Pegmatite deposits of the White Picacho District, Maricopa and Yavapai Counties, Arizona
- Creators
- Jahns, Richard H.
Abstract
Deposits of pegmatite minerals are known from many parts of Arizona, and from time to time efforts have been made to develop some of them as commercial sources of feldspar, quartz, mica, beryl, lithium minerals, tungsten minerals, tantalum-columbium minerals, and other salable commodities. The pegmatites occur mainly in terranes or relatively old, crystalline rocks that appear within the Mexican Highland and Sonoran Desert portions of the state. These physical divisions of the Basin and Range province extend southeasterly from the Colorado River to the southern and eastern borders of the state, and lie southwest of the broad Colorado Plateau province (Fig. 1). Most of the largest and best known deposits lie within the so-called Arizona pegmatite belt, which is about 250 miles long, 30 to 80 miles wide, and extends south-southeastward from Lake Mead through parts of Mohave, Yavapai, Yuma, and Maricopa counties to points south of Phoenix (Fig. 1).
Additional Information
© 1952 University of Arizona. University of Arizona Bulletin, v. 23, no. 5. Arizona Bureau Of Mines, Mineral Technology Series, No. 46. The writer's attention was first drawn to the White Picacho district in 1947 by Roscoe J. Whitney, Exploration Geologist for the Whitehall Company of Keene, New Hampshire. Mr. Whitney had just completed a preliminary survey of the area, and kindly furnished several specimens of unusual pegmatite minerals. In March, 1948, the writer was guided through the district by W. J. Alexander, Chief Engineer for the same company, who pointed out the principal features of economic interest and supplied much useful information that had been obtained during a program of extensive exploration. Additional data on locations of deposits and history of prospecting and mining operations were provided by Earl F. Anderson of Mesa, whose activities in the district cover a period of many years. The field studies upon which this report is based were facilitated by a research grant from the California Institute of Technology. The writer is indebted to Joseph H. Birman of Occidental College and to Carl Sugar of Famous Green Enterprises for helpful assistance in the field, and to Mr. Alexander and to L. A. Norman, Jr. of the California State Division of Mines for their generous contribution of ideas and critical comments during the course of discussions in the field. It is a pleasure also to thank Harrison P. Gower, Chief Geologist for the Pacific Coast Borax Company, who made available to the writer the subsurface data obtained from recent drill-hole exploration of several pegmatite bodies. Preparation of the manuscript was aided considerably by Florence Wiltse, and many of the illustrations were drafted by Ellen Powelson and David P. Willoughby.Attached Files
Published - Bull_162_Pegmatites_White_Picacho_OCR.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 122183
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20230710-170925544
- Created
-
2023-07-11Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
-
2023-07-11Created from EPrint's last_modified field
- Series Name
- Bulletin (University of Arizona. State Bureau of Mines)
- Series Volume or Issue Number
- 162
- Other Numbering System Name
- Caltech Division of Geological Sciences
- Other Numbering System Identifier
- 566