Blackstone Mine, West Point, West Point Mining District, East Belt, Calaveras County, California, USAi
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Blackstone Mine | Mine |
| West Point | Census-designated Place |
| West Point Mining District | Mining District |
| East Belt | - not defined - |
| Calaveras County | County |
| California | State |
| USA | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
38° 23' 17'' North , 120° 34' 24'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Red Corral | 1,413 (2017) | 3.8km |
| West Point | 674 (2011) | 4.2km |
| Pioneer | 1,094 (2011) | 4.9km |
| Rail Road Flat | 475 (2015) | 7.1km |
| Volcano | 115 (2017) | 7.9km |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Amador County Gem & Mineral Society | Sutter Creek, California | 20km |
| Calaveras Gem & Mineral Society | Angels Camp, California | 36km |
| El Dorado County Mineral and Gem Society | Placerville, California | 43km |
| Gold Country Treasure Seekers | Placerville, California | 43km |
A former lode Au-Zn-Cu-Pb mine located in sec. 7 & in the NW¼ (center W½) sec. 8, T6N, R13E, MDM, about 4 km (2½ miles) WSW of West Point, along the Middle Fork Mokelumne River (between the Middle Fork and the North Fork Mokelumne River). Property consisted of 9 claims. Owned & operated by the U.S. Gold Mines, Inc., California (1990). Operated during the period 1933 to 1951 and was also active in 1957. MRDS database stated accuracy for this location is 100 meters.
Mineralization is a vein deposit hosted in granodiorite. The ore body strikes N10W and dips 45W at a thickness of 2.44 meters. The Blackstone vein is the most developed of 6 parallel veins. The vein system continues to the N and S and ranges from 6 to 8 feet in thickness. Several W- to N-striking vertical, fine-grained basic to intermediate composition dikes cut the vein and country rock. The ore contains free gold, and is almost always associated with galena. Faults bound the ore shoots. Massive parts of the vein are barren. Local rocks include Mesozoic granitic rocks, unit 3 (Sierra Nevada, Death Valley area, Northern Mojave Desert and Transverse Ranges).
Local structures include several nearly W-striking faults; several W- to N-striking verticle faults. Fine-grained basic to intermediate composition dikes cut the vein and country rock.
Workings include underground openings comprised of a 500 foot lower level adit, three additional bearing drift adits approximately 100 feet apart above the lower level range from 600 to 700 feet in length. A 95 foot deep shaft was sunk near the crest of the hill. It has a 160 foot N drift and 140 foot S drift. The adit levels are connected by raises. There is also a short adit 200 feet down hill from the lower adit.
Production data are found in: Clark, Wm. B. & P.A. Lydon (1962).
The ore commonly averages 0.5 to 12.0 ounce Au/ton of ore but there are high-grade pockets present. The most recent ore from N-pitching ore shoot with a stope length of 200 feet in the upper levels, 475 feet in from the portal of the lower level adit. Another pocket was 100 feet in from this portal. Total production was estimated at $200,000 (period values).
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Chalcopyrite Formula: CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ Galena Formula: PbS |
| ⓘ Native Gold Formula: Au |
| ⓘ Pyrite Formula: FeS2 |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
| ⓘ Sphalerite Formula: ZnS |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 1 - Elements | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Native Gold | 1.AA.05 | Au |
| Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts | |||
| ⓘ | Sphalerite | 2.CB.05a | ZnS |
| ⓘ | Chalcopyrite | 2.CB.10a | CuFeS2 |
| ⓘ | Galena | 2.CD.10 | PbS |
| ⓘ | Pyrite | 2.EB.05a | FeS2 |
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
| ⓘ | Quartz | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| O | Oxygen | |
|---|---|---|
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| S | Sulfur | |
| S | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Galena | PbS |
| S | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| S | ⓘ Sphalerite | ZnS |
| Fe | Iron | |
| Fe | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Fe | ⓘ Pyrite | FeS2 |
| Cu | Copper | |
| Cu | ⓘ Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| Zn | Zinc | |
| Zn | ⓘ Sphalerite | ZnS |
| Au | Gold | |
| Au | ⓘ Native Gold | Au |
| Pb | Lead | |
| Pb | ⓘ Galena | PbS |
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate
- Shoofly-Olds Ferry DomainDomain
- Sierra Nevada BatholithVolcanic Arc
USA
- Sierra NevadaMountain Range
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References
(n.d.) Minerals Availability System (MAS), U.S. Bureau of Mines.file ID #0060090677
