Helena Placers

Past Producer in Lewis and Clark county in Montana, United States with commodity 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. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  14. Mining district
  15. Land status
  16. Production statistics
  17. Links to other databases
  18. Bibliographic references
  19. General comments
  20. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10071873
MRDS ID W015560
Record type Site
Current site name Helena Placers
Alternate or previous names Last Chance Gulch, Tenmile Creek
Related records 10270207

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -111.98005, 46.59129 (WGS84)
Elevation 1280
Relative position SITUATED BENEATH HELENA BUSINESS DISTRICT

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Lewis and Clark(county)

Montana(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

East Helena(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Canyon Ferry Dam(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

White Sulphur Springs(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Missouri(hydrologic unit)

Upper Missouri(hydrologic accounting unit)

Missouri-Marias(hydrologic subregion)

Missouri(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Montana Lewis and Clark

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Montana Principal 010N;010N 004W;003W 36,25;30,31 Montana

Comments on the location information

  • ALTITUDE GENERALIZED AND APPROXIMATE, LOCATION GENERALIZED

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 119
USGS model code 39a
Deposit model name Placer Au-PGE
Mark3 model number 54

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Granite
    Rock unit name Boulder Batholith
    Rock description Boulder Batholith
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Paleocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Paleocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Holocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Gravel
    Rock unit name Gravels, Alluvium
    Rock description Gravels, Alluvium

Nearby scientific data

(1) -111.98005, 46.59129

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Boulder Batholith

Ore body information

  • General form IRREGULAR

Comments on the geologic information

  • GOLD CONTAINED IN QUATERNARY GRAVELS DERIVED FROM BOULDER BATHOLITH, AND LATE PRECAMBRIAN, PALEOZOIC, AND MESOZOIC SEDIMENTARY ROCKS IN THE AREA.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1864
Discoverer George Cowan, Robert Stanley, Gabe Johnson
Year of first production 1864

Mining district

District name Helena District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Production statistics

  • Year 1953
    Period 1864-1953
    Material gold
    Ore mined 29mt
    Accuracy Accurate

Comments on the production information

  • KOSCHMANN AND BERGENDAHL CONTAINED SOME PRODUCTION INFORMATION, BUT OF MAINLY DISTRICT PRODUCTION WHICH INCLUDED LODE DEPOSITS AND PLACERS, THUS NOT COMPLETELY APPLICABLE HERE.

Comments on the workings information

  • NO REFERENCE COULD BE FOUND STATING THE DISTANCE PLACER MINING CARRIED OUT ALONG LAST CHANCE GULCH

Comments on development

  • LAST CHANCE GULCH IS A GOLD PLACER AND WAS WORKED BY MANY PROSPECTORS, PRIMARILY BETWEEN 1864 AND 1868

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    LYDEN, C. J., 1948, THE GOLD PLACERS OF MONTANA, MONT. BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOL. MEMOIR NO. 26 P. 56-57

  • Deposit

    KOSCHMANN AND BERGENDAHL, PRINCIPAL GOLD-PRODUCING DISTRICTS OF THE UNITED STATES, U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROF. PAPER 610, P. 105

  • Production

    LYDEN, C. J., 1948, THE GOLD PLACERS OF MONTANA

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit ALL OF THE GOLD PLACER DEPOSITS OF THE HELENA VALLEY ARE INCLUDED IN THE DISCUSSION, PRODUCTION FIGURES, ETC. ON THIS FORM
Deposit IT IS STATED THAT MOST OF THE $16,000,000 RECOVERED BY 1910 WAS REMOVED DURING OR BEFORE 1868. THE GOLD IN THE GRAVELS IN THIS DISTRICT ARE THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN DERIVED FROM LODE DEPOSITS WITHIN THE DRAINAGE BASIN OF LAST CHANCE CREEK AND ASSOCIATED TRIBUTARIES.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAR-1977 Mckenzie, Craig L.; R. B. Berg U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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