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Small Hope Mine

Past Producer in La Plata county in Colorado, United States with commodities Gold, Silver, Copper, Tellurium
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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. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Land status
  15. Links to other databases
  16. Bibliographic references
  17. General comments
  18. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10101875
MRDS ID D010854
Record type Site
Current site name Small Hope Mine
Alternate or previous names Patented Claim: Small Hope, Ms 10349
Related records 10142035

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -108.04176, 37.43334 (WGS84)
Elevation 3261
Relative position 13.8 MILES N 41 W FROM DURANGO

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

La Plata(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

La Plata(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Cortez(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Cortez(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Middle San Juan(hydrologic unit)

Upper San Juan(hydrologic accounting unit)

San Juan(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Colorado(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

San Juan National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado La Plata

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
New Mexico 037N 011W 26 N2 Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • (LAND STATUS AND ADMINISTRATIVE AREA LOCATIONS CALCULATED USING GIS OVERLAY ANALYSIS FOR SAN JUAN N. F.). ON SE SLOPE OF DIORITE PEAK BETWEEN WILLIAMS GULCH AND SHOEBECK GULCH, 2.65 MILES NE OF LA PLATA TOWNSITE (UNSURVEYED SECTION). ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1974

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Primary
Copper Tertiary
Tellurium Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Analytical data

Result ORE SAMPLES FROM SW DRIFT ASSAYED 1.5 TO 2 OZ/TON AU WITH SOMEWHAT MORE IN AG
Result ORE IN NORTH DRIFT ASSAYED 0.5 TO 1 OZ/TON AU

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 85
USGS model code 22c
Deposit model name Polymetallic veins
Mark3 model number 46

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock unit name Nonporphyritic Rocks--Diorite;Porphyritic Rocks--Diorite-Monzonite Porphyry
    Rock description Nonporphyritic Rocks--Diorite;Porphyritic Rocks--Diorite-Monzonite Porphyry
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Eocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Eocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock unit name Nonporphyritic Rocks--Diorite
    Rock description Nonporphyritic Rocks--Diorite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -108.04176, 37.43334
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description San Juan Uplift, Four Corners Platform
Type of structure Local
Structure description La Plata Dome

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1887
Year of first production 1892
Year of last production 1919

Mining district

District name California (La Plata) District

Land status

Ownership category National Forest
Area name San Juan N. F.

Comments on the production information

  • PARTIAL PRODUCTION RECORD. FIGURES UNAVAILABLE FOR LATE 1880S TO 1898. NO PRODUCTION REPORTED FOR 1905-1906, 1909-1916 AND AFTER 1919.

Comments on the workings information

  • MINE DEVELOPED BY 275-FT SHAFT AND SHORT ADIT. VEIN ALSO CUT BY GRASSY HILL TUNNEL, DRIVEN N 42 W FOR APPROX 1770 FT TO VEIN, WITH SW AND NE DRIFTS 400 AND 500 FT LONG, RESPECTIVELY.

Comments on development

  • FOLLOWING DISCOVERY IN LATE 1880S OR EARLY 1890S, MINE WAS REGULAR PRODUCER AT LEAST UNTIL 1898. INTERMITTENT PRODUCTION FROM 1903 TO 1919.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    ECKEL, E.B., AND OTHERS, 1949, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE LA PLATA DISTRICT, COLORADO: USGS PROF. PAPER 219, P. 73-76, 165-167.

  • Deposit

    BLM MINERAL SURVEY MS 10349

  • Production

    ECKEL AND OTHERS, 1949, P. 165 (AS COMPILED FROM USGS AND USBM RECORDS)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit COUNTRY ROCK CONSISTS OF PERMIAN AND TRIASSIC TO JURASSIC SEDIMENTARY ROCKS INTRUDED BY DIORITE PEAK STOCK. SMALL HOPE VEIN TRENDS NE, DIPS STEEPLY NW TO VERTICAL. IN OLDER WORKINGS. FRACTURE ZONE WAD 3 FT WIDE WITH 1-FT PAY STREAK ON FOOTWALL (SE) SIDE. ORE SHOOT WAS ABOUT 30 FT LONG BUT EXTENDED TO BOTTOM OF SHAFT. BRECCIA ZONES IN GRASSY HILL TUNNEL RANGED FROM 1 TO 6 FT WIDE AND CHARACTERIZED BY HARD SILICIFIED MEDIAL SHEET WITH PYRITE AND POSSIBLE OTHER METALS FLANKED BY SOFT. ALTERED DIORITE GRADING INTO FRESH DIORITE. VEIN DEVELOPED AT END GRASSY HILL TUNNEL MAY BE PARALLEL VEIN SE OF SMALL HOPE VEIN.
Deposit Discovery Year: LATE 1880S

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-AUG-1983 Schwochow, Stephen D. Colorado Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Colorado resources

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