Box Canyon Mine

The Box Canyon Mine is a vanadium and uranium mine located in Rio Arriba county, New Mexico at an elevation of 7,080 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: Box Canyon Mine
Secondary: Mine: Wasson
Secondary: Wasson-Box Canyon
Secondary: Box Canyon-Wasson
Secondary: Claim: Box Canyon Claims

Commodity

Primary: Vanadium
Primary: Uranium

Location

State: New Mexico
County: Rio Arriba
District: Chama Basin

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: Surface

Ownership

Owner Name: Box Canyon Mining Co.

Production

Year: 1957
Material type: ORE V
Description: Ap_Grade: ^0.11% V2o5
Year: 1957
Material type: ORE U
Description: Ap_Grade: ^0.10% U3o8

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: Stratiform
Operation Type: Unknown
Year First Production: 1957
Year Last Production: 1957
Discovery Year: 1955
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

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

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Form: DISSEMINATED

Structure

Type: L
Description: Intraformational Fold

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Name: Limestone
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock Unit
Age Young: Late Jurassic

Name: Limestone
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Jurassic

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: IN 1956 A GRAB SAMPLE ASSAYED AS 0.03 TO 0.05 PERCENT U3O8. IN 1957 LOW GRADE ORE WAS MINED WITH A 1:1 U:V RATIO (ANDERSON, 1980).

Materials

Not available

Comments

Comment (Deposit): THE MINERALIZED ZONE IS ASSOCIATED WITH AN INTRAFORMATIONAL FOLD SIMILAR TO TODILITO DEPOSITS IN THE GRANTS DISTRICT. (MCLEMORE, 1983)

Comment (Deposit): Discovery Year: 1950'S

Comment (Location): LOCATION IS ESTIMATED FROM DIRECTIONS GIVEN IN ANDERSON'S REPORT (1980). ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :(1979)

Comment (Production): PRODUCTION EQUALED 132 TONS OF ORE. THIS MINE WAS THE LARGEST URANIUM PRODUCER IN RIO ARRIBA COUNTY

Comment (Workings): WORKINGS CONSIST OF A LARGE OPEN-CUT TRENCH THAT IS 260 FT LONG, 50 FT WIDE AND 30 FT DEEP. THE ENDS OF THE TRENCHDROP OFF INTO TWO CANYONS.

Comment (Geology): GEOL.ENV: PLATFORM COVER ROCKS INCL COAST PLNS

References

Reference (Production): MCLEMORE, V.T., 1983, NMBMMR OFR-183, P. 3-7

Reference (Deposit): HILPERT, L.S., 1969, USGS PP 603, P 46

Reference (Deposit): NMBMMR GENERAL FILE DATA

Reference (Deposit): MCLEMORE, V.T., 1983, NMBMMR OFR-183, P. 3-7, 1-360.

Reference (Deposit): ANDERSON, O.J., 1980, NMBMMR OFR-148, 778 P.

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