Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI31F06SW00014

Record: MDI31F06SW00014

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Beryl (Gemstones), Mineral Specimen

Secondary Commodities: Feldspar (Gemstones), Fluorite, Rare Earth Elements, Silica, Thorium, Uranium, Zircon

Location

Township or Area: Lyndoch

Latitude: 45° 19' 55.04"    Longitude: -77° 23' 23.76"

UTM Zone: 18    Easting: 312728   Northing: 5022606    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Southern Ontario

NTS Grid: 31F06SW

Point Location Description: Pit

Location Method: AMIS Site Visit

Access Description: From Kauffeldt's store in Quadeville, drive north 2.1km on Letterkenny road past the 515 turn parking near access road on right side. Marked by white explanatory sign for the beryl pit. This is an active "fee-for-entry" mineral collecting site.

Exploration History

1897: Miller discovered beryl on this property. 1926-27: T.B. Caldwell carried out production. 1931-32: Madawaska Syndicate completed exploration. 1935-36: Renfrew Minerals Limited continued development work. 1939: Canadian Beryllium Mines and Alloys Limited developed and operated the deposit for beryl and feldspar. 1981-1993: Wal-Gem Lapidary Company operated the quarry for mineral specimens and collecting-for-a-fee by rockhounds. 1993: Aqua Rose Gems and Minerals: operating the quarry for mineral specimens and as a fee-for-collecting site.

Geology

Province: Grenville

Subprovince: Central Metasedimentary Belt

Geological Age: Mesoproterozoic  

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Jul 15, 2011 (A Wilson) - The deposit consists of a pegmatite dike of medium- to coarse-texture ranging from 16 to 32 feet in width which intrudes a granite gneiss. The dike appears to be nearly vertical and strikes approximately 56°N. The wall zone of the dike is comprised of albite-quartz-perthite. The core of the dike at the eastern end is comprised of quartz-albite-biotite micro pegmatite. Beryl crystals are found along the south side and east end of the core. The west and central part of the core contains a small core of quartz surrounded by microcline-perthite intermediate zone and a quartz-cleavelandite-tourmaline replacement zone. Beryl is found on the south side of the quartz-cleavelandite-tourmaline replacement zone.

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Jul 15, 2011 (A Wilson) - The dike is composed chiefly of quartz, microcline (some amazonite) and albite (mostly cleavelandite) with subordinate tourmaline and mica. The beryl was found in a zone that was 95 feet long and from 3 to 10 feet in width. The beryl varied from ¼ inch to 1-4 inches in diameter. In 1943 it was estimated that the beryl rich area had 78 tons per vertical foot of beryl (1.24% beryl) or 0.130% BeO for an estimated 0.936 tons per vertical foot. A 250-pound sample collected from the ore bin in 1941 returned 6.82% beryl. Samples of beryl collected in 1943, were analyzed and returned BeO values ranging from 0.90-1.37% BeO. Grab samples (Hewitt) of beryl from this site returned: Sample 1:14.38% BeO, 64.40% SiO2, 18.08% Al2O3, 0.97% Fe2O3, 0.18% CaO, 0.33% MgO, 0.04% MnO, 0.18% K2O, 0.18% Li2O, and 0.35% Na2O. Sample No. 2 analysed 13.41% BeO, 64.34% SiO2, 16.82% Al2O3, 1.16% Fe2O3. A chip sample taken across an 8 foot section of the dyke by the GSC assayed: 0.1% Ce, 0.05% La, 0.1% Th and 0.04% Y. A picked sample of lyndochite assayed >10% each Nb and Ti. A chemical analysis on lyndochite by H.V. Ellsworth of the GSC gave a content of 4.34% (Ce, La, Di)2O3, 18.22% (Yt,Er)2O3, 41.43% Nb2O5, 3.84% Ta2O5, and 4.95% ThO2.. A grab sample of columbite from this site returned: 11.14%FeO, 0.03% CuO, 10.22% MnO, 0.92% SnO2, 75.75% Ta2O5, 2.00% REE. A second sample of columbite from this site returned: 1.28% SiO2, 5.19% TiO2, 10.9%FeO, 0.15% CaO, 10.24% MnO, 0.56% SnO2, 55.79% Cb2O5, 15.21% Ta2O5, 9.82% REE.

