Grants Mining Districts of the Western United States: Volume 2

By Jerry Grant

This book provides information on where gold, and silver were mined in the Western United States. The book provides various map references locating the mineral sources, the amount that was mined from each district, what minerals are associated with that district and any history on that district.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 27, 2020
• ISBN: 9781664149021

Jerry Grant

Jerry Grant was born and raised in Kansas, served with the 5th Marine Regiment in Vietnam in 1968 -1969,was a graduate of Kansas State Polytecnic in Salina, Kansas in Electronics, worked for AT&T/SBC for close to 30 years as an Outside Plant Engineer. Jerry has been married for over 50 years to his wife Janet and has 2 son's Jason and Aaron. Jerry presently resides in Tecumseh, Kansas enjoying gardening, attending mineral shows, and researching mining history.

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Copyright © 2021 by Jerry Grant.

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Rev. date: 12/22/2020

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CONTENTS

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS of IDAHO

GOLD-MINING DISTRICTS IN MONTANA

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS OF NEVADA

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS OF NEW MEXICO

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS OF OREGON

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS OF SOUTH DAKOTA

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS OF UTAH

WASHINGTON

WYOMING

This book occurred because I have been interested in mining and rocks since I was a young boy, so when I had more free time in my latter years of life, I began studying the available information on the subject of mining and found that there wasn’t a main source for general information on gold and silver. If you were an amateur and interested in these things, it was confusing as where to go to find them. For gold, the best source was a USGS book—Principal Gold Producing Districts of the United States (Professional Paper 610) by A. H. Koschmann and M. H. Bergendahl printed in 1968—but this only covered the major gold districts. And as for silver, I never could find a good single source. The same shortage of information occurred for an amateur looking for information on the mining laws, assaying, the design of the different mining tools and how they work, mine design, how and where the mines were recorded. Due to my frustration about the shortage of information, this is my attempt at getting a single source for just some of these topics.

Some things that you really, really need to know: First, this book is not perfect. There are many, many, numerous errors and inadvertent omissions due to the large volume of information that was superficially looked at and the existing information either being incorrect or duplicated in several districts where there is not a clear picture as to what was right. The information in this book was what I came across in printed matter, which means there is a lot of information still out there that I didn’t know about. In addition, all the money figures on the metals were from the period of that time. This book is just an attempt to get the very basic and most general information on a mining district out to the public so a beginning miner/hobbyist can get to a good starting point. From there, that person can then delve into more detail on the particular items, districts, or mines of interest to them. Note: There are numerous mines that are not in mining districts, and this book does not attempt to cover them at this time. The assumption I made was that the better areas would be covered by mining districts and would also have better documentation, and I have only so much time left in my life.

If the information was available and I had access to it, the mapping conventions for this book were as follows: first the mining districtʹs name with any other names that the district has been called or subdistricts; next longitude and latitude with elevation; then after that comes the township, range, section information; followed by the USGS topo quadrantʹs name on the 1:24,000 scale map; last comes the DeLorme map information with page reference.

If more information is wanted on mines in a district, the very best source on the internet is located at www.mindat.org, which lists quite a few of the individual mines in each district (BEST AND EXCELLENT SOURCE, CAN’T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE DEDICATED INDIVIDUALS WHO KEEP THIS SITE UP). Another point that needs to be clarified is that when the book says placer site, that could either be placer where you pan for the mineral or where they panned for the mineral, then set up a mine after that.

So having said all that, here is the rest of the story. Enjoy! But remember, take everything in this book with a grain of salt as there are many errors, so do your own research.

One last bit of advice: Remember what the little boy said, that when you see a big pile of manure, there could be a pony in it, so keep digging whether it be in this book or in the ground.

MAP%209.jpg

IDAHO

USGS B507 P 158-159 in 1912 Plate 7

MAP%2010.jpg

IDAHO

USGS PP 610 P122 in 1968 Fig 12

GOLD MINING DISTRICTS of IDAHO

Ada County: 1) Black Hornet

Bingham County: 2) Snake River Placers

Blaine County: 3) Camas 4) Warm Springs

Boise County: 5) Bosie Basin 6) Pioneerville 7) Quartzburg

Bonneville County: 8) Mount Pisgah

Camas County: 9) Big and Little Smokey—Rosetta. Cassia, Jerome, and Minidoka Counties: 10) Snake River Placers

Clearwater County: 11) Pierce

Custer County: 12) Alder Creek 13) Loon Creek 14) Yankee Fork

Elmore County: 15) Atlanta 16) Featherville 17) Neal 18) Pine Grove 19) Rocky Bar

Gem County: 20) Westview

Idaho County: 21) Buffalo Hump 22) Elk City 23) Dixie 24) French Creek—Florence 25) Orogrande 26) Simpson-Camp Howard-Riggins 27) Tenmile 28) Warren-Marshall

Latch County: 29) Hoodoo

Lemhi County: 30) Blackbird 31) Carmen Creek-Eldorado-Pratt

Creek-Sandy Creek 32) Gibbsonville 33) Mackinaw 34) Mineral Hill and Indian Creek 35) Kirtley Creek 36) Texas 37) Yellow Jacket

Owyhee County: 38) Silver City

Power County: 39) Snake River Placers

Shoshone County: 40) Coeur d’Alene region

Valley County: 41) Thunder Mountain 42) Yellow Pine

IDAHO

Gold placers were discovered in Idaho in 1852 along the Pend Oreille River, and some considered the placer discovery at Pierce City in 1860 as the earliest discovery of consequence in the state. Other placers were discovered in Elk City, Orofino, and along the Salmon River in 1860 and 1861, and a year later, discoveries were made at Florence, Warren, and Boise Basin. Placers were the major source of gold in Idaho before 1900; however, most of them were exhausted after the period of feverish exploitation from 1860 to 1870. Estimates are that the value of placer gold produced to 1864 was about $20 million (about 1,000,000 ounces). With a slight decline of placer mining after 1870, lode deposits, which had been known and worked on a small scale since 1861, became more important, though placering was rejuvenated in l897 by cheaper dredging operations, and it continued to furnish most of the gold. After a lull in mining from 1870 to 1880, the industry revived, but after 1900, gold declined in importance among the mineral commodities mined in Idaho. From 1863 to 1965, Idaho produced 8,322,930 ounces of gold. If the 1 million ounces that was produced before 1864 is added to this amount, the total gold production was about 9,300,000 ounces.

The lode gold deposits of Idaho are related to the huge Idaho batholith, a mass of granitic intrusive rocks that occupy much of the central part of the state. Most of the deposits are near the contact of the batholith, either in the granitic rocks or in intruded rocks, which consist of sedimentary, metasedimentary, and volcanic rocks. It is almost impossible to ascertain accurately the gold production of individual counties in Idaho. Much of Idaho’s gold was produced before 1864, when the area became a territory and was politically subdivided. Counties were formed gradually, and many of the younger counties were formed from parts of older ones; consequently, some mining districts were originally in one county but later in another, and part of their production was reported by both counties. Further complicating the issue is the lack of any county production data before 1880, except for Boise and Idaho Counties. Total recorded production for all counties accordingly is less than that for the state.

ADA COUNTY

From 1880 to 1942, Ada County produced 21,312 ounces of gold, with placers accounting for 5,201 ounces. The Boise Basin shipped more than $100,000,000 worth of placer gold as of 1905 (Ref: The State of Idaho 1905, p. 116).

BLACK HORNET DISTRICT (Shaw Mountain, Shaw)—43°34ʹ59ʺN, 116°02ʹ51ʺW, Elev 4886ʹ; Boise South Quad, Boise North Quad, Cloverdale Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver district is located on the eastern side of the Boise Ridge, 8 miles southwest of Boise, in the northeast corner of the county 10 miles east of Boise, or northeast of Riverland East. Lode mines in this district probably were developed in 1862; at the time, discoveries were being made in the Boise Basin, but the earliest record of production was in 1895–96, when gold ore valued at $24,000 was shipped from the district. Small amounts of gold were produced annually through 1955, but during 1942–59, the output was only 119 ounces. Some mines of the district were the Adelmann, Black Hornet, Golden Rule, Gray Eagle, Ironsides, June, McIntyre, Montana, Ophir, Queen, Rising Sun, Three Links, and Viola. Total recorded gold production from 1880 through 1959 was 21,431 ounces.

