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Willow Creek District

Past Producer in Gunnison county in Colorado, United States with commodities Gold, Silver, Copper, Zinc, Lead
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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 10014384
MRDS ID D011130
Record type District
Current site name Willow Creek District

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -107.03784, 38.32083 (WGS84)
Elevation 2741
Relative position 15 MILES S 27 W TO 17 MILES S 19 W FROM GUNNISON

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Gunnison(county)

Colorado(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Powderhorn(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Montrose(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Montrose(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Gunnison(hydrologic unit)

Gunnison(hydrologic accounting unit)

Gunnison(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Colorado(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Colorado Gunnison

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
New Mexico 047N;047N 002W;1W 12,13,24;13,14,23,24 Colorado

Comments on the location information

  • DISTRICT LIES BETWEEN GOOSE CREEK DISTRICT ON WEST AND DOMINGO DISTRICT ON EAST AND ALONG WILLOW CREEK FROM SITE OF MIDWAY AND UTE TRAIL MINE UPSTREAM (SOUTH) ABOUT 3.3 MILES. ALTHOUGH PATENTED CLAIMS WERE LOCATED ONLY IN SECS. 12 AND 24/T47N/R2W AND SEC. 23/T47N/R1.5W, ADJACENT SECTIONS WITH OTHER WORKINGS ALSO ARE INCLUDED. DISTRICT IS ACCESSIBLE VIA ROAD SOUTH FROM COLORADO RTE 149 AT BLUE MESA RESERVOIR ALONG WILLOW CREEK AND CAMP CREEK; VIA TRAIL, AND ROAD EAST FROM COLORADO RTE 149 UP WOLF CREEK DRAINAGE. ELEV AND LAT-LONG GIVEN AR FOR COMMON SECTION CORNER BETWEEN TWO TOWNSHIPS. ; INFO FROM LAND.ST :1976

Commodities

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

Comments on the commodity information

  • METALS AND ORE MINERALS LISTED ABOVE ARE GENERAL OCCURRENCES REPORTED FOR GUNNISON GOLD BELT; ALL MAY NOT NECESSARILY OCCUR IN THIS DISTRICT.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Galena Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Apatite Gangue
Aurichalcite Gangue
Biotite Gangue
Calcite Gangue
Chalcocite Gangue
Chlorite Gangue
Covellite Gangue
Cuprite Gangue
Epidote Gangue
Gahnite Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Hydrozincite Gangue
Ilmenite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Malachite Gangue
Marcasite Gangue
Molybdenite Gangue
Rutile Gangue
Sericite Gangue
Sphene Gangue
Tennantite Gangue
Tourmaline Gangue
Zircon Gangue
Pyrite Unknown

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Syenite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Neoproterozoic
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cambrian
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Trachyte
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Granite
    Rock unit name Granite Of Tolvar Peak;Augite Syenite And Biotite Syenite;Trachyte And Trachite Dikes;Quartz Vein
    Rock description Granite Of Tolvar Peak;Augite Syenite And Biotite Syenite;Trachyte And Trachite Dikes;Quartz Vein
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Syenite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Amphibolite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Rock unit name Dubois Greenstone--Felsite And Felsite Porphyry;Dubois Greenstone--Hornblende Schist And Amphibolite
    Rock description Dubois Greenstone--Felsite And Felsite Porphyry;Dubois Greenstone--Hornblende Schist And Amphibolite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -107.03784, 38.32083
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Gunnison Uplift, San Juan Volcanic Field
Type of structure Local
Structure description Gunnison Gold Belt, Iron Hill Alkalic Complex, Tolvar Peak Stock

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Quartz Vein Along Interfingering Contact Between Felsite And Granite

Comments on the geologic information

  • OTHER PERTINENT MINERALS LISTED ABOVE ARE GENERAL OCCURRENCES REPORTED FOR GUNNISON GOLD BELT; ALL MAY NOT NECESSARILY OCCUR IN THIS DISTRICT.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

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

Mining district

District name Willow Creek District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Comments on the workings information

