Rex Creek (ARDF #FB134) Au

Rex Creek

Mine, Inactive

Commodities and mineralogy

Main commodities	Au
Other commodities	Cu; Sb
Ore minerals	chalcopyrite; gold; pyrite; stibnite

Geographic location

Quadrangle map, 1:250,000-scale	FB
Quadrangle map, 1:63,360-scale	A-4
Latitude	64.103
Longitude	-148.836
Nearby scientific data	Find additional scientific data near this location
Location and accuracy	The Rex Creek mine is located in sec. 25, T. 9 S., R. 7 W., Fairbanks Meridian. Rex Creek is a tributary of California Creek that is south of Rex Dome. The creek has been placer mined for a mile, about 3 to 4 miles above its mouth; the mine is approximately 2.5 miles southeast of Rex Dome. The mine is locality 64 of Cobb (1972 [MF 410]).

Geologic setting

Geologic description Bedrock in the upper drainage is quartz-orthoclase-sericite schist and augen gneiss of the Totatlanika Schist; in the lower reaches, the creek is underlain by the Tertiary sandstone and conglomerate of the Healy Creek Formation (Wahrhaftig, 1970 [GQ-810]). The ground that was mined was 6 to 8 feet deep; the gold was close to or in the top foot of decayed schist bedrock (Capps, 1912, p. 47). Gold occurs in both stream and bench placers (Capps, 1912, p. 47). A bench about 50 feet above the stream was mined in 1910 (Maddren, 1918). The gold was 800 fine (Glover, 1950).
Geologic map unit	(-148.838344054062, 64.1025416298006)
Mineral deposit model	Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)
Mineral deposit model number	39a
Age of mineralization	Quaternary placer.

Production and reserves

Workings or exploration	Prospecting began in 1905 or earlier, and mining was reported in 1910 (Capps, 1912, p. 44,47). Maddren (1918) reported that there was no mining in 1916. Mining occurred from 3 to 4 miles above the mouth, where a bench 50 feet above the creek was mined (Maddren, 1918). In 1925, one man ground sluiced on Rex Creek (Wimmler, 1925 [ATDM MR 195-8, p. 43]). Prospect drilling was reported in 1939 (Smith, 1941, p. 51).
Indication of production	Yes; small
Production notes	Total production through 1916 was worth about $5,000, or less than 250 ounces (Maddren, 1918, p. 380-383; Cobb, 1976 [OFR 76-662, p. 119]).

References

MRDS Number	A015344
References Berg, H.C., and Cobb, E.H., 1967, Metalliferous lode deposits of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1246, 254 p. Capps, S.R., 1911, Mineral resources of the Bonnifield region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 480-H, p. 218-235. Capps, S.R., 1912, The Bonnifield region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 501, 64 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Fairbanks quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-410, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Fairbanks quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-662, 174 p. Glover, A.E., 1950, Placer gold fineness: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Miscellaneous Report 195-1, 38 p. Joesting, H.R., 1942, Strategic mineral occurrences in interior Alaska: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Pamphlet 1, 50 p. Maddren, A.G., 1918, Gold placers near the Nenana coal field: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 662-G, p. 363-402. Smith, P.S., 1939, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1938: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 917-A, p. 1-113. Smith, P.S., 1941, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1939: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 926-A, p. 1-106. Wahrhaftig, Clyde, 1970, Geologic map of the Fairbanks A-4 quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Quadrangle Map GQ-810, 1 sheet, scale 1:63:360. Wimmler, N.L., 1925, Placer mining in Alaska in 1925: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Miscellaneous Report 195-8, 118 p.
Reporters	J.R. Guidetti Schaefer and C.J. Freeman (Avalon Development Corporation)
Last report date	7/31/2001