Mine detail: Cherry Hill Deposit

Previously called 'Gold MountainBuckeyeCeriseCentralWest EndIn BetweenEmpireManzanitaMontezumaWide Awake'

<< Back to the map

<< Back to browsing

Location: Colusa County, California, United States, North America
Lat / long: 39.03451, -122.42937
dep_id: 10310602
Commodity type: metallic and nonmetallic
Major mineral: Mercury, Gold
Minor mineral: Silver
Trace mineral: Antimony, Arsenic, Sulfur, Thallium
Operation type: Surface-Underground
Deposit type: Hot Spring
Development status: Past Producer
ore: Electrum, Cinnabar, Miargyrite, Pyrargyrite
gangue: Quartz, Chalcedony, Opal, Adularia, Magnesite, Dolomite, Pyrite, Pyrrhotite, Marcasite
orebody_fm: Irregular
model: 104: Hot-spring Au-Ag
alteration: Gold mineralization occurred during alternating periods of carbonate-dominant and silica-dominant fluids (Nelson and others, 1993). Fluid-inclusion studies by Pearcy and Petersen (1990) indicated a steady decrease in temperature through the paragenetic sequence from 190 to 100?C. They concluded that the hot-springs currently depositing gold and mercury reflect the waning stages of the hydrothermal system. They resolved twelve stages of vein mineralization and three major wall-rock alteration events as follows (minerals listed are for wall-rock alteration): Stage I: adularization; adularia, sericite, chalcedony, pyrrhotite Stages II-XI: silicic-carbonate; dolomite Stage XII: argillic; smectite-illite, pyrite, marcasite, cinnabar; at least 150-180 meters deep advanced argillic; allophane, gypsum, native sulfur, jarosite Wall-rock alteration in stages I and XII was strong, while alteration in stages II-XI was weak. Gold mineralization occurred during stages V, VI, and IX; cinnabar in Stages VII, XI, and XII; and iron sulfides are found in veinlets in every stage with one exception. In stage XII, pyrite occurs in the wallrock but not in the veinlets. Alteration began at about 0.56 ? 0.14 Ma (K-Ar, adularia), corresponding to Clear Lake volcanism. The mudstone, hardened by adularization and silicification, became dark, chert-like, and brittle. Subsequent deformation resulted in a meshwork of fractures in which gold mineralization occurred.
conc_proc: Open-space filling
ore_ctrl: The Cherry Hill and nearby West End ore bodies are truncated on the east and west by subparallel NW-trending faults. These faults are subparallel to the Resort Springs Fault, the Wilbur Springs antiform, and the dominant regional grain, and generally show reverse, dextral slip. A conjugate NE-trending system of discontinuous, dip-slip faults, including the Abbott-Coyote Peak fault zone, forms a locally important ore control, especially at the Cherry Hill deposit where this system intersects the NW-trending faults. Within the deposit, the gold mineralization is present in veinlets that fill small fractures in the host rock.
Reporter: Fuller, Michael S. (Higgins, Chris T.), Schruben, Paul G.
hrock_unit: Stony Creek Formation (Great Valley Sequence)
hrock_type: Mudstone,Siltstone,Sandstone,Serpentinite
Structure: Abbott-Coyote Peak Fault Zone, Resort Fault, Wilbur Springs Antiform (Structure), Stony Creek Fault
tectonic: Collision transform fault
disc_yr: 1863
References:
  • Deposit:: Atwater, T., 1970, Implications of plate tectonics for the Cenozoic tectonic evolution of western North America: Geologic Society of America Bulletin, v. 81, no. 12, p. 3513-3536.
  • Deposit:: Atwater, T., 1989, Plate tectonic history of the northeast Pacific and western North America, in Winterer, E.L. and others, editors, The eastern Pacific Ocean and Hawaii: Geological Society of America, The Geology of North America, Vol. N, p. 21-72.
