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Block P Mine

Past Producer in Judith Basin county in Montana, United States with commodities Silver, Lead, Zinc, Gold, Copper, Tungsten, Molybdenum
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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. Ownership information
  18. Production statistics
  19. Workings at the site
  20. Links to other databases
  21. Bibliographic references
  22. General comments
  23. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10089197
MRDS ID W014740
Record type Site
Current site name Block P Mine
Alternate or previous names Wright - Edwards, Barker
Related records 10048810

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -110.63251, 47.0838 (WGS84)
Elevation 1829
Relative position HUGHESVILLE, MONTANA

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Judith Basin(county)

Montana(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Barker(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Belt(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Great Falls(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Belt(hydrologic unit)

Upper Missouri(hydrologic accounting unit)

Missouri-Marias(hydrologic subregion)

Missouri(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest(National Forest)

National Forest FS(Type of land area)

FS(Federal land areas administered by FS)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Montana Judith Basin

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Montana Principal 015N 009E 06,07 Montana

Comments on the location information

  • UTM LOCATION OF BARKER SHAFT

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Silver Primary
Lead Primary
Zinc Critical Primary
Gold Secondary
Copper Secondary
Tungsten Critical Tertiary
Molybdenum Tertiary

Comments on the commodity information

  • SULFIDE MINERALS OCCUR IN BANDS, LENSES, AND AS DISSEMINATIONS; ?THE GALENA IS FINE GRAINED, BUT OCCURS AS MASSES. IT CONTAINS A FEW SCATTERED AND ROUNDED BLEBS OF TETRAHERITE AND CHALCOPYRITE. IT ALSO CONTAINS NUMEROUS PYRITE FRAGMENTS WHICH MAY BE AS LARGE AS 1 MM IN DIAMETER. SPHALERITE CONTAINS ABUNDANT CHALCOPYRITE INCLUSIONS. CHALCOPYRITE ALSO OCCURS AS JAGGED GRAINS AND VEINLETS IN GALENA. TETRAHEDRITE OCCURS PREDOMINANTLY AS GRAINS NEAR CHALCOPYRITE, AS INCLUSIONS IN CHALCOPYRITE, AND IN VEINLETS CUTTING PYRITE. THE TETRAHEDRITE IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE OTHER MINERALS OTHER THAN GALENA, BUT OCCURS PREDOMINANTLY WITH THESE OTHER MINERALS WHERE THEY CUT GALENA.? (YOUNG AND OTHERS, 1962) TETRAHEDRITE IS MAIN SILVER-BEARING MINERAL (SPIROFF, 1938). SOME DISSEMINATED PYRITE, MOST SULFIDES CONFINED TO FISSURES OR AT THE CONTACT OF THE SYENITE WITH DIKES. (SPIROFF, 1938).

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Marmatite Ore
Pyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Tetrahedrite Ore
Galena Ore
Barite Gangue
Calcite Gangue
Rhodochrosite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) ARGILLIZATION OF SYENITE PORPHYRY

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 Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Quartz Monzonite
    Rock unit name HUGHESVILLE QUARTZ MONZONITE STOCK
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Pliocene
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Mississippian
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Pliocene
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Quartz Monzonite
    Rock type qualifier PORPHYRITIC SYENITE PLUG
    Rock description Madison Limestone
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Rock unit name Galena Creek Porphyry;Hughesville Stock, Hughesville Quartz Monzonite;Mixes Baldy Laccolith, Wolf Porphyry;Clendennin Laccolith, Clendennin Mountain Porphyry
    Rock description Galena Creek Porphyry;Hughesville Stock, Hughesville Quartz Monzonite;Mixes Baldy Laccolith, Wolf Porphyry;Clendennin Laccolith, Clendennin Mountain Porphyry
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Granite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -110.63251, 47.0838
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Zone Of Laccoliths And Other Igneous Intrusions Covering Over 800 Square Km
Type of structure Local
Structure description Domal Uplift Caused By Intrusion Of Snow Creek Porphyry, Hughesville Stock With Conjugate Fracture System

Ore body information

  • General form CRESCENT-SHAPED VEIN
    Strike NE TO NW
    Dip 65 - 88 N
    Length 2000M
    Width 2M
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Northwest-Northeast Joint System, Hughesville Stock

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1879
Discoverer B. Barker And P. W. Hughes
Year of first production 1880

Comments on exploration

  • 1879 - BARKER CLAIM LOCATED.

    1880 - WRIGHT AND EDWARDS CLAIMS LOCATED.

    1881- GREY EAGLE CLAIM LOCATED AND ALL FOUR CLAIMS PATENTED.

    UNTIL 1883 - SOME ORE SHIPPED TO SMELTERS BUT MUCH SMELTED LOCALLY. MINING DECLINED UNTIL 1891.

    1891 - RAILROAD BRANCH COMPLETED TO BARKER.

    1898-1902 - MOST CLAIMS LEASED TO UNITED SMELTING AND REFINING COMPANY.

    1902 - T.C. POWER (BLOCK P MINING COMPANY) ACQUIRES BLOCK P.

    1911 - 75-TON GRAVITY MILL BUILT.

    1920 - MILL CAPACITY INCREASED TO 100 TON/DAY.

    1927 - ST. JOSEPH LEAD COMPANY PURCHASES BLOCK P. EXTENSIVE DEVELOPMENT FOLLOWS, WITH RAILROAD REBUILT, 400-TON SELECTIVE FLOTATION MILL BUILT, AND A NEW STEEL HEADFRAME AND TRAMWAY.

    1930 - SEPTEMBER, MINING CEASED BECAUSE OF UNECONOMIC CONDITIONS.

    1941 - OPERATIONS RESUME.

