Newton Mining District, Beaver County, Utah, USAi

Regional Level Types
Newton Mining District	Mining District
Beaver County	County
Utah	State
USA	Country

The Newton mining district is located northeast of Beaver on the west flank of the Tushar Mountains. The district produced some Au-Ag beginning in 1893, U was discovered in the district in about 1950, and the district became a modest U producer primarily in the 1950s. Total district metal production at modern metal prices is estimated at $8.2 million. The Mystery Sniffer is believed to be the largest producer.
The Tushar Mountains are within the Marysvale volcanic field and lie in the transition zone between the Basin and Range Province to the west and the Colorado Plateau on the east. The host rocks in the Newton district are predominantly Oligocene- Miocene Bullion Canyon calc-alkaline andesitic volcanic rocks intruded by Miocene-age monzonite, quartz latite, and rhyolite porphyries. Mineralization in the district is primarily small, low-sulfidation, epithermal, quartz-carbonate veins having some Au-Ag-Mo ±W ±U (USGS Model 25b). This lithophile mineralization appears to be associated with Miocene Mount Belknap (20-18 Ma) rhyolite porphyries (Cunningham and others, 1984a).
The primary U producer in the Newton district is the Mystery-Sniffer mine on Indian Creek. Mineralization is contained in a complex east-west-trending, moderately north-dipping, argillized normal fault zone cutting Bullion Canyon Volcanics. Mineralization consists of pockets of disseminated, crystalline torbernite, autunite, and some fluorite, marcasite/pyrite, and quartz stringers in a gray clay zone (USGS Model 25f).
Precious metal production from the Newton district comes primarily from the Sheep Rock and Rob Roy mines near the western range front fault. The Sheep Rock mine developed a 5- to 25-ft thick, white cockscomb quartz-carbonate ±fluorite vein trending N. 20° E. dipping 70° SE and cutting sericitized and pyritized andesitic Bullion Canyon Volcanics. Ore minerals are argentite and native gold. The wall rocks of the vein contain sericite, pyrite, and are locally strongly silicified (Cunningham and others, 1984b).
Huebnerite is reported from the Louise group of claims on Pole Creek, about 10 mi northeast of Beaver in the Newton district. Everett (1961) reported that huebnerite occurs in quartz stringers in rhyolite porphyry. Workings on this prospect include a 40 ft adit and several prospect pits. Similarly, wolframite is reported from the head of nearby North Creek. And finally, Cunningham and others (1984b) noted the presence of Tungsten Hollow as a tributary to the South Fork of North Creek. The huebnerite- wolframite and the geochemical Mo in the rhyolite porphyry could indicate a porphyry Mo system at depth.