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Mariposa Mine

Past Producer in Brewster county in Texas, 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. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Host and associated rocks
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Ore body information
  10. Controls for ore emplacement
  11. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  12. Mining district
  13. Mineral rights holdings
  14. Land status
  15. Ownership information
  16. Production statistics
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10088610
MRDS ID M055145
Record type Site
Current site name Mariposa Mine
Alternate or previous names California Mountain, Marfa and Mariposa Mining Co.
Related records 10178887

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -103.69417, 29.31456 (WGS84)
Elevation 983
Relative position 5 MI W OF TERLINGUA. Mine labeled on topo with numerous workings. Coodinates are for middle of 3 shafts on west flank of California Hill, east of the road.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Brewster(county)

Texas(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Amarilla Mountain(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Chisos Mountains(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Emory Peak(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Terlingua(hydrologic unit)

Rio Grande-Amistad(hydrologic accounting unit)

Rio Grande-Amistad(hydrologic subregion)

Rio Grande(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Texas Brewster

Comments on the location information

  • MINE IS LOCATED IN SECTION 59, BLOCK G 12.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cinnabar Ore

Analytical data

Result ORE GRADE IN 1901 WAS 8 TO 25% HG.

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Trachyte
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Pliocene
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Mafic Volcanic Rock > Basalt
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Clay, Mud
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock unit name Santa Elena Limestone;Del Rio Clay
    Rock description Santa Elena Limestone;Del Rio Clay

Nearby scientific data

(1) -103.69417, 29.31456
ListMap

Economic information

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Solution Collapse Along Limestone-Clay Contact.

Comments on the geologic information

  • CRET. LIMESTONE AND SHALE IS CUT BY N-W TRENDING NORMAL FAULTS
  • HOST GRAYSON FM SHALE
  • DEVILS RIVER LIMESTONE
  • INTRUDED BY SODA LATITE DIKES AND SILLS

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface-Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1884
Discoverer Juan Acosta
Year of first production 1895
Year of last production 1945
Production years 1895-1903, 1905, 1907-1910, 1916-1919, 1923-30, 1931-45

Mining district

District name Terlingua

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Private Lease

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Esperado Mining Co.
    Home office Texas
    Year 1979
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Marfa And Mariposa Mining Co. Mariposa Mining Co. F.W. Oakes Jr.
    First year 1895
    Last year 1919

Production statistics

  • Year 1960
    Period To 1960
    Material HG
    Accuracy Estimate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^20 Lb/Ton
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Mercury Mercury 9035g/mt

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ITEM 1 IS EQUIVALENT TO 3000 FL. ABOUT 75% OF KNOWN OREBODIES HAD BEEN MINED BY 1959.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Length 4827.9M
    Overall depth 91.44M
    Overall length 1066.8M
    Overall width 304.8M
  • Type of workings Surface
    Name of workings pits and trenches

Comments on the workings information

  • PITS, TRENCHES, AND 121 SHAFTS DEEPER THAN 20 FT (DEEPEST 300+ FT). MINE WORKED BY OPEN PIT DURING WORLD WAR II.

Comments on development

  • ECON.COM: A SCOTT FURNACE INSTALLED 1899. MARIPOSA MINING CO. OPERATED TWO 10 TPD SCOTT FURNACES AND LEASED THE 50 TPD TERLINGUA FURNACE DURING WORLD WAR I. F.W. OAKES JR. INSTALLED A 30 TPD ROTARY FURNACE IN 1928 WHICH WAS MOVED TO THE STUDY BUTTE MINE IN 1930.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    BAILEY, E.H., USGS, PERSONAL FILES

  • Deposit

    CHESTER, J.W., 1965, MERCURY IN TEXAS: USBM IC 8252

  • Deposit

    USGS PP 312, 114 P.

  • Deposit

    TX BEG MRC-73, P.22-23.

  • Deposit

    EXAMINED BY C.P. ROSS AND OTHERS, 1934

  • Deposit

    EXAMINED BY R.G. YATES AND OTHERS, 1942-1945

  • Deposit

    Bailey, E.H., 1962, Mercury in the United States: U.S. Geological Survey Mineral Investigations Resource Map MR-30, 8 p. pamphlet, scale 1:3,168,000.

  • Other Database

    CIMRI

  • Production

    (1) USBM DATA (2,3) TX BEG DATA (4) MINES HANDBOOK V. 17

  • Reserve-Resource

    COPPER HANDBOOK V. 14

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit CINNABAR REPLACEMENT OF CLAY MATRIX IN COLLAPSE BRECCIA

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 1973-10-01 Bergquist, Joel R. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 1992-09-01 Long, Keith R. U.S. Geological Survey
Editor 2012-10-31 Wilson, Anna B U.S. Geological Survey merged and deleted duplicate record 10178887.
Reporter 1983-11-18 Garner U.S. Bureau of Mines MAS 0480430031 = 10178887

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site