The geology of the district is country rock consisting of granite of the Idaho batholith, which is cut locally by granite porphyry dikes. The ore deposits are gold-bearing quartz veins that contain variable amounts of pyrite, arsenopyrite, sphalerite, and galena. The granite adjacent to the veins has been sericitized.

BOISE DISTRICT (McIntyre, Shaw Mountain)—43°31ʹ58ʺN, 116°01ʹ55ʺW, Elev. 3135ʹ; Lucky Peak Quad, Robie Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver district is located 3 miles east and northeast of Boise. Some mines of the district were the Big Giant, Blizzard, and Tornado. A placer that was mentioned was located on Dry Creek, a tributary of the Boise River north of Boise.

CURLEW DISTRICT—See Montana for district information.

DEER CREEK DISTRICT (Really in Elmore County)—43°36ʹ13ʺN, 115°55ʹ22ʺW, Elev 3422ʹ; Dunnigan Creek Quad, Arrowrock Dam Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold district is located 15 miles east of Boise. One of the mines is the Blue Ledge.

HIGHLAND DISTRICT (Boise River) (Really in Elmore County)—43°34ʹ14ʺN, 116°01ʹ52ʺW, Elev 3789ʹ; Arrowrock Dam Quad, Mayfield Quad, Grape Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold district is located in the Highland Valley east of Boise and north of Lucky Peak State Park. Placers associated with this district were the Pick and Shovel Placers, Pinto Placers, Red Rock Placer in the Boise River, Sheep Gulch Placers, and Stout Placers.

ROUGH MOUNTAIN DISTRICT (Really in Elmore County, not Ada County)—42°44ʹ45ʺN, 116°22ʹ33ʺW, Elev 6358ʹ; Rough Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 24

Probably located around Rough Mountain, which is west-southwest of Bruneau.

SNAKE RIVER PLACER DISTRICT (Really in Elmore County)—42°59ʹ56ʺN, 116°03ʹ48ʺW, Elev. 2516ʹ; Grand View Quad, Vinson Wash Quad, Jackass Butte Quad; DeLorme p. 25

The gold placer district is located on the Snake River near Grand View (In Elmore County). The Gold Flour Placers (main), Hot Shot Placers, and Osborne Placers located near Grand View were with this district (Ref: Minerals Yearbook p. 323 in 1940, Idaho Facts and Statistics by James L. Onderdonk p. 39–41 in 1885).

ADAMS COUNTY

From 1911 to 1942, Adams County produced 8,363 ounces of gold with placers accounting for 239 ounces.

BLACK LAKE DISTRICT (Mountain View, Rapid River)—45°11ʹ31ʺN, 116°32ʹ54ʺW, Elev. 6946ʹ; Pollock Quad, Heavenʹs Gate Quad, Kessler Creek Quad; Purgatory Saddle Quad; DeLorme p. 50

The gold district is located in the drainage area of the Rapid River on the east slope of the Seven Devils Range, west and southwest of Pinehurst, straight west of Pollock Mountain, or 50 miles north of Council and Council Mountain. The Mountain View part of the district is located around Carbonate Hill.

CUDDY MOUNTAIN DISTRICT—See Washington Co.

HORNET CREEK DISTRICT (Galena)—44°46ʹ55ʺN, 116°30ʹ20ʺW, Elev. 3141ʹ; Peck Mountain Quad, Weasel Gulch Quad; DeLorme p. 42

The copper-lead-gold-silver district is located near the crest of the Cuddy Mountains, 212 miles northwest of Council, or 22 miles from Pacific, Idaho. Placers were located around Placer Basin, which was near Council.

MEADOWS DISTRICT—44°56ʹ11ʺN, 116°10ʹ12ʺW, Elev. 3999ʹ; Meadows Quad, Brundage Mountain Quad, Granite Lake Quad, New Meadows; DeLorme p. 51, 43

The gold placer-corundum district is located 4 miles east and northeast of Meadow on Goose Creek, west and northwest of Payette Lake, or 16 miles northeast of Evergreen. The gold placers located at Rock Flat also have a lot of uncommon minerals associated with this district (Per The Preliminary Report on the Mining Districts of Idaho p. 51 in 1919).

ROCK FLAT DISTRICT (Thorn Creek)—44°57ʹ34ʺN, 116°10ʹ20ʺW, Elev. 5036ʹ; Meadows Quad, McCall Quad; DeLorme p. 43

The gold-silver district is located on Thorn Creek, which is east of Meadows. Placers were the Victory Placers.

SEVEN DEVILS DISTRICT (Placer Basin)—45°06ʹ26ʺN, 116°39ʹ40ʺW, Elev. 5434ʹ; Cuprum Quad, Purgatory Saddle Quad, White Monument Quad; DeLorme p. 50

The copper-gold-silver district discovered in 1862 by Levi Allen discovered copper ore near Kinney Point is located on the south end of the Seven Devils Range north-northeast of Cuprum, southwest of Monument Peak, east of Horse Mountain, 45 miles north of Council, or 15 miles east of Homestead, Oregon. This is mainly a copper district with gold and silver being a by-product. From 1894 to 1941, some $1,000,000 in copper was produced. Some mines of the district were the Black Lake, Crackerjack located near Cuprum, Frenchys, Great Eastern, Idaho Copper, Idaho Gold Coin, Helena, John D, Maid of Erin, Peacock, Placer Basin, Red Ledge, and Summit. Another area mentioned with this district was an area at the north end of the district called Deep Creek, a deep canyon about 2 miles from the Snake River where gold-copper has occurred. Placers were associated with this district. Due to it being largely inaccessible, transportation is the biggest handicap for this district (Ref: Mining Geology of the Seven Devils Region [Pamphlet 97 in 1954).

ALTURAS COUNTY—See Elmore County for main information.

ATLANTA DISTRICT (Yuba) (In Elmore County, not Alturas County)—

ROCKY BAR DISTRICT (In Elmore County, not Alturas County)—43°41ʹ19ʺN, 115°17ʹ22ʺW, Elev. 5536ʹ; Rocky Bar Quad; DeLorme p. 36

The gold district discovered in 1863 is located around the camp of Rocky Bar, which is on a tributary of the South Boise River on Bear Creek, which is in the western part of Alturas County and 90 miles northeast of Boise City. Some mines of the district were the Ada Elmore ($1,000,000), Bonaparte, Confederate Star, Elmore, Eureka, Idaho (main), Pittsburg, Ophir located on Elk Creek, Vishnu, and Wide West (Ref: Statistics of Mines and Mining in the States and Territories West of the Rocky Mountains p. 247 in 1870; Historical Perspective of the Mineral Production of Idaho, Hailey Quadrangle p. 16

[B 2064 T in 2001]).

RED WARRIOR DISTRICT (In Elmore County, not Alturas County)—43°41ʹ21ʺN, 115°18ʹ32ʺW, Elev. 5678ʹ; Rocky Bar Quad; DeLorme p. 36

The gold district is located 2 miles west of Rocky Bar. Some mines of the district were the Moores, Victory, and Wide West (Ref: Statistics of Mines and Mining in the States and Territories West of the Rocky Mountains p. 247 in 1870).

BANNOCK COUNTY

From 1895 to 1941, Bannock County produced 4,200 ounces of gold probably all from placers.

FORT HALL DISTRICT (Pocatello, Portneuf)—42°48ʹ08ʺN, 112°23ʹ27ʺW, Elev. 4782ʹ; Pocatello South Quad, Bonneville Peak Quad, South Putnam Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 30

The copper-lead-silver-gold district is located 9 miles east of Pocatello on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, or 1 1/2 miles west of Portneuf, which is southeast of Pocatello. Some mines of the district were the Apollo; Fort Hall (main) located 6 miles south of Pocatello; Hovey located 3 miles southeast of Pocatello; Lost Horse located on Pocatello Creek, which is 2 miles east of the city; the Moonlight Group located at the head of Rabbit Creek, which is 9 miles east of Pocatello; Papoose; Old Mine Workings; and Recovery. Gold placers are along the floodplains of the Snake River. A gold placer was the Fort Hall Bottoms Placer located near the Springfield area.

SODA SPRINGS DISTRICT (Really in Caribou County)—42°39ʹ17ʺN, 111°35ʹ40ʺW, Elev. 5870ʹ; Soda Springs Quad, Alexander Quad; DeLorme p. 23

The district is located near Soda Springs. Sulfur is with this district. Sulphur Peak is southeast of Soda Springs with Diamond Gulch and Fossil Canyon being in this vicinity.

