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White Mountain

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Mercury, Antimony
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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 10002600
MRDS ID A015037
Record type Site
Current site name White Mountain
Related records 10234210

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -154.85174, 62.18251 (WGS84)
Relative position The White Mountain Mine is located on a southwest facing slope on the north side of the headward reaches of the Cheeneetnuk River at an elevation of approximately 2,000 feet (610 m) in sec. 7, T. 24 N., R. 30 W., of the Seward Meridian. The term White Mountain was originally used by local residents to refer to a prominent mountain two miles directly west of the mine that is capped by white dolomite of Late Silurian age (Gilbert, 1981). ? The White Mountain Mine correlates with locality number 14 on Cobb (1972), and located just to the southeast of the airstrip marked on the McGrath A-4 quadrangle and McGrath 1:250,000 quadrangle maps. (Note that White Mountain Mine is misplotted on the Lime Hills 1:250,000 quadrangle map). Location is accurate; the reporter has visited the site numerous times since 1977. The 700 meter long airstrip is now largely overgrown with vegetation and suitable only for small 'Super Cub' type aircraft.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Yukon-Koyukuk(Census area)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

McGrath A-4(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

McGrath SW(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

McGrath C(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Stony River(hydrologic unit)

Upper Kuskokwim River(hydrologic accounting unit)

Southwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Mercury Primary
Antimony Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Cinnabar Ore
Pyrite Ore
Stibnite Ore
Calcite Gangue
Chalcedony Gangue
Dickite Gangue
Dolomite Gangue
Limonite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Extensive dolomitic and chalcedonic alteration; minor dickite, limonite, and calcite alteration.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 177
USGS model code 27a
Deposit model name Hot-spring Hg

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Dolomite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Ordovician

Nearby scientific data

(1) bu
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = The White Mountain Mercury Mine consists of a series of at least three discrete, structurally controlled, cinnabar-dolomite-chalcedony mineralized areas with subordinate to trace amounts of stibnite, pyrite, calcite, and dickite. During development and production activities, the three mineralized areas were designated the 'South', 'Center', and 'North' ore zones (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965). The cinnabar deposits are distributed along a belt approximately one kilometer wide and three kilometers long near the northwest side of the active strand of the Farewell-Denali Fault system (Gilbert, 1981). In the White Mountain Mine area, this fault system juxtaposes Cambro-Ordovician ollitic limestone on the southeast against Ordovician mudstone on the northwest (Gilbert, 1981). Both units are part of the Nixon Fork subterrane (Decker and others, 1994). The cinnabar ore bodies are found near individual strands of the Farewell-Denali fault, generally where shale is faulted against limestone (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1960, 1965). All of the known ore zones strike from N25W to N40E and dip steeply to vertically, parallel to the Farewell-Denali fault system. ? In all three mineralized areas, cinnabar occurs as dark-red crystals coating open-space fillings in brecciated dolomite, as 'paint' on breccia surfaces, and as irregular veinlets of nearly pure cinnabar. Dolomite replacement is a conspicuous feature of the ore zones and in addition, significant amounts of chalcedonic alteration also occurs in the north ore zone. These features, coupled with observations of ancestral spring activity in other nearby deposits such as the Peggy Barbara (MG026) and Mary Margaret Prospects (MG027) and isotopic data from White Mountain Mine (Gray and others, 1997) suggest a mineralogical origin in a hot springs environment. Crystalline cinnabar was especially well developed in the North ore zone.? In the South ore zone a 60 meter long orebody 12 meters wide contained as much as 1 percent mercury. In the Central deposit, an elliptically shaped, 10 meter by 13 meter zone of cinnabar mineralization was intersected to a depth of 23 meters. The North zone is at least 76 meters long and 3 to 6 meters wide, and contains some of the richest ore with grades over 2.5 meter widths exceeding 5 percent mercury (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965; Conwell, 1975).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name McGrath

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = Production began in 1964 from a series of small open pits and trenches. Later in 1967 and 1968, shallow underground workings were mined (Conwell, 1971). Originally rich ores were selectively mined and shipped for processing and retortion to a facility in Oregon. In 1971, a small crusher and concentrator were designed to process lower grade disseminated ores on the mine site and to produce a cinnabar crystal concentrate for selected buyers. The ores were mainly retorted at a facility in Oregon. the White Mountain Mine is estimated to have produced about 3,500 flasks (58,300 kilograms) of mercury from 1964 to 1974 (Bundtzen and Conwell, 1982). Operations ceased when mine operator Robert F. Lyman was killed in a heavy equipment accident at the mine site (Conwell, 1975; Bundtzen and Conwell, 1982). The property has remained inactive since.

