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Independence Mine

Past Producer in Saguache county in Colorado, United States with commodities Gold, Copper, Silver
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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. Alteration
  9. Mineral occurrence model information
  10. Host and associated rocks
  11. Nearby scientific data
  12. Geologic structures
  13. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Mining district
  15. Land status
  16. Ownership information
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10012939
MRDS ID D008966
Record type Site
Current site name Independence Mine
Alternate or previous names Independence Mill Site Alamosa, Baca Grant No. 4, Bonanza, Eastern Star, Independent, Midnight Star, Queen Estherr Claims

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -105.65002, 37.94584 (WGS84)
Elevation 2591
Relative position 4.3 MILES S 40 E OF CRESTONE

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Saguache(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Crestone(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Blanca Peak(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Trinidad(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

San Luis(hydrologic unit)

Rio Grande Headwaters(hydrologic accounting unit)

Rio Grande Headwaters(hydrologic subregion)

Rio Grande(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado Saguache

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
New Mexico 043N 012E 28 SE Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • BACA GRANT ABOUT 4 MILES SE OF CRESTONE; CLAIMS LIE AT BASE OF MOUNTAIN RANGE BETWEEN SPANISH AND COTTONWOOD CREEKS. S-T-R ABOVE IS PROJECTED INTO UNSURVEYED LAND GRANT AREA. ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1976

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Copper Primary
Silver Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Rock chip and channel samples assayed from 0.035 to 0.555 oz/ton gold. (Sunshine files)

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Gold Ore
Pyrite Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Upper Portions Oxidized To Limonite And Copper Carbonates

Analytical data

Result GOLD VALUES WERE REPORTED IN DOLLARS/TON. USING AVG. PRICE OF $20.65/OZ FOR THOSE YEARS GIVES MOST COMMON GRADES OF 0.48 TO 0.97 OZ/TON, WITH LOW OF 0.17 OZ/TON AND HIGH 1.93 OZ/TON FOR YEARS 1900-1915

Mineral occurrence model information

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

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite > Diabase
    Rock unit name Lamprophyre
    Rock description Lamprophyre
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Ultramafic Intrusive Rock > Hornblendite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
    Rock unit name Metasedimentary Schist;Granodiorite Gneiss
    Rock description Metasedimentary Schist;Granodiorite Gneiss
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss

Nearby scientific data

(1) -105.65002, 37.94584
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Sangre De Cristo Range, Sierra Blanca Massif, Rio Grande Rift
Type of structure Local
Structure description Sangre De Cristo Fault, Independence Mine Fault

Comments on the geologic information

  • Gold mineralization hosted by sheared Precambrian gneiss next to thrust fault.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Year of last production 1937

Mining district

District name Crestone-Music District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Luis Marie Baca Mining And Development Co.
    Home office Crestone, Co.
    First year 1938
  • Type Owner
    Owner Baca Grande Corp.
    Home office Crestone, Co.
    First year 1979

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Name of workings drifts and crosscuts
    Length 2438.4M

Comments on the workings information

  • MINE MANAGER'S REPTS. FOR 1912-13 INDICATE THAT INDIVIDUAL WORKINGS AMOUNT TO SEVERAL HUNDRED FEET SHAFT AND 1000 TO AT MOST 5000 FT OF TUNNELING AND DRIFTING. AGGREGATE EXTENT OF WORKINGS ON 25,000 AC WERE ESTIMATED TO BE 10,000 FT OF SHAFT, 1500 FT OF WINZES, 20,000 FT OF DRIFT, AND 6,000 FT OF CROSSCUTS.

Comments on development

  • A mining company proposed an exploration program for 1989 on the basis of previous production and sampling that showed significant gold potential. (Sunshine files)

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    COLORADO DIV. MINES MINE MANAGERS REPTS FOR 1900, 1902, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1912, 1913, 1915

  • Deposit

    JOHNSON, R.B., 1969, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE TRINIDAD QUADRANGLE, SOUTH-CENTRAL COLORADO: USGS 1-558

  • Deposit

    CLEMENT, J.F., 1952, THE GEOLOGY OF THE NORTHEASTERN BACA GRANT AREA, SAGUACHE COUNTY, COLORADO: COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES M.S. THESIS T-764

  • Deposit

    Sunshine Mining Co. Colorado exploration files, unpublished data, Colorado Geological Survey.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit VEINS LIE IN SHEAR ZONES AND IRREGULAR FRACTURES AND CONTAIN FREE-MILLING GOLD AND CONSIDERABLE PYRITE

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-FEB-82 Schwochow, Stephen D. Colorado Geological Survey
Updater 11-APR-06 Beach, Richard A. Colorado Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Colorado resources

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