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  3. Mineral Resource Data System (MRDS)

Bear Creek Placer

Producer in Alaska, United States with commodities Gold, Platinum
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Commodities
  6. Materials information
  7. Host and associated rocks
  8. Nearby scientific data
  9. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  10. Mining district
  11. Links to other databases
  12. Bibliographic references
  13. General comments
  14. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10107560
MRDS ID A015716
Record type Site
Current site name Bear Creek Placer

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -161.06444, 65.54107 (WGS84)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Northwest Arctic(Borough)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Candle C-5(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Candle N(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Candle(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Buckland River(hydrologic unit)

Northern Seward Peninsula(hydrologic accounting unit)

Northwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Comments on the location information

  • USGS MF-389, LOC. 29, 30. PLACER GROUND ALONG BEAR CREEK BETWEEN POLAR AND CUB CREEKS. COORDINATES GIVEN FOR LANDING STRIP MARKED ON CANDLE (C-5). LAND STATUS VALUE CALCULATED 6-94 USING GIS OVERLAY ANALYSIS WITH BLM 1:2,500,000 SCALE OWNERSHIP STATUS MAP (1991).

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Platinum Critical Secondary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Gold Ore
Garnet Gangue
Hematite Gangue
Ilmenite Gangue
Magnetite Gangue
Platinum Unknown

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Unconsolidated Deposit > Gravel

Nearby scientific data

(1) -161.06444, 65.54107
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • BEDROCK SURFACE VERY IRREGULAR.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No
Discovery year 1900

Mining district

District name Fairhaven

Comments on the production information

  • GOLD AND PLATINUM HAVE BEEN PRODUCED.

Comments on development

  • PLACER DEPOSITS STAKED IN 1901 AND MINED FOR GOLD SPORADICALLY AND ON A SMALL SCALE UNTIL AS RECENTLY AS 1986. DITCH CONSTRUCTED IN 1907. FOUR MINING PLANTS OPERATED, 1914. MINED IN 1986 BY BEEHIVE MINING CO.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Deposit

    USGS MF-389 (C-5), LOC. 29, 30.

  • Deposit

    USGS BULLETIN 692, P. 380.

  • Deposit

    ALASKA DIV. OF MINES AND MINERALS GEOLOGIC REPORT 12, P. 8.

  • Deposit

    USGS OF 76-866, P. 7-9.

  • Production

    BEDROCK IS MAINLY ALTERED ANDESITIC TUFFS AND LAVAS (GREENSTONE) CUT BY MORE MAFIC (BIOTITE PYROXENITE) AND ACIDIC DIKES.

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit GOLD ON BEDROCK OR IN CRACKS IN UPPER SEVERAL INCHES OF BEDROCK. BEDROCK MUST BE THOROUGHLY CLEANED AS MUCH OF GOLD IS CLOSE TO BEDROCK.
Deposit THIS SITE NAME WAS CREATED BY THE REPORTER OR OTHER USGS EMPLOYEE BASED ON PROXIMITY TO SOME MAJOR GEOGRAPHIC FEATURE.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-SEP-1987 Powers, M.T. (Huber, D.F.) U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

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

Maps centered on this site

Authoritative Alaska resources

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