Last Chance Mine, Gila Fluorspar Mining District, Grant County, New Mexico, USAi
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Last Chance Mine | Mine (Abandoned) |
| Gila Fluorspar Mining District | Mining District (Abandoned) |
| Grant County | County |
| New Mexico | State |
| USA | Country |
This page is currently not sponsored. Click here to sponsor this page.
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
33° 4' 40'' North , 108° 29' 31'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Mine (Abandoned) - last checked 2020
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Gila | 314 (2011) | 14.7km |
| Cliff | 293 (2011) | 17.0km |
| Buckhorn | 200 (2011) | 20.7km |
| Pinos Altos | 198 (2011) | 34.7km |
| Silver City | 10,004 (2017) | 39.5km |
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
| Club | Location | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Grant County Rolling Stones Gem & Mineral Society, Inc. | Silver City, New Mexico | 39km |
The Last Chance Mine (Last Chance Prospect) is a long abandoned mining operation that was close to the Watson Mountain Prospect on the Gila River near Turkey Creek. Located in the Gila Fluorspar District of Grant County in New Mexico, it was one of a number of small deposits discovered, prospected, and subsequently claimed within the Gila National Forest by mostly local residents of Gila and Cliff area. After World War 2, when the demand for fluorspar declined, fluorspar mining in the Gila Fluorspar District gradually ceased and the district has been dormant since the early 1950s.
Structure: 150 Ft Wide Fault/Breccia Zone Trending N25w
Alteration: Silicification
Tectonics: Basin And Range
Deposit: Fluorspar occurs As cementing material in breccia zones, and As veins and veinlets along NE trending tensional oblique fractures within a n W trending fault/breccia zone 150 ft wide. Veins range from less than an inch to over 8 in wide. Where exposed in open spaces along the fissures, fluorite is pale green and coarsely crystalline, showing excellent cubes and octahedrons.
Development: In 1943 the USBM trenched and sampled the deposit
Ore(s): Breccia Zones And Oblique Tensional Faults Within A Fault Zone
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsCommodity List
This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.Mineral List
2 valid minerals.
Rock Types Recorded
Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!
Select Rock List Type
Alphabetical List Tree Diagram
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 3 - Halides | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Fluorite | 3.AB.25 | CaF2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| O | Oxygen | |
|---|---|---|
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| F | Fluorine | |
| F | ⓘ Fluorite | CaF2 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Ca | Calcium | |
| Ca | ⓘ Fluorite | CaF2 |
Other Databases
| Link to USGS MRDS: | 10013581 |
|---|
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate
- Basin and Range BasinsBasin
- Mazatzal DomainDomain
- Southern Basin and RangeWide Rift
USA
- New Mexico
- Gila National ForestNational Forest
This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to
visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders
for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.
Last Chance Mine, Gila Fluorspar Mining District, Grant County, New Mexico, USA