Last Chance Mine

The Last Chance Mine is a silver and lead mine located in Shoshone county, Idaho at an elevation of 2,300 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: Last Chance Mine
Secondary: Wardner Mine
Secondary: Sweeney Mine

Commodity

Primary: Silver
Primary: Lead
Secondary: Copper
Secondary: Zinc
Tertiary: Gold

Location

State: Idaho
County: Shoshone
District: Yreka

Land Status

Land ownership: Private
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: Bunker LP
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Spokane, Washington
Years: 1982 -

Owner Name: Gulf Resources & Chemical Co.
Percent: 100.0
Years: 1968 - 1982

Owner Name: The Bunker Hill Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Kellogg, Idaho
Years: 1956 - 1968

Owner Name: Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: San Francisco, California
Years: 1918 - 1956

Owner Name: Federal Mining & Smelting Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: New York
Years: 1903 - 1918

Owner Name: Empire State-Idaho Mining & Developing Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: New York
Years: 1898 - 1903

Owner Name: Last Chance Mining Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Spokane, Washington
Years: 1888 - 1898

Owner Name: Spokane Concentrating Co.
Percent: 100.0
Years: 1888 - 1888

Owner Name: Emma & Last Chance Consolidated Mining Co.
Percent: 100.0
Years: 1887 - 1888

Production

Year: 1983
Time Period: 1895-1918
Mined: 2581264.000 mt
Material type: Ore treated

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Past Producer
Deposit Type: HYDROTHERMAL VEIN AND REPLACEMENT
Plant Type: Beneficiation (Mill)
Plant Subtype: Gravity
Operation Type: Underground
Milling Method: Gravity
Year First Production: 1888
Year Last Production: 1918
Discovery Year: 1885
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Rocky Mountain System
Physiographic Province: Northern Rocky Mountains
Physiographic Detail: Coeur D'Alene Mountains

Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

Orebody

Form: TABULAR

Structure

Type: R
Description: Deposit is within the NE limb of a WNW-striking anticline. Host sediments strike N60-80W and dip SW. The axial plane of the anticline strikes N16W dips 42W and the axis plunges 34 degrees to N60W.

Type: L
Description: The Cate Fault (strikes NW to N, dips 55SW) is the main shear in the deposit with several branch shears, the Dull Fault being the most important. The Cate Fault and its branch shears are connected by "Link" faults which trend NE.

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: The Last Chance orebodies were largely oxidized, with cerussite the principal ore mineral.

Rocks

Name: Quartzite
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock Unit
Age Young: Neoproterozoic

Name: Quartzite
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock Unit
Age Young: Neoproterozoic

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Tetrahedrite
Ore: Chalcopyrite
Ore: Galena
Ore: Sphalerite
Gangue: Siderite
Gangue: Pyrite
Gangue: Quartz

Comments

Comment (Production): Production data reported by Mitchell and Bennett (1983) with grade data from Long (1998).

References

Reference (Deposit): UMPLEBY, J. B., AND JONES, E. L., JR., 1923 , GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF SHOSHONE COUNTY, IDAHO: USGS BULL. 732 , 156 P.

Reference (Deposit): RANSOME, F. L., AND CALKINS, F.C., 1908 , THE GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE COEUR D' ALENE DISTRICT, IDAHO: USGS PROF. PAPER 62 , 203 P.

Reference (Deposit): RANSOME, F. L., 1905 , ORE DEPOSITS OF THE COEUR D' ALENE DISTRICT, IDAHO: USGS BULL. 260 , P. 274 - 303

Reference (Deposit): Hobbs, S. W., And Others, 1965 , Geology Of The Coeur D'Alene District, Shoshone County, Idaho: USGS Prof. Paper 478 , 139 P.

Reference (Production): Mitchell, V.E., and Bennett, E.H., 1983, Production statistics for the Coeur d'Alene mining district, Shoshone County, Idaho, 1884-1980: Idaho Geological Survey Technical Report 83-3, 33 p.

Reference (Production): Long, Keith R., 1998, Grade and tonnage models for Coeur d'Alene-type polymetallic veins: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-583, 28 p.

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.