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Fish Creek

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Silver, Gold, Copper, Lead, Tungsten, Zinc, Barium-Barite
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Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10308779
MRDS ID A010188
Record type Site
Current site name Fish Creek
Alternate or previous names Olympia Extension, Last Chance, Single Rose, Mountain View, Summit, Climax
Related records 10112727, 10000153

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -130.04615, 56.00255 (WGS84)
Relative position This site, the principal focus of a large area of properties and claims, is at the eastern edge of Section 2 at an elevation of about 2600 feet on the west side of Skookum Creek (Elliott and Koch, 1981, p. 19, loc. 78). This location, which applies principally to the main mine workings, is accurate within about 0.1 mile. Also see Additional Comments field, below
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Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Gold Primary
Copper Primary
Lead Primary
Tungsten Primary
Zinc Primary
Barium-Barite Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Arsenopyrite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Pyrite Ore
Pyrrhotite Ore
Scheelite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Tetrahedrite Ore
Ankerite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • Greenstone country rock is impregnated with sulfide minerals.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 85
USGS model code 22c
Deposit model name Polymetallic veins
Mark3 model number 46

Nearby scientific data

(1) -130.04615, 56.00255
ListMap

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = The country rocks in the area of this site are pelitic metasedimentary and subordinate andesitic (greenstone) metavolcanic strata of the Jurassic or older Mesozoic Hazelton Group; the Triassic Texas Creek Granodiorite, which underlies and locally intrudes the Hazelton; the Eocene Hyder Quartz Monzonite, which intrudes the Hazelton and Texas Creek rocks; and still-younger Tertiary lamprophyre dikes, which cut all the other rocks (Smith, 1973, 1977; Koch, 1996). The deposit (Chapin, 1916, p. 98-99; Westgate, 1921, p. 128; Buddington, 1925, p. 77-78; 1929, p. 43, 68-71; Byers and Sainsbury, 1956, p. 138; Cobb, 1978, p. 29-30, Elliott and Koch, 1981, loc. 77) is at the contact of Texas Creek Granodiorite and Hazelton greenstone, graywacke, and slate, and consists of mineralized quartz veins, mostly within the granodiorite. A quartz-barite-ankerite fissure vein as much as 10 feet thick (average 3 feet) occurs on the Olympia Extension claim. It contains galena, tetrahedrite, chalcopyrite, pyrite, and sphalerite; locally the tetrahedrite forms stringers up to 2 inches thick. About 64 tons of sorted ore that were shipped from this property in the 1920's reportedly averaged $90 per ton (1920's prices), but the total production, if any, is not publicly known. Assays of samples taken across this vein showed a trace to 1.42 oz Au and 3.0-94.8 oz Ag per ton, 2.5-14.5% Pb, and a trace to 2% Cu. On the Summit claim, a mass several feet thick and at least 10 feet long of almost solid pyrrhotite is in pyritized greenstone. Small amounts of pyrite, arsenopyrite, chalcopyrite, and quartz accompany the massive pyrrhotite, samples of which assayed 0.36 oz Au and 4 oz Ag per ton, and 2% Cu.Byers and Sainsbury (1956, p. 138 and plate 13) report sparse scheelite in quartz veins on the Fish Creek claims at the southern edge of the Bradfield Canal quadrangle. Maas and others (1995, p. 254) suggest that the age of the deposit in Texas Creek Granodiorite on the Olympia Nos. 8 and 9 claims (p. 260 and fig. 66) is Eocene, based on similarities in mineralogy, structural setting, and hostrock, to lead-isotope-dated Eocene deposits nearby in the Hyder district (see, for example, BC086). If so, the age of the deposit is contemporaneous with emplacement of the Hyder Quartz Monzonite.
  • Age = Maas and others (1995, p. 254) suggest that the age of the deposit in Texas Creek Granodiorite on the Olympia Nos. 8 and 9 claims (p. 260, and fig. 66) is Eocene, based on similarities in mineralogy, structural setting, and hostrock, to lead-isotope-dated Eocene deposits nearby in the Hyder district (see, for example, BC086). If so, the age of the deposit is contemporaneous with emplacement of the Hyder Quartz Monzonite.

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 Hyder

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = About 64 tons of sorted ore that were shipped from this property in the 1920's reportedly averaged $90 per ton (1920's prices), but the total production, if any, is not publicly known.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = Mine developed by about 800 feet of underground workings, probably mostly in the 1920's. Early assays of samples taken across the vein on the Olympia Extension claim showed a trace to 1.42 oz Au and 3.0-94.8 oz Ag per ton, 2.5-14.5% Pb, and a trace to 2% Cu. Samples of massive sulfide on the Summit claim assayed 0.36 oz Au and 4 oz Ag per ton, and 2% Cu.

Reference information

Links to other databases

Agency Database name Acronym Record ID Notes
USGS Alaska Resource Data File ARDF BC078
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS A010187
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS A010188
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS D002763
USGS Mineral Resources Data System MRDS D002764

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Chapin, Theodore, 1916, Mining developments in southeastern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 642, p. 73-104.

  • Deposit

    Westgate, L.G., 1922, Ore deposits of the Salmon River district, Portland Canal region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 722, p. 117-140.

  • Deposit

    Buddington, A.F., 1925, Mineral investigations in southeastern Alasaka: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 773, p. 71-139.

  • Deposit

    Buddington, A.F., 1929, Geology of Hyder and vicinity, southeastern Alaska, with a reconnaissance of Chickamin River: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 807, 124 p.

  • Deposit

    Byers, F.M., and Sainsbury, C.L., 1956, Tungsten deposits of the Hyder district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1024-F, p. 123-140.

  • Deposit

    Smith, J.G., 1973, A Tertiary lamprophyre dike province in southeastern Alaska: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 10, p. 408-420.

  • Deposit

    Smith, J.G., 1977, Geology of the Ketchikan D-1 and Bradfield Canal A-1 quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1425, 49 p.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1978, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Bradfield Canal quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 78-922, 98 p.

  • Deposit

    Elliott, R.L., and Koch, R.D., 1981, Mines, prospects, and selected metalliferous mineral occurrences in the Bradfield Canal quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 81-728-B, 23 p., 1 sheet, scales 1:250,000 and 1:63,360.

  • Deposit

    Maas, K.M., Bittenbender, P E., and Still, J.C., 1995, Mineral investigations in the Ketchikan mining district, southeastern Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 11-95, 606 p.

  • Deposit

    Koch, R.D., 1996, Reconnaissance geologic map of the Bradfield Canal quadrangle, southeastern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 81-728-A, 35 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Buddington, 1929; Cobb, 1978 (OFR 78-922)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Polymetallic veins
Deposit Other Comments = This site comprises an extensive group of claims, most of which are to the south in the Ketchikan quadrangle. Claims wholly or mostly in the Bradfield Canal quadrangle are Olympia Extension (Last Chance), Single Rose, Mountain View, Summit, and Climax. Some early reports describe the Last Chance (formerly Olympia Extension) separately. The Liberty Group (Byers and Sainsbury, 1956) covers several former Fish Creek area claims.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 17-MAY-1998 H. C. Berg U.S. Geological Survey