Purple Passion Mine, Morgan Butte, Big Bug Mining District, Bradshaw Mountains (Bradshaw Range), Yavapai County, Arizona, USAi

Regional Level Types
Purple Passion Mine	Mine
Morgan Butte	Table/Butte
Big Bug Mining District	Mining District
Bradshaw Mountains (Bradshaw Range)	Mountain Range
Yavapai County	County
Arizona	State
USA	Country

A former underground Ag-Pb-Au-Cu-Mo mine located in the SE¼ sec. 30, T8N, R3W, at about 3,300 feet (ca. 1,006 m) of altitude. Formerly the Diamond Joe mine. Discovered around 1890 by Mr. A.B. Lovell. Produced intermittently from 1901 to 1926. Operated by the Diamond Joe Mining Co., Inc. about 1926. This firm was owned exclusively by Mr. George R. Kyok of Wickenburg. It closed in 1928 allegedly due to a lack of sufficient water. It was again opened briefly in 1945, shipped a small amount of ore and closed again. In recent years, this mine is under claim for the recovery of mineral specimens. Trespassing without the permission of the claim holder is prohibited.

Mineralization is a vein deposit with a tabular orebody hosted in granodiorite, that is extensively intruded by dikes of various kinds, ranging from basic andesites to very acid rocks. There is considerable faulting and the vein or orebody is in the main fault, a N-S fissure dipping about 50 degrees west. None of the intrusive dikes cut across the ore vein. At least two known faults cross the vein, but hardly dislocate it. All of this disturbance is in the hanging wall. The footwall area is relatively undisturbed diorite, solid and little altered. The highly intruded condition of the hanging wall has resulted in extensive kaolinization, with schistosity, and the general result is a badly broken, distorted, kaolinized area over the ore.

The vein can be traced on surface for about 1,200 feet (ca. 366 m), and, from sporadic indications of the same fissure, for a probable total length up to 3,000 feet (ca. 914 m). The mineralization is principally a calcite gangue carrying lead and silver minerals, with considerable iron stain in places, and evidence of an intrusion of porphyry along the fissure.

Workings include an inclined shaft of 325 feet (ca. 99 m) along the dip (225 feet (ca. 69 m) vertical). Vertical shaft No. 1 intersected the inclined shaft at the 83 feet (ca. 25 m) level and continued down to 180 feet (ca. 55 m). A lack of sufficient operating water resulted in the sinking of vertical shaft No. 2 to the 500 feet (ca. 152 m) level. The first 225 feet (ca. 69 m) of this shaft were utilized as the main entrance to the lowest working level of the mine. The bottom 275 feet (ca. 84 m) were used as a reservoir to supply water for the milling operations. A total of 2,250 feet (ca. 686 m) of tunnels, shafts, and stopes were driven, with levels at 45 (ca. 14 m), 83 (ca. 25 m), 180 (ca. 55 m) and 225 feet (ca. 69 m).

Production was some 135,000 tons of ore.

This mine has been located or misfiled in several districts, but at this time the AZGS and USGS place it in the Black Rock district. (WW Besse, 2018)

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References