Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI42A10SE00056

Record: MDI42A10SE00056

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Gold

Secondary Commodities: Lead, Zinc, Copper

Location

Township or Area: Currie

Latitude: 48° 31' 54.8"    Longitude: -80° 36' 33.61"

UTM Zone: 17    Easting: 528841   Northing: 5375494    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Kirkland Lake

NTS Grid: 42A10SE

Point Location Description: shaft

Location Method: AMIS Site Visit

Access Description: Proceed 4.6km east of Shillington on highway 101. Take road south, 700m on the west side of Anderson Lake. The site is 600m east through bush.

Exploration History

1928: J. Anderson: prospecting, discovery of a spectacular gold within a 2 foot wide quartz vein. 1962: Leahy noted that pyrite occurs in sheared rock on which a 15 foot deep shaft was sunk.

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Abitibi

Terrane: Wawa-Abitibi

Belt: Abitibi

Tectonic Assemblage: Stoughton-Roquemaure

Geological Age: Mesoarchean  

Metamorphism Grade: Greenschist

Geology Comments

Dec 09, 2015 (R Degagne) - Geological mapping indicates that bedrock in the area consists of weakly metamorphosed (greenschist or lower metamorphic facies) subaqueously deposited volcanic rocks of the (Archean) Stoughton-Roquemaure Group which strike east northeast, dip steeply and face south. Bedrock stratigraphy in the occurrence area occupies part of the north limb of the east striking and east plunging Blake River Synclinorium. The occurrence is several thousand metres south of the interpreted position of the Porcupine-Destor Fault Zone.

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Dec 09, 2015 (R Degagne) - Intrusive rocks in the area include narrow (generally no wider than several tens of metres) north striking diabase dikes of the (Proterozoic) Matachewan swarm and irregularly developed porphyritic felsic dikes. Bedrock outcrop is scare; much of the area is mantled by locally thick and complex glaciolacustrine deposits. A recent geophysical survey of Currie Township (OGS 1984) failed to detect any significant bedrock conductors associated with the auriferous veins. Bedrock exposure near the occurrence is overgrown and poorly exposed, as shown by Leahy. The northern outcrop was largely overgrown and poorly exposed in June, 1985. Exposed on the western side of this outcrop is a medium grained Matachewan diabase dike (sample AB-85-23) which intrudes dark green, fine grained nonmagnetic basalt. Several badly overgrown shallow exploration pits and the overgrown and flooded 4.6 m deep shaft described by Leahy were located by the present writer. All pits and trenches on the northern outcrop appear to be developed in basalt containing less than 3% of disseminated blebby pyrite. The shaft is reported to have been blasted into an east striking shear associated with which are narrow pyritic quartz veins (of unspecified orientation) which are hosted by pyritic sheared 'greenstone'. This shaft was badly overgrown and water-filled and was not examined in 1985. The southern outcrop is well exposed and consists of fine grained grey-green nonmagnetic chloritic basalt (samples AB-85- 25, -26, -27, and -29), fine grained interflow sediment (sample AB-85-24), aphanitic to fine grained rusty weathering hornblende and plagioclase phyric felsic dike material (sample AB-85-28) of unknown orientation and a north striking Matachewan diabase dike. South of the trenches, basalts are pillowed and variably actinolitic.

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Dec 09, 2015 (R Degagne) - Sulfide and/or gold mineralization at the Anderson occurrence is associated with two sets of narrow milky white quartz-carbonate-epidote veinlets which are hosted by basalt near a hornblende and plagioclase phyric dike of unknown geometry or size. Both the basalt and the felsic dike are intruded by a Matachewan diabase dike near the veins. East striking veins also contain garnet and appear to have associated with them only scant sulfide mineralization. The spectacular gold which was reported to have been present at this occurrence apparently occurred as isolated pockets within an east striking vein. North striking quartz-calcite-epidote veins apparently do not contain garnet or have garnet associated with them and may be mineralized with pyrite, chalcopyrite, bornite, sphalerite and (possibly) galena. The relationship between the quartz-calcite-epidote veins and either the porphyritic felsic dike material or the Matachewan diabase dike is not known. Further prospecting near the occurrence will be difficult due to paucity of bedrock exposure and the presence of Matachewan diabase dikes (which may be delineated magnetically). Analyses*: Sample AB-85-24: <0.01 Au oz./t, 450 Cu ppm, 124 Pb ppm, 3180 Zn/ppm. Sample AB-85-25: <0.01 Au oz./t, 32 Cu ppm, <10 Pb ppm, 83 Zn/ppm. Sample AB-85-27: <0.01 Au oz./t 430 Cu ppm, 42 Pb ppm, 9100 Zn ppm. Sample AB-85-29: <0.01 Au oz./t 210 Cu ppm, <10 Pb ppm, 145 Zn/ppm. * All analyses performed by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Geoscience Laboratory, Ontario Geological Survey, Toronto.

