Imperial Mine

Past Producer in Storey county in Nevada, United States with commodities Silver, Gold
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. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10043921
MRDS ID M231225
Record type Site
Current site name Imperial Mine
Alternate or previous names Little Gold Hill Mines

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -119.64628, 39.29379 (WGS84)
Elevation 1829
Relative position GOLD HILL, NEVADA

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Storey(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Virginia City(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Carson City(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Reno(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Middle Carson(hydrologic unit)

Carson(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Lahontan(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 Storey

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 01N 021E 32 Nevada

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Gold Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Argentite Ore
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Propylitization, Oxidation, Pyritization

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 150
USGS model code 25c
Deposit model name Epithermal vein, Comstock
Mark3 model number 16

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Intermediate Volcanic Rock > Andesite
    Rock unit name Alta Andesite
    Rock description Alta Andesite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Miocene

Nearby scientific data

(1) -119.64628, 39.29379

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Regional Dips To West And Northwest
Type of structure Local
Structure description Faults

Ore body information

  • General form TABULAR, V-SHAPED

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Faults

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No
Discovery year 1859
Year of first production 1864

Mining district

District name Comstock Lode

Land status

Ownership category Private

Comments on the workings information

  • OPEN PIT, SHAFTS, DRIFTS

Comments on development

  • THIS WAS THE FIRST DISCOVERY OF ORE IN-PLACE ON THE COMSTOCK LODE. DEPOSIT IS NOW PART OF THE LARGE OPEN-PIT OPERATION OF HOUSTON OIL AND MINERALS

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    STODDARD, CARL, AND CARPENTER, J.A., 1950, MINERAL RESOURCES OF STOREY AND LYON COUNTIES, NEVADA: NBMG BULL. 70.

  • Deposit

    W.P.A. STATE WRITER'S PROJECT, 1940-41, INDIVIDUAL HISTORIES OF THE MINES OF THE COMSTOCK; UNPUBLISHED OPEN FILE REPORT - NEV. BUREAU OF MINES & GEOL.

  • Production

    STODDARD, C.A., AND CARPENTER, J.A., 1950.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit ORE IS IN HANGING WALL WITH BARREN QUARTZ FOOTWALL
Deposit THE FIRST DISCOVERY OF ORE IN PLACE IN THE COMSTOCK LODE WAS FREE-MILLING GOLD ORE ON A GROUP OF NARROW CLAIMS AT GOLD HILL. THE DEPOSIT IS Y-SHAPED WITH THE ORE OCCURRING ON THE HANGING WALL. THE FOOTWALL IS COMPOSED OF BARREN QUARTZ. ORIGINALLY STAKED IN 1859. CURRENTLY, PART OF LARGE OPEN-PIT MINE OPERATED BY HOUSTON OIL AND MINERALS ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-OCT-1980 Flynn, Patricia Dodd Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology

Beyond USGS

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

External references

Authoritative Nevada resources

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