History & Geology
Gangue Minerals - What Do They Tell Us?
January 2017 by Chris Ralph
There are a large number of different kinds of gangue minerals, and each of them has its own tale to contribute to the story of the chemistry and geology of a deposit.
The Miner’s Switchback
Common thought is the switchback slows the velocity of the rushing water and gold drops out from the cut bank to a fill gravel bar within or below the switchback. I am not going to disregard that model; however, I hope to improve upon it.
One Question, Forever Unanswered—Did He Really Find the Gold?
This was one of those stories where you have no doubt that the person telling it believes it to be true. But was it?
Benches and Fossil Placers
Unfortunately for us mortal humans, we have a poor perspective on geologic time. When we look at a landscape such as a stream valley, we see it only in two, or at the most, three dimensions. We have poor comprehension of the valley’s fourth and most important dimension—time.
Gold, Quartz & Chalcedony—Part II
The specific gravity of chalcedony is 2.58 to 2.64. This is slightly lower than coarsely crystalline quartz because of slight porosity in chalcedony. Being so light, it will easily wash out of a gold pan.
SS Central America Gives Up Millions in Gold Rush Era Gold
A treasure-seeking young man whose name will forever remain anonymous made the months-long journey either over land or by sailing ship to California after word spread about the gold strike in 1849.
Detecting for Gold in Australia—The Kimberley Trip
The hair stood up on the back of my neck when I saw this, especially the nice patches of wash in the bottoms of the gullies, a sure sign of an auriferous source being nearby.
The Rush to Treasure Hill
There were some exceptional times in the far-flung history of the West. Rich finds of minerals that set men’s souls ablaze. From the rich gold fields of California, men who arrived too late to find riches went searching in every direction. The trail that we will follow leads east, past the shining silver district of the Comstock Lode.
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The Bawl Mill
• Ask The Experts: Could you expand on your previous blasting article?
• Ask The Experts: Equipment to break up heavy clay
• Ask The Experts: “Energy” coming from black sand?
• Ask The Experts: Assay problem or recovery problem?
• Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Detecting Strategies for Heavily Forested Areas—Part II
• The Winning Hand
• Early Winter Detecting in the Sierras
• Mining Districts in Montana Get Organized
• Feds Deny Lease Renewals for Minnesota Mine
• Obama Administration Moves to Block Mining Near Yellowstone
• The Perfect Response
• MMAC Update
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
• Melman on Gold & Silver
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That First Nugget