    1943 - OCTOBER, OPERATIONS CEASE.

    1944 - MINE AND EQUIPMENT SOLD TO THORSON BROTHERS AND BRAZEE. SELL OFF EQUIPMENT.

    1945 - AMERICAN SMELTING AND REFINING COMPANY (ASARCO) BUY MOST HOLDINGS BUT THORSON BROS. AND BRAZEE RETAIN RIGHTS TO MINE ORE FROM THE ADITS ABOVE THE COLLAR OF THE SHAFTS.

Mining district

District name Barker District

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Thorsen Brothers And Brazee
  • Type Owner
    Owner Asarco (American Smelting And Refining Co.)

Production statistics

  • Year 1948
    Period 1915-1948
    Material ore
    Ore mined 368000mt
    Accuracy Accurate
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Minor Copper Copper 351584.88mt
    Minor Gold Gold 103636.79g
    Major Zinc Zinc 8095897.14mt
    Major Lead Lead 19391262.96mt
    Major AG Silver Silver 80191741.19g

Comments on the production information

  • PRODUCTION RECORDS PRIOR TO 1915 MEAGER, BUT PRODUCTION APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN AT LEAST 150,000 TOZ AG AND 3,000,000 LB PB.
  • 1915-1948 405,852 TONS OF ORE PRODUCING 3,332.13 OZ. AU, 2,578,224 OZ AG, 775,112 LBS. CU, 42,750,417 LBS. PB, AND 17,848,398 LBS. ZN. (ROBERTSON AND ROBY, 1951).

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • ALTHOUGH ORE SHOOTS KNOWN TO PERSIST TO 1400 LEVEL, MINE MAP SHOWS LITTLE STOPING BELOW 1000 LEVEL. ASSUMING A TRIANGULAR ORE SHOOT, 2000 FT ACROSS THE TOP, AND 1000 FT HIGH, REMAINS BELOW THE 1000 LEVEL GIVES THE RESOURCE ESTIMATE. TONNAGE IS BASED ON STOPED AREA/TONNAGE RATIO FOR UPPER PORTIONS OF MINE. ASSUMED GRADE IS ABOUT 20% LESS THAN GRADE OF MOST DEEP PRODUCTION, AS METAL CONTENT IS ASSUMED TO DIMINISH WITH DEPTH.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 6000M
    Overall depth 500M

Comments on the workings information

  • VEIN DEVELOPED BY 1484 FT. TWO-COMPARTMENT BARKER SHAFT NEAR GALENA CREEK AT EASTERN END OF VEIN, WRIGHT EDWARDS 320 FT SHAFT ON HILL NEAR WEST END OF VEIN, A 2800 FT ADIT DRIVEN FROM NEAR THE COLLAR OF THE BARKER SHAFT TO THE WRIGHT-EDWARDS SHAFT, AND SEVERAL MINOR ADITS.

    A TOTAL OF MORE THAN 20,000 FEET OF DRIFTS AND CROSSCUTS MADE BY 1943 (ROBERTSON AND ROBY, 1951). DEVELOPED 1,400+ FEET VERTICALLY AND 4,000 FEET ALONG THE VEIN (SPIROFF, 1938).

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit ?ORE MINERALS AT THE BLOCK P OCCUR IN VEINS LOCALIZED ALONG TENSION FRACTURES IN A PORPHYRITIC SYENITE PLUG.? (YOUNG AND OTHERS, 1962). ?SHEAR AND TENSIONAL FRACTURES ARE FOUND WITHIN THE MINE. THESE FRACTURES HAVE BEEN MINERALIZED AND WERE FOLLOWED BY DIKES.? (SPIROFF, 1938). ?THE BLOCK P VEIN FORMS A CRUDE SEMI-CIRCLE, ABOUT TWO-THIRDS OF A MILE IN DIAMETER, ENTIRELY WITHIN THE HUGHESVILLE QUARTZ MONZONITE STOCK. SPIROFF (1938) DESCRIBED THE ARCUATE VEIN AS FOLLOWING PORTIONS OF FIVE PLANAR FEATURES. TWO ARE ADJACENT TO THE MAFIC DIKES AND ONE IS PARALLEL TO A NEARBY FELSIC DIKE. WALKER SUGGESTS THAT THE VEIN WAS A CONE SHEET ABOVE A CONCEALED GRANITE PLUTON.? (BAKER AND OTHERS, 1991).
Deposit FISSURES WERE THE MOST IMPORTANT PRODUCERS
Deposit Merged Data from Deposit ID's: 10245440 (Grey Eagle)

10196660 (Barker Crosscut of Block P Mine)

10124398 (Equator Tunnel of Block P Mine)

10196718 (Thorson Tunnel of Block P Mine)

10270681 (200-Ft. Level, Wright & Edwards)

10270332 (Wright and Edwards Shaft- Block P)

10245650 (A Tunnel of Block P Mine)

10173138 (B Tunnel of Block P Mine)

10148735 (Maytee Tunnel of Block P Mine)

10221364 (Barker Shaft of Block P Mine)

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-1976 Krohn, Douglas H. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Operator history (post-MRDS)

MRDS records operators as of each record's last update (≤ 2019). Some of the operators listed here have since changed hands or dissolved:

  • Asarco (American Smelting And Refining Co.) — acquired by Asarco LLC, subsidiary of Grupo México (2009)
    American Smelting and Refining Co. Filed Chapter 11 in 2005; acquired out of bankruptcy by Grupo México in 2009.

Curated by qvyshift.com from publicly-reported M&A activity (SEC filings, press releases, USGS Mineral Yearbooks). Not authoritative — verify against primary sources before relying on it. The MSHA panel above is the current authoritative source for actively-permitted mines.

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