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Big Creek Placers

Past Producer in Valley county in Idaho, United States with commodities Gold, Titanium, Tungsten, Zirconium
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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. Nearby scientific data
  8. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  9. Mineral rights holdings
  10. Land status
  11. Ownership information
  12. Reserves and resources
  13. Links to other databases
  14. Bibliographic references
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10217544
MRDS ID W015419
MAS/MILS ID 0160850128
Record type Site
Current site name Big Creek Placers
Alternate or previous names Smith Creek- Big Creek Placers
Related records 10089273

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Trench
Geographic coordinates: -115.31036, 45.15488 (WGS84)
Elevation 1853
Location accuracy 1000(meters)

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Valley(county)

Idaho(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Big Creek(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Warren(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Elk City(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Lower Middle Fork Salmon(hydrologic unit)

Salmon(hydrologic accounting unit)

Lower Snake(hydrologic subregion)

Pacific Northwest(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Payette 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 Idaho Valley

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Boise 021 N 009 E 02 NWSWSW Idaho

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Gold Primary
Titanium Critical Tertiary
Tungsten Critical Tertiary
Zirconium Critical Tertiary

Nearby scientific data

Trench (1) -115.31036, 45.15488
ListMap

Economic information

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Placer
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic
Deposit size Small
Significant No

Mineral rights holdings

Type of mineral rights Unknown

Land status

Ownership category National Forest
Area name Payette National Forest

Ownership information

  • Type Owner
    Owner Smith Creek Hydraulic Co.
    Home office Idaho
    Year 1973
    First year 1973

Reserves and resources

  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1973
    Inferred 10700000mt ore
    Total resources 10700000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Zirconium ZrO2 1.5 wt-pct Zirconium Trace 1973
    Tungsten Wo3 0.75 wt-pct Tungsten Trace 1973
    Titanium TiO2 12.5 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Titanium TiO2 0.25 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Gold Au 0.03 g/mt Gold Major 1973
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1973
    Inferred 1500000mt ore
    Total resources 1500000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Zirconium ZrO2 1.5 wt-pct Zirconium Trace 1973
    Tungsten Wo3 0.75 wt-pct Tungsten Trace 1973
    Titanium TiO2 12.5 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Titanium TiO2 0.25 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Gold Au 0.09 g/mt Gold Major 1973
  • Type In-situ
    Estimate year 1973
    Indicated 764600000mt ore
    Demonstrated 764600000mt ore
    Inferred 764000mt ore
    Total resources 765364000mt ore
    Commodity Subtype Grade units Group Importance Year
    Titanium TiO2 12.5 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Titanium TiO2 0.25 wt-pct Titanium Trace 1973
    Gold Au 0.55 g/mt Gold Major 1973
    Tungsten Wo3 0.75 wt-pct Tungsten Trace 1973
    Zirconium ZrO2 1.5 wt-pct Zirconium Trace 1973

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • AVERAGE GOLD VALUES GENERALLY INCREASE DOWNSTREAM AND OCCUR IN HIGHER GRADE POCKETS, LENSES AND STRINGERS. MATERIAL ABOVE PLACER CREEK SHOWS LITTLE EVIDENCE OF REWORKING AND SUBSEQUENTLY CONCENTRATION OF GOLD OCCUR IN ECONOMIC QUANTITIES. GOLD VALUES AVERAGE ABOUT 0.02 GRAM PER METRIC TON, BASED ON 850 FINE. RECOVERABLE GOLD VALUES IN RESOURCES RANGED FROM 0.008 TO 0.05 GRAM PER METRIC TON. GLACIOFLUVIAL MATERIAL BETWEEN PLACER CREEK AND BRIDGE NEAR THE MOUTH HAS VALUES RANGING FROM 0.01 TO 0.018 GRAM PER METRIC TON, WITH AN AVERAGE VALUE OF 0.09 GRAM GOLD PER METRIC TONNE. THE FLUVIAL MATERIAL AT THE MOUTH OF SMITH CREEK AND EXTENDING 1.5 MILES DOWN BIG CREEK CONTAIN THE BEST VALUES. GOLD VALUES AVERAGE 0.55 GRAM PER METRIC TONNE. ALSO SECTIONS 3, 4, 11, 13, 14. SMITH CREEK - BIG CREEK PLACER AREA OCCUR ALONG SMITH CREEK FOR A DISTANCE OF 11.3 KILOMETERS. BLACK SAND CONCENTRATES AVERAGED 1.3 KILOGRAM PER CUBIC METER WITH ESTIMATED PLACER GOLD RESOURCES TO BE ABOUT 13000000 CUBIC METERS OF GRAVEL. THE CONCENTRATES CONTAINED 9-16 PERCENT ILMENITE AND TRACE TO 0.5 PERCENT RUTILE. CALCULATED TITAIUM IN ILMEMITE,BASED ON AVERAGE OF 12.5 PERCENT, WAS 670 METRIC TONNE. CALCULATED TITANIUM IN RUTILE, BASED ON 0.25 PERCENT WAS 20.3 METRIC TONNE. TOTAL TITANIUM IN ELMENITE AND RUTILE 609 METRIC TONNE. SCHEELITE ESTIMATED TO RANGE FROM 0.5-1.0 PERCENT. TUNGSTEN CALCULATED ON 0.75 AVERAGE OF SCHEELITE WAS 86 METRIC TONNE. 1-2 PERCENT ZIRCON ESTIMATED IN CONCENTRATES. ZIRCONIUM CALCULATED ON 1.5 PERCENT AVERAGE WAS 130 METRIC TONNE.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 10-JUN-1996 Winters, Dick U.S. Bureau of Mines

Beyond USGS

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

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