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Cordero Mine

Past Producer in Humboldt county in Nevada, United States with commodity Mercury
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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. Ore body information
  14. Controls for ore emplacement
  15. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  16. Mining district
  17. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Production statistics
  20. Workings at the site
  21. Links to other databases
  22. Bibliographic references
  23. General comments
  24. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10040311
MRDS ID M055026
Record type Site
Current site name Cordero Mine
Alternate or previous names Mcdermitt Group

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Main Entrance
Geographic coordinates: -117.81459, 41.911 (WGS84)
Elevation 1463
Location accuracy 10(meters)
Relative position 13 MILES SW OF MCDERMITT. Workings visible on Google Earth and other imagery. Labeled on Cordero Mine 24k topo.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Humboldt(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Cordero Mine(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Quinn River Valley(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

McDermitt(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Quinn(hydrologic unit)

Black Rock Desert(hydrologic accounting unit)

Black Rock Desert-Humboldt(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management NV)

Bureau of Land Management NV BLM(Type of land area)

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Humboldt

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 047N 037E 27,28,33,34 Nevada

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • REPORTED "METACINNABAR" IS ACTUALLY PHOTOTROPHICALLY ALTERED CORDEROITE (WHICH IS STILL CHEMICALLY CORDEROITE). JOHN MCCORMACK, ORAL COMMUNICATION 30 AUG/91.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cinnabar Ore
Hematite Ore
Mercury Ore
Pyrite Ore
Stibnite Ore
Alunite Gangue
Chalcedony Gangue
Jarosite Gangue
Opal Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicic, Argillic

Analytical data

Result EARLY ORE RAN 15 LB. HG/TON ORE. ASSAYS IN 1937 RAN FROM 0.05 TO 1.78% HG.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 177
USGS model code 27a
Deposit model name Hot-spring Hg

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Intermediate Volcanic Rock > Andesite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Pliocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Rock unit name Welded Tuffs Alkali Rhyolite Of Long Ridge;Welded Tuffs Alkali Rhyolite Of Long Ridge;
    Rock description Welded Tuffs Alkali Rhyolite Of Long Ridge;Welded Tuffs Alkali Rhyolite Of Long Ridge;

Nearby scientific data

Main Entrance (1) -117.81459, 41.911
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Reg.Struct: Mcdermitt Caldera Collapse Structure: Arcuate Faults And Ring Fractures ; Reg.Trends: Northeast
Type of structure Local
Structure description Ne-Trending Faults; "M" Fault

Ore body information

  • General form BLANKET
    Strike NE-SW
    Dip 80N
    Thickness 22.86M
    Length 762M
    Width 670.56M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 182.88M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Ring Fracture Faults; Smaller Collapse Structure Nested Within The Larger Mcdermitt Caldera

Comments on the geologic information

  • CINNABAR OCCURS AS DISSEMINATED CRYSTALS AS VEINLETS, AND AS SOLID MASSES IN ALTERED VOLCANICS. TUFFACEOUS SEDIMENTARY ROCKS CONSIDERED TO BE CALDERA-FILL. ; GEOL.DESC: RHYOLITE OVERLIES ANDESITE ; MAJOR.UNITS: MIOCENE VOLCANIC ROCKS
  • TWO OR MORE SILICIFIED ZONES (Yates, 1942, p. 348).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface-Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1924
Discoverer Tomas Alcorta
Year of first production 1935

Mining district

District name Opalite Mining District

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Cordero Mining Co.
    First year 1970

Production statistics

  • Year 1970
    Period 1941-1970
    Material HG
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^10-15 Lb/Ton
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major Mercury Mercury 5647g/mt

Comments on the production information

  • 1941-1970, OVER 115,000 FLASKS HG FROM 1.8% HG ORE (from Willden, 1964)

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ITEMS 1 - 3 TOTAL APPROX. 60,000 FL. (1949) ITEM 4 EST. AS OF 1961.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Area 9.813HA
    Length 914.4M
    Overall depth 182.88M

Comments on the workings information

  • PITS, SHAFTS, DRIFTS

Comments on development

  • MINE CLOSED UNDERGROUND WORKINGS IN 1970, BUT OPENED THE MCDERMITT OPEN PIT MINE NEARBY.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    WILLDEN, R., 1964, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF HUMBOLDT CO. NEV.; NEV. BUREAU OF MINES BULL. 59.