  • Deposit:: Bailey, E.H. and others, 1964, Franciscan and related rocks and their significance in the geology of western California: California Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin 183, 177 p.
  • Deposit:: Berger, B.R., 1986, Descriptive model of hot-spring Au-Ag, in Cox, D.P. and Singer, D.A., editors, Mineral deposit models: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1693, p. 143-144.
  • Deposit:: Boalich, E.S., 1921, Mines and mineral resources, Colusa County: California State Mining Bureau Eighteenth Report of the State Mineralogist, v. 17, p. 43-47.
  • Deposit:: Bradley, W.W., 1916, The counties of Colusa, Glenn, Lake, Marin, Napa, Solano, Sonoma, Yolo: California State Mining Bureau 14th Report of the State Mineralogist, p. 173-370.
  • Deposit:: Carlson, C., 1981a, Sedimentary serpentinites of the Wilbur Springs area -a possible Early Cretaceous structural and stratigraphic link between the Franciscan Complex and the Great Valley Sequence: Maste* thesis, Stanford University, 105p.
  • Deposit:: Carlson, C., 1981b, Upwardly mobile melanges, serpentinite protrusions, and transport of tectonic blocks in accretionary prisms: Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 13, no. 2, p. 48.
  • Deposit:: Carlson, C., 1984a, Depositional environments and sedimentary facies of foliate serpentinite breccias, Wilbur Springs, in Carlson, C., editor, Depositional facies of sedimentary serpentinite: Selected examples from the Coast Ranges, California: Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists Field Trip Guidebook No. 3, Tulsa, Oklahoma, p. 113-116.
  • Deposit:: Carlson, C., 1984b, Stratigraphic and structural significance of foliate serpentinite breccias, Wilbur Springs, in Carlson, C., editor, Depositional facies of sedimentary serpentinite: Selected examples from the Coast Ranges, California: Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists Field Trip Guidebook No. 3, Tulsa, Oklahoma, p. 108-112.
  • Deposit:: Chapman, R.H. and others, 1982, Gravity, structure, and geothermal resources of the Calistoga area, Napa and Sonoma counties: California Geology, v. 35, no. 8, p. 175-183.
  • Deposit:: Dickinson, W.R., 1981, Plate tectonics and the continental margin of California, in Ernst, W.G., editor, The geotectonic development of California (Rubey volume 1), Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, p. 1-28.
  • Deposit:: Dickinson, W.R., 1997, Tectonic implications of Cenozoic volcanism in coastal California: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 109, p. 936-954.
  • Deposit:: Donnelly-Nolan, J.M. and others, 1993, The Geysers-Clear Lake area, California: Thermal waters, mineralization, volcanism, and geothermal potential: Economic Geology, v. 88, p. 301-316.
  • Deposit:: Enderlin, D.A., 1993, Epithermal precious metal deposits of the Calistoga mining district, Napa County, California, in Rytuba, J.J., editor, Active geothermal systems and gold-mercury deposits in the Sonoma-Clear Lake volcanic fields, California: Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series, v. 16, p. 52-76.
  • Deposit:: Forstner, W., 1903, The quicksilver resources of California: California State Mining Bureau Bulletin 27, p. 81-89.
  • Deposit:: Fox, K.F., Jr., 1983, Tectonic setting of Late Miocene, Pliocene, and Pleistocene rocks in part of the Coast Ranges north of San Francisco, California: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1239, 33 p.
  • Deposit:: Fryer, P., 1992, Volcanoes of the Marianas: Scientific American, v. 266, no. 2, p. 46-52.
  • Deposit:: Fryer, P. and others, 1999, Mariana blueschist mud volcanism: Implications for conditions within the subduction zone: Geology, v. 27, p. 103-106.
  • Deposit:: Griscom, A. and others, 1993, Regional geophysical setting of gold deposits in the Clear Lake region, California, in Rytuba, J.J., editor, Active geothermal systems and gold-mercury deposits in the Sonoma-Clear Lake volcanic fields, California: Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series, v. 16, p. 289-310.
