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Coeur Mine

Past Producer in Shoshone county in Idaho, United States with commodities Silver, Copper, Antimony, Gold, Lead, Zinc
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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. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Ownership information
  18. Production statistics
  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 10107346
MRDS ID W026665
Record type Site
Current site name Coeur Mine
Alternate or previous names Rainbow Mine, Mineral Point, Coeur d'Alene Mines

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Geographic coordinates: Elevation UTM Precision Relative position Point location
Ore Body -115.98963, 47.49017 (WGS84) 3.5 MI W OF WALLACE.
(click for info)
-115.98963, 47.49017 (WGS84) 930
-115.98963, 47.49017 (WGS84) 916
-115.98963, 47.49017 (WGS84) 896
-115.98963, 47.49017 (WGS84) 871

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Shoshone(county)

Idaho(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Wallace(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Wallace(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Wallace(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

South Fork Coeur d'Alene(hydrologic unit)

Spokane(hydrologic accounting unit)

Kootenai-Pend Oreille-Spokane(hydrologic subregion)

Pacific Northwest(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Idaho Shoshone

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Boise 048N 004E 18,19,20,29,30 Idaho
Boise 048N 003E 13,14,24 Idaho

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Copper Secondary
Antimony Critical Secondary
Gold Tertiary
Lead Tertiary
Zinc Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Tetrahedrite Ore
Galena Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Stibnite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Silver Ore
Boulangerite Ore
Siderite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Arsenopyrite Gangue
Ankerite Gangue
Jamesonite Trace

Analytical data

Result 744 FT VEIN, AVG 8 FT WIDE, CONTAINED 31.4 OZ/TON AG, 1.1% CU
Result THE "400" VEIN (565 FT LONG, AVG 8 FT WIDE) ON 2200 LEVEL ASSAYED 28 OZ AG, 0.9% CU
Result THE "483 VEIN" ON 3400 LEVEL ASSAYED 200 AND 118 OZ AG AND 4.1% CU OVER AVERAGE WIDTH OF 1.6 FT . SIX FT OF CORE FROM A 13 FT WIDE VEIN AT THE 3400 LEVEL ASSAYED 39.9 OZ AG AND .8% CU, AND THE REMAINING 7 FT ASSAYED 27.6 OZ AG AND .6% CU. ANOTHER VEIN ASSAYED 52.9 OZ AG AND 2.7% CU.

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 Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
    Rock unit name St. Regis Formation
    Rock description St. Regis Formation
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
    Rock unit name Revett Formation
    Rock description Revett Formation
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Osburn Fault, 1.5 km north of Coeur shaft, N75W 60-80SW
Type of structure Regional
Structure description Placer Creek Fault, 3.5 km south of Coeur shaft
Type of structure Regional
Structure description Big Creek Anticline, north overturned limb strikes N55W, axial plunge 10 to 20 N, axial plane dips 55SW.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Polaris Fault, N55W 50-75SW, cuts north limb of Big Creek anticline, a tension fracture extending from the Osburn to the Placer Creek faults.
Type of structure Regional
Structure description St. Elmo Fault, N50W 60SW, shows reverse movement.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Mineral Point Fault
Type of structure Regional
Structure description Fort Wayne Fault, N60W 60-70SW, shows normal displacement.
Type of structure Local
Structure description Silver Standard Fault, N60W 65SW, shows normal movement.

Ore body information

  • Name Siderite Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
    Strike NE
    Dip STEEPLY S
    Thickness 550
    Length 226.77M
    Width 3.96M
    Depth to bottom 1349.65M
  • Name Commodore Truxton Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
  • Name Wire Silver Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
  • Name Cross Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
  • Name 356 Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
    Strike 70S-steep N
    Dip 70S-steep N
    Thickness 200
    Length 180
    Width 1.5
    Depth to top 1000
    Depth to bottom 1200
  • Name 400 Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
    Strike 80-85S
    Dip 80-85S
    Thickness 500
    Length 240
    Width 1.5
    Depth to top 600
    Depth to bottom 1100
  • Name 425 Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
  • Name 483 Vein
    General form PINCH AND SWELL
    Strike 75-85S
    Dip 75-85S

Comments on the ore body information

  • The 483 vein is S-shaped, having been rotated by left-lateral shear.

