Fortyfive Pup; Fortyfive Gulch; Fortyfive Pass Mine, Fortymile District, Southeast Fairbanks Borough, Alaska, USA
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Geology: The rocks in the vicinity of Fortyfive Pup Creek are Paleozoic amphibolite-facies gneiss, amphibolite, and schist, Paleozoic or Mesozoic serpentinized peridotite, and Tertiary to Mesozoic granitic rocks surrounded by a large hornfels aureole (Foster, 1976). Marble is locally abundant, and many areas are underlain by granite (Joesting, 1943). The pay streak was estimated to be 200 to 300 feet wide; the overburden varied from 12 to 16 feet thick on the lower 5 miles of Fortyfive Pup (Mertie, 1938). Gold in this area has a fairly low fineness of 620 parts of gold per thousand based on a single assay (Smith, 1941 [B 910-C]). Placer concentrates commonly contain scheelite and rare cassiterite (Joesting, 1943). No lode source for placer gold in Fortyfive Pup has been identified, but lode claims for scheelite were staked in about 1968(?) in the headwaters of the creek (Smith, 1968). There has been placer gold production on Buckskin Creek (EA113) downstream of Fortyfive Pup. Pay gravel was found on Fortyfive Pup in 1910 (Ellsworth and Parker, 1911). In 1912, one man worked on Fortyfive Pup for the entire season and had very good success (Ellsworth and Davenport, 1913). In 1936, a prospector claimed to have found 5 miles of dredging ground on Fortyfive Pup and 2 additional miles on Buckskin Creek below the mouth of Fortyfive Pup (Mertie, 1938). Fortyfive Pup was mined almost continuously from the early 1960's to at least 1977 (Eberlein and others, 1977). WGM Inc. conducted a panned heavy-mineral concentrate reconnaissance sampling of streams draining Mount Warbelow in 1978, and Doyon, Ltd. panned Fortyfive Pup upstream of the placer mining in 1982 (WGM Inc., 1998 [DLR 98-10]). Placer mining on Fortyfive Pup is reported for most years from 1986 to 1996. Ventures Resource Corp. staked claims in 2000 over an area that includes Fortyfive Pup. The panned-concentrate and stream-sediment samples from several creeks in the vicinity, including Fortyfive Pup, are strongly anomalous in gold (Szumigala and others, 2001).
Workings: Pay gravel was found on Fortyfive Pup in 1910 (Ellsworth and Parker, 1911). In 1912, one man worked on Fortyfive Pup for the entire season and had very good success (Ellsworth and Davenport, 1913). In 1936, a prospector claimed to have found 5 miles of dredging ground on Fortyfive Pup and 2 additional miles on Buckskin Creek below the mouth of Fortyfive Pup (Mertie, 1938). Fortyfive Pup was mined almost continuously from the early 1960's to at least 1977 (Eberlein and others, 1977). WGM Inc. conducted a panned heavy-mineral concentrate reconnaissance sampling of streams draining Mount Warbelow in 1978, and Doyon, Ltd. panned Fortyfive Pup upstream of the placer mining in 1982 (WGM Inc., 1998 [DLR 98-10]). Placer mining on Fortyfive Pup is reported for most years from 1986 to 1996. Ventures Resource Corp. staked claims in 2000 over an area that includes Fortyfive Pup. The panned-concentrate and stream-sediment samples from several creeks, including Fortyfive Pup, are strongly anomalous in gold (Szumigala and others 2001).
Age: Quaternary.
Commodities (Major) - Au, W; (Minor) - Sn
Development Status: Yes; small
Deposit Model: Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).
Mineral List
3 entries listed. 3 valid minerals.
