Little Rocky Creek Ni-Cu

The Little Rocky Creek Ni-Cu is a nickel and copper mine located in Stillwater county, Montana at an elevation of 8,451 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

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.

Site Name

Primary: Little Rocky Creek Ni-Cu
Secondary: Benbow
Secondary: Rocky Group
Secondary: Chrome Lake

Commodity

Primary: Nickel
Primary: Copper
Secondary: Cobalt
Tertiary: Gold
Tertiary: Silver
Tertiary: PGE

Location

State: Montana
County: Stillwater
District: In Stillwater Complex

Land Status

Land ownership: National Forest
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: Underground

Ownership

Owner Name: Amoco Minerals Co. (Operated Rocky Group)
Years: 1985 -

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Occurrence
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Year: 1883
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Rocky Mountain System
Physiographic Province: Middle Rocky Mountains

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Stillwater Ni-Cu

Orebody

Form: MASSIVE AND DISSEMINATED

Structure

Type: R
Description: The Stillwater Complex Is Exposed Along The Northern Margin Of The Beartooth Uplift, One Of Several Laramide Basement-Cored Ranges That Make Up The Rocky Mountain Foreland Of South-Central Montana (Foose And Others, 1961: Kulik And Schmidt, 1988)

Type: L
Description: Local Faults Of Small Displacement

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: None Related To Ore-Forming Process

Rocks

Name: Quartz Monzonite
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Early Cretaceous

Name: Quartz Monzonite
Role: Host
Age Type: Associated Rock Unit
Age Young: Neoarchean

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: AVERAGE OF ANALYSES OF SURFACE SAMPLES: 32.8 PPB PT, 9.1 PPB PD (MAX. 190 PPB PT, 18 PPB PD)

Materials

Ore: Pyrrhotite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Pentlandite
Gangue: Plagioclase
Gangue: Magnetite

Comments

Comment (Location): UNSURVEYED. IN CUSTER NATIONAL FOREST

Comment (Commodity): SEE PAGE (1979) FOR GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF BASAL SERIES MINERALIZATION.

Comment (Workings): 4 ADITS, INACCESSIBLE; 9 DIAMOND DRILL HOLES TOTALING 5,564 FT DRILLED IN 1967-1970; 14 DRILLHOLES IN 1983 TOTALLING 20,073 FT

Comment (Geology): AGE OF STILLWATER COMPLEX IS 2,705 +/- 4 MA BASED ON U-PB SYSTEMATICS ON ZIRCON-BADDELEYITE (PREMO AND OTHERS, 1990)

References

Reference (Deposit): ZIENTEK, M.L., AND RIPLEY, E.M., 1990, SULFUR ISOTOPIC STUDIES OF THE STILLWATER COMPLEX AND ASSOCIATED ROCKS, MONTANA: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY, V. 85, P. 376-391.

Reference (Deposit): PREMO, W.R., HELZ, R.T., ZIENTEK, M.L., AND LANGSTON, R.B., 1990, U-PB AND SM-ND AGES FOR THE STILLWATER COMPLEX AND ITS ASSOCIATED SILLS AND DIKES, BEARTOOTH MOUNTAINS, MONTANA: IDENTIFICATION OF A PARENT MAGMA?: GEOLOGY, V. 18, P. 1065-1068.

Reference (Deposit): PAGE, N.J, 1979, STILLWATER COMPLEX, MONTANA - STRUCTURE, MINERALOGY, AND PETROLOGY OF THE BASAL ZONE WITH EMPHASIS ON THE OCCURRENCE OF SULFIDES: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1038, 69 P.

Reference (Deposit): PAGE, N.J, RILEY, L.B., AND HAFFTY, JOSEPH, 1972, VERTICAL AND LATERAL VARIATION OF PLATINUM, PALLADIUM, AND RHODIUM IN THE STILLWATER COMPLEX, MONTANA: ECONOMIC GEOLOGY, V. 67, P. 1356-1357.

Reference (Deposit): ZIENTEK, M.L., 1993, MINERAL RESOURCE APPRAISAL FOR LOCATABLE MINERALS: THE STILLWATER COMPLEX, IN HAMMARSTROM, J.M., ZIENTEK, M.L., AND ELLIOTT, J.E., EDS., MINERAL RESOURCE ASSESSMENT OF THE ABSAROKA-BEARTOOTH STUDY AREA, CUSTER AND GALLATIN NATIONAL FORESTS, MONTANA: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OPEN-FILE REPORT 93-207, P. F1-F83.

Reference (Deposit): PAGE, N.J, RILEY, L.B., AND HAFFTY, JOSEPH, 1969, PLATINUM, PALLADIUM, AND RHODIUM ANALYSES OF ULTRAMAFIC AND MAFIC ROCKS FROM THE STILLWATER COMPLEX, MONTANA: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 624, P. 6.

Reference (Deposit): HOWLAND, A.L., PEOPLES, J.W., AND SAMPSON, EDWARD, 1936, THE STILLWATER IGNEOUS COMPLEX AND ASSOCIATED OCCURRENCES OF NICKEL AND PLATINUM GROUP METALS: MONTANA BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY MISCELLANEOUS CONTRIBUTION 7, P. 11.

Reference (Deposit): ROBY, R.N., 1949, INVESTIGATION OF COPPER-NICKEL DEPOSITS OF THE STILLWATER COMPLEX, STILLWATER AND SWEETGRASS COUNTIES, MONTANA: U.S. BUREAU OF MINES REPORT OF INVESTIGATIONS 4431, P. 10.

Principal Gold Districts of Montana

In Montana, 54 mining districts have each have produced more than 10,000 ounces of gold. The largest producers are Butte, Helena, Marysville, and Virginia City, each having produced more than one million ounces. Twenty seven other districts are each credited with between 100,000 and one million ounces of gold production. Read more: Principal Gold Districts of Montana.