Nightingale Mine

Past Producer in Pershing county in Nevada, United States with commodities Tungsten, Gold, Bismuth, Molybdenum, Copper, Arsenic, Manganese, Lead
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. Ore body information
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Land status
  15. Production statistics
  16. Links to other databases
  17. Bibliographic references
  18. General comments
  19. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10042419
MRDS ID M060208
Record type Site
Current site name Nightingale Mine

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -119.22961, 40.01406 (WGS84)
Elevation 1792
Relative position NEAR CREST OF SOUTHERN NIGHTINGALE RANGE ON EAST SIDE

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Pershing(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Sage Hen Spring(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Kumiva Peak(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Lovelock(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Granite Springs Valley(hydrologic unit)

Truckee(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Lahontan(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Pershing

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 25N 24E 25 Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • NEAR CREST OF THE SOUTHERN NIGHTINGALE RANGE ON EAST SIDE

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Tungsten Critical Primary
Gold Tertiary
Bismuth Critical Tertiary
Molybdenum Tertiary
Copper Tertiary
Arsenic Critical Tertiary
Manganese Critical Tertiary
Lead Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Molybdenite Ore
Pyrrhotite Ore
Scheelite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Epidote Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Analytical data

Result SAMPLE 2861, TAKEN FROM THE TACTITE ZONE WITHIN THE WORKINGS AND SHOWING SCHEELITE SPECKS WHEN LAMPED, CONTAINS 10- % FE, 1% MG, +20 % CA, 0.2 % TI, +5000 PPM MN, 30 PPM AG, 0.1- PPM AU (BY AA ANALYSIS), 50 PPM BA, 1000 PPM BI, 15 PPM CO, 3-0 PPM CR, 200 PPM CU, 15 PPM MO, 30 PPM NI, 1000 PPM PB, 7 PPM- SC, 30 PPM SN, 200 PPM SR, 100 PPM V, 1000 PPM W, 30 PPM Y, 3-00 PPM ZN, 50 PPM ZR.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 42
USGS model code 14a
Deposit model name W skarn

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Jurassic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Jurassic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Slate
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Argillite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock unit name Auld Lang Syne Group
    Rock description Auld Lang Syne Group

Nearby scientific data

(1) -119.22961, 40.01406

Economic information

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR

Comments on the geologic information

  • BOTH THE GRANODIORITE CONTACT AND LIMESTONE BEDS DIP STEEPLY, TACTITE BODIES THAT EXTEND ALONG THE CONTACT ARE NEARLY VERTICAL. SCHEELITE IS DISSEMINATED THROUGH THE TACTITE IN EQUIDIMENSIONAL GRAINS 1/4" OR LESS IN DIAMETER; OCCURS AS IMPERFECTLY SHAPED CRYSTALS AS LARGE AS 1 INCH IN DIAMETER IN THE COARSE GRAINED TACTITE LAYERS.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1917
Discoverer Alex Ranson & Associates

Mining district

District name Nightingale District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Production statistics

  • Year 1918
    Period 1917-1918
    Material WO3
    Description Cp_Grade: ^Averaged About 0.5 % W03 Probably
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Wo3 Tungsten Tungsten 1wt-pct

Comments on the production information

  • 25,000 SHORT TON UNITS OF WO3 1929-1939. ACCORDING TO STAGER, PRODUCTION YEARS WERE 1918, 1924-1926, 1933-1942, 1954-1956 AND 1970-1971.

Comments on the workings information

  • MINE WORKINGS CONSIST OF 3 ADITS, 4 SHALLOW SHAFTS, NUMEROUS OPEN CUTS AND PITS. EXTENSIVE UNDERGROUND WORKINGS, M-ANY OF WHICH HAVE BEEN OPENED TO THE SURFACE BY TRENCHES OR ST-OPES, TOTAL ABOUT 1300 FT. DRILLING EAST OF MINE AREA

Comments on development

  • THE PROPERTY WAS SOLD TO THE TUNGSTEN PRODUCTION CO.IN 1929 AND IN 1933 THIS COMPANY BECAME THE GOLD, SILVER, AND -TUNGSTEN CO., INC. A MILL WAS BUILT IN 1930 BUT WAS OPERATED O-NLY INTERMITTENTLY FROM 1930 TO 1940. MOST OF THE ORE PRODUCED- WAS SHIPPED TO THE TOULON MILL. THE PROPERTY WAS PURCHASED BY- THE RARE METALS CORP. IN 1944. IN 1954-1956 THE MINE WAS OPER-ATED BY THE WOLFRAM COMPANY AND IN 1970-71 SPACE METALS,INC RE-WORKED THE OLD MILL TAILINGS AT THE TOULON MILL. IN 1984, THER-E WAS DRILLING GOING ON EAST OF THE MINE AREA.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    JOHNSON, M.G., 1977, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF PERSHING COUNTY, NEVADA, NBMG BULL. 89

