Main commodities | Ag; Au; Cu |
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Other commodities | Pb; Zn |
Ore minerals | arsenopyrite; chalcopyrite; galena; gold; native copper; native silver; pyrite; sphalerite |
Gangue minerals | calcite; quartz |
Quadrangle map, 1:250,000-scale | SV |
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Quadrangle map, 1:63,360-scale | C-2 |
Latitude | 59.54 |
Longitude | -150.47 |
Nearby scientific data | Find additional scientific data near this location |
Location and accuracy | The Sunny Fox mine was the principal gold producer in the Nuka Bay area. The mine is located on the west side of Babcock Creek at an elevation of 200 feet. Babcock Creek drains into Surprise Bay which is at the West Arm of Nuka Bay. This is Cobb's (1972, MF-397) location 28 and Richter's (1970) location 9. Cobb (1972, OFR 80-87) summarized the relevant references under the name Sonny Fox. |
Geologic descriptionThe host rocks of the prospect are graywacke and slate of the Cretaceous Valdez Group (Richter, 1970). Most of the production on the property has come from the Lucky Lady Vein which averages about 2 feet thick. The vein strikes generally northeast and dips 60 SE. The vein is white quartz and in parts shows some banding. The most abundant sulfide mineral is arsenopyrite, with minor amounts of pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite and galena (Richter, 1970). Free gold was also present, often in coarse particles visible to the naked eye (Pilgrim, 1933). Over 800 feet of drifts, tunnels, and stopes have been driven on this vein. The other vein on the property is lens shaped and contains the same sulfide assemblage as the Lucky Lady. The veins are thickest in the more massive graywacke units and trend to pinch out in the slate units. Richter (1970) calculated there are at least 800 feet of workings at the mine site exclusive of raises, stopes and shafts. The mill was a No. 1 Denver Quartz Mill with a capacity of 7 tons per 22 hours. The concentrates ranged in grade from $128.00 per ton to over $530 per ton (at $20.67 per ounce gold) and were shipped to the Tacoma smelter (Pilgrim, 1933). The mine produced from 1926 to 1940 and production totaled $70,000 during that time (Richter,1970). | |
Geologic map unit | (-150.472101626642, 59.5394207261177) |
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Mineral deposit model | Low-sulfide, Au-quartz vein (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 36a) |
Mineral deposit model number | 36a |
Age of mineralization | Tertiary; Boden and others (1991) report other veins in the district are about 55 m.y. old. |
Alteration of deposit | Borden and others (1991) report carbonization, sulfidization, sericitization, and silicification of the wall rock adjacent to the veins. |
Workings or exploration | Richter (1970) calculated there are at least 800 feet of workings at the mine site exclusive of raises, stopes and shafts. The mill was a No. 1 Denver Quartz Mill with a capacity of 7 tons per 22 hours. The concentrates ranged in grade from $128.00 per ton to over $530 per ton (at $20.67 per ounce gold) and were shipped to the Tacoma smelter (Pilgrim, 1933). |
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Indication of production | Yes; small |
Reserve estimates | None. |
Production notes | The mine produced from 1926 to 1940 and production totaled $70,000 during that time (Richter,1970). The concentrates ranged in grade from $128.00 per ton to over $530 per ton and were shipped to the Tacoma smelter (at $20.67 per ounce gold, Pilgrim, 1933). |
MRDS Number | A010648 |
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ReferencesPilgrim, E.R., 1933, Nuka Bay district, in Stewart, B. D., Making mining investigations and mine inspection in Alaska, biennium ending March 31, 1933: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Annual Report 1933B, p. 26-51.
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Reporters | Jeff A. Huber (Anchorage) |
Last report date | 2/16/1999 |