAVORABLE PARTS OF THE OPAL-ITE BLANKET. LOCALLY THE OPALITE IS UNUSUALLY VUGGY WITH IRREG-ULAR CAVITIES LINED WITH CLEAR CRYSTALS OF POST-CINNABAR QUART-Z. ORE LACKS CONTINUITY.

Comment (Workings): MANY BULLDOZER CUTS, SHORT ADITS, SCATTERED PITS, SMALL OPEN PIT, DRILL HOLES.

Comment (Development): R-ESTAKED BY OTHERS (POSSIBLY KENNECOTT?). IN 1984, RECENT ROTAR-Y DRILLING AND ROADS NORTH OF THE OLD PIT 200+ M WERE NOTED, P-OSSIBLY BY KENNECOTT.

Comment (Development): IN 1940, THE PRONTO PLATA CLAIMS 1-9 AND THE RED HILL CLAIM WERE LOCATED, AND LATER ABOUT 50 MORE PRONTO PLATA CLA-IMS WERE ADDED. IN 1942 AND 1943, THE BRADLEY MINING COMPANY D-ID CONSIDERABLE EXPLORATION BY MEANS OF ABOUT 20 BULLDOZER CUT-S, SHORT ADITS, AND SCATTERED PITS OVER ABOUT 0.5 SQ MI. THE L-ARGEST CUTS ARE BELOW THE SMALL CABIN ON THE PROPERTY AND CONS-IST OF A 400-FT-LONG GASH ALONG THE HILLSIDE, AND 2 OTHER CUTS- ABOUT 140 FT LONG, DIVERGING FROM IT AND TRENDING AT RIGHT AN-GLES UP THE HILL. IN SPITE OF EXTENSIVE EXPLORATION, THE ONLY -PRODUCTION HAS COME FROM TEST RUNS OF ORE HAULED TO THE BRADLE-Y FURNACE AT OPALITE, AND BY AUG 1943, THE PROPERTY WAS IDLE. -TITLE TO THE PROPERTY WAS RETAINED BY H. W. BALDWIN UNTIL 1962- WITH ADDITIONAL EXPLORATION DONE UNDER LEASE BY STANLEY JOHNS-ON IN 1958, COLGATE CORP OF LOS ANGELES IN 1959, AND C. R. BIS-HOP AND T. R. MOXNESS IN 1961, BUT NONE OF THESE ACHIEVED ANY -PRODUCTION. BALDWIN DROPPED THE PROPERTY IN 1962, AND IT WAS

Comment (Commodity): ERRATICALLY DISTRIBUTED IN IRREGULAR OPALITE BEDS

Comment (Reserve-Resource): NO RESERVES SEEN

Comment (Location): ON NE FLANK OF TABLE MOUNTAIN


References

Reference (Deposit): BAILEY AND PHOENIX, 1944, QUICKSILVER DEPOSITS IN NEVADA: NBMG BULL. 41

Reference (Deposit): JOHNSON, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF PERSHING COUNTY, NEVADA: NBMG BULL. (IN PRESS)

Reference (Deposit): GARSIDE, L. J., 9 OCT 84, NBMG FIELD EXAMINATION AND SAMPLE ANALYSIS.

Reference (Deposit): BAILEY, E. H., RYTUBA, J. J. AND JONES, R. B., 1984, UNPUBLISHED DATA ON NEVADA HG DEPOSITS, NBMG FILES.

Reference (Deposit): HOLMES, G. H., JR., 1965, USBM IC 8252, P. 241

Reference (Deposit): BAILEY, E. H., U S GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, PERSONAL FILES


Nevada Gold

Gold Districts of Nevada

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.