Taylor Creek Mine, Aniak Mining District, Dillingham Census Area, Alaska, USAi

Regional Level Types
Taylor Creek Mine	Mine
Aniak Mining District	Mining District
Dillingham Census Area	Census Area
Alaska	State
USA	Country

Location: Taylor Creek is the main drainage on the southeast side of the Taylor Mountains. Taylor Creek flows east and north from the highest peak (3,581 feet in elevation) for 3.8 miles Gold has been placer mined along at least the upper 3 miles of Taylor Creek, although prospects have been noted as far as 1.5 miles below the mouth of Fork Creek, a south tributary. The location is at the principal mine buildings in the NW1/4 of section 18, T. 9 N., R. 46 W., of the Seward Meridian. This is locality 11 of Cobb (1972 [MF 384]; 1976 [OF 76-606]).
Geology: Placer gold mining has taken place along at least the upper 3 miles of Taylor Creek, although prospects have been noted as far as 1.5 miles below the mouth of Fork Creek, a south tributary (Cady and others, 1955, Plate 1). The alluvial gravels are about 10 feet thick, the paystreak is about 250 feet wide, and bedrock is mid-Cretaceous clastic sedimentary rocks of the Kuskokwim Group. The heavy-mineral concentrates contain cinnabar and cassiterite; pyrite is abundant in concentrates from below the mouth of Fork Creek (Cady and others, 1955, p. 119). Cady and others (1955) reported that the Taylor Creek mine had produced a total of $90,000 worth of gold (about 2,500 ounces), mainly in 1950 and 1951. The mine has been active at different times since Cady and others' report, including small-scale mining and prospecting through the 1990s (M. Henning, personal communication, 2000). The Bureau of Land Management sampled the Taylor Creek placer deposit in 2004 (Ellefson and others, 2005). Two panned-concentrate samples contained 7.66 and 15.2 parts per million (ppm) gold, 0.25 and 0.24 ppm silver, 9.15 and 10.8 ppm mercury, 2280 and 1270 ppm manganese, 19 and 34 ppm tin, and less than 0.01 ppm tantalum.
Workings: Placer gold mining has taken place along at least the upper 3 miles of Taylor Creek, although prospects have been noted as far as 1.5 miles below the mouth of Fork Creek, a south tributary (Cady and others, 1955, Plate 1). An airstrip, water ditch, and mine buildings are present. Taylor Creek has been explored for a distance of about 1.5 miles downstream of the mouth of Fork Creek. The mine has been active at different times since Cady and others' report, including small-scale mining and prospecting through the 1990s (M. Henning, oral communication, 2000). Sampled by the Bureau of Land Management in 2004.
Age: Quaternary.
Production: Cady and others (1955) reported that the Taylor Creek mine had produced a total of $90,000 worth of gold (about 2,500 ounces), mainly in 1950 and 1951. There has been an undocumented amount of production since 1951.

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

Other Databases

Link to USGS - Alaska:	TA008

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References