The Blue Ox Mine is a copper, gold, and silver mine located in Sanders county, Montana at an elevation of 3,360 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
Elevation: 3,360 Feet (1,024 Meters)
Commodity: Copper, Gold, Silver
Lat, Long: 47.27472, -114.40250
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.
Blue Ox Mine MRDS details
Site Name
Primary: Blue Ox Mine
Secondary: Brown Tunnel
Commodity
Primary: Copper
Primary: Gold
Primary: Silver
Secondary: Platinum
Secondary: Palladium
Location
State: Montana
County: Sanders
Land Status
Not available
Holdings
Not available
Workings
Type: Surface/Underground
Ownership
Not available
Production
Not available
Deposit
Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Unknown
Discovery Method: Unknown
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S
Physiography
Not available
Mineral Deposit Model
Not available
Orebody
Form: FRACTURE FILLING, BRECCIA ZONES, VEINS
Structure
Type: R
Description: Dike Lies Along East Limb Of A Broad Anticline. Northwest Folds And Faults, Some Northeast Faulting
Type: L
Description: North Striking Faults And Shears
Alterations
Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Argillic Alteration In Shears, Diorite Altered To Serpentine And Talc. Regional Greenschist To Epidote-Amphibolite Facies
Rocks
Name: Hornblendite
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock Unit
Age Young: Neoproterozoic
Name: Hornblendite
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Neoproterozoic
Name: Hornblendite
Role: Associated
Age Type: Associated Rock
Age Young: Neoproterozoic
Analytical Data
Analytical Data: 45 DIKE SAMPLES RAN 0.005-2.9 PPM PD, <0.1-1.2 PPM PT, <5-39 PPB RH. ADDITIONAL ANALYTICAL DATA AVAILABLE IN INGERSOLL AND OTHERS
Materials
Ore: Malachite
Ore: Chrysocolla
Ore: Pyrrhotite
Ore: Pyrite
Ore: Sperrylite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Tenorite
Ore: Gold
Ore: Bornite
Ore: Cuprite
Gangue: Hematite
Gangue: Quartz
Gangue: Limonite
Gangue: Chlorite
Comments
Comment (Commodity): MINERALOGY ASSUMED TO BE THE SAME AS AT DRAKE MINE. A PAUCITY OF PGE MINERALS MAY INDICATE THAT PGE ARE INCORPORATED INTO OTHER MINERAL STRUCTURES
Comment (Production): PRODUCTION MAY HAVE PARTIALLY COME FROM SURFACE PITS
Comment (Deposit): DEPOSIT IS PROBABLY SIMILAR TO DRAKE DEPOSIT. IT LIES TO NORTH WITHIN SAME DIKE; UNPUBLISHED MODEL NAME: REVAIS CREEK CU-AU-PGE.
Comment (Workings): 2 ADITS, ONE CAVED. NO STOPES OBSERVED IN ACCESSIBLE ADIT BUT THERE MAY HAVE BEEN A STOPE ALONG THE CAVED CROSSCUT THAT FOLLOWS A HEAVY FAULT 265 FT FROM PORTAL
Comment (Deposit): RECORD DC11292 HAS BEEN MERGED AND DELETED. SEE ALSO: MRDS W026566.
Comment (Location): IN FLATHEAD INDIAN RESERVATION. LOCATION GIVEN IS FOR WESTERN OF TWO ADITS SHOWN FOR BLUE OX ON MAP
Comment (Geology): DIKE CAN BE TRACED ALONG REVAIS CREEK FOR 8,000 FT. ALTHOUGH THE DIKE IS NOT CALLED PART OF THE PURCELL SILLS IN THE LITERATURE, IT IS SAID THAT THE DIKE IS POSSIBLY RELATED TO SILLS LOWER IN THE BELT SEQUENCE
References
Reference (Deposit): VAN LOENEN, R.E., HAFFTY, JOSEPH, AND EARHART, R.L., 1984, PLATINUM AND PALLADIUM IN A MAFIC DIKE, SANDERS COUNTY, MONTANA: U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1694-G, P. 83-89.
Reference (Deposit): INGERSOLL, R.G., JR., GALLOWAY, GARY, AND DUNN, MICHAEL, 1982, FIELD INVENTORY OF MINERAL RESOURCES, FLATHEAD INDIAN RESERVATION, MONTANA: U.S. BUREAU OF MINES REPORT BIA 22-II, 38 P. + APPENDIX.
Reference (Deposit): CROWLEY, F.A., 1963, MINES AND MINERAL DEPOSITS (EXCEPT FUELS), SANDERS COUNTY, MONTANA: MONTANA BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY BULLETIN 34, 58 P.
Reference (Production): CROWLEY
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.