BEAR LAKE COUNTY

BEAR LAKE DISTRICT—42°19ʹ03ʺN, 111°29ʹ40ʺW, Elev. 6597ʹ; Ovid Quad, Midnight Mountain Quad, Paris Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 23

The copper-lead-gold-silver district is located 4 miles west of Montpelier in the Bear River Range. Some mines of the district were the Blackstone, Humming Bird located near Paris, Sunset, and Tiptop.

ST. CHARLES DISTRICT (Bloomington)—42°06ʹ32ʺN, 111°23ʹ12ʺW, Elev. 6045ʹ; St. Charles Quad, Paris Quad; DeLorme p. 23

The lead-silver-copper district is located around the camp of St. Charles, 5 miles south of Paris, and around Paris Peak and Bloomington Creek.

BENEWAH COUNTY

From 1915 to 1942, Benewah County produced 1,014 ounces of gold.

CAMAS COVE DISTRICT (Tyson Creek)—47°06ʹ35ʺN, 116°26ʹ33ʺW, Elev. 2800ʹ; Emida Quad, Fernwood Quad; DeLorme p. 58

The gold-silver district is located along Tyson Creek, a tributary of the St. Maries River in the southeastern corner of the county, 3 miles southwest of Fernwood, south of Santa, west of Green Mountain, northeast of Moscow. Some mines of the district were the White Elephant. The gold placers are from a vein that was considered as having too low a value to be worked. One of the placers was the Tyson Placers.

GRASS MOUNTAIN DISTRICT—

ST. JOE DISTRICT (Round Top)—47°24ʹ45ʺN, 116°29ʹ51ʺW, Elev. 4885ʹ; St. Joe Baldy Quad, St. Maries Quad; DeLorme p. 60

The silver-lead-copper-gold district is located around the camp of St. Joe in the northeast part of the county. A mine was the Rainbow. Placers were with this district.

BINGHAM COUNTY

43°11ʹ56ʺN, 112°21ʹ11ʺW, Elev 4492ʹ; Blackfoot Quad, Moreland Quad, Firth Quad; DeLorme p. 30

Gold has been mined from placers at several localities along the Snake River in Bingham County. It was credited that the county had produced a total of 24,242 ounces of gold from 1885 to 1942 consisting of 1,848 ounces for placers, all presumably from the Snake River Placers. These deposits were not worked from the mid-30s through 1959. Another placer was the Gold Point and Eagle Bend Placer located in the Blackfoot area.

BLAINE COUNTY

Prospectors, drawn to central Idaho by the rich gold strikes in the Boise Basin in 1862, went from there into what is now Blaine County. Silver-lead deposits were found in the Wood River region in 1864, but these were ignored for a few years because the chief interest was in gold. Gold deposits in the Camas District southwest of Hailey were developed in 1879. By 1880, the Wood River silver-lead deposits were worked, and gold was yielded as a by-product. A decline in mining in the county began in the early 1900s and, except for a few brief revivals, continued until the early 1940s, when a period of high productivity of base metal ores with gold as a by-product commenced. Mining in the county slowly declined from the late 1940s through 1959. Production of gold from 1874 through 1942 was 176,262 ounces; total gold production from 1874 through 1959 was 212,638 ounces, with placers being 492 ounces.

ALTURAS DISTRICT—43°53ʹ32ʺN 114°54ʹ09ʺW, Elev. 7280ʹ; Alturas Lake Quad, Frenchman Creek Quad, Marshall Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 36

The silver-gold-lead district is located south-southwest of Alturas Lake around Beaver Creek, Clear Creek, and Johnson Creek where placer mining was done in the extreme northwest part of the county, or southwest of Obsidian. Some mines of the district were the Atlanta, Beaver-Bidwell, Columbia, Lone Jack, Lucky Boy (high-grade silver), Pilgrim ($300,000), Pride of the West, Scotia (650 ounces silver assay), Silver King (major—$700,000), and Sunbeam (Geology and Ore Deposits of the Alturas Quadrangle P 21, 33 in 1922).

ANTELOPE DISTRICT (Mostly in Butte County)—43°49ʹ55ʺN, 114°51ʹ12ʺW, Elev. 8294ʹ; Grouse Quad, Miller Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 38

The silver-lead district discovered in 1890 is located on Leadbelt Creek, a tributary of Antelope Creek, which is located southwest of Sawmill Canyon, 6 miles south-southeast of the camp of Grouse, west of Arco, or 17 miles southwest of Darlington. A mine of the district was the Antelope.

CAMAS DISTRICT (Part could be in Camas County?)—43°24ʹ37ʺN, 114°28ʹ41ʺW, Elev. 6098ʹ; T1N, R16E-17E; Hailey Quad, Richardson Summit Quad, Bellevue Quad; DeLorme p. 27, 37

The gold-silver-lead-zinc district discovered in 1865 is located 20 miles southwest of Hailey in the west central part of Blaine County, north of Moonstone Mountain, north of Camas Creek branch of the Old Salt Lake RR, around Camp Creek, Rock Creek (both tributaries of Camas Creek), at the headwaters of Grey Creek, or 5 miles southwest of Hailey. The camp of Doniphan is mentioned with this district. Gold was first discovered in this district in 1865 at the site of the Camas mine, but there was no production until 1879. Other discoveries were made in 1880, and the period from 1880 to the early 1900s was one of great prosperity in the district. The chief mine, the Camas 2, produced ore valued at $1,250,000 before it was closed in 1898. Most of the mines in the district remained closed, but the Camas 2 and the Hattie were reopened for short periods in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Some other mines of the district were the Black Cinder, Burning Moscow, Champlain, Fleming, Golden Star, Happy Day, Jumbo, Oriental, Red Rock, Rustler, Tip Top, Treasure Trove, and Winner. Production records are not complete, especially for the years of peak activity before 1900. Of the 175,770 ounces of gold produced in Blaine County from 1874 to 1900, it was estimated that more than half of it came from Camas District. A total of 7,019 ounces was produced from the Mineral Hill camp between 1902 and 1926; 7,161 ounces were produced from 1932 through 1959. Total gold production was about 102,000 ounces.

The district is underlain by granodiorite and quartz monzonite of the Idaho batholith of the mid-Cretaceous age, which is cut by many aplite and pegmatite dikes and a few lamprophyre dikes. Remnants of a once extensive cover of tertiary basalt that buried an erosion surface carved into the granitic rock are found at a few places. The gold occurs in quartz veins along gently dipping faults in the batholith. The veins are generally rich in silver and carries two to four times as much silver by weight as gold. Some contain moderately large amounts of sulfides. In the northeastern part of the district, near Hailey, the country rock consists of tightly folded Paleozoic sedimentary rocks—the Milligen (Mississippian and Devonian) and the Wood River (Pennsylvanian) formations. These have been faulted and intruded by several stocks, which are probably related to the Idaho batholith. Most of the deposits are in shear zones in the Mississippian sedimentary rocks, which largely are thin-bedded carbonaceous argillites. The ore minerals are argentiferous galena, sphalerite, and tetrahedrite, with minor pyrite in a gangue of altered and crushed country rock, siderite, and a little quartz.

ELKHORN DISTRICT (Ketchum)—43°38ʹ52ʺN, 114°15ʹ24ʺW, Elev. 6196ʹ; Sun Valley Quad, Griffin Butte Quad; DeLorme p. 37

The lead-silver district is located along the east fork of the Wood River and around Elkhorn Gulch, 4 miles southeast of Ketchum, north of the camp of Triumph, or northeast of the camp of Gimlet. Some mines of the district were the Elkhorn, North Star, Parker, Quaker City, and Triumph.

ERA DISTRICT (Really in Butte County)—43°37ʹ39ʺN, 113°29ʹ42ʺW, Elev. 6588ʹ; Nichols Reservoir Quad, Champagne Creek Quad; DeLorme p 38

The silver district discovered in 1885 is located around the camp of Era and around Era Creek in the eastern part of the county, 18 miles west of Arco. The district didn’t last long due to the ore being only shallow. Some mines of the district were the Ella, Hornsilver, Little Jim, Last Chance, Policy, Reliance, and St. Louis, which is located around Champagne Creek.

