North Pole-Columbia Lode

Producer in Baker county in Oregon, United States with commodities Gold, Silver, Copper, Arsenic, Antimony, Tellurium, Mercury
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. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Land status
  17. Ownership information
  18. Workings at the site
  19. Links to other databases
  20. Bibliographic references
  21. General comments
  22. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10107273
MRDS ID W002492
Record type Site
Current site name North Pole-Columbia Lode
Alternate or previous names From Ne To Sw South Pole, North Pole, E & E, Taber Fraction, Columbia, Golconda, Mountain Belle, Amazon, Analulu, Bunker Hill, Eureka & Excelsior

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -118.21688, 44.82485 (WGS84)
Elevation 1798

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Baker(county)

Oregon(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Bourne(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Bates(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Canyon City(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Powder(hydrologic unit)

Middle Snake-Powder(hydrologic accounting unit)

Middle Snake(hydrologic subregion)

Pacific Northwest(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Wallowa-Whitman 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 Oregon Baker

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Willamette 008S 037E 32 Oregon

Comments on the location information

  • LODE RUNS CONTINUOUSLY THROUGH TEN CLAIMS

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Silver Primary
Copper Primary
Arsenic Critical Tertiary
Antimony Critical Tertiary
Tellurium Critical Tertiary
Mercury Tertiary

Materials information

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

Alteration

  • (Local) Silicification

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock unit name Bald Mountain Batholith
    Rock description Bald Mountain Batholith
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Late Cretaceous
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metavolcanic Rock > Mafic Metamorphic Rock > Greenstone
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Argillite
    Rock unit name Elkhorn Ridge Argillite
    Rock description Elkhorn Ridge Argillite

Nearby scientific data

(1) -118.21688, 44.82485

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Blue Mountain Uplift Trends N 30 Deg E. Major Thrust Fault Trends East-West
Type of structure Local
Structure description Shear Zone

Ore body information

  • General form TABULAR
    Strike N 30 DEG E
    Dip 82 DEG SE
    Length 7241.85M
    Width 91.44M
    Depth to top 0M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Shear Zone, Highly Silicified Argillite

Comments on the geologic information

  • THE LODE FILLS A HIGH ANGLE FAULT WHICH CUTS THRUST FAULT CONTACTS BETWEEN ARGILLITE AND METAGABBRO. BOTH UNITS ARE HORNFELSED BY THE PRE-MINERALIZATION EMPLACEMENT OF THE BALD MOUNTAIN BATHOLITH.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1887

Mining district

District name Cracker Creek

Land status

Ownership category Private
Area name Wallowa-Whitman National Forest

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Brooks Minerals Inc
    First year 1980

Comments on the production information

  • PRODUCTION RECORDS FOR THE SOUTH POLE, MOUNTAIN BELLE, AMAZON, ANALULU, AND BUNKER HILL MINES NOT AVAILABLE.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • OMEGA MINES (1968) REPORTED AN AVERAGE OF 0.086 OZ/TON AU AND 0.30 OZ/TON AG OVER A SAMPLE WIDTH OF 17.5 FEET ALONG 1357 FEET OF STRIKE ON THE NORTH POLE 5600 FOOT LEVEL. THEIR DIAMOND DRILLING INDICATES THAT THE LODE CONTINUES TO AT LEAST 200 FEET BELOW THIS LEVEL.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Length 3108.96M
    Overall depth 426.72M

Comments on the workings information

  • LODE IS A COMPOSITE IMBRICATE SELVAGE VEIN SYSTEM. AVG. WIDTH ABOUT 25 FT. 2100 FT. VERTICAL INTERVAL MINED. STOPES UP TO 2500 FT. LONG & AVG. 4 FT. WIDE. NO PRODUCTION RECORDS FOR THE SOUTH POLE,MOUNTAIN BELLE,AMAZON,ANALULU, & BUNKER HILL MINES

Comments on development

  • THE NORTHERN PART OF THE LODE IS NOW BEING DEVELOPED BY BROOKS MINERALS INC. (1981)

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    BROOKS, H. C., AND RAMP, L., 1968, GOLD AND SILVER IN OREGON: OREGON DEPT. OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL INDUSTRIES BULL. 61, P. 59-62

  • Deposit

    PARDEE, J. T., 1909, FAULTING AND VEIN STRUCTURE IN THE CRACKER CREEK GOLD DISTRICT, BAKER CO., OREGON: USGS BULL. 380, P. 85-93

  • Deposit

    PARDEE, J. T., AND HEWETT, D. F., 1914, GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE SUMPTER QUADRANGLE: OREGON BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY, MIN. RES. OF ORE. 1(8): 92

  • Deposit

    LORAIN, S. H., 1938, GOLD MINING AND MILLING IN EASTERN OREGON: U.S.B.M. INFO. CIRC. 7015 & 5) LINDGREN, W., 1901, THE GOLD BELT OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF EASTERN OREGON; USGS ANN. REPT. NO.

  • Deposit

    1909 PARDEE, J.T.; BULL. 380

  • Deposit

    1914 GEOLMAP ORE. BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY

  • Deposit

    1916 COMPILE ORE. BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOLOGY

  • Deposit

    1980 GEOLMAP ODGMI REFERENCE 8

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit A HIGHLY ALTERED PORPHYRY DIKE IS FOUND DISCONTINUOUSLY WITHIN THE LODE
Deposit THE NORTH POLE, COLUMBIA, EUREKA AND EXCELSIOR, AND TABER FRACTION ARE OWNED BY THE CRACKER CREEK MINING COMPANY. THE GOLCONDA IS UNDER SEPARATE OWNERSHIP

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-MAY-1974 Reeves, James R. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-JUN-1980 Ferns, Mark L. (Brooks, Howard C.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-AUG-1993 Gray, Jerry J. Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries

Beyond USGS

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