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Cumberland Mine

Past Producer in La Plata county in Colorado, United States with commodities Silver, Gold, Copper, Lead, Zinc
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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. Mineral rights holdings
  18. Land status
  19. Ownership information
  20. Links to other databases
  21. Bibliographic references
  22. General comments
  23. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10014161
MRDS ID D010813
MAS/MILS ID 0080670068
Record type Site
Current site name Cumberland Mine
Alternate or previous names Patented Claims: Cumberland, MS 2376, Judge Lamb, MS 2357, Cumberland Tunnel, Cumberland Mill, Cumberland Basin area
Related records 10142308

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Geographic coordinates: Elevation UTM Precision Relative position Point location
Main Entrance -108.00675, 37.44307 (WGS84) 3648 100 13.2 MILES N 33 W FROM DURANGO, 100 m. Adit on topo may be adit on MLA 2-92, fig. 39. Corresponds to MAS 0080670068 (Cumberland Tunnel) and Tunnel No. 3 of PP-219, pl. 15.
(click for info)
Main Entrance -108.01008, 37.44362 (WGS84) 3511 500 Lower Crosscut Tunnel (Tunnel No. 4) is at 11,520 ft. elevation.
Plant -108.01315, 37.44612 (WGS84) 3475 10 Cumberland Mill Ruins shown on topo.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

La Plata(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

La Plata(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Cortez(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Cortez(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Animas(hydrologic unit)

Upper San Juan(hydrologic accounting unit)

San Juan(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Colorado(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

San Juan National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado La Plata

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
New Mexico 037N 010W 19,30 SE (19); NE (30) Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • AT SE END OF CUMBERLAND BASIN AND ON WEST SLOPE OF CUMBERLAND MTN, 4.35 MILES NE OF LA PLATA TOWNSITE (UNSURVEYED SECTION). Adit on topo matches location shown on fig. 39, p. 111 of MLA 2-92 and adit on pl. 2 of PP-219.

Commodities

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

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Argentite Ore
Chalcocite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Gold Ore
Proustite Ore
Pyrargyrite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Stephanite Ore
Barite Gangue
Dickite Gangue
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Oxidation Of Cu Sulfides; Formation Of Clay

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 85
USGS model code 22c
Deposit model name Polymetallic veins
Mark3 model number 46

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock unit name Porphyritic Rocks--Diorite-Monzonite Porphyry
    Rock description Porphyritic Rocks--Diorite-Monzonite Porphyry
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Paleocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Paleocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Mudstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Shale
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
    Rock unit name Cutler Formation;Dolores Formation
    Rock description Cutler Formation;Dolores Formation

Nearby scientific data

Main Entrance (1) -108.00675, 37.44307
ListMap
Main Entrance (2) -108.01008, 37.44362
ListMap
Plant (3) -108.01315, 37.44612
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description San Juan Uplift, Four Corners Platform
Type of structure Local
Structure description La Plata Dome

Ore body information

  • Thickness 3.66M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Intersection Of Steeply Dipping Fracture And Porphyry Masses

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1878
Discoverer Snow Storm Mining And Milling Co. (Claimant)
Year of first production 1878
Year of last production 1921

Mining district

District name La Plata (California) District

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Located Claim

Land status

Ownership category National Forest
Area name San Juan N. F.

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Tippecanoe Mining
    Interest 100
    Home office Maine
    Year 1997
    First year 1997

Comments on the ownership information

  • From deleted record 10215654 (MAS 0080670067):

    Tippecanoe ownership info.

    Located Claim.

Comments on the production information

  • PARTIAL PRODUCTION RECORD. PRODUCTION UNKNOWN BUT CONSIDERED SMALL FOR EARLY YEARS 1878-1883. ONLY COMBINED AU AND AG VALUE REPORTED FOR 1886-1889; NO ORE TONNAGE FIGURE CITED FOR 1889. ORE TONNAGES CITED EITHER AS CRUDE ORE SOLD OR AS ORE SOLD OR TREATED (MILLED). NO PRODUCTION REPORTED FOR 1890-1899, 1912-1916, 1919-1920, AND AFTER 1921.

