Flat Creek Mine (tributary of Timber Creek), Ruby Mining District, Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, USAi

Regional Level Types
Flat Creek Mine (tributary of Timber Creek)	Mine
Ruby Mining District	Mining District
Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area	Census Area
Alaska	State
USA	Country

This mineral occurrence is not to be confused with another occurrence on a different Flat Creek (RB016), tributary to Long Creek (RB020).
Location: Flat Creek is a tributary of Timber Creek. Coordinates given are for the approximate center of tailings (1/2 mile long) marked on the Ruby A-6 quadrangle, in section 31, T. 16 S., R. 17 E., Kateel River Meridan (USGS topographic map, 1952, minor revisions in 1973). This site corresponds to location 34 of Cobb (1972 [MF405]) and location 19 of Eberlein and others (1977). The location is accurate.
Geology: The bedrock underlying Flat Creek, a tributary of Timber Creek, is phyllite (Mertie, 1936). Drilling along Flat Creek indicates a shear zone across Bonanza Creek and the lower end of Flat Creek (Pete Haggland, oral communication, 2000). The gold is found on or in the upper 6 inches of bedrock or on a false clay bedrock a short distance above the true bedrock (Mertie and Harrington, 1916). The ground consists of 40 to 50 feet of muck underlain by 2 to 30 feet of gravel. The gravel is composed of chert, vein quartz, and phyllite (Mertie and Harrington, 1916). Gold is found in narrow, irregular patches and streaks over a width of as much as 1,000 feet. The gold is rough, and most is attached to quartz. It is rarely present in nuggets heavier than half an ounce and is commonly accompanied by pyrite, rounded grains of cassiterite, magnetite, a little arsenopyrite, and barite. The barite is present near the mouth (Eberlein and others, 1977). Three assays of the gold averaged 786 parts gold per thousand and 207 parts silver per thousand (Mertie, 1936). Mining occurred at least between 1913 and 1936. In 1913 and 1914 two mines operated on Flat Creek (Eberlein and others, 1977). In the fall of 1940, John Miscovitch and others moved a D-8 Cat and dozer into Flat Creek and started building a ditch from Timber Creek and stripping a large area for hydraulicking the overburden (John Miscovitch, written communication, 2000). Flat Creek was mined by hydraulically, removing about 45 feet of overburden and using a mechanical sluice box system (Pete Haggland, oral communication, 2000). Mining continued until 1942 and also occurred from 1946 to 1954. More recent activity took place along Flat Creek between 1990 and 1993 (Swainbank and others, 1991; Bundtzen and others, 1992; Swainbank and others, 1993; Bundtzen and others, 1994).
Workings: Flat Creek was intermittently mined from 1913 until at least 1936. In the fall of 1940, John Miscovitch and others moved a D-8 Cat and dozer into Flat Creek and started building a ditch from Timber Creek and stripping a large area for hydraulicking the overburden (John Miscovitch, written communication, 2000). Mining continued until 1942 and from 1946 to 1954. Mining along Flat Creek also occurred between 1990 and 1993 (Swainbank and others, 1991; Bundtzen and others, 1992; Swainbank and others, 1993; Bundtzen and others, 1994).
Age: Quaternary.

Commodities (Major) - Au; (Minor) - Ag, Sn
Development Status: Yes
Deposit Model: Placer Au (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:	RB051

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References