GALENA DISTRICT—43°50ʹ26ʺN, 114°37ʹ31ʺW, Elev 7318ʹ; Galena Quad, Easley Hot Springs Quad, Galena Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 37

The gold district is located around the camp of Galena, near Galena Peak and Silver Peak, along the Big Wood River, or 26 miles northwest of Ketchum. Some mines of the district were the Alturas, Eunice, Gladiator, Highland Chief, Red Cloud, Senate, and Western Home. The district has not been developed to any extent (per The Metal and Coal Mining Districts of Idaho, with Notes on the Nonmetallic Mineral Resources of the State p. 12 in 1941). A gold placer with this district was the Wood River Placer.

HAMILTON DISTRICT (Clyde) (Really in Butte County, not Custer County)—44°07ʹ41ʺN, 113°14ʹ56ʺW, Elev. 5987ʹ; Hawley Mountain Quad, Badger Creek Quad, Bell Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 39, 38

The lead-silver-copper-gold district discovered in the middle 1880s is located around the camp of Clyde on the Little Lost River on the western slope of the Lemhi Range, just south of Bell Mountain, just east of the Hawley Mountains, or 28 miles northeast of Mackay. Pyramid Peak is in the center of the district. Prospecting has been in Basinger Canyon (copper-gold), which is located northeast of Clyde, and Badger Creek Canyon (lead- silver) located 9 miles southeast of Clyde. A mine was the Copper Bluff.

LAVA CREEK DISTRICT (Martin) (Really in Butte County)—43°30ʹ42ʺN, 113°34ʹ10ʺW, Elev. 5935ʹ; Inferno Cone Quad, The Watchman Quad; DeLorme p. 38, 28

LITTLE SMOKEY DISTRICT (Really in Camas County)—43°39ʹ25ʺN, 114°51ʹ11ʺW, Elev. 6529ʹ; Dollarhide Mountain Quad, Sydney Butte Quad, Phillips Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 37, 36

The gold-silver-lead district is located around Little Smokey Creek, 28 miles west of Hailey, or on the west side of the Wood River near the west border of the county. Some mines of the district were the Carrie Leonard (major), Five Points, Liberal, and Rosetta. The district is also a placer district that has rich gold float (per Mining Districts p. 23 in 1904). The Snake River Placers are mentioned with this district.

MINERAL HILL DISTRICT (Hailey)—43°27ʹ33ʺN, 114°21ʹ17ʺW, Elev. 5478ʹ; Hailey Quad, Richardson Summit Quad, Bellvue Quad; DeLorme p. 37, 27

The silver-lead-gold-copper-zinc district discovered in 1864 is located southwest of the camp of Hailey, or west of Bellevue. Some mines for this district were the Bellevue, Bullion, Champlain, Camas, Clearwater, Croesus, Daisy, Eureka, Gold Bottom, Golden Arrow, Happy Day, Jumbo, Kelly, Liberty, McCoy, Monday, Ophir, Red Elephant, Tiptop, Treasure Vault, Walla Walla, War Dance, and Wolverine. The district produced $20,000,000 worth of minerals.

MULDOON DISTRICT (Little Wood River) (See Camas District also)—43°36ʹ31ʺN, 113°58ʹ19ʺW, Elev. 7291ʹ; Muldoon Quad, Little Wild River Reservoir Quad; Baugh Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 38, 37, 28

The lead-silver-copper district discovered in 1881 is located near the camp of Muldoon along the east fork of the Little Wood River, 30 miles southeast of Ketchum, or 24 miles east of Hailey. The post office of Tustin on the east fork of Muldoon Creek was near the Muldoon mine and 3 miles northeast of the camp of Muldoon. At the head of Lost River, 20 miles east of Ketchum, were many silver mines. Some mines of the district were the Drummund located at the head of Copper Gulch, Muldoon where $200,000 in lead-silver was produced from 1881 to 1886, and the Mutual.

ORNAMENT HILL DISTRICT (Willow Creek)—43o28ʹ07ʺN, 114°22ʹ36ʺW, Elev 5646ʹ; Bellevue Quad, Richardson Summit Quad, Beaver Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 27

The district is located along Willow Creek on the west side of Wood River, northwest of Moonstone Mountain, or west of Bellevue. Some mines of the district were the Bismark, Guy, Idaho Bell, Ohio North, Ohio South, Oriental, Ornament, Regulator, and Utah.

RED WARRIOR DISTRICT—43°38ʹ32ʺN 114°29ʹ44ʺW, Elev. 6630ʹ; Mahoney Butte Quad, Buttercup Mountain Quad, Griffin Butte Quad; DeLorme p. 37

The gold district is located along Red Warrior Creek off Warm Springs Creek Road, southwest of Ketchum. Mines were the Golden Eagle and Wide West.

ROSETTA DISTRICT—43°36ʹ13ʺN, 114°41ʹ53ʺW, Elev. 7519ʹ; Dollarhide Mountain Quad, Sydney Butte Quad; DeLorme p. 37

The gold-silver-lead-zinc district is located in the vicinity of Carrietown, just southwest of Dollarhide Mountain, or 30 miles southwest of Ketchum. The silver averaged 100 to 200 ounces to the ton. Some mines of the district were the Dollarhide, Isabella, King of the West, Margaret, Silver Crown, Silver Star, Stormy Galore, Sunday, and Tyranus. SAWTOOTH DISTRICT—43°52ʹ43ʺN, 114°52ʹ31ʺW, Elev 7391ʹ; Horton Peak Quad, Alturas Lake Quad, Atlanta West Quad; DeLorme p. 36, 37

The silver-gold-lead district discovered in 1879 is located southwest of Alturas Lake at the south end of Stanley Basin, southwest of Sawtooth City, or 40 miles northwest of Ketchum. High-grade ore was mentioned with this district. Some mines of the district were the Silver King, Old Grandad (Bonnie Bell), Section 8 Prospect, and Vienna. The district produced $1,000,000 mostly in silver.

SOLDIER DISTRICT—43°22ʹ12ʺN, 114°47ʹ32ʺW, Elev 5120ʹ; Fairfield Quad, Phillips Creek Quad, Boardman Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 26, 27

The gold placer district is located around Soldier, around Soldier Mountain, north of Fairfield, northwest of Selby, or 33 miles north-northwest of Gooding.

VIENNA DISTRICT—43°54ʹ24ʺN, 114°49ʹ01ʺW, Elev. 8707ʹ; T5N, R14E; Obsidian Quad, Washington Peak Quad, Alturas Lake Quad, DeLorme p. 36, 37

The silver-lead-gold district discovered in late 1879 is located around the camp of Vienna at the head of Smiley Creek, a branch of the Salmon River at the south end of Stanley Basin at the southeast end of the Sawtooth Range and around Vienna Creek, 6 miles south of Obsidian, or adjoining the Sawtooth District to the north. just southwest of Smiley Creek Airport and northwest of Norton Peak. Mentioned with this district were Mountain King and Upper Salmon River. Several gold placers were located on the Upper Salmon River. Some mines of the district were the Alturas, Balloon, Beaver Creek, Carlin Columbia, E and D, Emma, Even Chance, Frenchman, Galena Pass, Good Hope, Justice, Lucky Boy, Lucre, Mountain King (next to the Custer mine is the best mine of all of Idaho), Nellie, P and D, Pilgram, Rabbit Foot, Salmon River Prospect, Sawtooth City, Silver Empire, Silver King, Solace Group located on Smiley Creek, Vienna Group, Web Foot located on Smiley Creek, Wisconsin, and ten unnamed placer prospects. Up to 1914, the district produced $2,000,000 mostly in silver. Wire silver is indicated in a ledge at the head of Smiley Creek.

