Keystone Mine

Past Producer in Custer county in Colorado, United States with commodities Silver, Lead, Zinc, Copper, Gold, Iron
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. Alteration
  9. Mineral occurrence model information
  10. Host and associated rocks
  11. Nearby scientific data
  12. Geologic structures
  13. Ore body information
  14. Controls for ore emplacement
  15. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  16. Mining district
  17. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Production statistics
  20. Workings at the site
  21. Links to other databases
  22. Bibliographic references
  23. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10012297
MRDS ID D007850
Record type Site
Current site name Keystone Mine
Alternate or previous names Unpatented Claims 1964: R & C Lode, C & R Nos. 3, 4, 5,, Golden Cycle, Unpatented Claims 1946: Venus, Virginia of the Maxine Elliot Group,, Annabel Lode, Fraction Claim

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Pit
Geographic coordinates: -105.44751, 38.1639 (WGS84)
Elevation 2435
Location accuracy 10(meters)
Relative position 2.6 MILES N 12 W FROM THE JUNCTION OF SR 96 AND CR 277 IN SILVER CLIFF, CO.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Custer(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Westcliffe(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Canon City(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Pueblo(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Arkansas Headwaters(hydrologic unit)

Upper Arkansas(hydrologic accounting unit)

Upper Arkansas(hydrologic subregion)

Arkansas-White-Red(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management CO)

Bureau of Land Management CO BLM(Type of land area)

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado Custer

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
6th Principal 022S 072W 4 W OF NW OF SW Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • SOUTH OF UNNAMED TRIBUTARY TO DE WEESE RES. (GRAPE CR.) ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :(1976)

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Lead Secondary
Zinc Critical Secondary
Copper Secondary
Gold Secondary
Iron Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Gold Ore
Magnetite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Barite Gangue
Fluorite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Ferruginous Zone; Oxidation

Analytical data

Result AG 3.05-8.5 OZ/TON, PB 6.0-13.7%, ZN 5.44%, .0175 OZ/TON, CU 0.221%

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 82
USGS model code 22
Deposit model name Epithermal veins

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Rock unit name Undivided Silver Cliff Rhyolite
    Rock description Undivided Silver Cliff Rhyolite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Oligocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss
    Rock unit name Undivided Gneiss
    Rock description Undivided Gneiss

Nearby scientific data

Pit (1) -105.44751, 38.1639

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Silver Cliff Volcanic Center, Wet Mtns, Wet Mtn Valley
Type of structure Local
Structure description On Outermost West-Trending Ring Fault With Almost Vertical Dip

Ore body information

  • Strike TRENDS E-W
    Dip TO NORTH; NEARLY VERTICAL
    Width 0.91M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 57M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Mineralized Veins And Fissures

Comments on the geologic information

  • THE GNEISS IS ALTERED WITH LOCALLY PURE PYRITE ORE IN VEINS; PYRITE ALSO DISSEMINATED THROUGHOUT GNEISS

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1895
Year of first production 1880
Year of last production 1964

Mining district

District name Silver Cliff

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner H. D. And Howard Rusler
    Home office Box 554, Rt. 1, Pueblo, Co.
    First year 1964
  • Type Owner
    Owner Falkenberg, William
    Home office Westcliffe, Co.
    First year 1964

Production statistics

  • Year 1946
    Material ore
    Ore mined 1050mt
    Accuracy Accurate

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 152.4M
    Overall depth 57M
    Overall length 30.48M
    Overall width 1.22M

Comments on the workings information

  • TWO LEVELS; SHAFT 4 FT X 8 FT SUNK AT 70 DEG ANGLE; DRIFTS, STOPES, WINZES; 1161 TONS SHIPPED IN 1946

Comments on development

  • OPERATED 1880-1885, THEN AGAIN DURING 1943-1946 AND IN 1964

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    CROSS, WHITMAN, 1896, GEOLOGY OF SILVER CLIFF AND THE ROSITA HILLS, COLORADO: USGS 17TH ANN. REPORT, PT 2, P. 263-403.

  • Deposit

    EMMONS, S.F., 1896, THE MINES OF CUSTER COUNTY, COLORADO: USGS 17TH ANN. REPORT, PT 2, P. 405-472.

  • Deposit

    SHARP, W.M., 1978, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE SILVER CLIFF AND ROSITA VOLCANIC CENTERS, CUSTER COUNTY, COLORADO: USGS MAP I-1081.

  • Deposit

    COLORADO DIVISION OF MINES INSPECTION RECORDS

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JUN-1981 Collins, Donna B. Colorado Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Authoritative Colorado resources

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