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Willis

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Mercury, Antimony
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10002495
MRDS ID A013434
Record type Site
Current site name Willis
Alternate or previous names Willis and Fuller
Related records 10234198

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -157.37286, 61.80939 (WGS84)
Relative position NW 1/4 of section 24, township 20N, Range 45W in the Sleetmute D-4 quadrangle. Site is about 1 mile (1.6 km) N of the Kuskokwim River and 2 miles (3.2 km) W of Cribby Creek. Location is site of main adit; accurate to within 0.25 mile (0.4 km).
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Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary
Antimony Secondary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Gangue = carbonate

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cinnabar Ore
Stibiconite Ore
Stibnite Ore
Apatite Gangue
Dickite Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Sphene Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Igneous Intrusive Rocks Argillized

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 178
USGS model code 27b
BC deposit profile E01
Deposit model name Almaden Hg

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Siltstone
    Rock unit name Kuskokwim Group;Kuskokwim Group
    Rock description Kuskokwim Group;Kuskokwim Group

Nearby scientific data

(1) -157.37286, 61.80939
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Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Cinnabar 1 stibnite veins containing minor pyrite, hematite and a little stibiconite(?), are up to 50 ft (15 m) or more long and 6 in (15 cm) wide. Veins lie in or near altered dikes and sills that intrude Kuskokwim Group sedimentary rocks. Cinnabar is also disseminated locally in fractures in dikes and nearby sedimentary rocks, or in argillized rock at contacts between dikes and graywacke. Ore bodies are at and near intersections of altered dikes and faults that commonly strike parallel to bedding; ore bodies are elongate horizontally and dip southward (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1960).

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Aniak

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = A few flasks of mercury were produced.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • Reserves = Jasper (1961) suggested that results from stripping in 1953-54 were encouraging for large tonnage, low grade ore.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = At least 7 short adits (mostly caved), numerous bulldozed trenches and cuts exploring area of 1,300 ft by 1,000 ft (396 m by 305 m).

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS A013434
USGS Alaska Resource Data File ARDF SM020

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Webber, B.S., Bjorklund, S.C., Rutledge, F.A., Thomas, B.I., and Wright, W.S., 1947, Mercury deposits of southwestern Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Report of Investigations 4065, 57 p.

  • Deposit

    Cady, W.M., Wallace, R.E., Hoare, J.M., and Webber, E.J., 1955, The central Kuskokwim region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 268, 132 p.

  • Deposit

    Sainsbury, C.L., and MacKevett, E.M. Jr., 1960, Structural control in five quicksilver deposits in southwestern Alaska, in Geological Survey Research in 1960: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 400-B, p. B35-B38.

  • Deposit

    Jasper, M.W., 1961, Cinnabar province, Kuskokwim region: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals, Report for the Year 1961, p. 65-79.

  • Deposit

    Sainsbury, C.L. and MacKevett, E.M., Jr., 1965, Quicksilver deposits of southwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1187, 89 p.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Sleetmute quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-368, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Dillingham, Sleetmute, and Taylor Mountain quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-606, 92 p.

  • Deposit

    Meyer, M.P., 1985, Mineral investigation of the Iditarod-George planning block, central Kuskokwim River area, Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 9-85, 232 p., 4 sheets, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Rytuba, J.J., 1986, Descriptive model of Almaden Hg, in Cox, D.P., and Singer, D.A., eds. Mineral Deposit Models: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1693, p. 180.

  • Deposit

    Miller, M.L., Belkin, H.E., Blodgett, R.B., Bundtzen, T.K., Cady, J.W., Goldfarb, R.J., Gray, J.E., McGimsey, R.G., and Simpson, S.L., 1989, Pre-field study and mineral resource assessment of the Sleetmute quadrangle, southwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 89-363, 115 p., 3 plates, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Dillingham, Sleetmute, and Taylor Mountains quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-606, 92 p.

  • Deposit

    Jasper, Martin, 1961, Cinnabar province, Kuskokwim region, in Williams, J.A., Report of the Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Report for the Year 1961: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Annual Report, p. 65-79.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965, p. 15-18

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Epithermal vein, disseminated, mercury-antimony
Deposit Other Comments = Additional rich ore was stockpiled during 1958 trenching, besides that already produced.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 02-JUN-94 Huber, D.F. U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 02-JUN-94 Niles, L.P. U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 02-JUN-94 Miller, M.L. U.S. Geological Survey