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Calico Hills Area

Occurrence in Nye county in Nevada, United States with commodities Iron, Magnesite, Copper
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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. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10046564
MRDS ID M241749
Record type Site
Current site name Calico Hills Area
Alternate or previous names Shoshone Brucite Claims, Sample Sites 380,381
Related records 10125346

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -116.30477, 36.8658 (WGS84)
Elevation 1372
Relative position ABOUT 2.5 MILES NNW OF SUBSTATION IN TOPOPAH WASH

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Nye(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Jackass Flats(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Beatty(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Death Valley(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Amargosa(hydrologic unit)

Northern Mojave(hydrologic accounting unit)

Northern Mojave-Mono Lake(hydrologic subregion)

California(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

DOE(Federal land areas administered by DOE)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Nye

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • RESTRICTED ACCESS; ON NEVADA TEST SITE. ABOUT 6 MILES N OF THE CANE SPRINGS RD ON THE NEVADA TEST SITE ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1982

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Iron Primary
Magnesite Primary
Copper Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Brucite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Malachite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Epidote Gangue
Garnet Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Hematite Unknown

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification; Bleached, Altered Tuffs

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 62
USGS model code 18d
Deposit model name Skarn Fe

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Pyroclastic Rock > Tuff
    Rock unit name Calico Hills Tuff
    Rock description Calico Hills Tuff
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Argillite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Dolomite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Pyroclastic Rock > Tuff
    Rock unit name Eleana;Nevada
    Rock description Eleana;Nevada

Nearby scientific data

(1) -116.30477, 36.8658
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Calico Hills Dome With Extensive Radial Fracturing Along Margins
Type of structure Local
Structure description Thrust Fault

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Fracturing, Thrust Fault Contact; Igneous Contact

Comments on the geologic information

  • ARGILLITE OF ELEANA FM IS SILICATED, FRACTURED WITH VEINLETS OF SILICATE MINERALS, SOME EPIDOTE GARNET, MAGNETITE, FORMS LOWER PLATE OF THRUST. UPPER PLATE BLEACHED SILICATED NEVADA FM WITH BRUCITE PROSPECTS IN NEVADA DOLOMITE AT THRUST CONTACT. SILICATED ROCKS FORM BASIN AND LOWER RIDGES; CALICO HILLS TUFFS CAP RIDGES. TUFFS ARE BLEACHED AND ALTERED WITH LOTS OF VIVID HEMATITE COLORATION AND SOME JASPEROID VEINING. SMALL RHYOLITE PLUGS FORM SMALL HILLS IN THE BASIN, ARE BRECCIATED AND CONTAIN ARGILLITE FRAGMENTS. WITHIN VEINS ARE PODS OF COPPER MINERALS

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Occurrence
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1941
Discoverer Bob Baker And Robert Wright

Mining district

District name Calico Hills Area

Land status

Ownership category Military Reservation

Comments on the workings information

  • SEVERAL SMALL PROSPECT TRENCHES; 3 SHALLOW SHAFTS; 10 PROSPECTS, ONE 2500-FT DRILL HOLE

Comments on development

  • INACTIVE AT TIME OF EXAMINATION. USGS HAS DONE EXTENSIVE GEOPHYSICAL WORK IN AREA, DRILLED ONE DEEP DIAMOND DRILL HOLE ON WEST SIDE OF ALTERED AREA. EXAMINED AS POSSIBLE NUCLEAR WASTE DISPOSAL SITE

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit VEINLETS ALONG THRUST FAULT. ARGILLITE IS SILICATED, FRACTURED, WITH VEINLETS OF SILICATE MINERALS
Deposit POSSIBILITY OF BURIED INTRUSIVE UNDERLYING SILICATED ROCKS. ; INFO.SRC : 3 FIELD OBSERV; 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-AUG-1983 La Pointe, D.D. (Tingley, J.V.) Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology

Beyond USGS

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

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.