Work History

The occurrence was first staked within a large block Anaconda claims in 1898 by W.A. Puckett. Beginning in 1953, E.M. Warren began restaking the occurrence as part of a large block of Zircon claims (claim #1 = 64182). The occurrence adjoins the Foot occurrence (Minfile Occurrence #105D 125) to the south.

McConnell (1909) reports of an adit having been driven by 1909. New Imperial Mines Ltd optioned the property in 1966, changed their name to Whitehorse Copper Mines Ltd in 1971, and amalgamated with Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Company Ltd in 1979.

In 1998 the claims were transferred to H. Coyne & Sons and combined with the Hat cl 1-40 (YB57537, etc) to the west, which had earlier been acquired through a partnership agreement with Norwest Enterprises Inc (Minfile Occurrence #105D 054).

Capsule Geology

The Anaconda occurrence consists of copper mineralization hosted by a bed of Lewes River Group skarnified limestone near its contact with a small body of mid-Cretaceous Whitehorse Plutonic Suite granite (Hart, 1997; Wheeler, 1961). Wheeler reports that copper mineralization is contained in 3.0-4.5 m wide, steeply, east-dipping tremolite bands which alternate with marble and garnet rich skarn bands. Bornite and chalcopyrite are most abundant in the tremolite bands located farthest from the granodiorite and some of the garnet rich skarn bands are also rich in sulphides. Kindle (1964) mapped a garnet rich skarn zone, near the now caved adit, exposed about 40 m west of the Alaska Highway at mile 919.7. McConnell (1909) reported that the westerly trending tunnel and several pits and trenches in the area did not intersect economic ore. A 1.22 m long channel sample collected across the skarn zone assayed; 0.342 g/t Au, and 6.39% Cu (Kindle, 1964). Other small skarn zones lie to the west and northwest within 50 m of the caved adit. Approximately 125 m southwest of the caved adit, in small open cut, a garnet rich skarn zone contains >5% magnetite and a little bornite. Approximately 15 m west of the cut, a 0.6 m wide wollastonite rich skarn band returned 1-2% bornite.

Early prospectors sunk two shafts, on a wollastonite rich skarn zone located 275 m northwest of the caved adit. The zone, located within 20 m of the granite contac,t is mineralized with bornite and lesser amounts of chalcopyrite. A representative dump sample collected by Kindle assayed; <200 ppb gold and 0.90% Cu.