  • Deposit

    BAILEY, E.H., AND PHOENIX, D.A., 1944, QUICK SILVER DEPOSITS IN NEVADA; UNIV. NEV. BULL. 38, NO. 5; GEOL AND MIN. SER NO. 41, p. 98, pl. 1.

  • Deposit

    RYTUBA, J.J., 1976, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THMCDERMITT CALDERA, NEVADA-OREGON; U.S.G.S. OPEN FILE REPT. 76-535

  • Deposit

    MCKEE, E.H., 1976, ORIGIN OF THE MCDERMITT CALDERA IN NEVADA AND OREGON AND RELATED MERCURY DEPOSITS: PREPRINT OF A PAPER PRESENTED AT THE 1976 AIME ANNUAL MEETING, LAS VEGAS, NEVADA, 1976.

  • Deposit

    FOORD, E.E. BRENDSEN, P., STOREY, L., 1974, CORDEROITE, FIRST NATURAL OCCURRENCE OF DHG3S2CU2 FROM THE CORDERO MERCURY DEPOSIT, HUMBOLDT CO., NEV; AM.MIN., VOL 59, P. 652-655.

  • Deposit

    YATES, R.G., 1942, QUICK SILVER DEPOSITS OF THE OPALITE DISTRICT, MALHEUR COUNTY, OREGON, AND HUMBOLDT COUNTY, NEVADA; U.S.G.S. BULL. 931-N, p. 346, 348.

  • Deposit

    ROPER, M.W., 1976, HOT SPRINGS MERCURY DEPOSITION AT MCDERMITT MINE, HUMBOLDT CO., NEV; PREPRINT OF PAPER GIVEN AT AIME ANNUAL MEETING LAS VEGAS, NEV. 1976.

  • Deposit

    J.E. GILBERT AND V.P. HAAS, 1959, CORDERO-NEVADA'S LARGEST MG. MINE; E. MIN. JOUR., VOL. 160, NO. 3.

  • Deposit

    U.S. GEO SUR BULL 931-N, P.346

  • Deposit

    USBM IC 8252,1965,P.224

  • Deposit

    USBM IC 6995,1938,P.31

  • Deposit

    USGS BULL 931-N,P.346

General comments

Subject category Comment text
General HERRESHOFF;4 FT, 12 HEARTH (1941) [moved from references of deleted record 10125266]
Deposit REPLACEMENT AND FRACTURE FILLING OCCURS BENEATH FAULTS AND IN OPALITE
Deposit DISCOVERED IN 1924 BY TOMAS ALCORTA. THE NAME "CORDERO" IS DERIVED FROM THE BASQUE LANGUAGE MEANING "LITTLE LAMB," AFTER THE ORIGINAL DISCOVERY OF ORE BY BASQUE SHEEPHERDERS DURING THE LAMBING SEASON. ALCORTA AND HIS PARTNER E. AGNAREZ EXPLORED FOR SEVERAL YEARS BY PITS. IN 1935, THE BRADLEY MINING CO. LEASED IT AND SANK SHAFT INTO THE MAIN ORE BODY. SINCE 1940, CORDERO MINING CO. HAS EXPLORED AND MID THE PROPERTY. IT RAPIDLY BECAME NEVADA'S LEADING PRODUCER OF MERCURY. MINE WORKINGS IN 1944 CONSISTED OF 6 OPEN PITS AND ABOUT 3000 FT. OF UNDERGROUND WORKINGS. IT CLOSED IN 1970. RECENT EXPLORATION (1976) DELINEATED A NEW ORE BODY AT CORDERO, WITH RESERVES OF ABOUT 400,000 FLASKS HG. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT
Deposit Ore to 600 ft (Bailey and Phoenix, 1944, p. 98).

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-75 Gassaway, Judith S. Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Updater 01-FEB-81 La Pointe, D. D. Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Updater 01-SEP-91 Moyer, Lorre A. (Marcus, S.M.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-SEP-94 Li, Zhiping (Peters, S.) U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 08-MAR-94 Robinson U.S. Geological Survey MAS 0320130065 = new MRDS 10125266
Editor 15-NOV-10 Wilson, Anna B. U.S. Geological Survey MAS 0320130065 = new MRDS 10125266, merged and deleted.

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Nevada resources

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