Vote for your favorite mineral in #MinCup26! - Cuprite vs. Orpiment
It's a fiery match of vibrant red Cuprite and just as saturated orange Orpiment battle for your votes!
Log InRegister
Quick Links : The Mindat ManualThe Rock H. Currier Digital LibraryMindat Newsletter [Free Download]
Home PageAbout MindatThe Mindat ManualHistory of MindatCopyright StatusWho We AreContact UsAdvertise on Mindat
Donate to MindatCorporate SponsorshipSponsor a PageSponsored PagesMindat AdvertisersAdvertise on Mindat
Learning CenterWhat is a mineral?The most common minerals on earthInformation for EducatorsMindat ArticlesThe ElementsThe Rock H. Currier Digital LibraryGeologic TimeExplore Fossils
Minerals by PropertiesMinerals by ChemistryMineral Visual ExplorerAdvanced Locality SearchRandom MineralRandom LocalitySearch by minIDLocalities Near MeSearch ArticlesSearch GlossaryMore Search Options
Search For:
Mineral Name:
Locality Name:
Keyword(s):
 
The Mindat ManualAdd a New PhotoRate PhotosLocality Edit ReportCoordinate Completion ReportAdd Glossary Item
Mining CompaniesStatisticsUsersMineral MuseumsClubs & OrganizationsMineral Shows & EventsThe Mindat DirectoryDevice SettingsThe Mineral QuizTime Machine
Photo SearchPhoto GalleriesSearch by ColorPhoto Colour ExplorerNew Photos TodayNew Photos YesterdayMembers' Photo GalleriesPast Photo of the Day GalleryPhotography

Contention Mine, Stanislaus, Tuolumne County, California, USAi
Regional Level Types
Contention MineMine
Stanislaus- not defined -
Tuolumne CountyCounty
CaliforniaState
USACountry

This page is currently not sponsored. Click here to sponsor this page.
PhotosMapsSearchMineralogy
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
38° 7' 11'' North , 120° 20' 26'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
38.11972,-120.34056
GRN:
N26W68
Type:
Mine
Köppen climate type:
Csb : Warm-summer Mediterranean climate
Nearest Settlements:
PlacePopulationDistance
Forest Meadows1,249 (2015)7.9km
Cedar Ridge1,132 (2011)8.2km
Avery646 (2011)9.8km
Columbia2,297 (2017)10.7km
Murphys2,213 (2015)10.7km
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
ClubLocationDistance
Calaveras Gem & Mineral SocietyAngels Camp, California18km
Mindat Locality ID:
97656
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:97656:6
GUID (UUID V4):
0


A former Cu-Au-Mo mine located in the NW¼ sec. 16 & sec. 17, T3N, R15E, MDM, 3.3 km (2.1 miles) SE of Stanislaus, on the S side of Knight Creek (on Contention Ridge, about 6½ miles NE of Columbia), on National Forest land. The claim contains 18 acres. Holdings are 182 acres (per Logan 1928). MRDS database stated accuracy for this location is 100 meters.

NOTE: Murdoch & Webb (1966) & Pemberton (1983) present the occurrence of the molybdenite, pyrite and quartz as an unspecified (unnamed) locality.

Local rocks include Mesozoic granitic rocks, unit 3 (Sierra Nevada, Death Valley area, Northern Mojave Desert and Transverse Ranges).

Workings include unspecified underground openings.

Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Mineral List


4 valid minerals.

Detailed Mineral List:

ⓘ Molybdenite
Formula: MoS2
ⓘ Native Gold
Formula: Au
ⓘ Pyrite
Formula: FeS2
ⓘ Quartz
Formula: SiO2
Description: Occurs as a vein.

Gallery:

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 1 - Elements
ⓘNative Gold1.AA.05Au
Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts
ⓘMolybdenite2.EA.30MoS2
ⓘPyrite2.EB.05aFeS2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘQuartz4.DA.05SiO2

List of minerals for each chemical element

OOxygen
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
SiSilicon
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
SSulfur
Sⓘ MolybdeniteMoS2
Sⓘ PyriteFeS2
FeIron
Feⓘ PyriteFeS2
MoMolybdenum
Moⓘ MolybdeniteMoS2
AuGold
Auⓘ Native GoldAu

Other Databases

Link to USGS MRDS:10111241

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate
USA

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.

References

(n.d.) Minerals Availability System (MAS), U.S. Bureau of Mines.file ID #0061090560
Turner, Henry Ward (1896), Further contributions to the geology of the Sierra Nevada: USGS, 17th. Annual Report, part 1: 707
Turner, Henry Ward, Ransome, F.L. (1898) Description of the gold belt; description of the Big Trees sheet, California. USGS Geologic Atlas, Big Trees folio (Folio No. 51). 8 pages.
Turner, Henry Ward (1898) Notes on rocks and minerals from California. American Journal of Science, 4th. Series: 5: 421-428.p.427
Logan, Clarence August (1928), Tuolumne County: California Mining Bureau. (Report 24): 24: 25.
Logan, Clarence August (1949), Mines and mineral resources of Tuolumne County, California: California Journal of Mines and Geology (Report 45): 45(1): 81, Pl. 8.
Murdoch, Joseph; Webb, Robert Wallace (1966) Minerals of California, Centennial Volume (1866-1966) - California Division of Mines and Geology, Bulletin 189. California Division of Mines and Geology. 559 pp.
Pemberton, H. Earl (1983) Minerals of California. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company Inc.
(2005) Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS), US Geological Survey.
Quick NavTopMineral ListOther DatabasesOther RegionsReferences
 
and/or  
Mindat.org® is an outreach project of the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Mindat® and mindat.org® are registered trademarks of the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy.
Copyright © mindat.org and the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy 1993-2026, except where stated. Most political location boundaries are © OpenStreetMap contributors. Mindat.org relies on the contributions of thousands of members and supporters. Founded in 2000 by Jolyon Ralph and Ida Chau.
Content on this site may not be used to train, fine-tune, or otherwise develop artificial intelligence or machine learning models without prior written permission - see our Terms & Conditions.
To cite: Ralph, J., Von Bargen, D., Martynov, P., Zhang, J., Que, X., Prabhu, A., Morrison, S. M., Li, W., Chen, W., & Ma, X. (2025). Mindat.org: The open access mineralogy database to accelerate data-intensive geoscience research. American Mineralogist, 110(6), 833–844. doi:10.2138/am-2024-9486.
Privacy Policy - Terms & Conditions - Contact Us / DMCA issues - Report a bug/vulnerability Current server date and time: September 5, 2026 13:37:52 Page updated: July 24, 2026 04:52:14
Go to top of page