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Straight Creek Springs

Occurrence in Alaska, United States with commodities Copper, Nickel, Zinc, Molybdenum
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10307844
Record type Site
Current site name Straight Creek Springs

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -154.39084, 62.16946 (WGS84)
Relative position Straight Creek Springs (more than a dozen distinct springs are known) are located on the west limit of Straight Creek valley just down stream from the Chip Loy deposit (MG032). The springs occur at an elevation of 2,800 feet (853 m) in the W1/2 sec. 15, T. 24 N., R. 28 W., of the Seward Meridian. The coordinates are in the center of the spring system. The reporter visited the site in 1998.
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Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Nickel Primary
Zinc Primary
Molybdenum Secondary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Gangue = Silicrete minerals

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicrete-limonite.

Nearby scientific data

(1) -154.39084, 62.16946
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Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Straight Creek Springs consist of a very distinctive, north-south trending, 400-meter-long line of more than a dozen active springs, each containing conspicuous coatings and replacements of brilliant orange limonite and light gray, bleached, silicrete crusts up to 3 centimeters thick. The conspicuous orange-light gray colored springs occur immediately below the contact between the black shale-rich section of the Ordovician-Lower Silurian, Post River Formation and the mid to Late Silurian Terra Cotta Mountains Sandstone, both of lower Paleozoic age (Churkin and Carter, 1996; Bundtzen, Harris, and Gilbert, 1997). The springs may indicate a concealed mineralized source in the black shale section. . Herreid (1968) and T.K. Bundtzen and G.M. Laird (written communications, 1998) report that samples of silicrete-limonite material from two of the springs contain up to 125 ppm copper, 270 ppm zinc, 400 ppm nickel, and 10 ppm molybdenum.
  • Ore Material = Iron oxides
  • Age = Quaternary.

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Occurrence

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name McGrath

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = The Straight Creek Springs were first described by Herreid (1968). Herreid (1968) and T.K. Bundtzen and G.M. Laird (written communication, 1998) report that samples of silicrete-limonite material from three of the springs contain up to 125 ppm copper, 270 ppm zinc, 400 ppm nickel, and 10 ppm molydenum.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Alaska Resource Data File ARDF MG031

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Churkin, Michael Jr., and Carter, Claire, 1996, Stratigraphy, structure, and graptolites of an Ordovician and Silurian sequence in the Terra Cotta Mountains, Alaska Range, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1555, 84 pages.

  • Deposit

    Bundtzen, T.K., Harris, E.E., and Gilbert, W.G., 1997, Geologic Map of the eastern McGrath quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Report of Investigations 97-14, 34 pages, one sheet, scale 1:125,000.

  • Deposit

    Herreid, G.H., 1968, Geological and geochemical investigations southwest of Farewell, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Geology Geologic Report 26, 24 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:75,000.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = This description

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Unknown; anomalous values are apparently derived from Ordovician-Silurian black shale section.
Deposit Other Comments = the gossan occurs in the same stratigarphic position as exists in the Crash (MG049) and Dahl (MG053) prospects in the 'Farewell mineral belt'.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 25-NOV-98 T.K. Bundtzen Pacific Rim Geological Consulting