WARM SPRINGS DISTRICT (Warm Springs Creek, Bullion)—43°38ʹ42ʺN, 114°15ʹ37ʺW, Elev. 7018ʹ; Sun Valley Quad, Griffin Butte Quad, Hyndman Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 37

The silver-lead-gold-zinc-copper-iron district is located north, east, and west of Ketchum in the northern part of the county and goes almost to Bellevue. The district is predominantly a silver-lead district, with gold being produced as a by-product. Though the initial discoveries were made in 1864, the district was not developed until 1880. Production was high from 1880 to 1887, when many of the richer ore bodies were exhausted. Depletion of ore and a decrease in the price of silver forced closure of many of the mines. Activity in the district gradually decreased through the 1900s, although the Triumph mine, which was reopened in 1927 and which became the largest producer of base-metal ore in the district, continued to be productive until 1957, when the ore bodies were mined out and the mine was abandoned. Camps were Jacobs, Bullion, Deer Creek, Greenhorn, and Warm Springs Creek. Some other mines of the district were the Allen, Apollo Creek, Auburn, Bald Eagle, Baltimore, Bannock, Big Doe, Blue Kitten, Boulder Creek, Bullion, Catherina, Chloride, Cimarron Silver, C and P Silver, Champion, Comer, Daisy, Deer Creek, Elkhorn (major—$1,500,000), Eureka, High Grade, Homestake, Horseshoe, Idahoan, Independence, I O U, Jankow, Jay Gould, Jil, Jo Orla, Joe Anderson, June Day, Keno, Lake Creek, Leilani, Leroux Creek, Little Dorrit, Little Susie, Long Grade, Lucky Coin, Lucky G I, Mascot, Mayflower, Moonlight, Narrow Guage Numbers, New Hope, Newman Creek, Noon Day, North Star, Ontario located on Boyle Mountain, Oh Cash, Oswego, Pierce, Quaker City, Rogers, Silver Cord, Silver Mountain, Starlight located in Elkhorn Gulch, Sundown, Susan, Triumph, Valley Creek, Washington, West Fork, West Shore, White Minstril, three unnamed gold, and one unnamed silver claims. Placer prospects were the Placer Creek Placers and the Wood River Placer. Value of gold produced before 1902 is not known. From 1902 through 1926, the district produced 6,069 ounces of gold. From 1932 through 1959, a total of 70,570 ounces was produced; almost all production was from the Triumph mine. Total recorded gold production was 76,639 ounces. From 1880 to 1902, the district produced $3,000,000, then from 1903 to 1931, an additional $6,162,747 was produced.

Metasediments composing the Hyndman and East Fork Formations of Algonkian age are the oldest rocks in the district and are exposed in the mountainous areas in the eastern part. Overlying these is a thick series of Paleozoic sedimentary rocks consisting of the Phi Kappa Formation of the Ordovician age, the Trail Creek Formation of the Silurian age, the Milligen Formation of Devonian and Mississippian age, and the Wood River Formation of Pennsylvanian age. Numerous masses of plutonic rocks ranging in composition from granite through quartz monzonite to granodiorite cut the Paleozoic rocks. Tertiary and Quaternary andesite, basalt, and rhyolite lavas interbedded locally with tuffs cover large parts of the district. Pre-Tertiary rocks are complexly folded and faulted, and some of the faults offset Tertiary rocks. The important ore deposits are in Mississippian and Pennsylvanian sedimentary rocks and are of two general types: lodes in shear zones in sedimentary and granitic rocks, and contact metamorphic deposits in calcareous beds adjacent to intrusive bodies. The shear-zone deposits, from which most of the production came, contain argentiferous galena, sphalerite, tetrahedrite, pyrite, and variable amounts of gold in a gangue of crushed and altered country rock, siderite, and quartz. The contact metamorphic ore deposits are a skarn of garnet, epidote, diopside, augite, actinolite, and wollastonite through which is disseminated variable amounts of argentiferous galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite, magnetite, and pyrite.

WOOD RIVER DISTRICT (East Mountain Range)—43o49ʹ03ʺN, 114°35ʹ34ʺW, Elev. 5372ʹ; TIN, R17E; T2N, R17E; T2N, R18E; T2N, R19E; Hailey Quad, Bellevue Quad, Baugh Creek SW Quad, Seamans Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 27, 37

The silver-lead-gold-zinc-copper district discovered in 1880 when J. W. Moore found galena in waste of a badger hole. The district is located around the camps of Hailey and Bellevue in the Wood River Valley. The district is one of the major districts in the state. In the early days, the silver ran $100 to the ton. Indian Creek and Lake Creek are mentioned with this district. Some mines of the district were the Ajax; Argent located in Narrow Gague Gulch, a tributary of Deer Creek (1885–1896, 36,987 ounces silver—$160,000); Arizona; Barb located on Kelly Mountain; Bay State; Belmont; Big Camas; Big Mint; Black Hawk; Blumite; Boyle Mountain; Broadway; Bullion; Bullwhacker; Caledonia; Camas; Central; Chicago; Cinder; Climax located 2 miles southwest of Hailey; Clipper; Comet; Consolidated Virginia; Creosus located in Scorpion Gulch; Davitt (1883–1892—50,771 ounces silver); Democrat; Durango; Elkhorn (1884–1900—97,404 ounces silver; 3,200 ounces gold); Eureka; Garfield; Gold Star; Goose Egg; Grand Central; Henderson; Hero; Homestake; Idaho Consolidated; Idaho Democrat (1883–1893—221,522 ounces silver); Idahoan; Imperial; Independence (1884–1922—1,808,031 ounces silver; 3,580 ounces gold) located on Independence Creek, a tributary of Elkhorn Creek 4 miles east of Ketchum; Iris; Jay Gould; Jennie R. (186 ounces silver); Jolly Sailor; Keystone; Le Despencer; Lena; Little Giant; Lipman; Manhattan; Mascot; Mayflower located on a hill south of the camp of Bullion; Minnie Moore located 2 miles from the camp of Bellevue (6 miles below Hailey) (major, a/o 1904—$9,000,000; 1881–1886—999,205 ounces silver; 1902–1925—1,494,318 ounces silver); Monarch; Monday; Montana; Morman Girl; Mountain Vein; Narrow Gauge (1883–1903—117,963 ounces silver); Nay-aug (1884–1920—244,211 ounces silver); New Hope; New York; North Star (1883–1903—16,208 ounces gold, 128,332 ounces silver) located in North Star Gulch; November; Ophir; Overland (167 ounces silver, 7 ounces gold assay); Parker (1883–1888—300,235 ounces silver) located in Elkhorn Gulch; Pass located 1 1/2 miles northwest of Bullion; Paymaster; Penobscot located in the mouth of Galena Gulch; Progress; Quaker City; Queen; Queen of the Hills; Rattler; Red Cloud (major 1880–1902—$815,802 and from 1884 to 1918—506,083 ounces silver); Red Elephant (1882–1900—834,601 ounces silver); Rough and Ready; Rowley; Snow Fly; Star located in Star Gulch; Starlight; Success; Thanksgiving; Tip Top located a mile east of Doniphan; Triumph; Utah-Bellevue (67 ounces silver assay) located in Townsend Gulch—6 miles southwest of Bellevue; War Dance (1888–1903—88,501 ounces silver); War Eagle; West Egg; West Fork; Whale; Wilson; and Wolftone. From 1880 to 1887, the mines on the Mayflower Lode (Ophir, Bullion [1881–1908—485,182 ounces silver], Mayflower, Jay Gould [1882–1906—422,564 ounces silver and 4,785 ounces gold]) produced $2,745,203, with the Mayflower being the largest—$1,100,000 or 734,898 ounces silver). The Wood River Placers are with this district. Of Note: The four smelters on the Wood River located at the camps of Hailey, Bellevue, Ketchum, and Galena have produced 1,154,194 ounces of silver as of the end of 1881. As of 1903, some $20,000,000 had been produced from this district.

BOISE COUNTY

Placers were discovered in Boise County in 1862 about 25 miles northeast of Boise in Boise Basin, an area of about 300 square miles. The placer operations led to the discoveries of lodes at the heads of streams, and some of these lodes were mined as early as 1863. The lodes were never developed to sustain any extended yield; first, one district would be active for a few years, then another. Placers, on the other hand, had a less erratic history and remained highly productive through the 1890s. In the early 1900s, they worked by dredges and, some time later, by large-scale hydraulicking. The Boise Basin is divided into many mining districts. In this report, that part of the basin that includes the Idaho City, Moore Creek, Gambrinus, and Centerville camps is referred to as the Boise Basin District. The Boise Basin, one of the greatest calderas in the world, produced $250,000,000 in the two decades after discovery. The Pioneerville (Summit Flat, Grimes Pass) and Quartzburg (Gold Hill, Granite, Placerville) Districts are considered separately.

In general, bedrock in the mineralized parts of Boise County consists of quartz dioritic and quartz monzonitic facies of the Idaho batholith, which are cut by groups of porphyry dikes of Tertiary age. Certain areas are covered by Tertiary lake beds, by basalt lavas of the Columbia River Basalt of Eocene age, or by Quaternary alluvial deposits. Recorded production in the county began in 1863. Total gold production for the county from 1868 through 1942 was 2,917,679 ounces, with placers accounting for 318,285 ounces; about 95 percent of the total gold production came from the Boise Basin. (Per The Report of the Mining Districts of Idaho for the Year 1903 p. 24) The Boise Basin had placer production of $100,000,000 coming from an area 15 miles north to south and 13 miles east to west. The area equals any other area in the world for placer production.