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = Cinnabar mineralization in the White Mountain area was discovered by Jack Egnaty in 1958, while following up panned cinnabar concentrates in the upper Cheeneetnuk River area. The prospects were taken over by Cordero Mining Company (R.F. Lyman family) in 1959 (Jasper, 1961). Trenches were quickly made by Cordero Mining Company and mapped by the U. S. Geological Survey (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1960, 1965). In 1960, the U.S. Bureau of Mines completed additional trenching and hand tested specific areas with an auger drill (Malone, 1962, 1965). The U.S. Geological Survey visited the property again in 1961 and completed additional mapping of exposed trenches (Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965). ? After production was initiated in 1964, Cordero Mining Company continued exploration and development of the property through limited diamond drilling, trenching,shaft sinking, and drifting. Their activities continued until the mine ceased operations in 1974 (Conwell, 1975). ? In the South ore zone, a 60 meter long ore body 12 meters wide contained as much as 1 percent mercury. In the Central deposit, an elliptically shaped zone an 10 meter by 13 meter area contains cinnabar mineralization. Drilling confirmed the presence of cinnabar to a depth of 23 meters. The North zone is at least 76 meter long and 3 to 6 meter wide and contains some of the richest ore on the property with grades over 2.5 meter widths exceeding 5 percent mercury.(Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965; Conwell, 1975).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    Sainsbury, C.L., and MacKevett, E.M. Jr., 1960, Structural control in five quicksilver deposits in southwestern Alaska, in Geological Survey Research in 1960: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 400-B, p. B35-B38.

  • Deposit

    Malone, Kevin, 1962, Mercury occurrences in Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Circular 8131, 57 p.

  • Deposit

    Sainsbury, C.L. and MacKevett, E.M., Jr., 1965, Quicksilver deposits of southwestern Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1187, 89 p.

  • Deposit

    Malone, Kevin, 1965, Mercury in Alaska, in Mercury potential of the United States: U.S. Bureau of Mines Information Circular 8252, p. 31-59.

  • Deposit

    Conwell, C.N., 1971, Mercury mining revival in Alaska despite poor access and climate: World Mining Magazine, vol. 23, no. 7, p. 34-38.

  • Deposit

    Conwell, C.N., 1975, Review of Alaska's mineral and energy resources: production and activity statistics, in Schaff, R.G.,ed., Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Biennial report, 1974-75, 53 pages.

  • Deposit

    Gilbert, W.G., 1981, Preliminary geologic map of the Cheeneetnuk River area, Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Open-File Report 153, 19 pages, 2 sheets, 1:63,360 scale.

  • Deposit

    Bundtzen, T.K., and Conwell, C.N., 1982, Madhatters of the Kuskokwim Quicksilver Mines, in Larson, Frank, ed., Alaska Mines and Geology Bulletin (Misc. Paper 13): Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, vol. 31, no. 1, p. 1-5.

  • Deposit

    Nokleberg, W.J., Bundtzen, T.K., Berg, H.C., Brew, D.A., Grybeck, D.J., Robinson, M.S., Smith, T.E., and Yeend, W., 1987, Significant metalliferous lode deposits and placer districts of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1786, 104 p.

  • Deposit

    Decker, J., Bergman, S.C., Blodgett, R.B., Box, S.E., Bundtzen, T.K., Clough, J.G., Coonrad, W.L., Gilbert, W.G., Miller, M.L., Murphy, J.M., Robinson, M.S., and Wallace, W.K., 1994, Geology of southwestern Alaska, in Plafker, G. and Berg, H.C., eds., The Geology of Alaska: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America, The Geology of North America, v. G-1, p. 285-310.

  • Deposit

    Gray, J.E., Gent, C.A., Snee, L.W., and Wilson, F.H., 1997, Epithermal mercury-antimony and gold-bearing vein lodes of southwest Alaska, in R.J. Goldfarb, and L.D. Miller, eds., Mineral Deposits of Alaska: Economic Geology Monograph 9, p. 287-305.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the McGrath quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-379, 1 sheet, 1:250,000 scale.

  • Deposit

    Jasper, M.W., 1961, Report on White Mountains cinnabar prospect of Cordero Mining Company: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Prospect Examination 74-1, 17 p.

  • Deposit

    Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Iliamna, Lake Clark, Lime Hills, and McGrath quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-485, 101 p.

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Sainsbury and MacKevett, 1965

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Hot Springs Mercury (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 27a).
Deposit Other Comments = See also Mary Margaret (MG027) and Peggy Barbara (MG026) prospects.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 30-OCT-1998 T.K. Bundtzen Pacific Rim Geological Consulting

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.