Vote for your favorite mineral in #MinCup26! - Sphalerite vs. Anorthite
Both zinc ore Sphalerite and calcium plagioclase feldspar Anorthite have perfect cleavage that will split cleanly if you hit them with a hammer, but only one can claim a larger split of your votes!
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First Thought Mine, Orient Mining District, Stevens County, Washington, USAi
Regional Level Types
First Thought MineMine
Orient Mining DistrictMining District
Stevens CountyCounty
WashingtonState
USACountry

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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
48° 53' 1'' North , 118° 9' 29'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
48.88389,-118.15833
GeoHash:
G#: c2eyp5p9r
GRN:
N33W57
Type:
Mine
Köppen climate type:
Dfb : Warm-summer humid continental climate
Nearest Settlements:
PlacePopulationDistance
Orient115 (2011)3.8km
Marcus184 (2017)25.4km
Grand Forks4,208 (2008)26.2km
Northport288 (2017)27.8km
Sion658 (2019)28.5km
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
ClubLocationDistance
Selkirk Rock & Mineral ClubTrail, British Columbia40km
Mindat Locality ID:
16213
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:16213:6
GUID (UUID V4):
0


A large gold mine NE of Orient. The ore existed in an irregular zone 15'-110' wide in rhyolite porphyry and quartz latite of the Sanpoil Volcanics. Richer ore was found at the intersections of faults. It was developed by around 7500' of workings on 7 levels. The mine produced roughly 81,000 tons from 1904-1910 and 1934-1942
Deposit: Ore in breccia zone near contact between rhyolite and latite where crossed by faults duplicate record m056475 has been deleted.

Rock formation(s): Rhyolite Porphyry, Quartz Latite


Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.


Mineral List


7 valid minerals.

Rock Types Recorded

Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!

Select Rock List Type

Alphabetical List Tree Diagram

Detailed Mineral List:

ⓘ Calcite
Formula: CaCO3
ⓘ Chalcopyrite
Formula: CuFeS2
ⓘ Fluorite
Formula: CaF2
ⓘ 'K Feldspar'
ⓘ 'K Feldspar var. Adularia'
Formula: KAlSi3O8
ⓘ Native Gold
Formula: Au
ⓘ Native Gold var. Electrum ?
Formula: (Au,Ag)
ⓘ Pyrite
Formula: FeS2
ⓘ Quartz
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Sphalerite
Formula: ZnS

Gallery:

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 1 - Elements
ⓘNative Gold
var. Electrum ?		1.AA.05(Au,Ag)
ⓘ1.AA.05Au
Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts
ⓘSphalerite2.CB.05aZnS
ⓘChalcopyrite2.CB.10aCuFeS2
ⓘPyrite2.EB.05aFeS2
Group 3 - Halides
ⓘFluorite3.AB.25CaF2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘQuartz
var. Chalcedony		4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘ4.DA.05SiO2
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
ⓘCalcite5.AB.05CaCO3
Unclassified
ⓘ'K Feldspar
var. Adularia'		-KAlSi3O8
ⓘ''-

List of minerals for each chemical element

CCarbon
Cⓘ CalciteCaCO3
OOxygen
Oⓘ K Feldspar var. AdulariaKAlSi3O8
Oⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Oⓘ Quartz var. ChalcedonySiO2
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
FFluorine
Fⓘ FluoriteCaF2
AlAluminium
Alⓘ K Feldspar var. AdulariaKAlSi3O8
SiSilicon
Siⓘ K Feldspar var. AdulariaKAlSi3O8
Siⓘ Quartz var. ChalcedonySiO2
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
SSulfur
Sⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Sⓘ PyriteFeS2
Sⓘ SphaleriteZnS
KPotassium
Kⓘ K Feldspar var. AdulariaKAlSi3O8
CaCalcium
Caⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Caⓘ FluoriteCaF2
FeIron
Feⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Feⓘ PyriteFeS2
CuCopper
Cuⓘ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
ZnZinc
Znⓘ SphaleriteZnS
AgSilver
Agⓘ Native Gold var. Electrum(Au,Ag)
AuGold
Auⓘ Native Gold var. Electrum(Au,Ag)
Auⓘ Native GoldAu

Other Databases

Link to USGS MRDS:10088840

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

References

Fritz E. Wolff, Donald T. McKay Jr., David K. Norman (2006) Inactive and Abandoned Mine Lands - First Thought Mine, Orient Mining District, Stevens County, Washington. Washington Division of Geology and Earth Resources Information Circular 103, 19 pages
Valentine, Grant M., Huntting, Marshall T. (1960) Part II - Metallic Minerals, in Inventory of Washington Minerals. Vol II. Bulletin 37, Washington Geological Survey.
Derkey, Robert E., Joseph, Nancy L., Lasmanis, Raymond (1990, November) Metal Mines of Washington - Preliminary Report. Open File Report 90-18. Washington Division of Geology and Earth Resources
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