ALPINE DISTRICT—DeLorme p. 35

The Alpine mine located near Banks is with this district.

BANNER DISTRICT—44°01ʹ05ʺN, 115°31ʹ57ʺW, Elev. 6168ʹ; T 8N, R8E; Lowman Quad, Bear River Quad, Placerville Quad, Pioneerville Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The silver-gold district is located 6 miles southeast of Lowman, or 25 miles northeast of Idaho City, or 76 miles northeast of Boise. Some mines of the district were the Banner (main) (1,000,000 ounces of silver), Bullion, Crown Point, Edna, Golden Gate, Hayfork located 10 1/2 miles from Idaho City, Idaho, Imperial, Panamint, Poorman, Silver Chief, Star of the West, Washoe, and Wolverine. At the Moore Summit, silver is also associated with this district. From 1882 to 1894, the district produced $2,000,000. Placer mining was at Gold Fork Creek and at Edna Creek.

BOISE BASIN DISTRICT (Gambrinus, Grimes Creek, Elkhorn, Centerville [Summit Flat], Idaho Basin)—43°54ʹ29ʺN, 115°44ʹ52ʺW, Elev. 4272ʹ; T7N, R5E; Idaho City Quad, Warm Springs Point Quad, Placerville Quad, Pioneerville Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver-copper-lead district, discovered August 2, 1862, is in the central and southern part of the Boise Basin, northeast of Boise, east of Highway 55, and mostly west of Highway 75 in the Boise National Forest, 6 miles northwest of Idaho City, and east-southeast of Garden Valley. The district is comprised of the Idaho City, Quartzburg, Centerville, Pioneerville (Summit Flat), Gambrinus, and Elkhorn mining districts (Ref: Lode Mining in the Quartzburg and Grimes Pass Porphyry Belt Boise Basin Idaho p. 84 in 1915, Gold in Idaho [Pamphlet No. 68] in 1946). In the spring of 1862, the Turner party of thirty-eight men left Auburn, Oregon, for this area. Not finding gold at Sinker Creek, Joseph Branstetter and seven others left that party and in turn met Captain George Grimes with his party of eight from Walla Walla, Washington. Grimes’s party of eight with Branstetter and three others of his party joined forces where they went over Grimes Pass to near the camp of Boston where they found the first gold in August of 1862. George Grimes, Joseph Branstetter, a Portuguese named Phillipi, another Portuguese named Antoine, John Reynolds, H. D. Fogus, Jacob Westtenfelten, Miller Mose Splann, and Grimes’s partner Wilson chased after an Indian that had taken a shot at Mr. Branstetter. Grimes was killed at that time, and the Indian got away. The first placer discoveries in Boise County were made in this area in the August of 1862 by Moses Splawn, who got the information from a Bannock Indian. Some camps with this district were Centerville, Boston located 3 miles below Centerville, Pioneerville (Pioneer City, Hogem), and Gambrinus. Most of the county’s gold production came from the rich placers during the first few years of mining. Estimated production from 1868 to 1896 from the Idaho City camp was valued at $44,651,800 (2,167,500 ounces). The district produced 129,038 ounces from 1939 through 1958; its total gold production of gold was about 2,300,000 ounces, mostly from placers ($50,000,000). Some mines of the district were the Ader located at Grimes Creek, Ashcroft, Black Bear, Black Eagle, Boise Gold ($300,000), Boulder, Buena Vista, Canyon Creek, Clark, Cleveland, Come Back (major), Diana, East Eureka, Edna, Elkhorn, Enterprise, Eureka, Fitzhugh, Forest King, Gambrinus (Surprise) ($263,000 as of 1865) located at the foot of Forest King Hill, Garrecht, Gentle Annie, Gold Dollar, Golden Age, Golden Dividend, Governor, Hartford, Hayfork, Hiatt (Saunders), Illinois ($225,000), James Hawley, Joe Branson located at Grimes Creek, Kempner, Last Chance, Lucky Boy, Mademoiselle, Mamie, Mammoth, Mayflower, McKinley, Merry Christmas, Mineral Hill Group, Missing Link, Missouri, Mona MacCarthy, Moriarty, Mountain Queen, Native Missourian, Newburg, Northern Light, Populist, Red Lode, Shine, Silver Bell, Silver Hill, Silver Star, Subrosa, Summit, Sunset Peak, Texas-Owyhee, Twin Sister, and Washington. Placers were the Elk Creek Placers, Fall Creek Placers, Gold Hill Placers, Grimes Creek Placers, Horse Shoe Placers, Lucky Boy Placers, placers near Centerville, and Moores Creek Placers. The Gambrinus part of the district this located on a ridge between Elk Creek and Moores Creek, 6 miles north-northeast of Idaho City. The Elkhorn part of the district is located on the upper Elk Creek (Ref: Geology and Ore Deposits of Boise Basin Idaho in 1947). The Boise Basin has produced $200,000,000 as of 1899 in placer gold and many more from lodes (Ref: The Mining American p. 59 in 1899 or Mining Reporter).

Most of the Boise Basin is underlain by a quartz monzonite facies of the Idaho batholith of middle Cretaceous age. In the Gambrinus area, many thin aplite dikes, dikes and stocks of diorite and granodiorite, and several lamprophyre dikes, all of early Tertiary age, cut the quartz monzonite. Near Idaho City and Centerville, patches of lake beds are interstratified with basalt lava and volcanic ash. This sequence is considered lower Miocene. Alluvial deposits of two ages, Pleistocene and Recent, cover much of the district. The younger deposits are more restricted to the present stream valleys, whereas the older deposits cover low ridges and form terraces over a considerably wider area. The younger gravels were the source of most of the placer gold. The lode deposits, which are mainly in the Centerville and Gambrinus area, are of early Tertiary age. They consist of fissure fillings in fracture zones in the quartz monzonite. The fissures were formed by reverse faults, in contrast with the fissures formed by horizontal movement, which characterize the lodes of Miocene age in the Pioneerville and Quartzburg Districts. The vein mineralogy is simple, consisting of quartz and small amounts of pyrite, arsenopyrite, sphalerite, tetrahedrite, chalcopyrite, galena, and stibnite. Gold occurs with quartz or with the sulfides.

COLD SPRINGS DISTRICT—44o12ʹ06ʹN, 116°07ʹ05ʺW, Elev. 4601ʹ; Banks Quad, Packer John Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The district is located north of Banks.

DEADWOOD DISTRICT—44°11ʹ07ʺN, 115°36ʹ04ʺW, Elev. 6152ʹ; Deadwood Reservoir Quad; DeLorme p. 35, 43

The gold placer district is located around the Deadwood River, Deadwood Ridge, north-northwest of Lowman, or 80 miles northeast of Boise.

DRY BUCK DISTRICT—44°07ʹ40ʺN, 116°08ʹ40ʺW, Elev. 5110ʹ; Dry Buck Valley Quad, Banks Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold district is located around Dry Buck Mountain, which is north and west of Banks.

EIGHT MILE CREEK DISTRICT—44°07ʹ28ʺN, 115°24ʹ39ʺW, Elev. 4377ʹ; Eightmile Mountain Quad, Miller Mountain East; DeLorme p. 36, 35

The gold district is located on Eight Mile Creek, northwest of Warm Springs, or northeast of Lowman. Mines include the Birthday Consolidated.

GARDEN VALLEY DISTRICT—44°05ʹ06ʺN, 115°57ʹ22ʺW, Elev. 4591ʹ; Garden Valley Quad, Grimes Pass Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold placer district is located around the camp of Garden Valley, or west-northwest of Grimes Pass. Placers were the Gold Dollar Placers and the Wash Creek Placers.

GOLD FORK DISTRICT (Roseberry)—43°59ʹ07ʺN, 115°36ʹ20ʺW, Elev. 5747ʹ; Pine Flat Quad, Sunset Mountain Quad, Big Owl Creek Quad, Lowman Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold placer district is located northeast of Pilot Peak, southwest of Lowman, or 41 miles southeast of Evergreen.

