A complex group of Pb-Ag-F-Ba-V-Mo-Zn-Au-Cu (As-Se-Be-Sb) mines located in the SW ¼ sec. 24, T4S, R19W; the NW ¼ to SE ¼ secs. 25 & 36, T4S, R19W; the SW ¼ sec. 30 & NW ¼ sec. 31, T4S, R18W and the NE ¼ sec. 1, T5S, R19W (all protracted). The Castle Dome Mines group is comprised of several claims groups and individual mines with changing names, and owners or operators.
Owned at times, or in part, by Polhamus & Co., Miller & Nagel, Miller & Hopkins, Castle Dome Mining & Smelting Co., Gondolfo & Sangninetti, De Luce, Modesti, Castle Dome Mining & Milling Co., Van Wagner, Dome Exploration Co., Reorganized United Mines Co., Haack, Hull, Dome Leasing Co., Arizona Lead Co., Joplin Lead Co., Wall, and the Desert Lead Co.
Mineralization is argentiferous galena, superficially altered to anglesite, cerussite, and lead oxides, often banded with varicolored crystalline fluorite, barite, calcite, occassional gypsum, and minor quartz, in lensing veins along fault zones and splits cutting or along contacts of Mesozoic shale, slate and limestone, with swarms of intrusive diorite porphyry and quartz porphyry dikes and masses of probable Laramide age. Minor, local copper and zinc mineralization is often present and also locally some hydrozincite, smithsonite, wulfenite, vanadinite, and mimetite occur in vugs and solution channelways. The ores are in sheet-like masses, irregular vein-like bunches, and some solid masses and appear to have a limited depth of some 200 to 350 feet. Wall rocks have been altered to quartz and sericite with some chloritization and weak pyritization of the sedimentary beds. Veins and mineralization developed best where closely associated with diorite porphyry dikes.
Workings include open cuts and extensive stoping from numerous shafts. The main operations date from about 1863 and have continued on both large and small scales almost yearly through at least 1974. Total output is estimated at 106,000 tons of ore.
References
Blake (1880).
Blake, William P. (1881a), Vanadinite in Arizona, American Journal of Science: 22: 235.
Blake, William P. (1881b [1882]), On the occurrence of vanadates of lead at the Castle Dome mines in Arizona, American Journal of Science, 3rd series: 22: 410-411.
Nevius, J.N. (1912) The Castle Dome lead district, Arizona: Mining and Scientific Press: 104: 854-855.
Foshag, W.F. (1919), Famous mineral localities: Yuma County, Arizona, American Mineralogist: 4: 149-150.
Allen & Butler (1921)(which of several unspecified).
Thompson, A.P. (1925), The Castle Dome lead district of Yuma County, Arizona Mining Journal: 9(4): 5-6, 48-49.
Wilson, E.D. (1933) Geology and Mineral Deposits of Southern Yuma County, Arizona. Arizona Bureau of Mines Bulletin 134.
Burchard, E.F. (1934) Fluorspar deposits in western United States (with discussion), in Metal mining and nonmetallic minerals, 1934: American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, Transactions: 109: 370-396.
Holt, E.B. (1942) New production from Castle Dome district: Mining Journal: 26(7): 4-5.
Wilson, E.D., et al (1950), Arizona zinc & lead deposits, Part I, Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 156:
Wilson, E.D. (1951) Castle Dome district, Chap. X, in Arizona zinc and lead deposits, Part II: Arizona Bureau of Mines Bulletin no. 158, p. 98-115.
Galbraith, F.W. & D.J. Brennan (1959), Minerals of Arizona: 58.
Stewart, L.A. & A.J. Pfister (1960), Barite deposits of Arizona, US Bureau of Mines Report of Investigation 5651.
USGS & Arizona Bureau of Mines, and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (1969), Mineral and Water Resources of Arizona, Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 180 (USGS Bull.871): 200, 354.
Keith, Stanton B. (1978), State of Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology, Geol. Sur. Br. Bull. 192, Index of Mining Properties in Yuma County, Arizona: 118 (Table 4).
Anthony, J.W., et al (1995), Mineralogy of Arizona, 3rd. ed.: 129.
Arizona Bureau of Mines file data.
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