Hermes Mine (includes Fern Mine)

Past Producer in Valley county in Idaho, United States with commodities Mercury, Arsenic, Antimony
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. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Mineral rights holdings
  17. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Reserves and resources
  20. Workings at the site
  21. Links to other databases
  22. Bibliographic references
  23. General comments
  24. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10106911
MRDS ID M055154
MAS/MILS ID 160850029
Record type Site
Mineralized Area Yellow Pine Cinnabar-Mining District
Current site name Hermes Mine (includes Fern Mine)
Alternate or previous names Hermes Mine, Cinnabar, Bonanza, Hermes Quicksilver, Hermes Claim
Included sites Cinnabar Group, Yellow Pine Cinnabar-Mining District

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Geographic coordinates: Elevation UTM Precision Relative position Point location
Main Entrance -115.29083, 44.91861 (WGS84) 2377 100 3 MILES NE STIBNITE. Hermes Portal is in the clearing near the head of Cinnabar Creek. Adits and prospect pit (likely a caved adit) are shown but not labeled on Stibnite 24k topo.
(click for info)
Main Entrance -115.284, 44.90657 (WGS84) 10 Fern Mine adit, labeled on Stibnite 24k topo. From GNIS.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Valley(county)

Idaho(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Stibnite(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Pistol Creek(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Challis(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

South Fork Salmon(hydrologic unit)

Salmon(hydrologic accounting unit)

Lower Snake(hydrologic subregion)

Pacific Northwest(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Payette 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 Idaho Valley

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Boise 018N 009E 01,12 Idaho
Boise 018N 010E 6, 7 Idaho

Comments on the location information

  • Cinnabar Group is located approximately 1 mi. NNW of Fern Mine. (from deleted record 10193229)

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary
Arsenic Critical Tertiary
Antimony Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cinnabar Ore
Orpiment Ore
Realgar Ore
Stibnite Ore
Pyrite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Argillic Alteration, Silicification, Sericitization

Analytical data

Result ORE RAN 3 TO 20 LB HG PER TON

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 177
USGS model code 27a
Deposit model name Hot-spring Hg

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Dacite
    Rock unit name Idaho Batholith-Quartz Monzonite;Idaho Batholith-Granodiorite
    Rock description Idaho Batholith-Quartz Monzonite;Idaho Batholith-Granodiorite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Permian
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock type qualifier silicified, dolomitic limestone

Nearby scientific data

Main Entrance (1) -115.29083, 44.91861
Main Entrance (2) -115.284, 44.90657

Economic information

Ore body information

  • General form TABULAR
    Thickness 45.72M
    Length 91.44M
    Width 12.19M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Breccia Along Fault Filling Fractures Or Replacing Limestone.

Comments on the geologic information

  • GEOL.DESC: FAULTED PENDANT OF PALEOZOIC LIMESTONE AND SHALE IN IDAHO BATHOLITH. TERTIARY (?) DACITE

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1902
Discoverer Pringle Smith
Year of first production 1918

Mining district

District name Yellow Pine District

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Patented

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Bonanza Mines
    Interest 100
    Year 1943
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner United Mercury Mines Co.
    Year 1926
    First year 1921

Comments on the production information

  • HERMES MINE HAS PRODUCED NEARLY ONE-HALF THE STATES TOTAL HG PRODUCTION. Production figures from USBM data.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1950
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Mercury Hg 0.0004 wt-pct Mercury Major 1950

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ITEM 1 FROM LG LOW GRADE DEPOSIT WHICH INCLUDES FERN QUICKsilver GROUP AND VERMILLION GROUP.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 2743.2M
    Overall depth 76.2M

Comments on development

  • TWO 75-TON ROTARIES

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    BAILEY, E.H., USGS, PERSONAL FILES

  • Deposit

    BAILEY, E. H., 1964 , MINERAL RESOURCE - MERCURY IN MINERAL AND WATER RESOURCES OF IDAHO: IDAHO BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY, SPEC. REPT. NO. 1 , P. 119 - 123

  • Deposit

    U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 969-F, P. 151-197.

  • Deposit

    IDAHO BUREAU OF MINES & GEOLOGY PAMPHLET 43, P. 26.

  • Deposit

    IDAHO BUREAU OF MINES & GEOLOGY BULLETIN 2, VOL. XIV, P. 63.

  • Deposit

    Bradley, Worthen, 1943, The Hermes Quicksilver Mines--Part I: Mining Congress Journal, v. 29, no. 11, p. 32-34.

  • Deposit

    Bradley, Worthen, 1943, The Hermes Quicksilver Mines--Part II, The present operation: Mining Congress Journal, v. 29, no. 12, p. 40-44.

  • Deposit

    Schrader, F.C., and Ross, C.P., 1926, antimony and quicksilve rdeposits in the Yellow Pine district, Idaho: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin, 780-D, p. 137-164, pl. XVIII.

  • Deposit

    Leonard, B.F., Mercury-bearing antimony deposit between Big Creek and Yellow Pine, central Idaho: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 525-B, p. B23-B28.

  • Deposit

    Larsen, E.S., and Livingston, D.C., 1920, Geology of the Yellow Pine Cinnabar-mining district, Idaho: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 715-E, p. 73-83.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Bradley, Worthen, 1943, The Hermes Quicksilver Mines--Part I: Mining Congress Journal, v. 29, no. 11, p. 32-34.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 1974-01-01 Bergquist, Joel R. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 1976-08-01 Siefken, Robert R. (Miller, Pat) U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 1995-05-16 Winters, Dick U.S. Bureau of Mines MAS 0160850029 = newMRDS 10193229
Editor 2010-11-15 Wilson, Anna B. U.S. Geological Survey merged and deleted duplicate record 10193229.

Beyond USGS

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