Prince Mine

Past Producer in Lincoln county in Nevada, United States with commodities Manganese, Silver, Lead, Zinc, Vanadium, Copper, Arsenic
Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Materials information
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Ownership information
  18. Production statistics
  19. Workings at the site
  20. Links to other databases
  21. Bibliographic references
  22. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10008111
MRDS ID D000023
Record type Site
Current site name Prince Mine
Alternate or previous names Prince Consolidated, NBMG Sample Site 1432
Related records 10295752

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -114.4739, 37.90107 (WGS84)
Elevation 1785
Relative position 2 1/4 MILES SW OF PIOCHE

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Lincoln(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Pioche(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Caliente(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Caliente(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Meadow Valley Wash(hydrologic unit)

Lower Colorado-Lake Mead(hydrologic accounting unit)

Lower Colorado-Lake Mead(hydrologic subregion)

Lower Colorado(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Lincoln

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
01N 67E 33 Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • SW SIDE OF THE ELY RANGE

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Manganese Critical Primary
Silver Primary
Lead Primary
Zinc Critical Tertiary
Vanadium Critical Tertiary
Copper Tertiary
Arsenic Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Anglesite Ore
Braunite Ore
Calamine Ore
Galena Ore
Phosgenite Ore
Plumbojarosite Ore
Apatite Gangue
Calcite Gangue
Goethite Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Sericite Gangue
Pyrolusite Unknown

Analytical data

Result SAMPLE 1432 CONTAINS 15 % FE, + 5000 PPM MN, 20 PPM AG, 5000 PPM AS, 500 PPM CD, 1500 PPM CU, 7000 PPM PB, 100 PPM SN, + 10000 PPM ZN.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 72
USGS model code 19a
Deposit model name Polymetallic replacement
Mark3 model number 47

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Shale
    Rock unit name Pioche Shale;Peasley Member Of Highland Peak, Lyndon Limestone;Peasley Member Of Highland Peak, Lyndon Limestone;Prospect Mountain Quartzite
    Rock description Pioche Shale;Peasley Member Of Highland Peak, Lyndon Limestone;Peasley Member Of Highland Peak, Lyndon Limestone;Prospect Mountain Quartzite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -114.4739, 37.90107

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Numerous Faults , With Some Post-Ore Faulting Which Step-Faults The Ore., With Some Post-Ore Faulting Which Step-Faults The Ore.

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR AND DISCONTINUOUS
    Strike N20W
    Dip 5-20 SSW
    Thickness 36.58M
    Length 457.2M
    Width 152.4M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Along Bedding Surfaces, Along Fractures And Shears Where They Intersect The Favorable Host Rock.

Comments on the geologic information

  • ORE DEPOSITS ARE IRREGULAR REPLACEMENT BODIES IN FLAYERS IN STRATIGRAPHIC INTERVAL OF OVER 1,200 FEET. THEY ARE OXIDIZED MANGANIFEROUS FLUXING ORES. HIGH GRADE PB-AG ORE WAS MINED FROM 2 QUARTZ VEINS AND AN IRREGULAR SILICEOUS REPLACEMENT BODY. AT THE PIOCHE SHALE/PROSPECT MTN QUARTZITE CONTACT THERE IS A SILICEOUS ORE WITH 10% ZN. TWO FISSURE VEINS CONTAINING SILICEOUS ORE PRESENT UNDERGROUND IN THE PRINCE MINE, ROUGHLY PARALLEL, ORE VEIN COMPLETELY OXIDIZED, THE OTHER CARRIES SOME SULFIDE ORE. ORE IN THESE FISSURES IS ERRATIC IN DISTRIBUTION. VEIN WITH SULFIDE ORE CARRIES 10-25% PB, 35 OZ AG. DEEPEST WORKINGS ON THE FISSURE VEINS ARE OXIDIZED, CONTAINS SPOTTY METAL CONTENT, IN PLACES UP TO 100 OZ AG/TON. HOST ROCKS STRIKING N-S, DIPPING 15E.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No

Mining district

District name Pioche District District District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Prince Consolidated Mining Co.
    First year 1932

Production statistics

  • Year 1925
    Period 1918-1925
    Accuracy Accurate
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Trace Ore Zinc Zinc 4wt-pct
    Major Ore Manganese Manganese 12wt-pct
    Major Ore Lead Lead 3wt-pct
    Ore Gold Gold 1g/mt
    Major Ore Silver Silver 85g/mt

Comments on the production information

  • PRINCE CONSOLIDATED MINE, VIRGINIA LOUISE, TOTAL FOR BOTH MINES, RESPECTIVELY IN THE TABLE.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • MUCH OXIDIZED MATERIAL REMAINS UNMINED. FISSURE VEINS AT THE 835 FOOT LEVEL HAVE NOT BEEN PROSPECTED.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 914.4M
    Overall depth 259.08M

Comments on the workings information

  • THE PRINCE AND VIRGINIA LOUISE WORKINGS ARE CONNECTED ON ONE LEVEL - THE 3RD LEVEL OF THE PRINCE AND THE 2ND LEVEL OF VIRGINIA LOUISE CONNECT AT DEPTH OF 268 FEET. . THE WORKINGS CONSISTED OF TWO VERTICAL SHAFTS AND A 65 DEGREE INCLINED SHAFT WITH 6 LEVELS, DRIFTS, CROSSCUTS, RAISES. IN 1983, THERE WAS A GLORY HOLE, SHAFTS, MILL AND SMELTER, TOWNSITE WITH PEOPLE STILL LIVING THERE; MINE BUILDINGS USED FOR STORAGE. . THE WORKINGS CONSISTED OF TWO VERTICAL SHAFTS AND A 65 DEGREE INCLINED SHAFT WITH 6 LEVELS, DRIFTS, CROSSCUTS, RAISES. IN 1983, THERE WAS A GLORY HOLE, SHAFTS, MILL AND SMELTER, TOWNSITE WITH PEOPLE STILL LIVING THERE; MINE BUILDINGS USED FOR STORAGE.

