United Verde Mine

Producer in Yavapai county in Arizona, United States with commodities Copper, Gold, Silver, Zinc, Lead, Arsenic
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. Production statistics
  19. Reserves and resources
  20. Workings at the site
  21. Links to other databases
  22. Bibliographic references
  23. General comments
  24. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10109023
MRDS ID M002664
Record type Site
Current site name United Verde Mine
Alternate or previous names Hull, Big Hole, Hopewell Tunnel
Related records 10186256

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -112.1238, 34.75198 (WGS84)
Elevation 1554
Relative position AT JEROME, 4 MILES W OF CLARKDALE.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Yavapai(county)

Arizona(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Clarkdale(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Prescott(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Prescott(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Upper Verde(hydrologic unit)

Verde(hydrologic accounting unit)

Salt(hydrologic subregion)

Lower Colorado(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Prescott 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 Arizona Yavapai

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Gila and Salt River 016N 002E 14,15,22 Arizona

Comments on the location information

  • MAIN SHAFT IN SECTION 22 WITH TUNNEL GOING NE THROUGH SE SECTIONS 15 AND 14 ENDING AT HOPEWELL TUNNEL IN SECTION 14.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary
Gold Primary
Silver Secondary
Zinc Critical Secondary
Lead Secondary
Arsenic Critical Tertiary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Bornite Ore
Chalcocite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Copper Ore
Cuprite Ore
Galena Ore
Gold Ore
Pyrrhotite Ore
Silver Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Tennantite Ore
Ankerite Gangue
Chlorite Gangue
Dolomite Gangue
Jasper Gangue
Limonite Gangue
Quartz Gangue
Sericite Gangue
Pyrite Unknown

Alteration

  • (Local) Chloritization, Sericitization, Chloritization, Pyritization

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Intermediate Volcanic Rock > Andesite
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Gabbro
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Volcanic Rock (Aphanitic) > Felsic Volcanic Rock > Rhyolite
    Rock unit name Deception Rhyolite;Grapevine Gulch Formation;Cleopatra Quartz Porphyry
    Rock description Deception Rhyolite;Grapevine Gulch Formation;Cleopatra Quartz Porphyry

Nearby scientific data

(1) -112.1238, 34.75198

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Regional
Structure description Foliation In Metavolcanic Rocks Trends N10w To N40w
Type of structure Local
Structure description Massive Sulfide Lenses Elongate Parallel To Bedding In Metavolcanic Rocks

Ore body information

  • General form PIPELIKE/CRESCENT, ARCUATE
    Plunge 65
    Plunge direction N
    Thickness 1371.6M
    Length 457.2M
    Width 243.84M
    Depth to top 0M
    Depth to bottom 1371.6M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Stratigraphy, Igneous Activity

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant No
Discoverer Verde Indians
Year of first production 1884
Year of last production 1975
Production years 1908-1951

Mining district

District name Verde District

Land status

Ownership category Private

Ownership information

  • Type Operator
    Owner Phelps Dodge Corp.
    Home office Phoenix, Az.
    First year 1986
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Phelps Dodge Corp.
    Home office Phoenix, Az.
    First year 1986

Production statistics

  • Year 1940
    Period 1918 - 1940
    Material ORE
    Accuracy Accurate
    Description Cp_Grade: ^3.4% Cu, 2.07 Toz Ag/St, 0.071 Toz Au/St
    Importance Item Commodity Group Amount recovered Grade Recovery percentage
    Trace Ore Copper Copper 3wt-pct
    Minor Ore Gold Gold 2g/mt
    Major Ore Silver Silver 65g/mt

Comments on the production information

  • ITEMS 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ARE PRODUCTION FROM OPEN PIT MINING.

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1931
    Total resources 5442000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Copper Cu 0.006 wt-pct Copper Major 1931
    Gold Au 0.564 g/mt Gold Major 1931
    Silver Ag 56.471 g/mt Silver Minor 1931
    Zinc Zn 7 wt-pct Zinc Minor 1931
    Lead Pb 0.002 wt-pct Lead Minor 1931
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1986
    Total resources 45000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Gold Au 7.058 g/mt Gold Major 1986

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • 1986 FIGURE IS GEOLOGIC ESTIMATE.

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Surface/Underground
    Length 92802.46M
    Overall depth 518.16M
    Overall length 304.8M
    Overall width 243.84M

Comments on the workings information

  • MINING METHODS: HORIZONTAL CUT AND FILL STOPING; SQUARE-SET METHOD; SCRAPERS FOR INCLINED CUT AND FILL; MITCHELL SLICE SYSTEM; OPEN PIT MINING. OPEN PIT IS 630 FEET DEEP.

Comments on development

  • BIG HOLE MINING CO WAS OPERATOR IN 1975. DURING 1984-1986, PHELPS DODGE EVALUATED UNMINED ZINC PORTION OF THE DEPOSIT, DID A GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY AND A GEOLOGIC REVIEW.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit DEPOSIT IS MASSIVE SULFIDE LENS IN METARHYOLITE OR NEAR CONTACT OF METARHYOLITE AND GABBRO. THE SHAPE OF THE PIPE IS DUE TO: (1) THE OVERHANG OF THE GABBRO ABOVE THE 3000 - FOOT LEVEL, (2) THE CONTACT BETWEEN THE GABBRO AND TUFFACEOUS SEDIMENTS OR QUARTZ PORPHYRY, AND (3) THE ZONE OF PRONOUNCED FOLIATION. THREE LARGE ORE SHOOTS AND 2 SULFIDE PIPES ALSO ARE PRESENT. QUARTZ PORPHYRY IS REPLACED BY SULFIDES.
Deposit AN UNDERGROUND FIRE BEGAN IN 1894 WHEN PART OF THE SULFIDE ORE BODY SLIPPED TO CAUSE FIRE-STARTING FRICTION; MANY RARE FIRE MIENRALS WERE FORMED DURING THE MORE THAN 30 YEARS THAT THE FIRE BURNED. ; INFO.SRC : 1 PUB LIT; 2 UNPUB REPT

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-APR-1972 Gere, W. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-MAR-1979 Johnson, Kris H. (Creasey, S.C.) U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-OCT-1981 Laraba, Peter (Dewitt, Ed) Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology
Updater 01-FEB-1993 Orris, Greta J. U.S. Geological Survey
Updater 01-MAY-1994 Orris, Greta J. 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:

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.

External references

Authoritative Arizona resources

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