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Spruce Creek Placer

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodity Gold
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10097536
MRDS ID A013354
Record type Site
Current site name Spruce Creek Placer
Related records 10185869

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -133.33387, 57.59531 (WGS84)
Elevation 30
Relative position 750 FT. E OF HEAD OF WINDHAM BAY
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Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Comments on the location information

  • USGS B 1525, FIG. 52. LOCATION IS UPPER PORTAL OF DRAIN TUNNEL AT LOWER END OF FIRST BASIN OF SPRUCE CREEK 750 FT. E OF MOUTH OF CREEK. PLACER EXTENDS 2.3 MI. UPSTREAM TO HEAD OF SPRUCE CREEK. LAND STATUS VALUE CALCULATED 6-94 USING GIS OVERLAY ANALYSIS WITH BLM 1:2,500,000 SCALE OWNERSHIP STATUS MAP (1991).

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary

Analytical data

Result PANNED CONCENTRATE SAMPLES ASSAYED UP TO 0.017 OZ/CY AU, SAMPLE 4K143, USGS B 1525, P. 154-56.

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Clay, Mud
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Silt
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Gravel

Nearby scientific data

(1) -133.33387, 57.59531
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Ore body information

  • Thickness 30.48M
    Length 3701.39M

Comments on the geologic information

  • SLOPING, POORLY SORTED GRAVEL, COBBLE, AND BOULDER BEDS AND BLUE CLAY AND SILT BEDS WITH MARINE FOSSILS REPRESENT MARINE DELTA FORESET BEDS. ; MAJOR.UNITS: BEDROCK CONSISTS OF CRETACEOUS GREENSTONE, PHYLLITE, AND SCHIST. ; REG.COM: SOURCE OF PLACER GOLD IS PROBABLY LODE DEPOSITS ALONG SPRUCE CREEK.

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1869
Year of first production 1869
Year of last production 1911

Mining district

District name Petersburg

Land status

Ownership category National Forest

Comments on the workings information

  • BEDROCK DIVERSION TUNNEL SEVERAL HUNDRED FT. LONG THROUGH GREENSTONE BARRIER; SECOND TUNNEL, 10 FT. BELOW ORIGINAL CHANNEL, NOW OBSCURED. ABOUT 10 ACRES OF GRAVEL SLUICED IN FIRST BASIN. NO EVIDENCE OF MINING FOUND IN SECOND BASIN. PLACER PIPE, OLD CUTS, CABIN RUINS, DRY-WALL DIVERSION FOUND ABOVE TWO BASINS.

Comments on development

  • DISCOVERED IN 1869, HYDRAULIC PLANT INSTALLED IN FIRST BASIN IN 1888, MINING ALSO IN SECOND BASIN. TUNNEL DRIVEN THROUGH BARRIER. PLACER CLAIMS PATENTED BEFORE 1900. PRODUCTION ENDED ABOUT 1911. SOME ACTIVITY UNTIL MID-1950'S.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS A013354

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    USGS B 1525, P. 153-156, 192, FIG. 52, PLATES 1, 3 (1984)

  • Deposit

    USBM OFR 91-86, P. 4, 8, 9, 36 (1986)

  • Other Database

    BAG-B-1525-FIG-52

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit PLACER DEPOSIT CONSISTS OF TWO BASINS. FIRST BASIN HAS GREENSTONE BARRIER AT LOWER END, ABOUT 750 FT. UPSTREAM FROM TIDEWATER. BASIN IS GLACIAL IN ORIGIN. CREEK NOW FLOWS THROUGH BEDROCK TUNNEL SEVERAL HUNDRED FT. LONG THROUGH BARRIER. BASIN FLOOR NEAR TUNNEL ENTRANCE IS AT LEAST 80 FT. BELOW ORIGINAL BEDROCK STREAM CHANNEL OVER BARRIER. BENCH GRAVELS ARE 15 FT. ABOVE BARRIER LEVEL. DEPOSITS CONSIST OF ABOUT 8 FT. OF FLAT-LYING BENCH GRAVEL, UNDERLAIN BY 70 FT. OF VERY COARSE GRAVEL AND BOULDERS AT 15 DEGREES DIP DOWNSTREAM, UNDERLAIN BY 20 FT. OF BLUE CLAY AND SILT WITH MARINE, FOSSILS, ALSO DIPPING DOWNSTREAM, WITH GRAVEL AND BOULDERS OF PRESENT STREAM BED EXPOSED BELOW. GOLD READILY PANNED FROM FLAT-LYING BENCH GRAVEL LAYER; A FEW COLORS COULD BE PANNED FROM JUST ABOVE BLUE CLAY LAYERS; LITTLE COULD BE PANNED FROM SLOPING GRAVEL LAYERS OR STREAM BOULDERS AND BARS. SECOND BASIN IS 1 MI. UPSTREAM FROM FIRST, AT 750 FT. ELEVATION. UPPER PART OF CREEK FROM 1,600-2,500 FT.
Deposit ELEVATION CONSISTS OF SHALLOW GRAVEL BEDS AND POT HOLES IN OR CLOSE TO BEDROCK, WELL SUITED FOR SMALL-SCALE HAND MINING METHODS.
Deposit SAMPLE RESULTS INDICATE THIS IS NOT AN ECONOMICALLY MINEABLE DEPOSIT. IT IS DOUBTFUL THAT CREEK CONTAINS UNDISCOVERED PLACERS OF ANY IMPORTANCE. STREAM GRADIENT IS OVER 1,000 FT./MI. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT
Deposit THIS SITE NAME WAS CREATED BY THE REPORTER OR OTHER USGS EMPLOYEE BASED ON PROXIMITY TO SOME MAJOR GEOGRAPHIC FEATURE.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1987 Niles, L.P. (Huber, D.F.) U.S. Geological Survey