Cub Creek Mine, Fairhaven District, Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska, USA

Stream gradient 50 to 75 feet per mile.
Location: The Cub Creek placer mine is along lower Cub Creek, a tributary to Bear Creek. The map site is in section 6, T. 1 N., R. 11 W., of the Kateel River Meridian. Cobb, 1972 (MF-389), location 31.
Geology: Bedrock in the general area of the Cub Creek mine includes syenite of the Late Cretaceous Granite Mountain pluton, and, in the lower portion of the creek, Jurassic-Cretaceous andesite and greenstone. Creek boulders are largely syenite, monzonite, or diorite. The deposit is a gold placer; gold is distributed through 2 feet of gravel overlying bedrock. The gold is fine and flaky and assays $19.20 per ounce (gold at $20.67/ounce) (Harrington, 1919). Concentrates contain a little pyrite and abundant magnetite (Moffit, 1905). Gault and others (1953) found uranothorianite in the placer concentrates on Cub Creek and its headwaters.
Workings: Some prospecting cuts were made in 1964, but there was no mining at that time.
Age: Quaternary.

Commodities (Major) - Au; (Minor) - Radioactive minerals
Development Status: Yes; small
Deposit Model: Placer Au-PGE (Cox and Singer, 1986; model 39a).

References:
Cass, J.T., 1959, Reconnaissance geologic map of the Candle quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-287, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Cobb, E.H., 1972, Metallic mineral resources map of the Candle Quadrangle, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-389, 1 sheet, scale 1:250,000. Cobb, E.H., 1973, Placer deposits of Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 1374, 213 p. Cobb, E.H., 1976, Summary of references to mineral occurrences (other than mineral fuels and construction materials) in the Candle, Holy Cross, Norton Bay, Nulato, and Unalakleet quadrangles, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 76-866, 102 p. Gault, H.R., Killeen, P.L., West, W.S., and others, 1953, Reconnaissance for radioactive deposits in the northeastern part of the Seward Peninsula, Alaska, 1945-47 and 1951: U.S. Geological Survey Circular 250, 31 p. Harrington, G.L., 1919, The gold and platinum placers of the Kiwalik-Koyuk region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 692-G, p. 369-400. Henshaw, F.F., 1909, Mining in the Fairhaven precinct: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 379-F, p. 355-369. Herreid, G.H., 1965, Geology of the Bear Creek area, Seward Peninsula, Candle quadrangle, Alaska: Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys Geological Report 12, 16 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:40,000. Moffit, F.H., 1904, The Kotzebue placer gold field of Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 225, p. 74-80. Moffit, F.H., 1905, The Fairhaven gold placers, Seward Peninsula, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 247, 85 p. Smith, P.S., and Eakin, H.M., 1910, Mineral resources of the Nulato-Council region: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 442-H, p. 316-352. Smith, P.S., and Eakin, H.M., 1911, A geologic reconnaissance in southeastern Seward Peninsula, and the Norton Bay-Nulato region, Alaska: U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 449, 146 p.