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Gold Banner

Prospect in Alaska, United States with commodities 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. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  12. Mining district
  13. Links to other databases
  14. Bibliographic references
  15. General comments
  16. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10001591
MRDS ID A012348
Record type Site
Current site name Gold Banner
Alternate or previous names Golden Banner, Golden Tree

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -131.1837, 55.36781 (WGS84)
Relative position The Gold Banner claim is in section 18, T. 75 S., R. 94 E., of the Copper River Meridian. It straddles Gokachin Creek about 0.4 mile upstream from its mouth at Thorne Arm The map site is roughly at the midpoint of the claim. The site corresponds to loc. 95 in Elliott and others (1978), and to loc. 304 (2-6) in Maas and others (1995). The location is accurate within 0.1 mile. ? Also see Additional comments.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Ketchikan Gateway(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Ketchikan B-4(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Ketchikan SW(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Ketchikan(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Ketchikan(hydrologic unit)

Southern Southeast Alaska(hydrologic accounting unit)

Southeast Alaska(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Tongass National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Lead Secondary
Zinc Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Galena Ore
Gold Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) The Gold Banner vein, like most of the other principal veins in the Sea Level mine area, is bordered by a hydrothermally altered zone up to three feet thick, characterized by generally fine-grain, light-gray to bluish-gray, massive, carbonate- and sericite-bearing rock that commonly contains cubic pyrite crystals up to an inch across (Maas and others, 1995, p. 215). Maas and others (1995) interpret this zone as hydrothermally altered mafic metavolcanic rock. Early miners called this altered rock 'blue porphyry,' which they interpreted as crosscutting altered dikes that predate the quartz veins, but are closely associated with some of the orebodies (Brooks, 1902, p. 65; Wright and Wright, 1908, p. 143). Gold content of these pyritic altered zones is high adjacent to the quartz veins and diminishes away from them. Weathered altered rocks have a reddish-brown, oxidized rind up to three inches thick.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 273
USGS model code 36a
Deposit model name Low-sulfide Au-quartz vein
Mark3 model number 27

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist

Nearby scientific data

(1) -131.1837, 55.36781
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = The country rocks in this part of Revillagigedo Island are marine, interbedded, andesitic and basaltic metavolcanic rocks and subordinate pelitic metasedimentary rocks that are intruded by stocks, sills, and dikes of Cretaceous feldspar-porphyritic granodiorite (Berg and others, 1988). The strata and some of the granodiorite were regionally metamorphosed to greenschist grade in Late Cretaceous time. These regionally metamorphosed rocks subsequently were locally remetamorphosed to hornblende hornfels near the contacts of Cretaceous granodiorite plutons that were emplaced after the regional metamorphism. The premetamorphic age of the strata is uncertain. Berg and others (1988) assign them a Mesozoic or (late) Paleozoic age. Berg (1982) and Crawford and others (in press) assign them to the Gravina belt, of Late Jurassic or Cretaceous age, or to the Taku terrane, of late Paleozoic to Late Triassic age. The metamorphic and intrusive rocks locally are overlain by basalt and andesite lava flows of Quaternary or Tertiary age.? Wright and Wright (1908, p. 147) describe the Gold Banner deposit as a 1-6 foot thick, auriferous quartz fissure vein in several types of schist. The schist is intruded by a porphyry dike that forms the hanging wall of the vein at the surface. The vein, traced on the surface for several hundred feet, strikes N65E and dips 70-80SE, at an acute angle to the foliation of the schist, which generally strikes NW and dips steeply SW. In addition to sparse particles of free gold, the vein contains pyrite, galena, and sphalerite. The deposit was explored in the early 1900s by a shaft and a 60-foot tunnel.? Maas and others (1995, p. 215-218) describe the deposit as an auriferous quartz fissure vein in hydrothermally altered mafic metavolcanic rock that also carries gold values adjacent to the vein (see Alteration). In addition to free gold, the vein contains pyrite and minor amounts of galena and sphalerite. Forty-seven samples that Maas and others (1995) collected averaged 1.0 ppm Au, and the mean value of 46 of the samples was 2048 ppb Au. Workings include 4 adits, one 160 feet long, one 128 feet long, and two caved; a shaft at least 18 feet deep; a 72-foot-deep glory hole; and several trenches. Maas and others (1995, p. 218) report a minimum production, probably all in the early 1900s, of 0.3 kg Au and 0.2 kg Ag.? Maas and others (1995, p. 215) note that the quartz in the veins in the Sea Level mine area is not recrystallized; the veins thus are probably younger than most or all of the Late Cretaceous regional metamorphism.
  • Age = Maas and others (1995, p. 215) note that the quartz in the veins in the Sea Level mine area is not recrystallized; the veins thus are probably younger than most or all of the Late Cretaceous regional metamorphism.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Prospect
Commodity type Metallic

Mining district

District name Ketchikan

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = Maas and others (1995, p. 218) report a minimum production, probably all in the early 1900s, of 0.3 kg Au and 0.2 kg Ag.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = The deposit was explored in the early 1900s by a shaft and a 60-foot tunnel. At the time of Maas and others' (1995) investigation, workings included 4 adits, one 160 feet long, one 128 feet long, and two caved; a shaft at least 18 feet deep; a 72-foot-deep glory hole; and several trenches. Forty-seven samples that Maas and others (1995) collected averaged 1.0 ppm Au, and the mean value of 46 of the samples was 2048 ppb Au.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Wright and Wright, 1908; Maas and others, 1995

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Low-sulfide Au-quartz veins (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 36a)
Deposit Other Comments = Early reports refer to this property as the Golden Banner or Golden Tree claim (Wright and Wright, 1908, p. 147).

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 04-JUL-99 H.C. Berg U.S. Geological Survey

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.