Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI42D15SW00042

Record: MDI42D15SW00042

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Copper, Zinc

Secondary Commodities: Gold, Silver

Location

Township or Area: Tuuri

Latitude: 48° 50' 13.63"    Longitude: -86° 46' 13.27"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 516851.7   Northing: 5409374.74    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay South

NTS Grid: 42D15SW

Point Location Description: Pit

Location Method: Conversion from MDI

Access Description: The occurrence is located in Tuuri Township approximately 325 m west of the Prairie River, 3.5 km north of Highway 17 (Claim TB 535364, Claim Map G-635, Tuuri Township). It is about 0.9 km west of the Marlhill Prospect showings. Access may be gained using a road/trail which extends north from Highway 17 at a point about 34 km by road east of Terrace Bay. The road follows the western shore of the river and is passable by vehicle for 1.5 km, after which an off-road vehicle must be used. The showing is located about 20 m west of the road.

Exploration History

1889: P. McKellar carried out prospecting, trenching and tunnelling. 1954: Marlhill Mines Ltd. carried out an EM geophysical survey. 1955: Marlhill Mines Ltd. carried out geological mapping and diamond drilling (3 holes totalling 311.8 m). 1965: T. Page conducted a property examination for K. Sperle. 1970: Unspecified work was done by Fin-Lan Copper Mines Ltd. 1981: Canadian Nickel Co. Ltd. carried out ground geophysical surveys (MAG, EM), geological mapping, lithogeochemical sampling and diamond drilling. 1981-1984: Diamond drilling (amount unknown). 1986: Tri-Minex/Metallgesellschaft carried out a geophysical survey (UTEM). Weak conductors were identified. 1988: Noranda Exploration Company Ltd., Cumberland Resources Ltd. and Redfern Resources Ltd. carried out geological mapping, geochemical and geophysical surveys. 1989: Noranda Exploration Company Ltd., Cumberland Resources Ltd. and Redfern Resources Ltd. carried out prospecting, geological mapping, lithogeochemical sampling and diamond drilling (3 holes totalling 812 m). 1990: Noranda Exploration Company Ltd. drilled 8 DDH totalling 2309.5 m. 1995: B. Fowler and m. Shuman carried out prospecting and sampling. 1999: Major General Resources Ltd. carried out prospecting, geological mapping and an EM survey. 2002: RJK Explorations Ltd. and GLR Resources Inc. drilled 1 DDH totalling 253.57 m.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Wawa

Terrane: Wawa-Abitibi

Belt: Schreiber-Hemlo

Geological Age: Archean  

Geology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - Hinzer (1984, assessment files) describes the geology of the area: The claim group lies within the eastern end of the Schreiber greenstone belt and is underlain by basic to felsic metavolcanic tuffs and metasediments. The rocks are strongly sheared in an east west direction and contain numerous north-south faults. The greenstone belt appears to be a steeply north to vertically dipping south facing homoclinal sequence. The Foxtrap-Glorylake batholith (1 km to the north) has strongly influenced the local structure and metamorphic grade. The stratigraphy is younging to the south, with sediments containing local iron formations capping a westward thickening volcanic pile. Numerous graphitic, ferruginous chert and sulphide iron formations allow good stratigraphic correlation. Numerous north-bearing faults can be projected from both geological and geophysical data, many other minor faults are also indicated. Rapid lateral facies changes from east to west especially around Goldbar Lake, a single mafic to felsic to sedimentary cycle is present on the property. West of Goldbar Lake two felsic to mafic cycles are present, and the felsic-sedimentary contact is interbedded with several iron formation zones. Folding is not readily observed. A major fold axis has been postulated passing through the north end of Goldbar Lake centered on the quartz-sericite schists and several amphibolite zones. Four major showings containing ore to sub-ore grade Cu, Zn, Pb or Ag mineralization are present on this property. The Prairie West showing is considered (by Schnieders et al., 1996) to be the western extension of the Marlhill (Prospect). Quartz-chlorite schists host Cu-Zn mineralization in a shear zone.

Lithology

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - Robertson (1955, assessment files) describes local mineralization: Widely disseminated pyrite is common in the volcanics and sediments. In the iron formation, concentrations of pyrite with marcasite, and local magnetite, are present. This type of mineralization was investigated in vain by earlier workers in search of gold as evidenced by their trenches, pits and tunnels. Less commonly, minor amounts of chalcopyrite and marmatite (high Fe, 'blackjack' sphalerite) are observed in the chlorite-talc schists, associated with small quartz veins. The Prairie West zone occurs along the north side of claim TB52772. On surface, excellent samples of chalcopyrite and marmatite can be picked from the schist along a strike distance of 600 feet (183 m). Sections of Marlhill Mines drilling also noted the presence of biotite, sericite, carbonate, minor garnet and leucoxene. Page (1965, assessment files) described two mineral showings; one approximately halfway up the hillside, which consisted of stringers of sphalerite up to two inches wide distributed across 6 feet of exposed shearing (lower pit). Approximately 10 feet further west a well defined shearing 5 feet wide contains stringers of chalcopyrite, pyrite and some sphalerite (upper pit). The shear zones strike east-west and dip 75 degrees S and the mineralization parallels the mafic/felsic metavolcanic contact. Drill intercepts reported by Marlhill Mines Ltd. in 1955 for hole No. 27 include 1.83% Cu and 0.005 opt Au over 0.61 m and 1.19% Cu and 0.010 opt Au over 0.91 m. Page (1965, assessment files) reports that a grab sample of well mineralized material from the lower pit returned 1.05% Cu, 20.25% Zn, 0.02% Pb, 0.04 ounce per ton Au and 1.48 ounces per ton Ag. A similar type sample from the upper pit returned 3.78% Cu, 4.85% Zn, 0.04% Pb, 0.04 ounce per ton Au and 1.60 ounces per ton Ag.

Jul 16, 2018 (Therese Pettigrew) - Hole S02-1 was drilled on a geophysical anomaly approximately 300 m west of the Prairie West Occurrence. The drillhole assayed up to 1.39% Cu, 324 ppm Zn, 20.2 ppm Ag, and 141 ppb Au (AFRI 42D15SW2014).

Mineral Record Details

References

File - Schreiber-Hemlo Resident Geologist Mineral Deposit Files

Publication Number: Min Dep Date: 1996

Author:

Publisher Name:

Location: Thunder Bay RGP

Map - Nipigon-Schreiber, geological compilation series, Thunder Bay District

Publication Number: M2232 Scale: 1:253,440    Date: 1973

Author: Carter M.W., McIlwaine W.H., Wisbey P.A.

Publisher Name: Ontario Division of Mines

Location:

MonoMap - Geology of the Jackfish-Middleton area, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: R050 Date: 1997

Author: Walker J.W.R.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Jackfish-Middleton area, Thunder Bay District

Publication Number: M2107 Date: 1967

Author: Walker J.W.R.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Mono - Mineral Occurrences in the Nipigon-Marathon Area, Volumes 1 and 2.

Publication Number: OFR5951 Page: 655-661  Date: 1996

Author: Schnieders B.R., Smyk M.C., Speed A.A., McKay D.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

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For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Thunder Bay South Resident Geologist District Office