GRIMES PASS DISTRICT—44°01ʹ30ʺN, 115°48ʹ10ʺW, Elev. 4800ʹ; T8N, R5E; Grimes Pass Quad, Garden Valley Quad, Pine Flat Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver-copper-zinc district discovered in 1895 is located on Grimes Creek and 1/2 miles east of Grimes Pass, or 6 miles west of Placerville. Some mines of the district were the Ader, Baby, Ballinger, Blackbird, Blackjack, Bruser, Cedar, Coon Dog (high silver value) located on Grimes Creek, Diana located in Charlotte Gulch, Enterprise, Etta, Fourth of July, Golden Age ($200,000 as of 1924), Golden Chariot, Golden Cycle, Golden Dollar, Golden Eagle, Grandview, Gray Eagle, Grimes Pass, Homestake, Idaho, Independence, J. S. Prospects, Joe Branson, K. C., Klondike, Mammoth ($472,000 in the early days), Missouri (30,109 ounces silver) located at the head of Muddy Creek, Mitchell-Janot, Mohawk Morning Star, Night Hawk, Noble, Oro, Palos Verdes, Parker, Silver Gem, Slopers, Smuggler, Van Meter, and Voltaire. The Charlotte Gulch Placers, George Russel Placers, Grimes Creek Placers, and Lowman Placers are with this district (Ref: Lode Mining in the Quartzburg and Grimes Pass Porphyry Belt Boise Basin Idaho in 1915).

IDAHO CITY DISTRICT (Idaho Basin)—43°49ʹ18ʺN, 115°50ʹ33ʺW, Elev. 3940ʹ;

T 6N, R 5E; Idaho City Quad, DeLorme p. 35

The gold placer district is located around Idaho City (Bannock), which is 36 miles to the northeast of Boise. The district is one of the largest placers in the state and is located in the Boise Basin. The placers were in the gravel of the present streams and also in older streams higher up the slopes. Mentioned with this district were Hoodoo Gulch and Gold Hill. Some mines of the district were the Blaine located on Moore Creek, Chicago, Chickahominy, Cleveland, Daveda, Eureka, Garrecth, Hayfork, Hole Card, Humdinger, Illinois located around Illinois Gulch, Keystone, King Solomon located in the Illinois Creek area, Lucky Boy, Mattie located 3 miles northwest of Idaho City, New Deal, and Populist. Placers were the Elk Creek, Lost Cavalos Placers, Moore Creek Placers located in Idaho City (the Boston and Idaho Dredging Co. is mentioned with this location), Boise Basin Placers ($477,478 from 1900 to 1918) located 1 mile northeast of Idaho City, and Pine Hill Placers.

NEAL DISTRICT (Really in Ada County and Elmore County)—43°31ʹ43ʺN, 115°49ʹ29ʺW, Elev. 3907ʹ; T2-3N, R5E; Lucky Peak Quad, Boise South Quad; DeLorme p. 34, 35

The gold-silver district discovered in 1889 is located near the Arrowrock Dam, which is northwest of Mayfield, 15 miles southeast of Boise. Another description was south of the Boise River, east of Three Point Mountain, on the head of Wood Creek in Elmore County. Mentioned with this district are Wood Creek; Bender Creek; Three Point Mountain in Charcoal Ravine; Indian Creek, which is 5 1/2 miles southeast of Neal; and Black Creek, which is 4 miles southwest of Neal. Some mines of the district were the Alice, Clements located along Wood Creek, Corder, Daisy, Denver, Ella Hill, Globe, Golden Star, Hidden Treasure, Hidgen, High Five, Homestake, Mountain Queen, North Star located along Wood Creek, Sunshine, and Victor (Ref: The Mining Districts of the Idaho Basin and the Boise Ridge Idaho p. 699 in 1898).

NORTH FORK DISTRICT—43°53ʹ51ʺN, 115°38ʹ53ʺW, Elev. 7717ʹ; Sunset Mountain Quad, Big Owl Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The silver district is located around Sunset Mountain. Mines include the Packer John.

PAYETTE RIVER PLACER DISTRICT (Jacobs Gulch, south fork of the Payette River)—44°06ʹ21ʺN, 115°08ʹ40ʺW, Elev. 4858ʹ; Banks Quad, Dry Buck Valley Quad, Garden Valley Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold placer district is located along the Payette River, its south fork, and their tributaries, particularly in the vicinity of Banks, Garden Valley, and Loman.

PIONEERVILLE DISTRICT (Moore Creek, Summit Flat)—44°00ʹ10ʺN, 115°41ʹ57ʺW, Elev. 4948ʹ; T7N, R5E; Pioneerville Quad, Placerville Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver-lead district is located near Pioneerville in the northern part of the Boise Basin, south of Grimes Pass, 12 miles due north of Idaho City, and along Grimes Creek. This has been predominantly a lode mining district; its mining history is closely associated with that of Boise Basin. The Summit Flat part of the district is located at the headwaters of Elk Creek, Clear Creek, Moore Creek 12 miles north-northeast of Idaho City, between Summit Flat and Kempner 10 miles to the east, with lots of placers being along Bear River and Lost River. The district was most active before 1920. The Golden Age mine produced ore worth $200,000 between 1895 and 1920, and the Mammoth mine, $472,000 in the early days. Some other mines of the district were the Barry, Clear Creek, Comeback, Golden Cycle, Jessie, King, Lightfoot, Mammoth, Overlook, Peerless, Rock Creek, and Wilson. Most of this was in gold, although it included considerable silver and some lead. Only 3,340 ounces of gold was produced from 1939 through 1959. Total production for the district from 1895 through 1959 was about 25,000 ounces. This was also a gold placer district.

The Pioneerville District is at the north end of the porphyry belt. The country rock is quartz monzonite of the Idaho batholith, which is cut by a zone of northeast trending dikes of dacite porphyry, rhyolite, granophyre, granite porphyry, and diabase. These were intruded along preexisting shear zones in the quartz monzonite. The ore deposits are closely associated with the porphyry dikes and were emplaced in fissures that resulted from later movements along the old shears. The principal metallic minerals of the veins are pyrite, tetrahedrite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite, galena, and sphalerite. These occur in a gangue of sericitized dike rock and quartz monzonite, quartz lenses, and some calcite. Native gold occurs most abundantly in quartz or in or near the bismuth minerals galenobismutite, bismuthinite, and tetradymite. Some deposits, characterized by abundant miargyrite and pyrargyrite, are mined for silver alone. Electrum, containing equal amounts of silver and gold by weight, is the chief ore at the Comeback mine

QUARTZBURG DISTRICT (Gold Hill, Granite, Placerville)—43°56ʹ34ʺN, 116°00ʹ43ʺW, Elev. 5631ʹ; T7N, R4E; Placerville Quad, Harris Creek Summit Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver district, discovered December 1, 1862, is located near the town of Quartzburg, around the camp of Placerville, which was a gold placer location, and the camp of Granite, which was also a placer location located around the head of Granite Creek, east-northeast of Horseshoe Bend, or 17 miles north of Idaho City. Soon after the initial placer mining rush to the Boise Basin, lode mining began in the Quartzburg district mainly around Quartzburg and to the west. The lode mines have produced well over $8,000,000. The Gold Hill mine, discovered in 1863, was worked almost continuously until 1938 (up to 1881, the mine had produced $7,500,000). Other important producers were the Mountain Chief and Belshazzar mines. Some other mines of the district were the Blue Rock, Blum and Eken, Boise Basin, Buckskin, Carrol-Driscoll, Coin Bond, Daily, Ebenezer located 3 miles southwest of Quartzberg between the forks of Bear Gulch and Canon Creek, Eisler, Elmira, Gold Coin, Gold Hill (major—$7,500,000 as of 1924), Hartford, Hiatt, Idawa (Belshazzar) (major—$60,000 placer gold), Iowa, James Hawley, Last Chance ($55,000), Lost Cabin, Lucky Boy, Mammoth located on Summit Flat, Mary Jane, Mayflower located at the west fork of Granite Creek, Mineral Hill located at Ophir Gulch, Mountain Chief ($310,000 as of 1924), Pioneer, Quartzburg-Empire, Silver Hill (154 ounces assay silver) located on the ridge between Confederate Gulch and Granite Creek, Silver Star, and Washington located 6 miles above Idaho City. Placers were the Placerville Placers, Wolf Creek Placers located near Placerville, California Gulch Placers ($27,000), and the Fall Creek Placers ($444,000 from 1902 to 1911) located 2 miles southwest of Placerville. A total of $8 million (about 400,000 ounces) in gold came from this district; however, the district was virtually idle from 1940 through 1959. Production since 1932 must have been combined with production reported from other districts because this district does not appear in the annual volumes of Minerals Yearbook.