  • Deposit:: Harms, T.A. and others, 1992, Kinematic evidence for extensional unroofing of the Franciscan Complex along the Coast Range Fault, northern Diablo Range, California: Tectonics, v. 11, no. 2, p. 228-241.
  • Deposit:: Hearn, B.C., Jr., and others, 1988, Tectonic framework of the Clear Lake basin, California: Geological Society of America Special Paper 214, p. 9-20.
  • Deposit:: Hopson, C.A. and others, 1981, Coast Range ophiolite, western California, in Ernst, W.G., editor, The geotectonic development of California: Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, p. 418-510.
  • Deposit:: Irelan, W., Jr., 1888, Colusa County: California State Mining Bureau Eighth Report of the State Mineralogist, v. 8, p. 157-159.
  • Deposit:: Jayko, A.S. and others, 1987, Attenuation of the Coast Range Ophiolite by extensional faulting, and nature of the Coast Range ?Thrust?, California: Tectonics, v. 6, no. 4, p. 475-488.
  • Deposit:: Jennings, C. W., 1994, Fault activity map of California and adjacent areas with locations and ages of recent volcanic eruptions: California Division of Mines and Geology, Geologic Data Map No. 6, scale 1:750,000.
  • Deposit:: Lawton, J.E., 1956, Geology of the north one-half of the Morgan Valley quadrangle and the south one-half of the Wilbur Springs quadrangle, California: Stanford University, Ph.D. dissertation, 223 p.
  • Deposit:: Logan, C.A., 1929, Colusa County, Sulphur Creek District: California Division of Mines and Mining Report 25, p. 288-290.
  • Deposit:: McLaughlin, R.J. and others, 1980, Structure of Late Mesozoic rocks in the core of the Wilbur Springs Antiform, northern Coast Ranges, California: Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 12, no. 3 , p. 119.
  • Deposit:: McLaughlin, R.J. and others, 1989, Geologic map and structure sections of the Little Indian Valley-Wilbur Springs Geothermal Area, Northern Coast Ranges, California: U. S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-1706, scale 1:24,000.
  • Deposit:: McLaughlin, R.J. and others, 1990, Geologic map and structure sections of the Little Indian Valley-Wilbur Springs geothermal area, northern Coast Ranges, California: U. S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-1706, scale 1:24,000.
  • Deposit:: Moisseeff, A., 1966, The geology and geochemistry of the Wilbur Springs quicksilver district, Colusa and Lake counties, California: Stanford University, Ph.D. dissertation, 214 p.
  • Deposit:: Namson, J.S. and Davis, T.L., 1988, Seismically active fold and thrust belt in the San Joaquin Valley, California: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 100, no. 2, p. 257-273.
  • Deposit:: Nelson, C.E., 1987, Gold deposits in the hot springs environment, in Schafer, R.W. and others, editors, Bulk mineable precious metal deposits of the western United States: Symposium Proceedings of the Geological Society of Nevada, p. 417-432.
  • Deposit:: Nelson, G.C. and others, 1993, Gold and mercury deposits in the Sulphur Creek district, California, in Rytuba, J.J., editor, Active geothermal systems and gold-mercury deposits in the Sonoma-Clear Lake volcanic fields, California: Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series, v. 16, p. 262-269.
  • Deposit:: Northey, G.V., 1913, Concentration of cinnabar ores: Engineering and Mining Journal, v. 96, no. 17, p. 783-784.
  • Deposit:: Pearcy, E.C. and Petersen, U., 1990, Mineralogy, geochemistry and alteration of the Cherry Hill, California, hot-spring gold deposit: Journal of Geochemical Exploration, v. 36, p. 143-169.
  • Deposit:: Peters, E.K., 1991, Gold-bearing hot spring systems of the northern Coast Ranges, California: Economic Geology, v. 86, p. 1519-1528.
