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Heavy Weight Mine

Past Producer in Pima county in Arizona, United States with commodities Copper, Silver, Gold, Beryllium
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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. 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. General comments
  23. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10039409
MRDS ID M050042
Record type Site
Current site name Heavy Weight Mine
Alternate or previous names Light Weight
Related records 10186180

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -110.7804, 31.8643 (WGS84)
Elevation 1372
Relative position 28 MILES SE OF TUCSON.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Pima(county)

Arizona(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Helvetia(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Fort Huachuca(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Nogales(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Santa Cruz(hydrologic unit)

Santa Cruz(hydrologic accounting unit)

Middle Gila(hydrologic subregion)

Lower Colorado(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Arizona Pima

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Gila and Salt River 018S 015E 14 SE Arizona

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Silver Secondary
Gold Tertiary
Beryllium Critical Tertiary

Comments on the commodity information

  • SCHRADER ALSO LISTS SECONDARY MALACHITE - BORNITE AND COVELLITE AFTER CHALCOPYRITE.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Bornite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Covellite Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Garnetization, Silicification

Analytical data

Result CHANNEL SAMPLE FROM PORTAL SHOWS .0004 PERCENT BEO (WARNER, 1959).

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Quartz Latite
    Rock unit name Quartz Latite
    Rock description Quartz Latite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Permian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Paleocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Permian
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock unit name Concha Limestone
    Rock description Concha Limestone

Nearby scientific data

(1) -110.7804, 31.8643
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Homoclinal ; Reg.Trends: Tilting And Broad Open Folds In S. And Extensive Faulting In N.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Thrust And Normal Faulting - Fracture Zones.

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR, TABULAR
    Strike S25W
    Dip NEAR VERTICAL, SE DIP

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Intrusive Contact - Shear Zone: S25w, Steep Se Dip

Comments on the geologic information

  • ORE GENERALLY IN LIME-SILICATE ZONES CONTROLLED BY FAULTS AND FRACTURES. SAME CONTACT EXTENDS TO THE BACKBONE, BLACKHAWK, AND WEDGE CLAIMS TO THE WEST, AND TO THE TIP TOP MINE. ; GEOL.DESC: AGE OF MINERALIZATION BELIEVED TO BE THAT OF THE QUARTZ LATITE INTRUSIVE OF DREWES - 1971. ; REG.COM: STRUCTURE IN DISTRICT IS THRUST FAULTING - HIGH ANGLE NORMAL FAULTING AND FOLDING.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1887
Year of first production 1889
Year of last production 1902

Mining district

District name Helvetia - Rosemont District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Helvetia Copper Co.

Production statistics

  • Year 1902
    Period 1885-1902
    Material ORE CU-AG
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^5% Cu, 1.5 Oz Ag/Ton
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Ore Silver Silver 42g/mt
    Minor Ore Copper Copper 5wt-pct

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 914.4M

Comments on the workings information

  • THREE LEVELS OF CUTS AND TUNNELS INTO STEEP SLOPE

Comments on development

  • CLOSED IN 1902 DUE TO LOW COPPER PRICES.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    SCHRADER, F.C., 1915, USGS BULL 582.

  • Deposit

    ARIZONA BUREAU OF MINES, 1971, FIELDNOTES, V. 1, NO 2.

  • Deposit

    DREWES, H., 1971, USGS MAP I-613 (SAHUARITA QUAD).

  • Deposit

    CREASEY, S.C., 1955, USGS BULL 1027F.

  • Deposit

    JOHNSON, V.H., 1941, GEOLOGY OF THE HELVETIA MINING DISTRICT, PIMA COUNTY, ARIZONA: UNIV OF ARIZONA PH.D THESIS.

  • Deposit

    1909 RECON F. C. SCHRADER U.S.G.S. BULL. 582.

  • Deposit

    1971 DIREXPL ANACONDA-POSSIBLE NEW PORPH. COPPER DEPOSIT.

  • Deposit

    1971 GEOLMAP H. DREWES U.S.G.S. MAP I-613.

  • Other Database

    CIMRI

  • Production

    KEITH, S.B., 1974, ABM BULLETIN 189, P.126.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit ORE IN SHEARED CONTACT BETWEEN LIMESTONE AND INTRUSIVE.
Deposit THE STRATIGRAPHIC UNITS USED ARE THOSE OF H. DREWES - 1971 USGS MAP I-613. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT
Deposit Discovery Year: LATE 188?

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1972 Keith, William J. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-OCT-1981 Gest, Don E. Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Arizona resources

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