  • HILLSIDE ADITS AND TUNNELS OF UNKNOWN EXTENT; SHAFTS OF UNKNOWN DEPTH; SURFACE PROSPECTS

Comments on development

  • EARLY HISTORY OF DISTRICT AND UTE TRAIL MINE LARGELY UNKNOWN. DISCOVERIES AND EARLY MINING IN AREA LED TO ESTABLISHMENT OF SMALL MINING TOWNS OF MIDWAY, VULCAN, SPENCER, AND DUBOIS. POST-1900 RECORDS INDICATE ONLY INTERMITTENT PRODUCTION FROM SEVERAL LARGER MINES IN DOMINGO (VULCAN) AND GOOSE CREEK DISTRICTS. RENEWED EXPLORATION FOR BASE AND PRECIOUS METALS BEGAN IN 1970S WHEN SULFIDE DEPOSITS WERE REINTERPRETED AS VOLCANOGENIC MASSIVE SULFIDES REPRESENTING POTENTIAL FOR NEW DISCOVERIES.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit IN WESTERN PART OF GUNNISON GOLD BELT, FOLIATION AND LAYERING OF PRINCIPAL METAVOLCANIC UNITS OF DUBOIS GREENSTONE TREND GENERALLY EAST-WEST AND ENE-WSW, WITH VERTICAL TO STEEP NORTHERLY DIPS. SEQUENCY IS INTTRUDED BY TOLVAR PEAK GRANITE GENERALLY ALONG FOLIATION. DEFORMATION IN AGE RANGE OF 1700 TO 1800 MY CHARACTERIZED BY GENERALLY EAST-WEST-TRENDING ISOCLINAL FOLDS PLUNGING WEST OR WNW AND METAMORPHISM TO UPPER GREENSCHIST FACIES. OLDER LATE PRECAMBRIAN (Y) INTRUSIONS (1330 TO 1390 MY) CHARACTERIZED BY SMALL PLUGS OF AUGITE SYENITE AND BIOTITE SYENITE. YOUNGER LATE PRECAMBRIAN OR CAMBRIAN INTRUSIONS CHARACTERIZED BY IRON HILL CARBONATITES, OUTLYING TRACHYTE AND TRACHYTE PORPHYRY DIKES, AND THORIUM VEINS. STRATABOUND MASSIVE SULFIEDS IN DUBOIS GREENSTOEN NOW BELIEVED TO BE SYNGENETIC, SUBAQUEOUS, FUMAROLIC-VOLCANOGENIC IN ORIGIN, ASSOCIATED WITH (1) BASALT, BASALT/ANDESITE, AND POSSIBLY METAMORPHOSED RHYOLITIC FLOWS AND (2) CHERT HORIZONS (POSSIBLY THE QUARTZ VEINS) IN KOMATIITIC
Deposit FLOWS AND ARKOSIC SEDIMENTS. VOLCANOGENIC ORIGIN SUGGESTED BY (1) LOCATION OF MOST DEPOSITS WITHIN METAVOLCANIC BELT, (2) ELONGATION PARALLEL TO GRADATIONAL AND INTERFINGERING CONTACTS BETWEEN MAFIC AND FELSIC UNITS, (3) APPARENT STRINGING OUT OF GROUPS OF DEPOSITS PARALLEL TO MAJOR CONTACTS AND TO MAGNETITE-BEARING METACHERTS, (4) SULFIDE OCCURRENCES AS LAMINAE AND ELONGATED AGGREGATES PARALLEL TO FOLIATION AND LITHOLOGIC LAYERING, (5) CRUDE BANDING IN SOME ORES.
Deposit BLM CLAIM RECORDS ASSIGN DISTRICT NAME OF "WILLOW CREEK" TO ABOVE-LISTED CLAIMS, BUT THERE IS NO APPARENT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GEOLOGY AND PROBABLE ORE OCCURRENCES HERE AND THOSE IN GOOSE CREEK DISTRICT TO WEST. INDIVIDUAL RECORD PREPARED FOR PRINCIPAL MINE: UTE TRAIL. NELSON MENTIONS O.D. MINING COMPANY PROPERTY ON WILLOW CREEK, BUT SPECIFIC LOCATION IS UNCERTAIN. NO INFORMATION AVAILABLE FOR OTHER PATENTED OR PROBABLE UNPATENTED PROPERTIES. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JAN-84 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

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