Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI52H08NW00002

Record: MDI52H08NW00002

General

Mineral Record Identification
Record Name(s) Cooke Point Marble - 1984, Pipestone Point - 1984
Related Record Type Simple
Related Record(s)
Record Status Prospect
Date Created 1984-Jul-25
Date Last Modified 2022-Feb-25
Created By
Revised By

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Marble (Structural Material)



Location

Township or Area: South Bay Area

Latitude: 49° 27' 53.45"    Longitude: -88° 15' 34.02"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 408742.003   Northing: 5479895.004    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay North

NTS Grid: 52H08NE, 52H08NW

Point Location Description: General

Location Method: Conversion from MDI

Access Description: The quarry is located on the eastern part of Cooke Point, on the southern shore of Lake Nipigon, west of the Virgin Islands. The point can be reached by boat from launches in the village of Macdiaramid and in South Bay.



Exploration History

1866 The deposit was identified and described as early as 1866 (Bell, 1869; Royal Commission Report, 1890; ODM, Vol. 17, 1908). 1930 James W. Lawrence and Robin Boyle of Toronto staked 26 claims to cover the deposit and shoreline. 1931 The Lake Nipigon Marble Corporation, Ltd. did work at the site that included the removal of test blocks and the construction of buildings. A storehouse, a bunkhouse, and a dining hall were erected at the site to accommodate 12 men. 1932 to 1954 Because of promising test results, Lawrence and Boyle attempted to develop the site as a source of ornamental stone. This failed due to the lack of a market. With the war in the 1940s, the two gentlemen began examining other possible uses for the marble. The stone was tested as a source of magnesium and as a flux material. The magnesium content was not high enough to support a magnesium market and the silica content was to high for use as a flux. In the 1950s the claims lapsed and no activity has been reported since that time. 1994 The quarry is currently unstaked. COMMENTS: The location of this quarry essentially eliminates any possibility of future development. The quarry is inaccessible by road and located on Lake Nipigon which is classed as a Forest Reserve. The stone is attractive, however, exposures observed by the author displayed thin beds and a thick cap of diabase which would make extraction difficult.


Geology

Province: Southern

Subprovince: Nipigon Basin

Formation Group: Sibley Group

Geological Age: Paleoproterozoic  



Geology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (B Schnieders) - The quarry is located within calcareous sediments of the Proterozoic Sibley group. This unit is exposed at the base of a keweenawan diabase sill for about 1.6 km olong the lake shore, and rises 6 m above the water level. The unit is dolomitic limestone that is thinly bedded and gently folded. The quarry site is currently overgrown and is recognized by the presence of old railway steel and pieces of equipment in the water (Hinz et al. 1994 OFR 5890).




Lithology

Lithology Data
Rock Type Rank Composition Texture Relationship
Dolomite Marble 1 Is
Diabase 2 Diabase Sill Logan Sill Hanging Wall

Lithology Comments

May 06, 2011 (N Bennett) - MINERALOGY:Coleman and Moore (1908) described the mineralogy of the marble: Thin sections show fine-grained, closely interlocking calcite, with small amounts of some turbid substance. JOINTING: Overall the unit is thinly bedded and has many vertical fractures. COLOUR: The stone is white or pale green in colour. There are some areas with a reddish tint. TEXTURE: The stone is very fine grained. PHYSICAL PROPERTIES: Weathering test: Asample was immersed in sodium sulphate for 24 hours, taken out of the solution, and heated for 24 hours. This cycle was done four consecutive times without sign of cracking or disintegration. Absorption test: A sample was dried for 24 hours then immersed in corn oil for24 hours, after which the sample was removed and weighed (absorption 0.98%) Compression test: Three samples (2 inch cubes) had lead weights applied at right angles to the face. These are the results: SAMPLE 1: 5750 Load per square inch. SAMPLE 2: 4250 Load per square inch. SAMPLE 3: 5882 Load per square inch. Average: 5294 Load per square inch. Tests performed by J.T. Donald and Co., Montreal (1931).




Mineralization

Mineralization and Alteration
Rank Mineral Name Class Economic Mineral Type Alteration Mineral Type Alteration Ranking Alteration Intensity Alteration Style
1CalciteEconomicOre
2DolomiteEconomicOre

Mineral Record Details

References

Mono - Building stones of Ontario, part 3, marble

Publication Number: IMR016 Scale:     Date: 1998

Author: Hewitt D.F.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:


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:


Mono - Industrial minerals of northern Ontario-supplement 1

Publication Number: OFR5388 Scale:     Date: 1982

Author: Vos M.A., Abolins T., Smith V.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:


Mono - Dimensional Stone Occurrences and Deposits in Northwest Ontario

Publication Number: OFR5890 Scale:     Date: 1994

Author: Hinz P., Landry R.M., Gerow M.C.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:


MonoMap - Geology of the Black Sturgeon River area, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: R098 Scale:     Date: 1972

Author: Coates M.E.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines and Northern Affairs

Location:


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