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Ward

Past Producer in Alaska, United States with commodity Copper
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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. Alteration
  8. Mineral occurrence model information
  9. Nearby scientific data
  10. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  11. Mining district
  12. Links to other databases
  13. Bibliographic references
  14. General comments
  15. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10308741
Record type Site
Current site name Ward

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -165.22942, 65.74632 (WGS84)
Relative position The Ward mine, which consists of 8 patented claims, is at an elevation of 1,160 feet on the northwest-trending ridgecrest , between the drainages of Bismark Creek and the headwater reach of the Serpentine River (Sainsbury and others,1969). This is in the north-central Teller C-1 quadrangle just south of the boundary with the Teller D-1 quadrangle. Cobb and Sainsbury (1972) show the Ward mine as locality 15 and an unnamed locality (16) to be located on the ridgecrest between Bismark Creek and the headwater reach of the Serpentine River. Their locality 16 is actually closer to the Ward mine than locality 15. A lode occurrence at locality 15 of Cobb and Sainsbury (1972) could not be verified. Cobb (1975) summarized relevant references to the Ward mine under the name 'Ward (Copper Co.)'.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Nome(Census area)

Alaska(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Teller C-1(quadrangle 1:63,360 scale)

Bendeleben NW(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Teller(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Shishmaref(hydrologic unit)

Northern Seward Peninsula(hydrologic accounting unit)

Northwest(hydrologic subregion)

Alaska(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State
United States Alaska

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Copper Primary

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Azurite Ore
Bornite Ore
Malachite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Quartz Gangue

Alteration

  • The development of silica-rich rocks at the base of marble overlying metapelitic rocks, by whatever process, characterizes the deposit.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 119
USGS model code 39a
Deposit model name Placer Au-PGE
Mark3 model number 54

Nearby scientific data

(1) -165.22942, 65.74632
ListMap

Economic information

Comments on the geologic information

  • Geologic Description = The lode deposit at the Ward mine is a type of mineral occurrence that is repeated at many locations along a north-trending marble belt that extends southward from this location to the Iron Creek and Casadepaga River areas of southern Seward Peninsula. It has been described as a zone of silicification in marble above a thrust contact with underlying metapelitic schist (Sainsbury and others, 1969; Sainsbury, 1975, p. 90-94). The silica-rich rocks have been metamorphosed and commonly have a laminar fabric. Copper-bearing minerals, mostly malachite but also including azurite and in places chalcopyrite and possibly bornite, are disseminated in the silica-rich rocks. The minor sulfides tend to be along faint laminae and joints (Sainsbury and others, 1969, p. 22). Malachite and azurite also occur in small veins and veinlets in the silica-rich rocks. Sainsbury and others (1969; p. 37) report a spectrographic analysis of copper-bearing rocks from the Ward deposit. This sample contained 1,500 ppm copper, 100 ppm tin, and 300 ppm zinc. Mercury, gold, and arsenic were also reported to be anomalous. The summary characterization of this type of Seward Peninsula mineral deposit by Sainsbury (1974, p. 90-94) contains inconsistencies with some descriptions of these deposits. Their origin is uncertain and other possibilities should be considered. One possiblity is that the silica-rich rocks are quartzites and that there is a stratigraphic control to the Ward deposit and similar occurrences elsewhere on Seward Peininsula. Quarzite at the base of the regional carbonate assemblage is recognized elsewhere in the Kougarok Mountain area (Puchner, 1986, p. 1777).
  • Age = Unknown; if stratigraphic controls are important then it is probably Paleozoic in age. Otherwise the Ward deposit could be Jurassic or Early Cretaceous (age of regional deformation).

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Metallic

Comments on exploration

  • Status = Inactive

Mining district

District name Serpentine

Comments on the production information

  • Production Notes = Forty tons of high-graded material containing 30 to 40% copper were produced between 1906 and 1916.

Comments on the reserve resource information

  • Reserves = Not defined

Comments on the workings information

  • Workings / Exploration = The deposit has been explored by surface pits, trenches, shallow shafts, and short adits.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

Comments on the references

  • Primary Reference = Sainsbury and others, 1969; Sainsbury, 1975

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit Model Name = Copper-bearing mineralization in silica-rich zones at base of marble overlying metapelitic schist.
Deposit Model Number = Alluvial Au placer (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a)

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 10-MAY-1998 Travis L. Hudson Applied Geology

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.