The Quartzburg district is at the southwest end of the porphyry belt that crosses the northern part of Boise Basin. The country rock is quartz monzonite of the Idaho batholith, which was cut by northeast-trending shear zones, which in turn were intruded by porphyry dikes during Miocene time. The gold lodes are fissure veins and small stockworks in or along the dikes and in adjacent quartz monzonite. The deposits are extensively oxidized, and most of the early production came from this easily treated ore, which had high gold content. The hypogene minerals are pyrite, galenobismutite, arsenopyrite, native gold, sphalerite, tetradyroite, pyrrhotite, stibnite, chalcopyrite, and either tetrahedrite or tennantite. Gangue consists primarily of altered host rock and quartz.

SHAW MOUNTAIN DISTRICT (See Black Hornet District, which is mainly in Ada County)—43°37ʹ36ʺN, 116°08ʹ06ʺW, Elev. 3705ʹ; Robie Creek Quad, Lucky Peak Quad, Dunnigan Creek Quad; DeLorme p. 34, 35

The district is located around Shaw Mountain, which is in Ada County and northeast of Boise along the county border with Boise County.

TWIN SPRINGS DISTRICT (Boise River)—43°38ʹ44ʺN, 115°44ʹ42ʺW, Elev. 3253ʹ; Twin Springs Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold placer district is located around Twin Springs, along the middle fork of the Boise River, along the Boise River in the vicinity of Arrowrock Dam, or 41 miles east of Boise. Some placers of the district were the Boise King Placers, Five Bars Placers, and Sunflower Placers.

WESTVIEW DISTRICT (Gem, Pearl, Rock Creek, Shafer Creek, South View, Willow Creek) (Also in Gem County)—43°54ʹ57ʺN, 116°12ʹ57ʺW, Elev. 2613ʹ; Horseshoe Bend Quad, Montour Quad; DeLorme p. 35

The gold-silver-lead district is located directly west and southwest of Horseshoe Bend, 20 miles west of Idaho City near the Canyon County line, 15 miles north of Eagle, or 25 miles from Boise. Some mines of the district were the Anticlinal, Apex, Atlanta, Ballentyne, Bobtail, Checkmate (major—$500,000), Claggett, Kentuck, Lambertine, Lincoln, Lucky Boy, Mammoth, Mint, Osborne, Sunnyside, and Topeka. Placers were the Payette River and placers along Willow Creek. Gold production from 1870 to 1896 was $80,000.

BONNER COUNTY

From 1907 to 1942, Bonner County produced 7,106 ounces of gold.

CLARK FORK DISTRICT (East Shore)—48°08ʹ33ʺN, 116°10ʹ28ʺW, Elev. 2125ʹ; Clark Fork Quad, Hope Quad, Trout Peak Quad, Trestle Peak Quad; DeLorme p. 62

The copper-gold-silver-lead district, discovered in 1888 but organized in 1913, is located around the camp of Clark Fork and on the east side of Lake Pend Oreille. Mentioned with this district were Howe Mountain, Goat Mountain, Antelope Peak, and Hope. Some mines of the district were the Auxer located at the head of Wellington Creek, Badgely, Blair and Collins, Bonner located on Trestle Creek, Campbell located near Denton, Carpie located near Cabinet, Clarinda, Copper Giant, Davis, Dougherty located near Lake Darling, Eagan, Elsie K., Fullgarth located on Lighting Creek, Goat Mountain, Hammond, Hidden Treasure, Homestake located at Scotchman Peak, Hope, King Solomon, Kootenai, Lawrence located on the west slope of Antelope Peak, Lucky Strike, McWilliams, Moss, Patten, Pearl, Pugh, Ralph, Regal located on Lighting Creek, Walter, Weir, Whitcomb located on the south slope of Middle Mountain, and Whitedelf (50 ounces silver assay).

HOPE DISTRICT—48o15ʹ03N, 116°17ʹ41ʺW, Elev. 2712ʹ; Hope Quad, Trout Peak Quad, Clark Fork Quad; DeLorme p. 62

The lead-silver-copper district located near the town of Hope is on the northeast side of Lake Pend Oreille and adjoins the Clark Fork District on the south. Some mines of the district were the Big Five, Black Bear, El Paso, Margarite, Morning Star, Park River, and Rebecca.

PEND OREILLE DISTRICT (Blacktail, Talache, Lakeview)-- 47°53ʹ47ʺN, 116°28ʹ18ʺW, Elev. 2232ʹ; Talache Quad, Cocolalla Quad, Sagle Quad; DeLorme p. 62, 60

The silver-gold-copper-lead district, located around the west part and the south part of Lake Pend Oreille, is about a mile from the Bobtail boat landing, 5 miles east of Westmond, 5 miles southeast of Lakeview around Prospect Peak, or 10 miles south of Sand Point. Areas mentioned with this district were Talache, Fall Creek, Granite Creek, Gold Creek, White Quartz Mountain, Packsaddle Mountain, Grouse Mountain, Little Blacktail Mountain, and Chilco Mountain. The main mine of the district was the Keystone (Armstead). Some other mines of the district were the Bellevue, Black Jack, Bloody Shirt (Max Dunn), Bluebird, Brown Bear, Conjecture-Keep Cool, Falls Creek, Green Monarch, Hewer, Hidden Treasure, Jolly Roger, Katherine, Kilroy Boy, Little Joe, Max Dunn, Minerva, Perry, Phil Sheridan, Rainbow, Robert Rennie, Shoshone Silver, Silver Hill, Silver Leaf, Spider, Talache (Blacktail), Three Sisters, Venezuela, Vulcan, Weber, Whalen, and Wiberg. District production from 1889 to 1917 was $500,000 from mostly silver-lead ores. Then from 1917 to 1926, the Talache mine produced $2,000,000. The Lake View part produced 1,000 ounces to the ton of gold (Per A Preliminary Report on the Mining Districts of Idaho in 1919).

PINE CREEK DISTRICT—48°15ʹ12ʺN, 116°54ʹ50ʺW, Elev. 2290ʹ; Quartz Mountain Quad, Priest River Quad, Outlet Bay Quad; DeLorme p. 62

The gold-silver-lead-zinc district is located 12 miles north-northwest of Priest River and southwest of Quartz Mountain.

PRIEST LAKE DISTRICT (Port Hill)—See description in Boundary County.

BONNEVILLE COUNTY

The total recorded gold production of Bonneville County, about 16,600 ounces, was from the Mount Pisgah District. Around 2,801 ounces of placer gold was produced.

MOUNT PISGAH DISTRICT (Caribou Mountain)—43°06ʹ25ʺN, 111°15ʹ34ʺW, Elev. 7011ʹ; T4S, R44E, Caribou Mountain Quad, Big Elk Mountain Quad; DeLorme p. 31

The gold-copper-silver district discovered in the 1870s is located on Caribou Mountain on the east end of John Grey (Grays) Lake, around the Caribou City-Stump Creek area, southwest of the Palisades Reservoir and northeast of Grays Lake Wildlife Refuge, southeast of Herman, or 42 miles north-northeast of Soda Springs. Both placer and lode mines were productive, but all the recorded production was from placers, which in the 1870s yielded $250,000 in gold annually. The placers were located in the gulches on the northeast slope of the mountain and were derived from outcrops located near the summit of the mountain. In later years, mining in the district declined, although some time after 1920, several unsuccessful attempts were made at dredging. From 1939 through 1959, only 459 ounces of gold was produced. Some mines of the district were the Austin, Bell Boy, Caribou Mountain, Copper Queen, Evergreen, Gray Eagle, Griffin, Lakeview, Lalla Rooth, Mayflower, Mountain Chief, N. S. Davenport, Nabob, Nealson, Noal B., Northern Light, Oneida, Oskaloosa, Paymaster, Orphan Boy, Peterson, Real McCoy, Robinson, Rough and Ready, Rusler, Silver Star, Virginia, and Xint. Some placers were the Anderson Creek Placers, Barnes Creek Placers, Bilk Gulch Placers, City Creek Placers, Iowa Bar Placer, Iowa Creek Placer, James Placers, Lottie Placer, McCoy Creek Placer, Rosana Placer, and Tincup Creek Placers.

The country rock consists of Mesozoic sedimentary rocks cut by dioritic dikes and sills. The