Nevada · White Pine County
Producer

Rat Deposit

White Pine County, Nevada, United States
GoldMercury
⌖ Show on mapUSGS source ↗
Commodities
PrimaryGold
TertiaryMercury
Commodity typeM
Deposit
Deposit typesediment-hosted disseminated gold
Model75: Distal disseminated Ag-Au
Deposit sizeU
Orebody formtabular to irregular
Ore controlThe ore is both structurally and stratigraphically controlled. Ore is controlled by NW-striking normal faults that dip steeply west and east, with oreshoots forming at intersections of NW- and N-striking faults. One rich orebody up to 15 meters thick was localized by favorable lithology in interbedded sandy siltstone and limestone in the lower Dunderburg.
Materials
Ore mineralsGold
GanguePyrite, Clay, Limonite, Quartz
Geology
Host rockSiltstone,Limestone,Clastic Sedimentary Rock,Sedimentary Rock · "Dunderburg Shale", "Hamburg Dolomite"
Associated rockPorphyry · Bald Mountain Stock
StructureThe Bald Mountain district is located in an area of thinned crust along the eastern side of the Late Proterozoic rift that split the North American craton. It is also in the west-central portion of the Late Devonian-Early Mississippian Antler foreland basin, and near the eastern edge of deformation related to the late Paleozoic Humboldt orogeny To the west of the Bald Mountain district, geologic interpretations are dominated by recognition of Paleozoic deformation, whereas to the east, interpretations emphasize Mesozoic contraction and plutonism and Tertiary extension., NW-striking normal faults that dip steeply west and east, with lesser N-striking faults.
Tectonic settingThe Bald Mountain district is located in an area of thinned crust along the eastern side of the Late Proterozoic rift that split the North American craton. It is also in the west-central portion of the Late Devonian-Early Mississippian Antler foreland basin, and near the eastern edge of deformation related to the late Paleozoic Humboldt orogeny.
AlterationThe porphyry dikes were sericitized, argillized and silicified.
Economic & production
Development statusProducer
Production years1993-1996
First production1993
Identification
Deposit ID10310446
Alternate namesRat Pit
RegionNA
Data scoreB
Coordinates39.92381, -115.547
References
NBMG mining district files 323, press clippingsNBMG, 1988, NBMG MI-1987.GSN 1985 meeting and fall field trip road logAdamson, T.J., 1987, in Bulk Mineable Precious Metal Deposits of the Western U.S., 1987 GSN, Field Trip Guidebook and Technical Volume.NBMG, 1994, MI-1993Long, K.R., DeYoung, J.H., Jr., and Ludington, S.D., 1998, Database of significant deposits of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc in the United States; Part A, Database description and analysis; part B, Digital database: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 98-206, 33 p., one 3.5 inch diskette.Nutt, C.J., Hofstra, A.H., Hart, K.S., and Mortensen, J.K., 2000, Structural setting and genesis of gold deposits in the Bald Mountain-Alligator Ridge area, east-central Nevada, in Cluer, J.K., Price, J.G., Struhsacker, E.M., Hardyman, R.F., and Morris, C.L., eds., Geology and Ore Deposits 2000: The Great Basin and Beyond: Geological Society of Nevada Symposium Proceedings, May 15-18, 2000, p. 513-537.Hitchborn and others, 1996, Geology and Gold Deposits of the Bald Mountain Mining District, White Pine County, Nevada, in Geology and Ore Deposits of the American Cordillera Symposium Proceedings, eds. A. Coyner and P. Fahey.The Geological Society of Nevada 1996 Spring Field trip, Geology and Gold Deposits of Eastern Nevada, GSN Special Publication No. 23.BLM, 2004, Bald Mountain Mine Exploration Program Programmatic Environmental Assessment NV040-04-023, Case File # N78825.