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Potosi Mine

Past Producer in Mineral county in Nevada, United States with commodities Silver, Lead, Antimony, Gold, Iron, Copper, 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. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Links to other databases
  20. Bibliographic references
  21. General comments
  22. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10037528
MRDS ID M035465
Record type Site
Current site name Potosi Mine
Alternate or previous names New Potosi, Mt. Potosi, Peterson, Mount Potosi

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -118.10761, 38.15243 (WGS84)
Elevation 1908
Relative position WESTERN FLANK CANDELARIA MOUNTAIN (MOUNT POTOSI)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Mineral(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Candelaria(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Excelsior Mountains(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Walker Lake(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Fish Lake-Soda Spring Valleys(hydrologic unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management NV)

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

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Mineral

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 004N 035E Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • SHAFT AND SURFACE WORKINGS REPRESENTING WESTERNMOST MINESITE OF CANDELARIA DISTRICT

Commodities

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

Comments on the commodity information

  • ORES MORE QUARTZOSE THAN THE MINES NEAR PICKHANDLE GULCH AND HIGHLY MANGANIFEROUS. SILVER IS PRESUMED TO LIE IN THE CRYSTAL LATTICES OF GALENA AND JAMESONITE.

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Galena Ore
Jamesonite Ore

Alteration

  • (Local) Hydrothermal, Oxidation

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 Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Sandstone
    Rock unit name Diablo Formation
    Rock description Diablo Formation
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Triassic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Argillite
    Rock unit name Candelaria Formation;
    Rock description Candelaria Formation;

Nearby scientific data

(1) -118.10761, 38.15243
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Folding And Faulting
Type of structure Local
Structure description Parent Structure May Be Classified As A Bedding Reverse Fault

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR RESTRICTED SHOOTS
    Strike N 70 E
    Dip 60 N
    Length 182.88M
    Width 0.61M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Deposit Located In Northward Dipping Vein Within Intensely Altered Rock

Comments on the geologic information

  • MOST FAVORABLE HORIZON FOR VEINS IS JUST ABOVE THE DIABLO GRIT. WEST OF MINE, 2 OR 3 VEINS LIE SIDE BY SIDE, SHOWING THAT FAVORABLE HORIZON IS NOT CONFINED TO SINGLE STRATUM, BUT COMPRISES SEVERAL HUNDRED FEET OF STRATA.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Significant No
Discovery year 1868

Mining district

District name Candelaria

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner G. A. Peterson
    Home office Mina, Nev.

Comments on the production information

  • CUMULATIVE PRODUCTION UNKNOWN. SEVERAL THOUSAND TONS OF ORE SHIPPED BETWEEN 1948 - 1952 VALUED AT $35 - $75 PER TON. AVE. METAL CONTENT/TON = AU 0.5-0.6 OZ.; AG 8 - 12 OZ.; PB 8 - 12 %; SB 4 - 6 %; FEO 12 - 15 %; CU 0.5 %; ZN 0.5 %. IN 1956, THERE WAS SOME UNDERGROUND PRODUCTION, BUT ACTIVITY CEASED BEFORE 1961.

Comments on the workings information

  • EXTENSIVE WORKINGS. VEIN HAS BEEN SLOPED CONTINUOUSLY ALONG STRIKE FOR 600 FEET OR MORE TO THE SURFACE. EXTENT OF MORE RECENT WORKINGS UNKNOWN

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    KNOPF, A., 1923 , CONTRIBUTIONS TO ECONOMIC GEOLOGY, USGS, BULL. 735 , PP 1 - 23

  • Deposit

    PAGE, B. M., 1959 , GEOLOGY OF THE CANDELARIA MINING DISTRICT, MINERAL CO., NEV., NEV. BUREAU OF MINES, BULL. 56

  • Deposit

    ROSS, D. L., GEOLOGY AND MINERAL DEPOSITS OF MINERAL CO., NEV., NEV. BUREAU OF MINES, BULL. 58

  • Deposit

    1922 RECON KNOPF, A., BULL 735, REPORT

  • Deposit

    1923 RECON NEV. NEWSLETTER PUB. CO.

  • Deposit

    1954 RECON FERGUSON, MULLER, CATHCART, GEOLOGY OF MINA QUAD

  • Deposit

    1959 RECON NEV. BUREAU OF MINES BULL. 56

  • Deposit

    1961 RECON NEV. BUREAU OF MINES BULL. 58

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit VEIN ESSENTIALLY CONCORDANT WITH THE BEDS OF THE FOOTWALL
Deposit LOCAL SMALL PODS OF SULFIDES WITHIN 200 FEET OF THE GROUND SURFACE, ALTHOUGH THE MAJOR PART OF THE ORE IS THOROUGHLY OXIDIZED TO A GREATER DEPTH. GOLD WAS AN IMPORTANT CONSTITUENT IN THE EARLY PRODUCTION OF THIS MINE

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-APR-1978 Fiebelkorn, J. B. (Stewart, J. H.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-MAY-1990 Marcus, Susan U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Nevada resources

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