Dec 07, 2005 (D Laidlaw) - ALSO PRESENT: AMAZONITE, PERISTERITE.

Mineral Record Details

Site Visit Information

Date: Jan 27, 2005

Geologist: C Papertzian

Notes: The deposit is described as a pegmatite dyke striking N 60 degrees E with a variable southerly dip contains beryl. In 1939 it was traced for 245 feet along strike and appeared to have pinched out both to the east and to the west. The average width appeared to be about 30 feet. Along the north face of the cut, the depth to the bottom of the pit is 20 to 25 feet; along the south face, the depth is 6 to 15 feet. The width of the cut from rim to rim is 40 to 45 feet. The floor of the cut is relatively level and measures 210 feet in length. A 120 feet from the west end of the cut, the south wall has been breached, and there is a cut 20 feet wide and 90 feet long running southward. Tracks at one time were laid in this cut and provided access for small ore cars. This cut is 12 feet below the main workings and is filled with water. (from D. F. Hewitt, 1953, p.37) . The pegmatite is composed of pink microcline and some green amazonite, with albite and about 10% white and pale rose quartz. Some of the accessory minerals include tourmaline, fluorite, magnetite, apatite, anatase, pyrite, columbite, lyndochite, cyrtolite, monazite, allanite, a few red garnets. Beryl is not evenly distributed; most of it occurs in two irregular bands. The beryl-bearing pegmatite dyke is on the south slope of Casey Hill, a prominent northeastward trending ridge of granite and hybrid gneiss. This is now a collecting site - The pit and dumps were visited on August 5, 2004. The dumps had been reworked for clients to collect minerals. The pit was clean of debris and beryl could be seen in a number of places.

Date: Jul 11, 2006

Geologist: D Laidlaw

Notes: July 11, 2006, RG and DG visited pit where recent blasting work had exposed a zone of apatite and tourmaline mineralization. The pit was GPS'd and photographed, location of pit is zone 18, easting 312655, northing 5022585 +/- 6m. This location is still used as a fee-to-collect mineral site.

References

MonoMap - Summary of metallogeny, Renfrew County area

Publication Number: R212 Page: 2, 47  Date: 1983

Author: Lumbers S.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Part - Mineral occurrences in the Renfrew area

Publication Number: ARV53-03 Page: 20-22  Date: 1998

Author: Satterly J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Part - Geology of the Brudenell-Raglan area

Publication Number: ARV62-05 Page: 36-42  Date: 1998

Author: Hewitt D.F., Carlson H.D.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Mono - Pegmatite mineral resources of Ontario

Publication Number: IMR021 Page: 40-44  Date: 1997

Author: Hewitt D.F.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

MonoMap - Radioactive mineral deposits of the Pembroke-Renfrew area

Publication Number: MDC023 Page: 88-90, 91  Date: 1981

Author: Masson S.L., Gordon J.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

MonoMap - Industrial minerals of the Pembroke-Renfrew area, part 2

Publication Number: MDC022 Page: 117-181, 183, 200  Date: 1981

Author: Storey C.C., Vos M.A.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

MonoMap - Industrial minerals of the Algonquin region

Publication Number: OFR5425 Page: 1, 16, 87, 94, 250,  Date: 1983

Author: Martin W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Mono - Granitic pegmatites of the Bancroft area, southeastern Ontario

Publication Number: OFR5717 Page: 141  Date: 1990

Author: Goad B.E.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Part - Economic geology of eastern Ontario, corundum and other minerals

Publication Number: ARV07-03.001 Page: 235  Date: 1998

Author: Miller W.G., Goodwin W.L.

Publisher Name: Ontario Bureau of Mines

Location:

Part - Statistical review of Ontario's mineral industry in 1931

Publication Number: ARV41-01.001 Page: 29  Date: 1997

Author: Rogers W.R., Young A.C.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Brudenell-Raglan area, County of Renfrew, Ontario

Publication Number: M1953-02 Scale: 1:63,360    Date: 1997

Author: Hewitt D.F.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Publication - Rare earths of the Grenville Sub-province, Ontario and Quebec; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 59-10

Publication Number: Paper 59-10 Page: 25  Date: 1960

Author: Rose, E.R.

Publisher Name: Geological Survey of Canada

Location: https://doi.org/10.4095/101254

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For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Southern Ontario Resident Geologist District Office