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First Chance Creek

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Gold, Tin, Tungsten
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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. Mineral occurrence model information
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Mining district
  11. Links to other databases
  12. Bibliographic references
  13. General comments
  14. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10308831
MRDS ID A015330
Record type Site
Current site name First Chance Creek
Related records 10002852

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -147.56295, 64.95267 (WGS84)
Relative position The First Chance mine is mostly in the S1/2 section 33, T. 2 N., R. 1 E., Fairbanks Meridian. Mine tailings are marked on the Fairbanks (D-2) NE topographic map, about 1 mile upstream from the mouth of the creek. The whole lower mile of the creek may have been mined (Chapman and Foster, 1969, map). The placer is about 1.8 miles east of the town of Fox. The mine is included in locality 53 of Cobb (1972 [MF 410]).

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Fairbanks North Star(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Fairbanks D-2(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Big Delta NW(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Fairbanks(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Tin Critical Secondary
Tungsten Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cassiterite Ore
Gold Ore
Scheelite Ore

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 119
USGS model code 39a
Deposit model name Placer Au-PGE
Mark3 model number 54

Nearby scientific data

(1) -147.56295, 64.95267
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Gold mining began on First Chance Creek in 1908 and continued intermittently until 1940 (Cobb, 1976, OFR 76-662, p. 44). In 1914, the depth to bedrock was approximately 42 feet and the paystreak was approximately 4 feet wide (Chapin, 1914 [B 592-J, p. 358]). Placer scheelite is abundant (Joesting, 1942 [ATDM Pamph. 1]). At the head of the creek, scheelite occurs in contact-metamorphosed limestone and in gold-bearing quartz veins near a porphyritic granite intrusive body. On the lower part of the creek, scheelite constitutes the main part of placer concentrates.
  • Age = Quaternary placer.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Probably inactive

Mining district

District name Fairbanks

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = No information is available, but there was some.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = In 1926, small scale mining by ground sluicing and other methods involving hand labor were reported (Wimmler, 1926 [ATDM MR 195-11, p. 58]).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Prindle, L.M., and Katz, F.J., 1909, The Fairbanks gold-placer region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 379, p. 181-200.

  • Deposit

    Ellsworth, C.E., 1912, Placer mining in the Fairbanks and Circle Disctricts: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 520, p. 240-245.

  • Deposit

    Ellsworth, C.E., and Davenport, R.W., 1913, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 542, 303 p.

  • Deposit

    Prindle, L.M., and Katz, F.J., 1913, Detailed description of the Fairbanks district, in Prindle, L. M., A geologic reconnaissance of the Fairbanks quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 525, p. 59-152.

  • Deposit

    Chapin, Theodore, 1914, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 592-J, p. 357-362.

  • Deposit

    Eakin, H.M., 1915, Placer mining in Seward Peninsula: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 622-I, p. 366-373.

  • Deposit

    Smith, P.S., 1917, The mining industry in the territory of Alaska during the calendar year 1915: U.S. Bureau of Mines Bulletin 142, 66 p.

  • Deposit

    Wimmler, N.L., 1926, Placer mining in Alaska in 1926: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Miscellaneous Report 195-11, 121 p.

  • Deposit

    Smith, P.S., 1939, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1938: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 917-A, p. 1-113.

  • Deposit

    Joesting, H.R., 1942, Strategic mineral occurences in interior Alaska: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Pamphlet 1, 46 p.

  • Deposit

    Byers, F.M., Jr., 1957, Tungsten deposits in the Fairbanks district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1024-I, p. 179-216.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Fairbanks quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-410, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Fairbanks quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-662, 174 p.

  • Deposit

    Chapman, R.M., and Foster, R.L., 1969, Lode mines and prospects in the Fairbanks district, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 625-D, 25 p., 1 plate.

  • Deposit

    Smith, P.S., 1941, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1939: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 926-A, p. 1-106.

  • Deposit

    Smith, P.S., 1942, Mineral industry of Alaska in 1940: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 933-A, p. 1-102.

  • Deposit

    Smith, S.S., 1917, The mining industry in the Territory of Alaska during the calendar year 1915: U.S. Bureau of Mines Bulletin 142, 65 p.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Cobb, 1976 (OFR 76-662)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 31-JUL-2001 J.R. Guidetti Schaefer and C.J. Freeman Avalon Development Corporation

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Alaska resources

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