Comments on the workings information

  • MINE DEVELOPED BY FOUR LEVELS: UPPER LEVEL IS 130 FT BELOW TOP OF MOUNTAIN, 200 FT LONG, AND LARGELY INACCESSIBLE; SECOND LEVEL IS 140 FT BELOW UPPER LEVEL AND 220 FT LONG, INACCESSIBLE. THIRD LEVEL IS 270 FT BELOW SECOND LEVEL, DRIVEN N 40 E FOR 90 FT, THENCE N 60 E FOR 740 FT TO FACE, WITH RAISES AT 90, 410, AND 680 FT FROM PORTAL, ONE RAISE CONNECTING TO SECOND LEVEL. FOURTH (LOWEST) LEVEL IS CROSSCUT TUNNEL 720 FT BELOW SECOND LEVEL, DRIVEN S 60 E FOR 150 FT, THENCE GENERALLY S 35 E FOR 530 FT; AT 550 FT FROM PORTAL, 930-FT DRIFT DRIVEN GENERALLY N 70 E, WITH WINZE AT 740 FT AND RAISE AT 780 FT ALONG DRIFT. UPPERMOST WORKING IS 100-FT-LONG OPEN CUT NEAR TOP OF MOUNTAIN. Lower Crosscut (Tunnel No. 4) portal is at 11,520 ft. el, Tunnel No. 3 is at 11,970 ft. el.

Comments on development

  • CUMBERLAND AND SNOWSTORM DEPOSITS DISCOVERED IN 1878 AND PRODUCED LITTLE ORE TILL 1884 WHEN SIGNIFICANT PRODUCTION BEGAN. CUMBERLAND AND JUDGE LAMB CLAIMS COVER MAJOR VEINS AT CUMBERLAND MINE BUT SNOW STORM MINING AND MILLING CO. SURVEYED ADDITIONAL CLAIMS AROUND SNOWSTORM PROPERTY IN 1885: LADY DOUGLASS (MS 2378); WRAY (MS 2379), NORTH STAR (MS 2380), MORNING STAR (MS 2381), AND REBECCA (MS 2382). DURING LATTER 1880S, 30-STAMP MILL BUILT BUT WAS NOT SUITED TO TREATING ORE. MINES IDLE IN 1890S BUT CUMBERLAND REVIVED IN 1900 AND AGAIN IN 1909. MILL AND OTHER SURFACE BUILDINGS IN RUINS BY 1937.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Production

    ECKEL AND OTHERS, 1949, P. 107 (AS COMPILED FROM DIRECTOR OF MINE REPTS., USGS/USBM RECORDS, AND PRIVATE UNPUB. ENGINEER'S REPT.)

  • Deposit

    ECKEL, E.B., AND OTHERS, 1949, GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE LA PLATA DISTRICT, COLORADO: USGS PROF. PAPER 219, P. 73-74, 106-108, PL.18.

  • Deposit

    BLM MINERAL SURVEYS MS 2376, 2357, 2378, 2379, 2380, 2381, 2382

  • Deposit

    REED, J.R., 1936, REPORT ON THE CUMBERLAND MINE, CUMBERLAND BASIN, LA PLATA COUNTY, COLORADO: UNPUB. ENG. REPT., 2 P.

  • Deposit

    Neubert and others, 1992, Mineral Appraisal of the San Juan National Forest, Colorado: USBM MLA 2-92, p. 111, fig. 39; p. 123-125.

  • Deposit

    Southwestern Paydirt, no. 694, April 1997, 12.

Comments on the references

  • Reference to Southwestern Paydirt is not in USGS format and needs to be verified.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit COUNTRY ROCK CONSISTS OF NORTH- TO NE-DIPPING, UNMETAMORPHOSED CUTLER AND DOLORES FM RED BEDS INTRUDED BY DIORITE-MONZONITE PORPHYRY SILLS AND DIKES AND TRAVERSED BY CUMBERLAND VEIN, WHICH TRENDS N 60 TO 80 E WITH PREVAILING STEEP NW DIP. ON THIRD LEVEL, VEIN FOLLOWS STRONG FRACTURE THROUGH BLEACHED AND SILICIFIED SHALE, MUDSTONE, AND SANDSTONE AND PORPHYRY, CONTAINS 4 TO 6 INCHES OF QUARTZ AND MINERALIZATION. VEIN WIDENS TO 5 TO 10 FT WHERE IT CROSSES PORPHYRY MASSES AND CONTAINS SILICIFIED BRECCIA AND MINABLE ORE. ON FOURTH LEVEL, VEIN ZONE CONSISTS OF SHEARED AND ALTERED MUDSTONE WALLROCK UP TO 12 FT WIDE AND CONTAINS ONE OR MORE VEINS OF VUGGY QUARTZ, BARITE, AND BLEBS OF ORE MINERALS. ONE LARGE VUG CONTAINED LARGE AMOUNT OF AURIFEROUS CLAY (DICKITE).

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-AUG-83 Schwochow, Stephen D. Colorado Geological Survey
Editor 24-JUL-08 Wilson, Anna B. U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 12-JUN-97 Buckingham, David A. U.S. Bureau of Mines From MAS record 0080670067 (10215654)

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Colorado resources

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