Apache Mine, Radium, Burch area, Globe Hills Mining District, Gila County, Arizona, USAi

Regional Level Types
Apache Mine	Mine
Radium	- not defined -
Burch area	Area
Globe Hills Mining District	Mining Sub-district
Gila County	County
Arizona	State
USA	Country

A former surface and underground Pb-V-Mo-Zn-Cu-Ag-Au-W mine located on 8 claims and 2 fractions, in the NW¼NW¼ sec. 2, T1N, R15E, about 5 miles (ca. 8 km) NW of Globe and 1.25 miles (ca. 2 km) NE of Radium on Pinal Creek, a siding on the railroad connecting Globe and Miami, on National Forest land. The Vanadium shaft is located in sec. 2; other claims continue into sec. 34. Claims extend into sec. 34, T2N, RI5E. Discovered 1875. Produced 1929-1957. Owned/operated by Pfeister Brothers (1913); Edward C. O'Brien & Co. (circa 1930); D.S. McDonald and Frank Chisum (1936-1948); Mrs. Ida McDonald (circa 1950), and being operated under lease from her by Edwin Sikes; the Mercur-King Consolidated Mines, Ltd. (1953); E.J. Sikes; J. Raggio; Fred Goat (1973). Owned by Worley, Sprik, Hunter (1974). NOTE: There seems to be quite a bit of uncertainty over the exact location of this property based on coordinates. Alternate coordinates provided: 33.53333N, 110.8W; and 33.46944N, 110.81472W; and 33.4625N, 110.8069W. The coordinates incorporated into this file appear to be the closest match to the physical location description.

Mineralization is a vein deposit hosted in Pioneer Quartzite (Apache group). The ore zone is 457.2 meters long and 3.05 meters wide, striking N35E and dipping 80SE. Ore control was a narrow band in the middle part of a fault zone where quartzite and diabase gouge are altered to a white porous mass of clay, sericite, and calcite. The alteration also includes chloritization. An associated rock unit is diabase. The mineralization is associated with a Late Cretaceous-Tertiary intrusive period.

The rocks exposed in the vicinity of the Defiance Mine are Pioneer formation and diabase. The Pioneer Formation (Pioneer quartzite), which here is a hard fine-grained, feldspathic quartzite, crops out in several small blocks on the south slope of a chain of low hills that trend WNW. The general dip of the beds is 30º-40ºS., a little steeper than the slope of the hillsides. The structural relationships of the diabase and quartzite apparently resulted from the intrusion of the diabase between the blocks of quartzite along old faults and also between the beds as sills.

The Defiance vein strikes N35E and dips 80SE. The outcrop of the vein fissure can be traced for 1,500 feet (ca. 457 m) SW of the mine; though along most of its course, it is marked only by a darker colour of the diabase, caused by slight mineralization and chloritic alteration. NE of the mine, the vein ends at the north contact of the Pioneer formation with the diabase. About 300 feet (ca. 91 m) SE of the end of the Defense vein, a weakly mineralized fissure extends northeastward from the north edge of the Pioneer outcrop. A fissure that may be the continuation of this fissure crops out for nearly a mile NE of the quartzite. The southwestern part of this fissure contains small amounts of lead and vanadium minerals, but along the northeastern part, the vein minerals are mainly manganese oxides. NW of the mine, several short weakly mineralized fissures in the quartzite and diabase are about parallel to the main vein.

The main vein is bounded on top by a diabase flow and on the bottom by a bedding plane fault and features very regular slickensided walls that generally dip 80º to 85º SE. The stopes range in width from 3 to 12 feet (3.66 m) and average about 5 feet (1.52 m).

The mineralized fault zone consists chiefly of quartzite fragments and of diabase gouge that has been altered to a white porous mass of clay, sericite, and finely disseminated calcite. The ore minerals appear to have been confined largely to a narrow band in the middle part of the zone. The common minerals are calcite, vanadinite, mottramite and descloizite. Vanadinite crystals are sometimes recovered as collectables.

Workings comprise 2 shafts and about 1,400 feet (ca. 427 m) of drifts, crosscuts, and raises. Shaft No. 1, commonly called the Vanadium shaft, is 150 feet (ca. 46 m) deep, with levels at 50 and 150 feet (ca. 46 m). Shaft No. 2 is 160 feet (ca. 49 m) to the SW and its collar is 40 feet (ca. 12 m) lower. It is 110 feet (ca. 34 m) deep, with levels at 30, 65 & 110 feet (ca. 34 m), but it is filled with waste rock to the 65-foot level. The 110 level is said to connect with the 150 level of shaft No. 1. Drifts from the 2 shafts explore the vein for 550 feet (ca. 168 m) along its strike, and partially backfilled. The vein has been stoped for 450 feet (ca. 137 m) along its length, except for pillars. The workings total some 426.7 meters in length and 45.72 meters in depth.

About 20 short tons of ore containing 14% V2O5 were shipped by the Edward C. O'Brien Co.(1930)(Peterson, 1950)(mostly vanadinite crystals). This was obviously hand-picked ore. No information on where shipped or V recovery. No data on Pb, Au, Ag resources; V resources probably nil.

Assay data: 14% V205, 0.17 oz/ton Au, 3.7 oz/ton Ag, 19% Pb, 3.7% Zn, 0.55% Cu.

Please note that mining claims are current and that collecting is forbidden.

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Link to USGS MRDS:	10027368

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