New Pass Deposit

The New Pass Deposit is a gold and silver mine located in Churchill county, Nevada.

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: New Pass Deposit

Commodity

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

Location

State: Nevada
County: Churchill
District: New Pass 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.
Administrative Organization: Carson City and Battle Mountain BLM Districts

Holdings

Not available

Workings

Not available

Ownership

Owner Name: Quest International; White Knight Gold Inc.

Owner Name: Quest International; White Knight Gold Inc.

Owner Name: Quest International

Production

Not available

Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Prospect
Deposit Type: SEDIMENT-HOSTED, volcanic-hosted, DISSEMINATED
Operation Type: Surface-Underground
Discovery Year: 1994
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y
Deposit Size: S

Physiography

Not available

Mineral Deposit Model

Model Name: Sediment-hosted Au

Orebody

Form: TABULAR

Structure

Type: L
Description: Thin, discontinuous veneers and lenses of gold-bearing jasperoid are exposed along a north-south volcanic/limestone contact for a strike length of 12,000 feet.

Alterations

Alteration Type: L
Alteration Text: Volcanic rocks are locally silicified along the volcanic/limestone contact and jasperoid has formed along the volcanic/limestone contact for a strike length of more than two miles.

Rocks

Name: Siltstone
Role: Host
Description: calcareous
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Triassic
Age Old: Middle Triassic

Name: Limestone
Role: Host
Age Type: Host Rock
Age Young: Late Triassic
Age Old: Middle Triassic

Analytical Data

Not available

Materials

Ore: Wad
Ore: Pyrolusite
Ore: Psilomelane
Ore: Galena
Ore: Gold
Gangue: Pyrite
Gangue: Quartz

Comments

Comment (Workings): Recent work on the property consists of drilling and sampling. The historic New Pass Mine included in the current deposit was developed by the 550-foot Thomas W. shaft, the Gold Belt shaft, the Superior tunnel, numerous pits, cuts, adits, and several miles of underground workings.

Comment (Identification): The current (1998) New Pass project area comprises 211 unpatented lode mining claims which cover both the historic New Pass mine workings and additional acreage extending mainly northwest of the old workings. The historic New Pass gold mine workings are described in a separate record as New Pass Gold Mine.

Comment (Location): The current (1997) New Pass project area comprises 211 unpatented lode mining claims centered in an area just northwest of the historic New Pass mine workings. The UTM location is to within 500 meters of the center of the claim block.

Comment (Commodity): Gangue Materials: quartz, iron oxides, pyrite

Comment (Deposit): The New Pass dEPOSIT is a jasperoid-hosted gold system. Jasperoids are locally exposed as thin, discontinuous veneers and lenses in limestone/calcareous siltstone along a north-south volcanic/limestone contact for a strike length of 12,000 feet. Drilling results indicate the jasperoids increase to 100 feet in thickness down dip and occasional silica flooding of the volcanics occurs at the volcanic/limestone contact. Gold mineralization is erratically distributed throughout the jasperoid and locally present in the volcanics, including a 30 foot zone averaging 0.036 ounces of gold per ton in ONE drill hole.

Comment (Development): Sporadic mining of vein deposits lying mainly east of this deposit produced 35,000 short tons ore between 1868 and 1964. Westmont Gold Inc. and its predecessors explored the New Pass area beginning in the early 1980s, and identified the current deposit in 1994. In 1997, Quest U.S.A. Resources Inc. controlled 100% of the project by virtue of its acquisition of Westmont in 1994. In 1997, White Knight Gold Inc, and Quest agreed to a mining venture wherein White Knight may earn a 51% interest in Quest's New Pass property by spending $1,500,000 over the next four years. Quest would retain a 49% participating interest in the property. According to the terms of the agreement, White Knight would make cash payments to Quest totaling $325,000 over a three-year period and pay the annual claim fees totaling $84,400 over four years. Drilling identified three exploration targets which include deep potential for Carlin style high grade gold mineralization; these require additional testing, In 1998, White Knight reported that a comprehensive review of all previously generated drilling and geological data provided new insight into the structural control of high-grade gold mineralization at New Pass. The company is currently seeking a joint venture partner to implement a 6,000 foot (12 hole) reverse circulation drill program designed to increase the known high grade resource. A Plan of Operations was submitted to the Bureau of Land Management for approval. New Pass is 100% owned by White Knight, subject to a 2.75% NSR payable to Quest U.S.A. Resources Inc.

Comment (Economic Factors): Past production from the historic New Pass Mine near the southeast end of the claim block is estimated to have been 35,000 short tons of ore between 1868 and 1964. In 1998, the current New Pass deposit was estimated to contain 170,500 troy ounces of gold contained in 3.1 million short tons grading 0.055 oz. per ton.

Comment (Geology): The New Pass project is a jasperoid-hosted gold system. Jasperoids, as thin, discontinuous veneers and lenses in limestone, are locally exposed along a north-south volcanic/limestone contact for a strike length of 12,000 feet. Drilling results indicate the jasperoids increase to 100 feet in thickness down dip and occasional silica flooding of the volcanics occurs at the volcanic/limestone contact.

Comment (Commodity): Ore Materials: Free gold, argentiferous galena, psilomelane, pyrolusite, wad, lead sulfides, copper sulfides, lead carbonates, copper carbonates

References

Reference (Deposit): Long, K.R., DeYoung, J.H., Jr., and Ludington, S.D., 1998, Significant deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 90-206A, 33 p.; 98-206B. one 3.5 inch diskette.

Reference (Deposit): The Northern Miner, 9/15/97.

Reference (Deposit): Quest International, 1997

Reference (Deposit): Stewart and others, 1977

Reference (Deposit): The Denver Mining Record, 11/30/94

Reference (Deposit): NBMG MI-95

Nevada Gold

Nevada has a total of 368 distinct gold districts. Of the of those, just 36 are major producers with production and/or reserves of over 1,000,000 ounces, 49 have production and/or reserves of over 100,000 ounces, with the rest having less than 100,000 ounces. Read more: Gold Districts of Nevada.