Waterloo Mine

The Waterloo Mine is a phosphorus-phosphates mine located in Bear Lake county, Idaho at an elevation of 6,601 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

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Site Name

Primary: Waterloo Mine
Secondary: Montpelier Canyon
Secondary: Montpelier Canyon, Area A
Secondary: Waterloo Hill Mine

Commodity

Primary: Phosphorus-Phosphates
Tertiary: Oil Shale
Tertiary: Fluorine-Fluorite
Tertiary: REE
Tertiary: Uranium
Tertiary: Vanadium

Location

State: Idaho
County: Bear Lake
District: Montpelier District

Land Status

Land ownership: BLM Administrative Area
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

Type: Patented

Workings

Type: Surface/Underground

Ownership

Owner Name: Stauffer Chemical Co.
Info Year: 1975

Owner Name: San Francisco Chemical Co.

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Operation Type: Surface
Year First Production: 1907
Discovery Year: 1907
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: N
Deposit Size: M

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Rocky Mountain System
Physiographic Province: Middle Rocky Mountains
Physiographic Detail: Preuss Range

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Form: TABULAR, SEDIMENTARY

Structure

Type: R
Description: Montpelier Anticline

Type: L
Description: Minor Faults

Alterations

Not available

Rocks

Name: Sandstone
Role: Associated
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Permian

Analytical Data

Analytical Data: DISTILLATION TESTS FOUND TRACE OIL IN 1 PHOSPHATE SAMPLE
Analytical Data: OTHER SAMPLES AVG. 30.68 % P2O5
Analytical Data: RANDOM SAMPLES AVG. 30.91 % P2O5

Materials

Ore: Oil Shale
Unknown: Calcite
Unknown: Collophane
Unknown: Dolomite
Unknown: Feldspar
Unknown: Limonite
Unknown: Muscovite
Unknown: Quartz
Unknown: Sericite

Comments

Comment (Production): Waterloo Hill Mine San Francisco Chemical Co. Was First Large Scale Producer Of Phosphate Rock In Western Field. Waterloo Hill Was Underground, Developed By Adits And Crosscuts, And Stopes Were Driven Above Entry Level In The 4-5 Foot Thick High-Grade Beds. Mine Operated From 1907-1920 1921-1929. Form 1945-1960 Mine Was First Open-Pit Mine In The Western Field. In 1920 American Phosphate Co.Started Development Of The Deposits On The North Side Of Monpelier Canyon. From There Total Production Was 20,000 St Or Ore.

Comment (Development): Econ.Com: Beds Conveniently Situated For Ready Accessibility And Economical Mining ( 1910 )

Comment (Deposit): 1400 Acre Area Held As Phosphate Land ( 1927 )

Comment (Deposit): Leaching Of Calcium Results In Greater P205 Percentage. Area A, Etc. Refers To Phosphate Study By Garrand Corp. The North Section And The Southeast Section Still Contain Re Deposit Also In T12s T45e Sec 30 And T13s R45e Sec 5,6,7 Bannock Overthrust Has Carried The Phosphoria Formation Into The Area. Average Mining Depth Will Be 463 Ft Mine Not Included In Eis For S.E. Idaho Phosphate

Comment (Production): Waterloo Mine Open 1907 - 1920 , 1921 - 1928 , 1945 - 1947 , 1952 - 1959 For Production; Was Only Phosphate Producer In State Until 1917 ; 1907 - 1929 Underground, 1945 - 1960 Open - Pit

Comment (Reserve-Resource): Both Est. For T 13 S, R 45 E

References

Reference (Deposit): Garrand, Leonard. 1975. Phosphate Study Of Se Idaho

Reference (Deposit): Day, R.L., 1973, Idaho Bureau Of Mines And Geology, Pamphlet

Reference (Deposit): Kirkham, V.R.O., 1924, Am. Inst. Mining And Met. Engin.Paper

Reference (Deposit): Mcdivitt, J.F., 1956, Idaho Bureau Of Mines And Geology, Pamphlet

Reference (Deposit): Mansfield, G. R., 1927 , Geography, Geology, And Mineral Resources Of Part Of Southeastern Idaho: USGS Prof. Paper 152 , 453 P.

Reference (Deposit): Service, A. L., 1966 , An Evaluation Of The Western Phosphate Industry And Its Resources, Part 3 , Idaho: USBM Rept. Inv. 6801 , 201 P.

Reference (Deposit): USGS, 1975 , Development Of Phosphate Resources In Southeastern Idaho: Draft Environmental Impact Statement, V. 1 , Pt. 1 , P. 22

Reference (Deposit): Winchester, D. E., 1923 , Oil Shale Of The Rocky Mountain Region: USGS Bulletin 729 , 204 P.

Reference (Deposit): 5) Gale, H. S., And Richards, R. W., 1910 , Preliminary Report On The Phosphate Deposits In Southeastern Idaho And Adjacent Parts Of Wyoming And Utah: USGS Bulletin 430 , P. 457 - 535

Reference (Deposit): 1910 Recon H. S. Gale And R. W. Richards, Bulletin 430

Reference (Deposit): 1923 Recon D. E. Winchester, Bulletin 729

Reference (Deposit): 1927 Recon G. R. Mansfield, Prof. Paper 152 { 1975 Recon Draft Environmental Impact Statement, V. 1

Reference (Deposit): 1966 Recon USBM Rept. Inv. 6801

Reference (Production): Item 8 , USGS, 1975 , Draft Environmental Impact, Statement, V. 1 ; Items 1 , 2 , 9 , Mansfield, G. K., 1927 , USGS Prof. Paper 152

Reference (Deposit): King, D.L., Mining Engineering, Vol. 1, #8, 1949, Pg. 284-28.

Idaho Gold

"Where to Find Gold in Idaho" 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 Idaho. Read more: Where to Find Gold in Idaho.