| Deposit ID | 10045025 |
|---|---|
| MRDS ID | M232677 |
| Record type | Site |
| Current site name | Rainbow Ridge Opal Mine |
| Geographic coordinates: | -119.01519, 41.79515 (WGS84) |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 1547 |
Political divisions (FIPS codes)
Humboldt(county)
Nevada(state)
United States(country)
North America(continent)
Land(continent)
USGS map quadrangles
Virgin Valley(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)
Vya(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)
Vya(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)
Hydrologic units (watersheds)
Thousand-Virgin(hydrologic unit)
Black Rock Desert(hydrologic accounting unit)
Black Rock Desert-Humboldt(hydrologic subregion)
Great Basin(hydrologic region)
| Country | State | County |
|---|---|---|
| United States | Nevada | Humboldt |
| Meridian | Township | Range | Section | Fraction | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Diablo | 045N | 026E | 22,23 | Nevada |
| Commodity | Importance |
|---|---|
| Gemstone | Primary |
| Materials | Type of material |
|---|---|
| Opal | Ore |
| Host or associated | Associated | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rock type | Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) | ||
| |||
| Host or associated | Host |
|---|---|
| Rock type | Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone |
| (1) | -119.01519, 41.79515 |
|---|
| General form | BLANKET |
|---|---|
| Strike | HORIZONTAL |
| Dip | HORIZONTAL |
| Thickness | 1.22M |
| Development status | Producer |
|---|---|
| Commodity type | Non-metallic |
| Deposit size | Medium |
| Significant | No |
| Discovery year | 1905 |
| Discoverer | D. Roop, E. Mc Gee And G.T. Hill |
| Year of first production | 1925 |
| District name | Virgin Valley District |
|---|
| Ownership category | BLM Administrative Area |
|---|
| Type | Owner-Operator |
|---|---|
| Owner | Keith Hodson |
| First year | 1978 |
| Type of workings | Surface/Underground |
|---|---|
| Length | 228.6M |
| Agency | Database name | Acronym | Record ID | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USGS | Mineral Resources Data System | MRDS | M232677 |
NEVADA STATE INSPECTOR OF MINES, 1981, DIRECTORY OF NEVADA MINE OPERATIONS ACTIVE DURING CALENDAR YEAR 1980.
STATE INSPECTOR OF MINES, 1982-1985, DIRECTORIES OF NEVADA MINE OPERATIONS ACTIVE IN 1982-1985.
WILLDEN, R., 1964, NBMG, BULL. 59.
CATHRALL, J.B., ET AL., 1978
| Subject category | Comment text |
|---|---|
| Deposit | 6 CLAIMS WERE PATENTED IN 1929. OVER 20 ACRES OF MINEABLE DEPOSIT. THE 2.95 KG HODSON BLACK FIRE OPAL WAS DISCOVERED IN 1952. |
| Deposit | THE FIRST DISCOVERY OF PRECIOUS OPAL IN VIRGIN VALLEY IS REPORTED TO HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN 1905 OR 1906 AT THIS SITE. THE ORIGINAL CLAIMS WERE OWNED BY D. ROOP, E. MC GEE, AND G.T. HILL. OPAL CHIPS WERE FOUND ON THE E. SIDE OF A SMALL HILL IN 1908 AND A 300-FT LONG TUNNEL WAS DUG. IN 1917, THE ROEBLING OPAL, WEIGHING 2,665 CARATS (553 G) WAS FOUND HERE. AT THE TIME OF ITS DISCOVERY, IT WAS VALUED BETWEEN $50,000 AND $250,000. IN 1929, 6 CLAIMS WERE PATENTED: ROYAL OPAL, RINCON BELLE, BLACK OPAL NOS. 1, 2, 3, AND PANDORA. LITTLE WORK WAS DONE AT THE MINE FROM 1920 UNTIL 1949 WHEN KEITH HODSON PURCHASED THE CLAIMS AND BEGAN SEVERAL CROSSCUTS AND A DRIFT. IN 1952 HE DISCOVERED THE HODSON BLACK FIRE OPAL WEIGHING 2.95 KG, THEN VALUED AT $50,000. LITTLE WORK HAS BEEN DONE RECENTLY AT THE RAINBOW RIDGE MINE, DUE TO MR. HODSON'S WORK ON THE VIRGIN OPAL CLAIMS. DEVELOPMENT CONSIST OF 2 LARGE CUTS, 8 SMALLER PITS AND 750 FT. OF UNDERGROUND WORKINGS. LISTED IN 1980 AS AN ACTIVE SURFACE |
| Deposit | MINE EMPLOYING 2 PERSONS. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT |
| Deposit | Discovery Year: 1905 OR 1906 |
| Type | Date | Name | Affiliation | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reporter | 01-JAN-1981 | La Pointe, D.D. | Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology | |
| Updater | 01-MAY-1987 | La Pointe, D.D. | Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology | CHECKED AND MODIFIED ROCK TYPE, ROCK UNIT AND AGES FIELDS. |
| Updater | 01-JUN-1992 | Li, Zhiping (Peters, S.) | U.S. Geological Survey | |
| Editor | 01-SEP-1994 | Mosier, Dan | U.S. Geological Survey |
Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.
| Status | Intermittent since 05/18/2015 |
|---|---|
| MSHA mine ID | 2601428 |
| Mine name (MSHA) | Rainbow Ridge Opal Mine |
| Current operator | Glen Hodson |
| Current controller (parent) | Glen Hodson |
| Mine type | Surface (Metal / non-metal) |
Inferred by coordinate + name similarity (21 m, 1.00 match). Confirm against MSHA if precision matters — non-USGS-curated cross-references may occasionally point at a neighbouring mine.
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