Harquahala District, Harquahala Mts, La Paz Co., Arizona, USA

Ref.: Bancroft, H. (1911), Reconnaissance of the ore deposits in northern Yuma County, Arizona, USGS Bull. 451: 104-115.

Wilson, E.D., Cunningham, J.B., and Butler, G.M. (1934), Arizona Lode Gold Mines and Gold Mining (revised 1967), Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 137: 128-133.

Farnham, L.L. & L.A. Stewart (1958), Manganese deposits of western Arizona, US Bureau of Mines Information Circular 7843: 83-84.

Dale, V.B. (1959) Tungsten Deposits of Yuma, Maricopa, Pinal, and Graham Counties, Arizona. U.S. Bureau of Mines Report of Investigation 5516: 3-11.

Wilson, E.D. (1961) Gold Placers and Placering in Arizona. Arizona Bureau of Mines Bull. 168 (revised 1978):32.

Townsend, R.C. (1962) Stone in Arizona, an economic study: Phoenix, Arizona Development Board, 50 p., 1 sheet, scale 1:2,500,000: 18.

Funnell, J.E. & Wolfe, E.J. (1964), Compendium on nonmetallic minerals of Arizona. Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio: 191.

Harrer, C.M. (1964), Reconnaissance of Iron Resources in Arizona, US Bureau of Mines Information Circular 8236: 137.

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): 37.

Varga, R.J. (1976) Bureau sponsors geologic study in Harquahala Mountains: Fieldnotes [Arizona Bureau of Mines]: 6(2): 15.

Keith, Stanton B. (1978) State of Arizona Bureau of Geology and Mineral Technology, Geological Survey Branch Bull. 192, Index of Mining Properties in Yuma County, Arizona: 114 (Table 4): 151.

Arizona Bureau of Mines file data.

A Au-Ag-Pb-Cu-W-Fe-Mn-Zn-Ti, Gypsum, marble, quartzite mining area located in T4 & 5N, R10-13W, in the Harquahala and Little Harquahala Mountains.

Mineralization is variable: (1) Pockety & irregular deposits containing gold with variable amounts of Ag-Cu-Pb & Zn, associated with iron oxides and gypsum where oxidized and auriferous pyrite in depth, in brecciated, lenticular, quartz-jasper veins along faults and shear zones cutting tilted, folded, and faulted Paleozoic and possibly Mesozoic and Precambrian metamorphosed formations. Intrusions of laramide granitic bodies and aplitic and more basic dikes. Strong deformation; (2) Spotty, and mostly minor, tungsten mineralization associated with discontinuous quartz lenses and veins in altered granite and metamorphosed rocks; (3) Gold placer deposits, mainly in gulches in the Little Harquahala Mts, near the Bonanza (Harquahala) Mine; (4) Seams and irregular replacement bodies of manganese oxides, often associated with iron oxides, along fracture zones in metamorphosed Paleozoic or Mesozoic limestone; (5) Titaniferous magnetite sand in alluvium on southwest peneplain of the Little Harquahala Mts (T.4N., R.14W.); (6) Marble and quartzite deposits in metamorphosed Paleozoic formations; and, (7) An irregular, lensing, white, crystalline bed, 1 to 12 feet thick, of gypsum in folded Permian (?) limestone (SW¼ T.5N., R.11W.).

Workings include numerous large to small mines and prospects worked from shafts, tunnels, adits, and open cuts. Operations date back to the 1880's and continued intermittently to recent times. Totsal estimated and recorded production of precious and base metals would be some 160,000 tons of ore containing about 130,582 oz. Au, 89,500 oz. Ag, 45 tons of Cu, 61 tons Pb and minor Zn. About 615 oz. of placer gold with some silver was produced, mostly prior to 1900. Some 1,100 short ton units of tungsten oxide has been reported shipped from the district as well as a few lots of sorted 20% manganese ore. For many years marble and quartzite, mainly for crushed stone, has been quarried. The titaniferous magnetite sand has not been exploited. Some gypsum was produced for agricultural use.