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South Kodiak Island Beaches

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Gold, Chromium, PGE
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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. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10002318
MRDS ID A013228
Record type Site
Current site name South Kodiak Island Beaches
Related records 10282879

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -154.44243, 56.97937 (WGS84)
Relative position This site is a part of a 30-mile stretch of beach exhibiting patchy, small concentrations of finely-divided placer gold. Approximately 8 miles of this beach is within the Trinity Islands quadrangle, extending from northwest of the Low Cape triangulation station southeast to beyond Gump triangulation station (Cobb, 1972, MF 468, locality 2; Cobb, 1973, Bulletin 1374, figure 11, locality 1; MacKevett and Holloway, 1977, locality 1). Although there has been mining and prospecting activity within this section of beach, most descriptions apply to the more extensive beach to the northwest in the Karluk quadrangle (see ARDF KR030).

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Kodiak Island(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

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

Trinity Islands NE(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Trinity Islands(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Kodiak-Afognak Islands(hydrologic unit)

Kodiak-Shelikof(hydrologic accounting unit)

South Central Alaska(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge(National Wildlife Refuge)

National Wildlife Refuge FWS(Type of land area)

FWS(Federal land areas administered by FWS)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Chromium Critical Secondary
PGE Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Mineral occurrence model information

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

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Clay, Mud
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Gravel
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Sand and Gravel

Nearby scientific data

(1) -154.44243, 56.97937
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = Placer gold deposits on the west coast of Kodiak Island have been worked since the early 1890's (Becker, 1898, p. 86); however, mining activity has been sporadic at best. The latest reported mining or prospecting work was done by 2 men in 1950-52 (Cobb, 1973, Bulletin 1374). Cobb estimates that total gold production is probably not more than a few thousand ounces. Concentrations of gold and other heavy minerals tend to occur in small, thin patches which appear and disappear according to variability of wave action and tides. No well-defined paystreaks occur. Approximately 95 percent of these beach concentrates is magnetite; the remainder consists of pyrite, chromite, and a little gold and platinum. No estimates of gold values within these patchy zones of heavy minerals have been reported. The immediate source of the gold appears to be the nearby bluffs of glacial gravels and tills, which are constantly being eroded by wave action. The gold content of the glacial deposits is extremely low as shown by the lack of visible gold where they have been prospected.? An analysis of placer PGE concentrate from the beach (Maddren, 1919, p. 316) is as follows: 26.9 percent iridium-osmium, rhodium; 6.1 percent iridium from part of iridium-osmium; 0.1 percent rhodium from part of iridium-osmium; 55.3 percent platinum; 2.4 percent iridium; 6.4 percent iron; 0.3 percent gold; 0.7 percent rhodium; 0.1 percent palladium; 0.6 percent copper; 0.08 percent nickel; trace silver and zinc.
  • Age = Quaternary

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Kodiak

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = These deposits have been worked sporadically using small portable rockers and sluice boxes.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Maddren, 1919

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Gold-PGE placer (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).
Deposit Other Comments = Descriptions of beach placers in the Kodiak region are so generalized that it is difficult to discern which descriptions are pertinent to any given location.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 28-AUG-1992 S.H. Pilcher 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.