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References
Bundtzen, T.K., Green, C.B., Deagen, J.R., and Daniels, C.L., 1987, Alaska's mineral industry, 1986: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 40, 68 p. Bundtzen, T.K., Green, C.B., Peterson, R.J., and Seward, A.F., 1988, Alaska's mineral industry, 1987: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 41, 69 p. Bundtzen, T.K., Swainbank, R.C., Deagen, J.R., Moore, J.L., 1990, Alaska's Mineral Industry 1989: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Special Report 44, 100 p. Bundtzen, T.K., Swainbank, R.C., Wood, J.E., Clough, A.H., 1991 (1992), Alaska's Mineral Industry 1991: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Special Report 46, 89 p. Burleigh, R.E., and Lear, K.G., 1994, Compilation of data for Phase I of the mineral resource evaluation of the Bureau of Land Management Black River and Fortymile subunits: U.S. Bureau of Mines Open-File Report 48-94, 116 p. Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Eagle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-393, 1:250,000 scale, 1 sheet. Cobb, E.H., 1973, Placer deposits of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1374, 213 p. Cobb, E.H., 1977, Summary of references to mineral occurrences in the Eagle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-845, 122 p. Eberlein, G.D., Chapman, R.M., Foster, H.L., and Gassaway, J.S., 1977, Map and table describing known metalliferous and selected nonmetalliferous mineral deposits in central Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 77-168-D, 132 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:1,000,000. Ellsworth, C.E., and Davenport, R.W., 1913, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 542-F, p. 203-222. Ellsworth, C.E., and Parker, G.L., 1911, Placer mining in the Yukon-Tanana region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 480-F, p. 173-217. Foster, H.L., 1969, Reconnaissance geology of the Eagle A-1 and A-2 quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1271-G, p. G1-G30. Foster, H.L., 1976, Geologic map of the Eagle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series, Map 922, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Foster, H.L., and Clark, S.H.B., 1970, Geochemical and geologic reconnaissance of a part of the Fortymile area, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1312-M, p. M1-M29. Green, C.B., Bundtzen, T.K., Peterson, R.J., Seward, A.F., Deagan, J.R., and Burton, J.E., 1989, Alaska's mineral industry, 1988: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 43, 79 p. Joesting, H.R., 1943, Strategic mineral occurrences in interior Alaska, supplement to pamphlet no. 1: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Pamphlet 2, 26 p. Mertie, J.B., Jr., 1938, Gold placers of the Fortymile, Eagle, and Circle districts, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 897-C, p. 133-261. Porter, E.A., 1912, Placer mining in the Fortymile, Eagle, and Seventymile River districts: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 520-G, p. 211-218. Powers, J.B., 1935, Brief history of the Fortymile and Eagle Mining Districts to 1935: Alaska Territorial Department of Mines Mineral Report MR 60-2, 19 p. Prindle, L.M., 1909, The Fortymile quadrangle, Yukon-Tanana region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 375, 52 p. Smith, P.S., 1941, Fineness of gold from Alaska placers: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 910-C, p. 147-269. Smith, W.H., 1968, Geochemical investigation of a portion of the Fortymile district, Alaska: Alaska Division of Mines and Minerals Geochemical Report 16, 17 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T.K., Clough, A.H., Henning, M.W., and Charlie, K.M., 1996, Alaska's Mineral Industry 1995: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 50, 72 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T.K., Clough, A.H., Henning, M.W., and Hansen, E.W., 1994, Alaska's Mineral Industry 1993: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 48, 84 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T. K., Clough A.H., and Henning, M.W., 1997, Alaska's mineral industry 1996: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 51, 68 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T.K., and Wood, J.E., 1991, Alaska's mineral industry, 1990: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 45, 78 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T.K., Clough, A.H., Hansen, E.W., and Nelson, M.G., 1993, Alaska's mineral industry, 1992: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 47, 80 p. Swainbank, R.C., Bundtzen, T.K., Clough, A.H., Henning, M.W., and Hansen E.W., 1995, Alaska's mineral industry 1994: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 49, 77 p. Szumigala, D.J., Swainbank, R.C., Henning, M.W., and Pillifant, F.M., 2001, Alaska's mineral industry 2000: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Special Report 55, 66 p. Thorne, R.L., Muir, N.M., Erickson, A.W., Thomas, B. I., Hedie, H. E., and Wright, W. S., 1948, Tungsten deposits of Alaska: U.S. Bureau of Mines Report of Investigation 4174, 51 p. WGM Inc., 1998, Veta property, 1997 annual report, volume 1: Doyon, Ltd. Report 98-10, 227 p. (Report held by Doyon, Ltd., Fairbanks, Alaska).
