Bunker Hill Mine

Shoshone County, Idaho, United States

LeadZincSilverCopperGoldUraniumAntimonyCadmiumCobalt

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Description

Noah S. Kellog and his jackass

Commodities

PrimaryLead, Zinc, Silver

SecondaryCopper, Gold

TertiaryUranium, Antimony, Cadmium, Cobalt

Commodity typeM

Deposit

Deposit typeHYDROTHERMAL VEIN AND REPLACEMENT

Model{85: Polymetallic veins}

Deposit sizeL

WorkingsUnderground

Orebody formPINCH AND SWELL, TABULAR, WEDGE

Ore control"Orebodies occur mostly in upper Revett Formation consisting of about 50 percent massive quartzite interlayerd with thin-bedded sericitic quartzite, silitite, and argillite.", "In the NW part of the mine, most ore is in the hanging wall of the Cate Fault whereas in the SE part, most ore is in the footwall of the Cate Fault.", "Structural controls are significant and of many varieties. Principal control is the intersection of two general fault and fracture sets (NW and NE) within the overturned northern limb of a WNW trending anticline. Major replacement orebodies, such as the March, occur at the intersection of the Cate Fault with branching faults. NE striking Link veins are hosted by faults that connect the Cate with its various branch faults. Hinges of parasitic flexures on the anticlinal limb contain crackle zones that are an important control for the Quill and similar zinc orebodies."

Materials

Ore mineralsGalena, Sphalerite, Chalcopyrite, Tetrahedrite, Cerussite

GangueQuartz, Pyrite, Arsenopyrite, Siderite, Ankerite, Sericite, Barite, Limonite, Chlorite, Pyrrhotite, Hematite

Geology

Host rockQuartzite · "St. Regis Formation", "Revett Formation"

Structure"The Cate Fault (strikes NW to N, 55SW dip)is the main shear in the deposit, with several branch shears, including the Alhambra, Dull, J, Kruger, Motor, Sullivan, and Veral-Slavonian Faults. The Cate Fault is conjugate to the Osburn Fault to the north. The Dull is the principal branch shear, and much of the deposit lies on structures between the Cate and Dull Faults.", "Most of the deposit is within the NE overturned limb of a WNW-trending anticline. Host sediments strike N60-80W and dip SW. Parasitic folds are common. Axial planes strike about N16W and dip 42SW, with the axis plunging 34 degrees to N60W.", "Fractures and faults striking NE to EW, dipping SE to S, connect the Cate and Dull Faults."

Tectonic setting"Belt Basin"

Alteration"Sericitization; Bleaching of hematite-bearings sediments; Chloritization", "Zone of disseminated siderite extends 10s to 100s of meters out from the veins, passing into a siderite-ankerite zone up to 10s of meters wide, and then into a zone of ankerite-calcite 100s of meters wide.", "The deposit is at least partly oxidized down to about 600 meters depth, presumably along major faults. Shallow orebodies mined in the 1880s to early 1900s were largely oxidized with cerussite as the principal ore mineral."

Economic & production

Development statusPast Producer

Production years1886-1889, 1891-1981,1998-1991

First production1886

Last production1991

Discovery year1885

Identification

Deposit ID10105938

MRDS IDW019388

Alternate namesBunker Hill and Sullivan Mine, Last Chance Mine, Stemwinder Mine, Tyler Mine

RegionNA

Data scoreA

Coordinates47.53377, -116.13913

References

{Deposit:: CAMPBELL, A. B. COLSON, J. B. AND OTHERS, 1961 , GUIDEBOOK TO THE GEOLOGY OF THE COEUR D'ALENE MIN. DIST.: IDAHO BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOL. BULL. 16}{Deposit:: WEIS, P. L., ARMSTRONG, F. C., AND ROSENBLEM, S., 1958 , RECONNAISSANCE FOR RADIOACTIVE MINERALS IN WASH., ID., AND W. MONT., 1952 - 1955 : USGS BULL. 1074 - B, 48 P.}{Deposit:: ZARTMAN, R. E., AND STACEY, J. S., 1971 , LEAD ISOTOPES AND MINERALIZATION AGES IN BELT SUPERGROUP ROCKS, NORTHWESTERN MONTANA AND NORTHERN IDAHO: ECON. GEOL. V. 66 , NO. 6 , P. 849 - 860}{Deposit:: MC CONNEL, R. H., 1939 , BUNKER HILL ORE DEPOSITS IN COMPLEX FRACTURES: ENG. AND MINING JOUR., V. 140 , NO. 8 , P. 40 - 42}{Deposit:: FRYKLUND, V. C., JR., 1964 , ORE DEPOSITS OF THE COEUR D'ALENE DISTRICT, SHOSHONE COUNTY, IDAHO: USGS PROF. PAPER 445 , 103 P.}{Deposit:: RANSOME, F. L., AND CALKINS, F. C., 1908 , THE GEOLOGY AND ORE DEPOSITS OF THE COEUR D'ALENE DISTRICT, IDAHO: USGS PROF. PAPER 62 , 203 P.}{Deposit:: RANSOME, F. L., 1905 , ORE DEPOSITS OF THE COEUR D'ALENE DISTRICT, IDAHO: USGS BULL. 260 , P. 274 - 303}{Deposit:: KROLL, E. H., 1935 , A MINERALOGIC STUDY OF THE BUNKER HILL LODE AT KELLOGG, IDAHO: UNIV. OF IDAHO B. S THESIS, 14 P.}{Deposit:: Caddey, Stanton William, 1974, Structural geometry of the "J" vein, the Bunker Hill mine, Kellogg, Idaho: Moscow, University of Idaho, PhD dissertation, 352 p.}{Deposit:: Duff, James Kenneth, 1978, Structural geology of the Tony area, the Bunker Hill mine, Kellogg, Idaho: Moscow, University of Idaho, MS thesis, 101 p.}{Deposit:: Beck, John Walter, 1980, Sulfide ores within the Quill ore body, Bunker Hill mine, Kellogg, Idaho: Pullman, Washington State Univeristy, MS thesis, 129 p.}{Deposit:: Shaw, Herbert Richard, 1959, Mineralogical studies in the Bunker Hill mine, Idaho: Berkeley, University of California, PhD dissertation, 182 p.}{Geology:: White, Brian G., 1976, Revett stratigraphy of the Bunker Hill mine and vicinity: Kellogg, Idaho, The Bunker Hill Co., unpublished paper, 46 p.}{Production:: Mitchell, V.E., and Bennett, E.H., 1983, Production statistics for the Coeur d'Alene mining district, Shoshone County, Idaho, 1884-1980: Idaho Geological Survey Technical Report 83-3, 33 p.}{Production:: Long, Keith R., 1998, Grade and tonnage models for Coeur d'Alene-type polymetallic veins: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-583, 28 p.}