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Orebodies (massive siderite veins) occur in a wedge of Revett Formation quartzite in the footwall of the Polaris Fault. Revett Formation rocks have been uplifted here over 1 kilometer. Veins pinch out rapidly when they pass into argilite. Boundaries of veins at the intersection of fractures and bedding. Clean Revett Formation quartizite is the best host rock, sericitic quartzite in the St. Regis Formation is a relatively poor host rock. Mineralized fractures occupy fractures of five orientations, one parallel to the Osburn and Placer Creek Faults, and two sets of conjugate fractures related to left-lateral and right-lateral movement on the Osburn and Placer Creek Faults.

Comments on the geologic information

  • ST. REGIS - REVETT TRANSITION ZONE EXTENDS NEAR SURFACE TO 3700 FT LEVEL

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1885
Mining method Filled Stopes - Horiz Cut and Fill W/Tailings
Year of first production 1892
Year of last production 1998
Plant type Beneficiation (Mill)
Plant subcategory Flotation
Milling method Flotation
Production years 1892-1895, 1897-1898, 1919-1922, 1938-1952, 1974, 1976-1991, 1996-1998

Mining district

District name Evolution

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Mineral Point Mining and Milling Co.
    Interest 100
    First year 1891
    Last year 1895
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Mineral Point Mining Co.
    Interest 100
    Home office Wallace, Idaho
    First year 1904
    Last year 1940
  • Type Joint Venture
    Owner Evolution Mining Co.
    Interest 100
    Home office Spokane, Washington
    First year 1927
    Last year 1927
  • Type Lessee/Operator
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp.
    Interest 100
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1928
    Last year 1940
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp.
    Interest 100
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1940
    Last year 1964
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Rainbow Mining and Milling Co.
    Interest 100
    Home office Spokane, Washington
    First year 1907
    Last year 1968
  • Type Joint Venture Operator
    Owner Asarco, Inc.
    Interest 50
    Home office New York
    First year 1964
    Last year 1968
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Inc
    Interest 50
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1964
    Last year 1968
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Callahan Mining Corp.
    Interest 5
    Home office New York
    First year 1968
    Last year 1991
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Hecla Mining Co.
    Interest 5
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1968
    Last year 1990
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp.
    Interest 40
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1968
    Last year 1990
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines
    Interest 45
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1990
    Last year 1991
  • Type Joint Venture Owner
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp.
    Interest 50
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 1991
    Last year 1995
  • Type Joint Venture Operator
    Owner Silver Valley Resources Corp.
    Interest 100
    Home office Wilmington, Delaware
    First year 1995
    Last year 2000
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp
    Interest 100
    Home office Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
    First year 2000

Production statistics

  • Year 1952
    Period 1938-1952
    Material Ore Milled Mineral Point Mine
    Ore mined 398707mt
    Accuracy Accurate
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Major in concentrates Silver Silver 181.9mt 493g/mt
  • Year 1998
    Period 1974-1998
    Material Ore Milled Coeur Mine
    Ore mined 2262665mt
    Accuracy Accurate
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Minor in concentrates Copper Copper 16063mt 1wt-pct

Comments on the production information

  • Production for Mineral Point mine from Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. annual reports 1938-1952.
  • Production for Coeur mine from Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. and Asarco, Inc. annual reports.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Name Additional Resource
    Estimate year 1998
    Total resources 336000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper 0.69 wt-pct Copper Minor 1998
    Silver 498 g/mt Silver Major 1998

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • Additional resource reported in Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. annual report for 1998. Reserves depleted.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Name of workings Total Workings
    Length 13035.33
    Overall depth 1350M
  • Type of workings Underground
    Name of workings Coeur Shaft
    Overall depth 1350M

Comments on the workings information

  • THE 3400 FT LEVEL IS CONNECTED TO GALENA MINE. NEW SHAFT IS OVER 1000 FT BELOW SEA LEVEL. MINE IS ON 748 ACRES OF LAND.