  • Deposit

    SMITH, W.C. & GUILD, P.W., 1944, TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS OF THE NIGHTINGALE DISTRICT, PERSHING COUNTY, NEVADA, USGS BULL. 936-B

  • Deposit

    HESS AND LARSEN, 1921, CONTACT-METAMORPHIC TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS OF THE U S., USGS BULL. 725-D, P. 2827

  • Deposit

    KERR, 1946, TUNGSTEN MINERALIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES: GSA MEMOIR 15

  • Deposit

    VANDERBURG, 1936, RECONNAISSANCE OF MINING DISTRICTS IN PERSHING COUNTY; USBM 1C 6902

  • Deposit

    SCHILLING, J.,1962, NBM REPORT 2, P. 38.

  • Deposit

    SCHILLING, J.,1979, NBMG OFR 79-3, MOLYBDENUM RESOURCES OF NEVADA, P. 168.

  • Deposit

    STAGER, H. K., IN PREPARATION, NBMG BULL ON TUNGSTENDEPOSITS OF NEVADA

  • Production

    STAGER, H. K. (IN PREPARATION)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit THE MINE IS ALONG A PART OF THE GRANODIORITE CONTACT THAT TRENDS NORTH AND CUTS AT A SLIGHT ANGLE THE NEARLY VERTI-CAL SEDIMENTARY BEDS. THE CONTACT IS NEARLY VERTICAL TO A DEPT-H OF 350 FT. IRREGULAR BODIES OF QUARTZ MONZONITE INTRUDE THE -METAMORPHOSED SEDIMENTS CLOSE TO THE GRANODIORITE BODY, AND AP-LITE AND PEGMATITE DIKES CUT BOTH THE SEDIMENTARY ROCKS AND TH-E GRANODIORITE. TACTITE IN TABULAR BODIES 10 TO 50 FT THICK OC-CURS ALONG THE CONTACT WHERE LIMESTONE IS PRESENT. SCHEELITE, -WHICH IS PRESENT IN MINEABLE QUANTITIES ONLY IN PART OF THE TA-CTITE, OCCURS IN FOUR PRINCIPAL ORE SHOOTS ALONG A STRIKE LENG-TH OF ABOUT 1900 FT. THESE SHOOTS ARE FROM 100 TO 230 FT LONG,- FROM 7 TO 50 FT WIDE, AND EXTEND TO SEVERAL HUNDRED FEET BENE-ATH THE SURFACE. THE TACTITE CONTAINS ABUNDANT QUARTZ, EPIDOTE-, GARNET, HORNBLENDE, CALCITE, PYROXENE AND TREMOLITE, A LITTL-E PYRRHOTITE, MOLYBDENITE, CHALCOPYRITE, ARSENOPYRITE AND PYRI-TE. SCHEELITE CONTENT OF THE ORE MINED RANGED FROM ABOUT 0.25 -%
Deposit TO 2.0 % W03 AND PROBABLY AVERAGED ABOUT 0.5 % W03. THE TACT-ITE LAYERS ARE CUT BY MANY JOINTS THAT STRIKE EAST AND DIP GEN-TLY SOUTH. THE SCHEELITE CONTENT IS GREATER NEAR THE JOINTS,RE-SULTING IN BANDS OF ORE THAT CUT ACROSS THE BEDDING.
Deposit THE MAIN DEPOSIT WAS DISCOVERED IN 1917 BY ALEX RANSON AND WAS LATER ACQUIRED BY THE GOLD-SILVER-TUNGSTEN CO. IN 1929. MOST OF THE ORE WAS MINED AFTER 1929. SCHEELITE CONCENTRATION VARIES IN ALTERNATING FINE-GRAINED AND COARSE-GRAINED LAYERS. THE SCHEELITE IS TYPICALLY DISSEMINATED THROUGH THE TACTITE IN EQUIDIMENSIONAL GRAINS A QUARTER OF AN INCH OR LESS IN DIAMETER BUT OCCURS AS IMPERFECTLY SHAPED CRYSTALS AS LARGE AS 1 INCH IN DIAMETER IN COARSE-GRAINED TACTITE LAYERS. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT; 3 FIELD OBSERV

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-1979 Harner, Joy L. (Roberts, Ralph J.) Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Updater 01-OCT-1980 Royse, Sue E. 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.