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Pontatoc Mine, Tucson area, Pima County, Arizona, USAi
Regional Level Types
Pontatoc MineMine
Tucson areaArea
Pima CountyCounty
ArizonaState
USACountry

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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
32° 19' 55'' North , 110° 53' 52'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
32.33222,-110.89778
GeoHash:
G#: 9t9pumysy
GRN:
N22W67
Type:
Mine
KΓΆppen climate type:
BSh : Hot semi-arid (steppe) climate
Nearest Settlements:
PlacePopulationDistance
Catalina Foothills50,796 (2011)4.3km
Oro Valley43,565 (2017)9.2km
Casas Adobes66,795 (2011)9.2km
Flowing Wells16,419 (2011)11.4km
Tucson531,641 (2017)12.6km
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
ClubLocationDistance
Old Pueblo Lapidary ClubTucson, Arizona13km
Tucson Gem and Mineral SocietyTucson, Arizona13km
Mindat Locality ID:
35539
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:35539:2
GUID (UUID V4):
04b0b131-e880-4383-996c-066ff6fb7a7a
Other/historical names associated with this locality:
Pontotoc Mine


A former small underground Cu-Ag-Au-Mo occurrence/mine located in the NEΒΌ sec. 3, T13S, R14E, G&SRM, at the South base of the Santa Catalina Mountains, in North Tucson. Discovered 1906. This mine was worked in 1907 and 1916-1917. Owned/operated at times, or in part, by the Ponotoc Copper Company, Ramsdell; and the Texas-Arizona Copper Company. Owned by George Wilson (1964). The USGS MRDS database stated accuracy for this locality is 500 meters.

Mineralization is a Cu-Mo deposit with relatively weak, spotty, and localized copper minerals and minor molybdenite as ore in a wide altered breccia zone along the Catalina foothill fault dividing Catalina Gneiss, a Laramide metamorphic, from Tertiary to Quaternary Pantano conglomerate beds. The ore zone strikes N60E and dips 27SE. Ore occurred in the fault zones wherever rock alteration is intense. Alteration included silicification, propylitization, sporadic dolomitization and epidote. Sulfides precipitated with quartz. Local rocks include Early Pleistocene to late Miocene basin deposits.

Assay revealed a maximum 10.3% Cu, average of 5% Cu. The dump assayed 2% Cu.

Local structures include a major E-trending fault zone and subsidiary faults; Santa Catalina Fault.

Workings include surface and underground openings comprised of a 20 foot winze, a 105 foot deep shaft sunk between 1907-1910; and a 125 foot (38.1 meters) deep new shaft sunk around 1918, plus a pit and tunnel operations. Workings were ultimately 38.1 meters deep and 38.1 meters long.

Production was a total of some 5,000 tons of hand-picked ore averaging about 4% Cu, 0.5 ounce Ag/ton and a trace of Au.

Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.


Mineral List


15 valid minerals.

Rock Types Recorded

Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!

Select Rock List Type

Alphabetical List Tree Diagram

Detailed Mineral List:

β“˜ Ankerite
Formula: Ca(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
β“˜ Bornite
Formula: Cu5FeS4
β“˜ Chalcocite
Formula: Cu2S
β“˜ Chalcopyrite
Formula: CuFeS2
Description: Occurs in gneiss associated with limestone.
β“˜ Chrysocolla
Formula: Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
β“˜ Covellite
Formula: CuS
β“˜ Epidote
Formula: (CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
β“˜ Gold
Formula: Au
β“˜ Hematite
Formula: Fe2O3
β“˜ Magnetite
Formula: Fe2+Fe3+2O4
Description: Occurs in an ore deposit in gneiss associated with limestone.
β“˜ Malachite
Formula: Cu2(CO3)(OH)2
β“˜ Molybdenite
Formula: MoS2
β“˜ Muscovite
Formula: KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
β“˜ Muscovite var. Sericite
Formula: KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
β“˜ Pyrite
Formula: FeS2
β“˜ Quartz
Formula: SiO2

Gallery:

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 1 - Elements
β“˜Gold1.AA.05Au
Group 2 - Sulphides and Sulfosalts
β“˜Chalcocite2.BA.05Cu2S
β“˜Bornite2.BA.15Cu5FeS4
β“˜Covellite2.CA.05aCuS
β“˜Chalcopyrite2.CB.10aCuFeS2
β“˜Molybdenite2.EA.30MoS2
β“˜Pyrite2.EB.05aFeS2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
β“˜Magnetite4.BB.05Fe2+Fe3+2O4
β“˜Hematite4.CB.05Fe2O3
β“˜Quartz4.DA.05SiO2
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
β“˜Ankerite5.AB.10Ca(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
β“˜Malachite5.BA.10Cu2(CO3)(OH)2
Group 9 - Silicates
β“˜Epidote9.BG.05a(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
β“˜Muscovite9.EC.15KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
β“˜var. Sericite9.EC.15KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
β“˜Chrysocolla9.ED.20Cu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 Β· nH2O, x < 1