  • Deposit:: Phipps, S.P., 1992, Late Cenozoic wedging and blind thrusting beneath the Sacramento Valley and eastern Coast Ranges, in Erskine, M.C. and others, editors, Field guide to the tectonics of the boundary between the California Coast Ranges and the Great Valley of California: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Pacific Section, p. 63-84.
  • Deposit:: Phipps, S.P. and Unruh, J.R., 1992, Crustal-scale wedging beneath an imbricate roof-thrust system: Geology of a transect across the western Sacramento Valley and northern Coast Ranges, California, in Erskine, M.C. and others, editors, Field guide to the tectonics of the boundary between the California Coast Ranges and the Great Valley of California: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Pacific Section, p. 117-140.
  • Deposit:: Platt, J.P., 1986, Dynamics of orogenic wedges and the uplift of high-pressure metamorphic rocks: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 97, no. 9, p. 1037-1053.
  • Deposit:: Ransome, A.L. and Kellogg, J.L., 1939, Quicksilver resources of California: California Journal of Mines and Geology, v. 35, p. 353-486.
  • Deposit:: Rich, E.I., 1971, Geologic map of the Wilbur Springs Quadrangle, Colusa and Lake counties, California: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Geologic Investigations Map I-538, scale 1:48,000.
  • Deposit:: Ring, U. and Brandon, M.T., 1994, Kinematic data for the Coast Range Fault and implications for exhumation of the Franciscan subduction complex: Geology, v. 22, no. 8, p. 735-738.
  • Deposit:: Rytuba, J.J., 1993, Epithermal precious-metal and mercury deposits in the Sonoma and Clear Lake volcanic fields, California, in Rytuba, J.J., editor, Active geothermal systems and gold-mercury deposits in the Sonoma-Clear Lake volcanic fields, California: Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series, v. 16, p. 38-51.
  • Deposit:: Sherlock, R.L. and others, 1995, Origin of the McLaughlin Mine sheeted vein complex: Metal zoning, fluid inclusion, and isotopic evidence: Economic Geology, v. 90, p. 2156-2181.
  • Deposit:: Stanley, W.D. and others, 1997, Tectonic controls on magmatism and geothermal resources in the Geyers-Clear Lake region, California: Integration of new geologic, earthquake tomography, seismicity, gravity, and magnetotelluric data: U. S. Geological Survey Open File Report 97-95, 40p.
  • Deposit:: Thompson, J.M., 1993, Chemical and isotopic constituents in the hot springs along Sulphur Creek, Colusa County, California, in Rytuba, J.J., editor, Active geothermal systems and gold-mercury deposits in the Sonoma-Clear Lake volcanic fields, California: Society of Economic Geologists Guidebook Series, v. 16, p. 190-206.
  • Deposit:: Thorkelson, D.J. and Taylor, R.P., 1989, Cordilleran slab windows: Geology, v. 17, no. 9, p. 833-836.
  • Deposit:: Vredenburgh, L.M., 1982, Tertiary gold bearing mercury deposits of the Coast Ranges of California: California Geology, v. 35, no. 2, p. 23-27.
  • Deposit:: Wakabayashi, J. and Unruh, J.R., 1995, Tectonic wedging, blueschist metamorphism, and exposure of blueschists: Are they compatible?: Geology, v. 23, no. 1, p 85-88.
  • Deposit:: Whitney, J.D., 1865, Geology - Report of progress and synopsis of the field work from 1860 to 1864: Geological Survey of California, Volume 1, 498 p.
  • Deposit:: Wilcox, R.E., 1978, Report on the geology of Cherry Hill: Homestake Mining Company unpublished report, 30 p.
  • Deposit:: Miscellaneous field reports on Manzanita Mine (File Number 332-0899, CDMG Mineral Resources Files, Sacramento). Also see References 16124 and 16532 for the Cherry Hill Mine in the Anaconda collection at the University of Wyoming.
© 2010-2018 Lee C. Baker unless noted. All rights reserved.