Sierra Buttes Mine (Sierra City Mine; Bigelow Mine; Buttes Union Mine; Ariel Independence Mine; Ariel vein; Whiskey vein; Smith vein), Sierra City, Sierra City Mining District, Sierra County, California, USAi
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
39° 34' 31'' North , 120° 38' 35'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Sierra City | 221 (2011) | 1.3km |
| Downieville | 282 (2011) | 15.8km |
| Whitehawk | 113 (2011) | 18.0km |
| Valley Ranch | 109 (2011) | 19.2km |
| Calpine | 205 (2011) | 20.1km |
Mindat Locality ID:
93597
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:93597:6
GUID (UUID V4):
c72ca9e4-7898-47ff-9c2e-1e55ff98368d
A former lode Au-Ag-Cu-Pb occurrence/mine located in secs. 6, 7, 19, 20, 28 & 29, T20N, R12E, MDM, 1.4 km (0.9 mile) NW of Sierra City proper, on the S slope of Sierra Buttes, near the Hurd's Ranch. MRDS database accuracy for this location is not stated. The original claim was 11,000 by 600 feet in area.
Mineralization is a vein deposit with ore shoots (Mineral occurrence model information: Model code: 273; USGS model code: 36a; Deposit model name: Low-sulfide Au-quartz vein; Mark3 model number: 27) hosted in rhyolite, porphyry, greenstone, and serpentinite. The ore body strikes E and dips 41N at a thickness of 6.1 meters. The veins are 6 to 20 feet thick. The Ariel vein is the main vein and strikes N51W to N80E and dips 45-54N. It branches into a number of stringers on the 9th. level. The Whiskey vein approaches but doesn't intersect the Ariel. The footwall is greenstone & serpentine and the hanging wall is quartz porphyry. A third vein, the Smith vein, was also prospected. Promising ore occurs on the 5th. & 6th. levels in a series of staggered lenses. There are 4 pay shoots including the Mammoth shoot at 300 feet wide and 15 to 20 feet thick. Local rocks include Paleozoic marine rocks, undivided, unit 4 (Western Sierra Nevada).
Workings include surface and underground openings with an overall depth of 701.04 meters, overall length of 3,218.6 meters and an overall width of 609.6 meters. They are comprised of a shaft and 9 adits with No. 6 adit at 350 feet and No. 8 at 900 feet. There are 12,000 feet of workings on the No. 9 level. Stopes were mined between levels 7 & 8.
Production data are found in: McCulloch etal (1964), and MacBoyle (1920).
production information: Production in 1914 was from the 6th level. Total production was estimated by Logan at $16,000,000 to $17,000,000 (period values), making this mine the largest single producer in the county.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Ferrimolybdite Formula: Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O Description: Occurs in Cu ores. |
| ⓘ Gold Formula: Au |
| ⓘ Marcasite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Molybdenite Formula: MoS2 Description: Occurs in Cu ore. References: |
| ⓘ Molybdite Formula: MoO3 Description: Occurs in Cu ore. References: |
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Gold | 1.AA.05 | Au |
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
| ⓘ | Molybdenite | 2.EA.30 | MoS2 |
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| ⓘ | Marcasite | 2.EB.10a | FeS2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| ⓘ | Molybdite | 4.E0.10 | MoO3 |
| Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates | |||
| ⓘ | Ferrimolybdite | 7.GB.30 | Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| H | Hydrogen | |
|---|---|---|
| H | ⓘ Ferrimolybdite | Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O |
| O | Oxygen | |
| O | ⓘ Ferrimolybdite | Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O |
| O | ⓘ Molybdite | MoO3 |
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| S | Sulfur | |
| S | ⓘ Marcasite | FeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Molybdenite | MoS2 |
| S | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Fe | Iron | |
| Fe | ⓘ Ferrimolybdite | Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O |
| Fe | ⓘ Marcasite | FeS2 |
| Fe | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Mo | Molybdenum | |
| Mo | ⓘ Ferrimolybdite | Fe2(MoO4)3 · nH2O |
| Mo | ⓘ Molybdenite | MoS2 |
| Mo | ⓘ Molybdite | MoO3 |
| Au | Gold | |
| Au | ⓘ Gold | Au |
Other Databases
| Link to USGS MRDS: | 10106504 |
|---|
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References
