Big Creek Mine

Past Producer in Carbon county in Wyoming, United States with commodities Copper, Uranium
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. Nearby scientific data
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Land status
  13. Ownership information
  14. Links to other databases
  15. Bibliographic references
  16. General comments
  17. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10157071
MAS/MILS ID 560070131
Record type Site
Current site name Big Creek Mine
Included sites BIg Creek Pegmatite Area

Comments on the site identification

  • Site visit in Sept. 2009 by A. Wilson and W. Heran. "The Big Creek mine is erroneously listed as the Platt Mine on the Trent Creek topographic map" (Hausel and Sutherland, 2000, p. 217.

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Main Entrance
Geographic coordinates: -106.5043, 41.1155 (WGS84)
Elevation 2365
Location accuracy 10(meters)
Relative position Adit is mislabeled "Platt Mine" on topo. But the location is excellent.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Carbon(county)

Wyoming(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Trent Creek(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Saratoga(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Rawlins(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper North Platte(hydrologic unit)

North Platte(hydrologic accounting unit)

North Platte(hydrologic subregion)

Missouri(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

BLM Administrative Area(land status)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Wyoming Carbon

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
6th Principal 013N 081W 9 NW4 Wyoming

Comments on the location information

  • "On Big Creek, southeast of Encmpment, on the Platt Ranch" (Bull. 50, p. 45) [erroneously labeled Platt Mine on Trent Creek topo]

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Uranium Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Bornite Ore
Chalcocite Ore
Malachite Ore
Chrysocolla Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Beryl Unknown
Fluorite Unknown

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 32
USGS model code 13
Deposit model name Pegmatites

Nearby scientific data

Main Entrance (1) -106.5043, 41.1155

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Surface-Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Significant No

Mining district

District name Big Creek District

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area

Ownership information

  • Type Lessee
    Owner American Mining and Development Co.
    Home office Newcastle WY, and Washington, DC.
    Year 1953
  • Type Lessor
    Owner R.H. Platt
    Home office Encampment, WY
    Year 1953

Comments on the workings information

  • At least 3 caved (as of 1953) adits. (DMEA-3092)

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    AEC PRELIM.FIELD INV., AIRBORNE RA ANOMALIES

  • Deposit

    R. E. PLATTE, ENCAMPMENT, WYO. 9-18-73

  • Deposit

    Hausel and Sutherland, 2000, WGS Bull. 71, 268 p.

  • Deposit

    Osterwald and others, 1966, WGS Bull. 50, p. 45.

  • Deposit

    Hausel, W.D., 1993, Guide to the geology, mining districts, and ghost towns of the Medicine Bow Mountains and Snowy Range Scenic Byway: Geological Survey of Wyoming Public Information Circular No. 32, 53 p.

  • Deposit

    Houston, R.S., 1961, The Big Creek pegmatite area, Carbon County, Wyoming: Geological Survey of Wyoming Preliminary Report No. 1., 11 p., 1 pl.

  • Deposit

    DMEA Docket No. 3092, 51 p. http://minerals.usgs.gov/dockets/scans/wy/dmea/3092_DMEA.pdf

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit "Some of the best copper specimens of massive chalcocite and bornite found in the state have come from this mine. The deposit occurs in a pink granite pegmatite. This pegmatite also contains common terminated quartz prisms. Much of the quartz is translucent, but specimens of excellent, trasnparent quartz similar to those found in Hot Springs County, Arkansas, are also found and relatively common." (Bull. 71, p. 217)
Deposit "A 'pegmatite vein,' probably quartz, contains chalcocite, baronite. Chalcopyrite and azurite, and an occasional phantom smoky quartz crystal. Crystalized garnets have been found 'a short distance up the hill'." (Bull. 50, p. 45)

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 1983-11-18 Intermountain Field Operations Center (IFOC) U.S. Bureau of Mines
Editor 2010-06-18 Wilson, Anna B. U.S. Geological Survey revised 12-jan-2012

Beyond USGS

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

External references