Cerro Gordo Mine, Cerro Gordo, Cerro Gordo Mining District, Inyo Mts (Inyo Range), Inyo County, California, USA (original) (raw)

Cerro Gordo Mine, Cerro Gordo, Cerro Gordo Mining District, Inyo Mts (Inyo Range), Inyo County, California, USAi

Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):

36° 32' 15'' North , 117° 47' 33'' West

Latitude & Longitude (decimal):

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Long-form identifier:

mindat:1:2:3463:3

c4d15ef3-02f9-4b6e-8c37-345b2d78fd4d

A former Ag-Pb-Cu-Zn mine located in secs. 12, 13, 23 & 24, T16S, R38E, MDM, at the site of the former town of Cerro Gordo (mining ghost town), 9.5 km (5.9 miles; 9 road miles) NE of Keeler. The property consisted of 550 acres. MRDS database stated accuracy for this location is 10 meters. This mine resulted from the consolidation of the Union and Santa Maria mines.

Mineralization is a replacement deposit (Mineral occurrence model information: Model code: 72; USGS model code: 19a; Deposit model name: Polymetallic replacement; Mark3 model number: 47), hosted in Late Devonian marble. The ore body is lenticular in form, strikes N-NW and dips 70SW at a width of 6.1 meters and a length of 21.34 meters. The predominant rock is white marble. Slate and igneous rock, with dikes of diorite and porphyry occur within the marble. Three periods of mineralization are recognizable in the mine. The earliest was of pyrite; the second was argentiferous galena and sphalerite with some pyrite; and, the last was quartz with subordinate amounts of galena and argentiferous tetrahedrite. There are 6 ore bodies: China stope, Jefferson Diabase dike, La Despreciada, Union and Belshaw. These formed along steep, N-NW fissures in the Devonian marble. Local rocks include Carboniferous marine rocks, unit 3 (SE California Clastic Assemblage).

Local geologic structures include faults, both pre-intrusive and post-intrusive, pre-mineralization and post-mineralization, some with considerable displacement.

Workings include underground openings with a length of 48,279 meters and an overall depth of 274.32 meters. The greatest vertical dimension of the stopes was about 1,000 feet. The mine was developed by a 900 foot shaft with levels at 85, 200, 400, 550, 700 and 900 feet. A 200 foot deep winze was sunk from the 900 foot level extends to the 1000 and 1100 levels. A second winze was sunk 250 feet and gave access to the 1030 and 1150 levels S of the shaft. Total underground workings are about 30 miles in extent.

During the period 1943 to 1945, the Golden Queen Mining Co. shipped 750 to 1,000 tons of ore, which assayed 17.5% Pb and 13.2 ounces/ton Ag. Total production was estimated to be over 17,000,000(periodvalues).Therecordedproductionsince1906isover17,000,000 (period values). The recorded production since 1906 is over 17,000,000(periodvalues).Therecordedproductionsince1906isover6,000,000.

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45 valid minerals.

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Localities in this Region

• California

  • Inyo County
    * Inyo Mts (Inyo Range)
    * Cerro Gordo Mining District
    * Cerro Gordo
    * Cerro Gordo Mine
    * Aries Mine (Aries Consolidated Mine)
    * Armagh Mine
    * Bluff Boushey Silver Mine (Bousey Silver)
    * Bluff claim
    * Cerro Gordo Extension Mine
    * Ignacio Mine (St. Ignacio Mine; Saint Ignacio Mine; Ygnacio Mine)

• California

  • Inyo County
    * Inyo Mts (Inyo Range)
    * Cerro Gordo Mining District
    * Cerro Gordo
    * Cerro Gordo Mine
    * Mormon claim
    * New Enterprise Mine
    * Omega claim (Omega group)
    * Pagan claim
    * Santa Maria Mine (Santa Maria claim)
    * Summit No. 2 Mine
    * Union Mine

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

• **Antler Foreland Basin**Basin
• **Basin and Range Basins**Basin
• **Mojave Domain**Domain
• **Southern Basin and Range**Wide Rift

USA

• **Sierra Nevada**Mountain Range

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

References

Palache, Charles, Berman, Harry, Frondel, Clifford (1951) The System of Mineralogy (7th ed.) Vol. 2 - Halides, Nitrates, Borates, Carbonates, Sulfates, Phosphates, Arsenates, Tungstates, Molybdates, Ect. John Wiley and Sons, New York.

Murdoch, Joseph & Robert W. Webb (1966), Minerals of California, Centennial Volume (1866-1966): California Division Mines & Geology Bulletin 189: 89, 104, 114, 119, 123, 125, 213, 223, 232, 241, 244, 245, 252, 267, 292, 340, 384, 388.