Schwartz Canyon Deposits

Past Producer in Lincoln county in Nevada, United States with commodities Tungsten, Copper, Silver, Zinc, Fluorine-Fluorite, Molybdenum, Iron
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. Mineral occurrence model information
  10. Host and associated rocks
  11. Nearby scientific data
  12. Geologic structures
  13. Ore body information
  14. Controls for ore emplacement
  15. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  16. Mining district
  17. Land status
  18. Ownership information
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10310372
MRDS ID M233811
Record type Site
Current site name Schwartz Canyon Deposits
Alternate or previous names Schwartz Tunnel, Swartz, Ad Claim, Jerry Claim, Robertson Claim, MDM Claim, Cinch & Pip Mines, Silver Lode
Related records 10045918

Comments on the site identification

  • This record is a new record that includes all material in earlier MRDS records M233811, M060501, M233810, M233815, M233818, and M233812 as well as additional new information.

Geographic coordinates

Geographic coordinates: -114.72946, 38.62467 (WGS84)
Elevation 2840
Relative position The mine area is located about 45 miles south of Ely and 50 miles north of Pioche.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Lincoln(county)

Nevada(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Milk Ranch Spring(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Garrison(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Lund(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Dry Lake Valley(hydrologic unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic accounting unit)

Central Nevada Desert Basins(hydrologic subregion)

Great Basin(hydrologic region)

Federal lands

Bureau of Land Management(Bureau of Land Management NV)

Bureau of Land Management NV BLM(Type of land area)

BLM(Federal land areas administered by BLM)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Nevada Lincoln

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
Mount Diablo 009N 065E 16 Nevada

Comments on the location information

  • The mine workings are located near the crest of Schell Creek Range within about a mile radius of Patterson Pass, and 2 miles north of Patterson Pass. UTM is to one of several workings on the property.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Tungsten Critical Primary
Copper Primary
Silver Primary
Zinc Critical Primary
Fluorine-Fluorite Critical Secondary
Molybdenum Secondary
Iron Tertiary

Comments on the commodity information

  • Ore Materials: scheelite; chalcopyrite; sphalerite, fluorite, molybdenite, magnetite, copper oxides
  • Gangue Materials: quartz, calcite, pyrite, diopside, epidote, wollastonite, tremolite, coarse white mica, iron oxides, chlorite

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Scheelite Ore
Chalcopyrite Ore
Sphalerite Ore
Fluorite Ore
Molybdenite Ore
Magnetite Ore
Quartz Gangue
Calcite Gangue
Pyrite Gangue
Diopside Gangue
Epidote Gangue
Wollastonite Gangue
Tremolite Gangue
Mica Gangue
Chlorite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Alteration consists of silication, marbelization, and chloritization.

Mineral occurrence model information

Model code 42
USGS model code 14a
Deposit model name W skarn

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Metamorphic Rock > Metasedimentary Rock > Quartzite
    Rock type qualifier calcareous
    Rock unit name Prospect Mountain Quartzite
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Cambrian
    Stratigraphic age (oldest) Neoproterozoic
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Carbonate > Limestone
    Rock type qualifier silicified tactite
    Rock unit name Pioche Shale
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Cambrian
    Stratigraphic age (oldest) Middle Cambrian
  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Clastic Sedimentary Rock > Shale
    Rock type qualifier limy
    Rock unit name Pioche Shale
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Early Cambrian
    Stratigraphic age (oldest) Middle Cambrian
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Granitoid > Monzonite
    Rock type qualifier epidotized monzonite-diorite intrusive
  • Host or associated Associated
    Rock type Plutonic Rock > Mafic Intrusive Rock > Diorite
    Rock type qualifier epidotized monzonite-diorite intrusive

Nearby scientific data

(1) -114.72946, 38.62467

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description The rocks in the mine area have been cut by a N-S- trending normal fault with the west side downthrown.

Ore body information

  • General form irregular; pinch and swell; pods

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Ore is controlled by a combination of favorable lithology, proximity to an intrusive body, and structure.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Past Producer
Commodity type Both
Deposit size Small
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1869
Discoverer Jacob Schwartz

Mining district

District name Patterson District
District name Patterson Pass District
District name Cave Valley District
District name Geyser District.

Land status

Ownership category BLM Administrative Area
Area name Ely BLM Administrative District

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Lexam Explorations
    Year 1996

Comments on the workings information

  • The vein deposits have been developed by numerous workings including 2 adits, 2 shafts, several dozer trenches and drill holes. In 1916 one tunnel extended N5W for 300 ft. Union Carbide drilled several holes in the mine area in the 1980s.

Comments on other economic factors

  • Total recorded production of the district mines from sporadic work between 1904 and 1952 was about 27,000 ounces of silver, 40 ounces of gold, 600 pounds of copper, 8,000 pounds of lead, and 750 units of WO3.

Comments on development

  • The first discoveries in the Patterson Pass District were on rich silver ores about 1869, causing a flurry of activity that was short-lived, with small unrecorded production. Lake Valley Mining Company shipped some siliceous silver ore from the area mines in 1920-1921, and built a 50-ton cyanidization plant that produced silver from 1922-1925. There was some activity in th edistrict from 1920 to 1930, and in 1941, Owen Walker located the Cinch and Pip Mines from which about 1000 tons of tungsten ore was produced during World War II. There was intermittent production until the Jerry Claims were developed in 1956. There was a major exploration project conducted by Union Carbide in the late 1970s until the 1980s, several holes were drilled in the mine area. At the time of Union Carbide exploration in 1979, the owner of the property was Eugene Hodges,
    In 1996, Lexam Explorations reported that drilling at their Patterson Pass property encountered 25 feet of 0.040 opt gold starting at 30 feet, and 25 feet of 0.014 opt gold starting at 75 feet.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

General comments

Subject category Comment text
Deposit The Schwartz Tunnel is at or near the basal contact of the Pioche Shale with the Prospect Mountain Quartzite. Some of the vein material on the adit dump above the Schwartz tunnel is pegmatitic with coarse white mica and coarse terminated quartz crystals in vugs. Below the adit dump is Pioche Shale. The adit above the tunnel displays a replacement horizon in one of the basal limestone units of the Pioche Shale. The limestone is silicified and now displays a typical tactite mineral assemblage of diopside, calcite, and epidote with some fluorite, pyrite and chalcopyrite throughout. Sphalerite is also present. The altered horizon at the mouth of the adit is reddish-brown silicified limestone with polka dot appearance from algal girvanella. This horizon is capped by gossan, which can be followed for 100 ft or more to the SW. At the ridgecrest SW of the Schwartz workings is an old shaft and several dozer trenches. The replaced horizon recurs here. A coarse, bladed, greenish white mineral (wollastonite or tremolite) occurs on the vein selvages. Host rock is bedded calcareous quartzite, limestone, or limy shale, striking N-S, dipping 15-36E. Limey shale and limestone located 100 feet above the tunnel are altered to tactite. A stockwork of quartz veins outcrops continuously with a strike of N70E and dip of 13SE. Southwest of the tunnel, pyrite and chalcopyrite occur in veinlets, pods, and replacement of algal spheroids within the replaced horizon. Gossan is abundant in the dump material.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 01-JAN-2005 LaPointe, D.D. Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology
Editor 01-SEP-2007 Schruben, Paul G. U.S. Geological Survey Converted from S&A FileMaker format to Oracle. Edit checks on rocks, units, and ages with Geolex search, and other fields.

Beyond USGS

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

Authoritative Nevada resources

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