Comments on development

  • 4 PATENTED CLAIMS, 1 PATENTED FRACTION, AND 14 UNPATENTED CLAIMS ALL COVERING 386 ACRES. THE PRINCE MINE WAS DEWATERED SHORTLY AFTER CONSTRUCTION OF THE CASELTON MILL, AND COMMENCED SULFIDE ORE PRODUCTION FROM THE 835-FT OR BOTTOM LEVEL. DEPLETION OF SULFIDE ORE RESERVES CAUSED THE MINE TO CLOSE PRIOR TO 1951. IN EARLY YEARS, THE ORE WAS IN DEMAND AS A FLUXING ORE BECAUSE OF ITS HIGH FE-MN CONTENT. PRINCE CONSOLIDATED MINING CO WAS FORMED IN 1907 BY J. L. HACKETT OF KENTUCKY AND THE GODBE BROTHERS OF SALT LAKE CITY, WHO LATER BUILT A RAILROAD FROM PIOCHE TO THE PRINCE MINE (1912). FROM 1912 TO 1921 LARGE ORE BINS WERE BUILT AND A LARGE OREBODY WAS DEVELOPED. FIRST MINING WAS DONE BY CAVING BUT A SHRINKAGE SYSTEM WAS LATER ADOPTED. MOST SHALLOW BEDDED ORE CAME FROM THE "BIG BED" AND THE "TWENTY-FOOT BED". BY 1920 MOST OF THESE OREBODIES WERE EXHAUSTED AND MOST OUTPUT CAME FROM THE DAVIDSON OREBODY, TAKEN OVER IN 1918. THE MINE WAS IN FINANCIAL TROUBLE 1920-1923 WHEN THE COMPANY WAS
  • TAKEN OVER BY THE OWNERS OF THE ADJACENT VIRGINIA LOUISE MINE, AND THE WORKINGS ON THE PRINCE 835 LEVEL WERE EXTENDED, AFTER WHICH THE "SULPHIDE ORE BODY" AND THE "SILVER BED" WERE DEVELOPED AND MINED UNTIL 1926.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    TSCHANTZ, CM & PAMPEYAN, E.H., 1970, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF LINCOLN CO. NEVADA. NEVADA BUR. OF MINES, BULL 73 P.

  • Deposit

    WESTGATE, L.G. AND KNOPF, A., 1932, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE PIOCHE DISTRICT, NEVADA. USGS PROF. PAPER 171 P.

  • Deposit

    HILL, J.M., 1916, NOTES ON SOME MINING DISTRICTS IN EASTERN NEVADA USGS BULL 648 P.

  • Deposit

    COUCH, B.F., CARPENTER, J.A., 1943, NEVADA'S METAL AND MINERAL PRODUCTION (1859-1940, INCLUSIVE) UNIV. OF NEVADA BULL 38, P. 85-89

  • Deposit

    BELL, R. M., 1911, THE PIOCHE DISTRICT; MINES AND MINERALS VOL 32, P. 164.

  • Deposit

    ZALINSKI, E. R., 1913, ENG AND MIN JOUR, VOL 95, NO. 16, P. 809-812.

  • Deposit

    ANDERSON, J. C., 1922, ORE DEPOSITS OF PIOCHE DISTRICT, NEVADA; ENG AND MIN JOUR, VOL 113, NO. 7, P. 283.

  • Deposit

    NBMG DISTRICT FILE 175, ITEMS 5, 6, UNPUBLISHED REPORTS DATED 1909, 1912, 1942.

  • Deposit

    MINING CONGRESS JOURNAL, MAY, 1943, P. 54-55.

  • Deposit

    JESSUP, D. W., 1913, MIN AND SCI PRESS, P. 773-775, P. 820-822.

  • Deposit

    11) WEED, W. H., ED., 1918, THE MINES HANDBOOK, VOL XIII, P. 1126-1127; VOL XV, 1922, P. 1306-1307.

  • Deposit

    12) USBM, 1983, MILS DATA.

  • Deposit

    13) SMITH, P. AND BENTZ, J., AUG 1983, FIELD EXAMINATION REPORT.

  • Production

    TSCHANZ & PAMPEYAN, 1970; COUCH & CARPENTER, 1943

  • Reserve-Resource

    TSCHANZ AND PAMPEYAN, 1970

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-OCT-1979 Harner, Joy L. (Roberts, Ralph J.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-DEC-1984 La Pointe, D.D. (Tingley, J.V.) Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology PARSED HOST ROCK AND ASSOCIATED ROCK INFORMATION FROM OLD SINGLE VALUED FIELD TO NEW MULTIVALUED FIELD
Editor 27-APR-1995 Mosier, Dan U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Authoritative Nevada resources

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