Comments on development

  • 38 PATENTED, 4 UNPATENTED CLAIMS. ABOUT 53299 FT TOTAL DIAMOND DRILLING. CALADAY CROSSCUT TO HALFWAY POINT OVER 2000 FT FROM PORTAL. ; TOTAL$: 20 ; MILL$: 10 ; MILL.CAP: 502 TPD ; ECON.YEAR: 1976 ; ECON.COM: EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT WORK TOTALED $10 MILLION
  • The Siderite vein, the main vein of the Mineral Point mining operation was discovered by Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp in 1935. The Commodore Truxton vein was discovered in 1945 and the Wire Silver vein in 1950 in the course of mine development and exploration. The first orebody in the modern Coeur mine operations was discovered in 1969 by Asarco, Inc.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    ENG. MINING JOUR., 1976 , ASARCO'S NEWLY DEDICATED COEUR SILVER MINE WILL BE FOURTH LARGEST IN US: ENG. MINING JOUR., V. 177 , NO. 7 , P. 23 - 27

  • Deposit

    CARTER, R. A., AND LI, TAM., 1976 , IDAHO'S COEUR D'ALENE DISTRICT SETS SIGHTS ON RECORD PRODUCTION: MINING ENG., V. 28 , NO. 7 , P. 49 - 64

  • Deposit

    Fryklund, V.C., Jr., 1964, Ore deposits of the Coeur d'Alene district, Shoshone County, Idaho: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 445, 103 p.

  • Deposit

    Robinson, Robert Blair, 1980, Structural geology and structural origin of the veins of the Coeur mine, Coeur d'Alene mining district, Shoshone County, Idaho: Moscow, University of Idaho, MS thesis, 98 p.

  • Deposit

    Hackbarth, C.J., and Petersen, U., 1982, Zoning in veins of the Galena and Coeur mines, Coeur d'Alene mining district, Idaho: Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 14, no. 6, p. 314.

  • Deposit

    Dahl, Mary Katherine, 1981, Structural and stratigraphic control of ore through the Crescent, Sunshine, Silver Summit, Coeur and Galena mines, Coeur d'Alene mining district, Idaho: Moscow, Univeristy of Idaho, MS thesis, 97 p.

  • Deposit

    Hobbs, S. W., And Others, 1965 , Geology Of The Coeur D'Alene District, Shoshone County, Idaho: USGS Prof. Paper 478 , 139 P.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit 16 OF THE PATENTED CLAIMS WERE LEASED FROM THE COEUR D'ALENE MINES CORP AND 22 OF THE PATENTED CLAIMS WERE LEASED FROM THE RAINBOW MIN. AND MILL. CO. IN 1966 ; THESE 2 COMPANIES MERGED IN 1968

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUL-1975 Miller, Pat J. U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 04-SEP-1997 Kaufmann U.S. Bureau of Mines
Updater 04-MAR-2005 Long, Keith R. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Operator history (post-MRDS)

MRDS records operators as of each record's last update (≤ 2019). Some of the operators listed here have since changed hands or dissolved:

  • Asarco, Inc. — acquired by Asarco LLC, subsidiary of Grupo México (2009)
    American Smelting and Refining Co. Filed Chapter 11 in 2005; acquired out of bankruptcy by Grupo México in 2009.

Curated by qvyshift.com from publicly-reported M&A activity (SEC filings, press releases, USGS Mineral Yearbooks). Not authoritative — verify against primary sources before relying on it. The MSHA panel above is the current authoritative source for actively-permitted mines.

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