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Chipeta Placer District

Past Producer in Montrose county in Colorado, United States with commodities Gold, Silver
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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. Host and associated rocks
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Geologic structures
  11. Controls for ore emplacement
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Land status
  15. Links to other databases
  16. Bibliographic references
  17. General comments
  18. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10014255
MRDS ID D010950
Record type District
Current site name Chipeta Placer District
Alternate or previous names Chipeta District

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -108.73623, 38.36805 (WGS84)
Elevation 1522
Relative position 7 MILES S 40 E TO 2.4 MILES N 60 W FROM URAVAN

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Montrose(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Uravan(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Nucla(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Moab(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

San Miguel(hydrologic unit)

Upper Colorado-Dolores(hydrologic accounting unit)

Upper Colorado-Dolores(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Colorado(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado Montrose

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
New Mexico 047N;048N;047N 017W;017W;016W 02,11,12,13,24;28,29,33,34;19,20,29,30,32 Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • CLAIMS LIE ALONG SAN MIGUEL RIVER FROM VICINITY OF COAL CANYON AND BOX CANYON, THROUGH URAVAN, TO POINT ABOUT 1.5 MILES ABOVE DOLORES RIVER CONFLUENCE. DISTRICT ACCESSIBLE VIA COLORADO RTE 141 ALONG SAN MIGUEL AND DOLORES RIVERS NW FROM NATURITA AND SE FROM GATEWAY. DISTRICT EXTENDS ONTO ATKINSON CREEK (1960) AND RED CANYON (1960) QUADS. ELEV AND LAT-LONG GIVEN ARE FOR URAVAN BENCHMARK (C W2 SEC. 34, T48N, R17W). ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1975

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore
Silver Ore

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Sand and Gravel
    Rock unit name Terrace Gravel;Alluvium
    Rock description Terrace Gravel;Alluvium
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene

Nearby scientific data

(1) -108.73623, 38.36805
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Paradox Basin Fold And Fault Belt, Uncompahgre Uplift
Type of structure Local
Structure description Nucla Syncline

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Contact Between Gravel And Resistant, Nearly Flat-Lying Bedrock Surfaces

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1884

Mining district

District name Chipeta District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Comments on development

  • LITTLE HISTORICAL INFORMATION ABOUT DISTRICT. SPEAR PLACER SURVEYED IN 1884, WITH OTHERS SURVEYED IN 1888-1889. BULK OF PRODUCTION (CONSIDERED SMALL) PROBABLY TOOK PLACE IN LATE 1880S TO 1890S WHEN VIXEN DISTRICT PLACERS DOWNSTREAM WERE DEVELOPED. POSSIBLY SOME SMALL INTERMITTENT PRODUCTION THROUGH 1930S, BUT COUNTY PLACER PRODUCTION STATISTICS DO NOT DISTINGUISH DISTRICTS.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    PARKER, B.H., JR., 1974, GOLD PLACERS OF COLORADO: COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES QUART., V. 69, NO. 4, P. 172-184.

  • Deposit

    CATER, F.W., JR., AND OTHERS, 1955, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE URAVAN QUADRANGLE, COLORADO; USGS MAP GQ-78.

  • Deposit

    MCKAY, E.J., 1955, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE ATKINSON CREEK QUADRANGLE, COLORADO: USGS MAP GQ-57.

  • Deposit

    MCKAY, E.J., 1955, GEOLOGIC MAP OF THE RED CANYON QUADRANGLE, COLORADO: USGS MAP GQ-58.

  • Deposit

    , 1988, 1990, 1991

  • Deposit

    BLM MINERAL SURVEYS MS 1989, 5303, 5586

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit SAN MIGUEL RIVER HAS DISSECTED NEARLY FLAT-LYING MORRISON FM (JURASSIC) SEDIMENTS, LEAVING TERRACE GRAVELS AND VERY NARROW OR NO FLOOD-PLAIN ALLUVIUM. UPPER RIM OF ADJACENT AREAS CAPPED BY BURRO CANYON FM AND DAKOTA SANDSTONE (EARLY CRETACEOUS). NEAR URAVAN, FLOOD-PLAIN WIDENS SLIGHTLY TO PERMIT SOME MEANDERING. PARKER (1974) MENTIONS TERRACES IN SW PART OF T47N, R16W (ABOVE URAVAN) AS 37 TO 53 FT ABOVE RIVER, WITH BEDROCK AT 20 TO 50 FT ABOVE RIVER. CATER AND OTHERS' (1955) GEOLOGIC MAP SHOWS LOWER MORE EXTENSIVE TERRACE LEVEL GENERALLY AT 20 TO 60 FT ABOVE RIVER. LESS EXTENSIVE TERRACE REMNANTS LIE ON BOTH SIDES OF VALLEY AT 80 TO 120 FT ABOVE RIVER AND APPEAR TO BE COMPOSED PARTIALLY OF ALLUVIAL FAN MATERIAL DERIVED FROM TRIBUTARY GULCHES. TWO REMNANTS OF STILL HIGHER AND OLDER TERRACE LIE AT 200 TO 240 FT ABOVE RIVER. MOST LIKELY ONLY FLOOD-PLAIN AND LOWER TERRACE LEVELS WERE ACTIVELY WORKED DUE TO (1) DIFFICULTY OF ELEVATING WATER TO HIGHER BENCHES AND (2) DILUTION EFFECT HIGHER
Deposit DEPOSITS (ALLUVIAL FAN ORIGIN). PRINCIPAL BENCHES PROBABLY CONTROLLED BY POSITION OF HARD RESISTANT LAYERS IN SALT WASH AND BRUSHY BASIN MEMBERS OF MORRISON FM, PERMITTING EASY WORKING AND CLEANING OF GRAVEL BEDROCK CONTACT. GOLD DERIVED FROM MINERALIZED AREAS AROUND TELLURIDE, OPHIR, AND TO LESSER EXTENT FROM MT WILSON.
Deposit NO INDIVIDUAL RECORDS PREPARED DUE TO LACK OF DESCRIPTIONS OF OPERATIONS AND UNCERTAINTY OF EXACT LOCATIONS. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-NOV-83 Schwochow, Stephen D. Colorado Geological Survey
Editor 16-NOV-11 Wilson, Anna B U.S. Geological Survey Changed record type from site to district.

Beyond USGS

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

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.