Bender Mine (Fernando Mine; Mina Prieta group; Black Eagle Mine; San Fernando Mine; Colossa), American Peak, Harshaw Mining District, Patagonia Mountains, Santa Cruz County, Arizona, USAi

Regional Level Types
Bender Mine (Fernando Mine; Mina Prieta group; Black Eagle Mine; San Fernando Mine; Colossa)	Mine
American Peak	Peak
Harshaw Mining District	Mining District
Patagonia Mountains	Mountain Range
Santa Cruz County	County
Arizona	State
USA	Country

‡Ref.: Farnham, L.L., Stewart, L.A., and Delong, C.W. (1961), Manganese Deposits of Eastern Arizona, US Bureau of Mines Information Circular 7990: 165-168.

USGS & Arizona Bureau of Mines, and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (1969), Mineral and Water Resources of Arizona, Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 180 (USGS Bull.871): 218.

Moores, R.C., III (1972) The geology and ore deposits of a portion of the Harshaw district, Santa Cruz County, Arizona: Tucson, University of Arizona, M.S. thesis, 98 p.: 75.

Simons, F.S. (1972) Mesozoic stratigraphy of the Patagonia Mountains and adjoining areas, Santa Cruz County, Arizona, in Mesozoic stratigraphy in southeastern Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 658-E, p. E8-E9.

Simons, F.S. (1974) Geologic map and sections of the Nogales and Lochiel quadrangles, Santa Cruz County, Arizona: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-762, 9 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:48,000.

Keith, Stanton B. (1975), Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 191, Index of Mining Properties in Santa Cruz County Arizona: 56 (Table 4).

U.S. Bureau of Mines Coronado National Forest Study Report.

Arizona Bureau of Mines file data.

Arizona Department of Mineral Resources file data, Mina Prieta.

Yale Peabody GNIS database (NOTE: this database is derived from USGS 1:24,000 topographic map data).

U.S. Bureau of Mines - Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology file data.

U.S. Bureau of Mines files, Bender property.

MRDS database Dep. ID file #10048355, MRDS ID #M899943; and, Dep. ID #10234669, MAS ID #0040230014.

A former small surface and underground Mn-Ag-Pb-Zn-Cu mine located on 11 unpatented claims, in South-central sec. 4, T.23S., R.16E. (protracted), on the slope of Americn Peak, 10 miles by road SSE of Patagonia; and 2 miles by road SSW of Harshaw, on National Forest land. Discovered 1875. Produced 1880-1959. Owned at times, or in part, by American Minerals Chemical Co.; Southwest Metallurgical Industries; Mr. Karl Peterson; Alfredo Valenzuela; Patagonia Metal Co.; Marsteller; Cleveland; Beyerle; and, the Still Brothers Mining Co. Optioned To G. T. Humphries, Tucson, Operator (1941). Owned by Mr. Herman Bender, Patagonia, Arizona and Mr. Grover Marsteller (1941).

Mineralization is erratic and irregular replacements in limestone and open space fillings of argentiferous manganese oxides with minor lead, zinc, and copper along the fault contact of dense, silicified Jurassic-Triassic rhyolite and unaltered Paleozoic limestone. It is a steeply-dipping, N-S-trending normal fault. Ore concentration was partial hypogene enrichment suggested by concentration of minerals in alternating bands of quartz and manganese; mineralization of brecciated limestone along fracture and contact zones. Other minerals include "Black Calcite" (calcite containing finely disseminated Mn minerals). Podlike and irregular ore bodies are several tens of feet in greatest dimension. Deposits are oriented in different directions and are separated by various size bodies of lean or barren limestone. Short disconnected lenses range from 1-3 feet in width. The ore is hard and dense. Alteration is minor. The ore zone is 6.1 meters wide, strikes N-S and dips E. The host rock units are the Concha Limestone and the Scherrer Formation. Rhyolite is locally highly altered to sericite, epidote, carbonate, and chlorite.

Local structures include limestone which forms an uneven band as much as 80 feet wide, bounded on the north and east by volcanic rocks, and on the south and west by unaltered limestone.

Tectonic elements include the American Mine Fault Block upthrown to the NE.

Workings include open cut and shaft operations totaling 304.8 meters long and 76.2 meters deep. Developments included two 30-foot shafts, an adit of unknown length, open cuts along northern and southern margins of the mineralized zone (cuts are 10-40 feet long, 6-30 feet wide, and up to 25 feet deep and occupy an area about 180 feet long and 60 feet wide). Adit workings consist of more than 1000 feet of crooked drifts and crosscuts; a 100-foot-deep winze and various sub-levels, and 2 raises extending to surface.

Some 50 tons of ore averaging about 20 oz. Ag/T were produced in the late 1800's and in 1937. During WWI and from 1952 to 1955, about 6,000 long tons of manganese ore were shipped to government buying stations. Samples averaged 10-20% Mn and as much as 40% Mn; 20 oz/ton Ag; 0.14% Pb; 0.42% Zn; 0.06% Cu; and, 0.6% CaCO3.

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Link to USGS MRDS:	10048355

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