Alteration Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (R Degagne) - Samples: AB-85-24: Outcrop chip from the discovery trench. Altered cherty argillite. Very fine grained banded sediment with a conchoidal fracture. Primary sedimentary laminations are contorted and are cut by irregularly developed quartz-garnet-epidote veinlets. Thin section viewing indicates that the sample has been incipiently sericitized, with very fine grained sericite defining an incipiently developed microscopic foliation. 3-5% of less than 1 mm size pyrite cubes and blebs are disseminated in the sample. Hairline fractures developed at an angle to the banding may have developed around then symmetric halos of white silicification. AB-85-28: Outcrop chip from an east striking trench exposing the feldspar porphyry. Grey, nonmagnetic, white feldspar phyric aphanitic dike material. White anhedral plagioclase phenocrysts are supported by a grey, aphanitic felsic matrix. Thin section viewing indicates that the dike has been pervasively sericitized, with the anhedral plagioclase phenocrysts displaying selective replacement by sericite. Mafic lath shaped phenocrysts are replaced by chlorite. The mafic minerals may have originally been hornblende.

Mineral Record Details

Mineral Zones - Size and Shape

Rank: 1       Structure Type: Shear

Site Visit Information

Date: Jan 10, 1997

Geologist: R Degagne

Notes: Production Statistics: A small amount of spectacular gold is reported to have been removed from a quartz vein.

References

Map - Currie and Bowman townships, Cochrane District

Publication Number: M2071 Scale: 1:31,680    Date: 1997

Author: Leahy E.J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Geological Compilation of the Lake Abitibi Area, Abitibi Greenstone Belt

Publication Number: P3398 Scale: 1:100,000    Date: 1999

Author: Ayer J.A., Berger B.R., Trowell N.F.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

MonoMap - Geology of Currie and Bowman townships, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: R040 Page: 14-15  Date: 1997

Author: Leahy E.J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Geological series, bedrock samples from the sonic drilling program 1987, Matheson area, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: P3114 Scale: 1:100,000    Date: 1989

Author: Johnstone R.M., Sutcliffe R.H., Steele K.G., Baker C.L., McClenaghan M.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Mono - Gold deposits of Ontario, part 1, districts of Algoma, Cochrane, Kenora, Rainy River, and Thunder Bay

Publication Number: MDC013 Page: 127  Date: 1971

Author: Ferguson S.A., Groen H.A., Haynes R.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines and Northern Affairs

Location:

Mono - Preliminary report on the Timmins-Kirkland Lake area, gold deposits file

Publication Number: OFR5467 Page: G0074  Date: 1983

Author: Hodgson C.J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Folio - Currie Township, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: GDIF270 Date: 1997

Author: Kirkland Lake RGO

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location: Kirkland Lake RGO

Map - Kirkland Lake data series, Currie Township, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: P0856 Scale: 1:15,840    Date: 1973

Author: Lovell H.L., de Grijs J.W.

Publisher Name: Ontario Division of Mines

Location:

Mono - Gneisses of the Parry Sound-Muskoka area: flagstone resources

Publication Number: OFR5725 Page: 24-30  Date: 1989

Author: Fouts C.R., Marmont C.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Map - Currie Township, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: P0204 Scale: 1:15,840    Date: 1997

Author: Leahy E.J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Thesis - Geology of the Stoughton-Roquemaure Group, Beatty and Munroe Townships, Northeastern Ontario

Publication Number: MSc Thesis Date: 1987

Author: Johnstone, R.M.

Publisher Name: Carleton University, Ottawa

Location: Kirkland Lake RGP Office

Map - Geophysical/geochemical series, Matheson-Black River area, Currie Township, airborne electromagnetic survey, total intensity magnetic survey, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: M80593 Scale: 1:20,000    Date: 1984

Author: Questor Surveys Ltd.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Part - German-Currie area, District of Cochrane

Publication Number: ARV40-03.001 Page: 21-22  Date: 1998

Author: Laird H.C.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

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For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Kirkland Lake Resident Geologist District Office