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  3. Mineral Resource Data System (MRDS)

Engineer Creek

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodity Gold
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Mineral occurrence model information
  8. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10002853
MRDS ID A015331
Record type Site
Current site name Engineer Creek

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -147.62406, 64.92773 (WGS84)
Relative position The Engineer Creek mine is mostly in sec. 7, T. 1 N., R. 1 E., Fairbanks Meridian. The location given is for the approximate center of placer tailings delineated on the Fairbanks D-2 topographic map. The tailings extend from about 0.6 mile above the mouth of French Gulch to about 0.4 mile below it. Tailings in the lower part of the creek, at and below the mouth of Little Blanche Creek, merge with the tailings from Goldstream Creek (FB085). The mine is included in locality 53 of Cobb (1972 [MF 410]).

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Fairbanks North Star(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Fairbanks D-2(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Big Delta NW(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Fairbanks(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 119
USGS model code 39a
Deposit model name Placer Au-PGE
Mark3 model number 54

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Gravel
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Sand and Gravel

Nearby scientific data

(1) -147.62406, 64.92773
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Early placer mining took place on Engineer Creek from 1907 to 1916 (Cobb, 1976 [OFR 76-662, p. 40]). The depth to bedrock was from about 50 feet to more than 100 feet (Prindle and Katz, 1913). Values in 4 to 7 feet of gravel over widths of 30 to 100 feet were $1 to $6 per square foot of bedrock (Prindle and Katz, 1913). Production from Engineer Creek and its tributaries from 1907 to 1910 was $1,800,000, with gold valued at $18.70 per ounce (Prindle and Katz, 1913). Fairbanks Exploration Company acquired an extensive tract of placer ground in 1931; however, an experiment with underground sluicing was terminated because the floor of the underground workings heaved (Smith, 1933 [B 844-A, p. 33]). United States Smelting, Refining and Mining Co. Dredge no. 8 worked on Engineer Creek from 1948 to 1954, then worked the Dawson Bench near the mouth of Engineer Creek and the left limit bench of Engineer Creek from 1955 to 1959 (R.M. Chapman, USGS unpublished memorandum, 1978). Glover (1950) reported that the gold along Engineer Creek varied from 875 to 918 fine.
  • Age = Quaternary placer.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Fairbanks

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = Production from Engineer Creek and its tributaries from 1907 to 1910 was $1,800,000, with gold valued at $18.70 per ounce (Prindle and Katz, 1913). The production figures from the creek since 1910 are unclear because the dredging was part of the Goldstream and Pedro Creek operations; it is probably substantial on the basis of the area of the dredge tailings.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = Placer mining took place on Engineer Creek from 1907 to 1916 (Cobb, 1976 [OFR 76-662, p. 40]). In 1922, drift mining was reported to be continuing (Wimmler, 1922, p. 20). Fairbanks Exploration Company acquired an extensive tract of placer ground in 1931; however, an experiment with underground sluicing was terminated because of the floor of the underground workings and the drifts heaved. (Smith, 1933 [B 844-A, p. 33]). United States Smelting, Refining and Mining Co. Dredge no. 8 worked on Engineer Creek from 1948 to 1954, then worked the Dawson Bench near the mouth of Engineer Creek and the left-limit bench of Engineer Creek from 1955 to 1959 (R.M. Chapman, USGS unpublished memorandum, 1978).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Prindle and Katz, 1913

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)
Deposit Other Comments = the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System is now routed along Engineer Creek.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 31-JUL-01 J.R. Guidetti Schaefer Avalon Development Corporation
Reporter 31-JUL-01 C.J. Freeman Avalon Development Corporation

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Alaska resources

These are landing pages for further research — the state agencies don't currently expose per-mine deep links.