List of minerals for each chemical element

HHydrogen
Hβ“˜ ChrysocollaCu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
Hβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Hβ“˜ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Hβ“˜ MuscoviteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Hβ“˜ Muscovite var. SericiteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
CCarbon
Cβ“˜ AnkeriteCa(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
Cβ“˜ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
OOxygen
Oβ“˜ AnkeriteCa(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
Oβ“˜ ChrysocollaCu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
Oβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Oβ“˜ HematiteFe2O3
Oβ“˜ MagnetiteFe2+Fe23+O4
Oβ“˜ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
Oβ“˜ MuscoviteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Oβ“˜ QuartzSiO2
Oβ“˜ Muscovite var. SericiteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
MgMagnesium
Mgβ“˜ AnkeriteCa(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
AlAluminium
Alβ“˜ ChrysocollaCu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
Alβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Alβ“˜ MuscoviteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Alβ“˜ Muscovite var. SericiteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
SiSilicon
Siβ“˜ ChrysocollaCu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
Siβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Siβ“˜ MuscoviteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Siβ“˜ QuartzSiO2
Siβ“˜ Muscovite var. SericiteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
SSulfur
Sβ“˜ BorniteCu5FeS4
Sβ“˜ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Sβ“˜ ChalcociteCu2S
Sβ“˜ CovelliteCuS
Sβ“˜ MolybdeniteMoS2
Sβ“˜ PyriteFeS2
KPotassium
Kβ“˜ MuscoviteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
Kβ“˜ Muscovite var. SericiteKAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2
CaCalcium
Caβ“˜ AnkeriteCa(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
Caβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
FeIron
Feβ“˜ AnkeriteCa(Fe2+,Mg)(CO3)2
Feβ“˜ BorniteCu5FeS4
Feβ“˜ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Feβ“˜ Epidote(CaCa)(AlAlFe3+)O[Si2O7][SiO4](OH)
Feβ“˜ HematiteFe2O3
Feβ“˜ MagnetiteFe2+Fe23+O4
Feβ“˜ PyriteFeS2
CuCopper
Cuβ“˜ BorniteCu5FeS4
Cuβ“˜ ChalcopyriteCuFeS2
Cuβ“˜ ChalcociteCu2S
Cuβ“˜ ChrysocollaCu2-xAlx(H2-xSi2O5)(OH)4 · nH2O, x < 1
Cuβ“˜ CovelliteCuS
Cuβ“˜ MalachiteCu2(CO3)(OH)2
MoMolybdenum
Moβ“˜ MolybdeniteMoS2
AuGold
Auβ“˜ GoldAu

Other Databases

Link to USGS MRDS:10039689

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

Mexico
North America
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

USGS MRDS ID #M050656.
tucsoncitizen.com (n.d.) http://tucsoncitizen.com/wryheat/2012/01/02/the-pontatoc-mine-in-a-north-tucson-neighborhood/?google_editors_picks=true
(n.d.)
Guild, F.N. (1910), The Mineralogy of Arizona, The Chemical Publishing Co., Easton, Pennsylvania.
Moore, B.N., et al (1941), Geology of the Tucson quadrangle, Arizona, USGS Open-file Report.
DuBois, R.L. (1959), Petrography and structures of a part of the gneissic complex of the Santa Catalina Mountains, Arizona, Arizona Geological Society, Southern Arizona Guidebook II: 117-127.
Fair, C.L. & Jinks, J.E. (1961), Santa Catalina foothills fault in the Pontotoc area, Arizona Geological Society Digest: 4: 131-133.
Wilson, E.D. (1961): 61-62.
Medhi, P.K. (1964) A geologic study of the Pontatoc mine area, Pima County, Arizona: Tucson, University of Arizona, M.S. thesis, 44 p.
Banks, N.G. (1974) Field Examination (Pontatoc Mine).
Keith, Stanton B. (1974), Arizona Bureau of Geology & Mineral Technology, Geological Survey Branch Bulletin 189, Index of Mining Properties in Pima County, Arizona: 113 (Table 4).
Anthony, John W., Williams, Sidney A., Bideaux, Richard A., Grant, Raymond W. (1995) Mineralogy of Arizona (3rd ed.) University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ.
U.S. Bureau of Mines (1995), Minerals Availability System/Mineral Industry Location System (MAS/MILS), U.S. Bureau of Mines, file ID #0040190364.
(2005) Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS), US Geological Survey.
DuHamel, Jonathan (2012), The Potatoc Mine in a north Tucson neighborhood, The Tucson Citizen, Wry Heat column, under geology (Jan 2, 2012).
(n.d.) ADMMR Mines Database, Arizona Geological Survey.
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