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Ratcliff Mine

Past Producer in Inyo county in California, United States with commodities Gold, Lead, Iron, Copper, Tungsten
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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. Ore body information
  12. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  13. Mining district
  14. Workings at the site
  15. Links to other databases
  16. Bibliographic references
  17. General comments
  18. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10106505
MRDS ID X023716
Record type Site
Current site name Ratcliff Mine
Alternate or previous names Radcliff Mine
Related records 10212180

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -117.12867, 36.0247 (WGS84)
Elevation 1829
Relative position 0.8 MI. SE CLAIR CAMP ON S. SIDE PLEASANT CANYON

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Inyo(county)

California(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Ballarat(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Darwin Hills(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Death Valley(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Panamint Valley(hydrologic unit)

Northern Mojave(hydrologic accounting unit)

Northern Mojave-Mono Lake(hydrologic subregion)

California(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States California Inyo

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 022S 045E 17 California

Comments on the location information

  • UTM ACC. LAND UNSURVEYED

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Lead Secondary
Iron Tertiary
Copper Tertiary
Tungsten Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Chalcopyrite Ore
Gold Ore
Pyrite Ore
Quartz Gangue

Analytical data

Result ASSAYED 0.02% SCHEELITE. SAMPLES CUT FROM 4-10 FT. THICK VEIN ASSAYED $14-$64/TON.

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Schist
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Gneiss
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Granite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -117.12867, 36.0247
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Panamint Metamorphic Complex

Ore body information

  • Strike NW
    Dip 50SW
    Thickness 16.76M

Comments on the geologic information

  • COUNTRY ROCK VARIOUSLY DESCRIBED AS QUARTZ-SERICITE GNEISS, METAQUARTZITE OR, CONGLOMERATE SCHIST, WITH INTERBEDDED LIMESTONE.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Medium
Significant No
Discovery year 1897

Mining district

District name South Park

Comments on the production information

  • A SMALL AMOUNT OF AU ORE WAS PRODUCED IN 1893.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 1219.2M

Comments on the workings information

  • 7 ADITS AND RELATED WORKINGS COVER APPROX. 800 FT. VERTICALLY ON S SIDE OF PLEASANT CANYON. NO. 1 LEVEL IS 1800 FT. ABOVE CAMP, WHICH WAS AT BOTTOM OF CANYON. 100 FT. ADIT AND 25 FT. WINZE ON 2 PARALLEL SCHEELITE-BEARING VEINS NORTH OF MILL. LARGE GLORY HOLE OR OPEN CUT, 90 FT. LONG, 55 FT. WIDE AND 45 FT. HIGH. SMALL STOPES WORKED FROM THIRD AND FOURTH LEVELS. SOME 4000 FT. NORTH OF WORKS IS 40-FT. SHAFT SUNK ON 18-IN. CROSS VEIN WHICH WAS REPORTED TO BE HIGH-GRADE. MILLSITE AND BUILDINGS. SKETCH MAP OF WORKINGS IN SAMPSON (1932)

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    NORMAN, L.A., JR. AND STEWART, RICHARD M., 1951, MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF INYO COUNTY: CALIF. JOURNAL OF MINES AND GEOLOGY V. 47, NO. 1, P.47-48, 160

  • Deposit

    SAMPSON, R.J., 1932, MINERAL RESOURCES OF A PART OF THE PANIMENT RANGE: CALIF. JOUR. MINES AND GEOLOGY, V. 28, P. 373-376

  • Deposit

    GOODWIN, J.G., 1957, LEAD AND ZINC IN CALIFORNIA: CALIFORNIA JOURNAL OF MINES AND GEOLOGY, V. 53, NOS. 3 & 4, P. 503

  • Production

    NORMAN AND STEWART (1951) SAMPSON (1932), GOODWIN (1957)

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit MAIN RATCLIFF VEIN IN NARROW BELT OF METAMORPHIC ROCK. ZONE CONSISTS OF QUARTZ LENSES AND MASSES IN WHICH GOLD ASSOC. WITH SULFIDES. PRINCIPAL VEIN 4-55 FT. IN THICKNESS. VEIN-FILLING OF COARSE, GLASSY QUARTZ, OFTEN SMOKY, GREASY ASPECT. ORE OCCURS BOTH OXIDIZED AND WITH SULFIDES. GOLD FILLS MINUTE FRACTURES IN PYRRHOTITE. ORE SHOOTS ON OR NEAR FOOTWALL. PRINCIPAL SHOOT 20-50 FT. THICK, 125 FT. LONG. 4-10 FT. VEIN CARRYING RICH SULFIDES WAS EXPOSED BELOW WORKINGS ON SECOND LEVEL. THIRD SHOOT OCCURS EAST OF LAYER OPEN CUT. 2 PARALLEL VEINS, JUST NORTH OF MILL, CONTAIN SCHEELITE. DETAILED PETROGRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF ORE IN SAMPSON (1932).
Deposit 10 PATENTED CLAIMS AND MILSITE INCLUDES SUN RISE, GROVER CLEVELAND, JOHN C. CARLISLE, KENTUCKY, TEXAS, JOKER, JOKER EXT., NEVER GIVE UP, TREASURE VAULT. W.G. QUARTZ ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-DEC-1980 Nelson, Scott C. (Albers, John, P.) 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 California resources

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