Rare-Earth-Bearing 

Apatite at Mineville 

Essex County 

New York

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1046-B

This report concerns work done on behalf 

of the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission 

and is published with the permission of 

the Commission

Rare-Earth-Bearing 

Apatite at Mineville 

Essex County 

New York

By F. A. McKEOWN and HARRY KLEMIC

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1046-B

This report concerns work done on behalf 

of the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission 

and is published with the permission of 

the Commission

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1956
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fred A. Sea ton, Secretary

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Thomas B. Nolan, Director

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office 

Washington 25, D. C. - Price 20 cents (paper cover)
CONTENTS

Page

Abstract_______________________________________________________ 9

Introduction--_--___--__-_-_________-_____________-_____________-_ 9

Geology. ________________________________________________ 11

Mineralogy _____________________________________________ 12

Ore deposits ______________________________________________________ 14

Interpretation of data____________________________________________ 16

Conclusions _ ____________________________________________________ 23

References cited-________________________________________________ 23

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page 

FIGUBE 5. Index map of the Mineville district, Essex County, N. ¥._____ 10

6. Scatter diagram showing relation between outcrop and corresponding sample measurements of radioactivity __________ 17

 7. Scatter diagram showing relation between phosphorus content 

and equivalent uranium of tailings and magnetite ore from 

the Old Bed___________________________.____-_. 17

8. Scatter diagram showing relation between uranium content and

equivalent uranium of apatite.__________________________ 18

9. Scatter diagram showing relation between thorium content and

equivalent uranium of apatite-_--_--___--_---_-_------_- 19

10. Scatter diagram showing relation between total rare-earth content and equivalent uranium of apatite ___________________ 20

TABLES

Page

TABLE 1. Semiquantitative spectrographic analyses, in percent, of apatite

separated from magnetite ore, Mineville, N. Y.__________ 13

2. Partial chemical and radiometric analyses, in percent, of apatite

separated from magnetite ore from Mineville, N. Y.________ 15

3. Analyses of samples, in percent, from the Mineville district,

Essex County, N. Y.________________________ 21

in

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, AT MINEVILLE 

ESSEX COUNTY, NEW YORK

By F. A. McKEOWN and HAKKY KLEMIC

ABSTRACT

Dumps and tailings piles of six mines and underground workings of three mines 

in the Mineville district, Essex County, N. Y., were tested for radioactivity and 

sampled to determine the extent of the occurrence of rare-earth-bearing apatite. 

One of the mines currently operated by the Republic Steel Corporation is in the 

"lower" Old Bed magnetite ore body; six levels were tested and sampled. Radioactive elements and rare earths occur in apatite in this bed everywhere it was 

tested. Samples and radioactivity tests in part of the abandoned Smith mine 

indicate that it may contain the same type of apatite-rich magnetite ore as the 

Old Bed.

Laboratory studies indicate that most of the rare earths, thorium, and uranium 

in Old Bed ore are in fluorapatite. Monazite, bastnaesite, and hematite fill fractures in and form rims around some of the apatite, but are so fine grained and 

intergrown that separation of them from apatite and from one another has not 

yet been achieved. Fourteen samples of apatite separated from magnetite ore 

from the Mineville district average 0.032 percent uranium, 0.15 percent thorium, 

and 11.14 percent rare earth oxides. Scatter diagrams of sample data show that 

there is a direct, but poor, correlation of phosphorous, uranium, thorium, and 

rare earths with radioactivity.

Two types of magnetite ore occur in the Mineville district, one high in phosphorus and one low. None of the low-phosphorus ores are radioactive. Four 

of the six high-phosphorus ores tested are radioactive. Two of these, 

the lower Old Bed and Upper Joker, are essentially the same ore body. 

Ore from the Smith mine is very similar to Old Bed ore and is radioactive. Some 

apatite-rich magnetite ore from the Cheever mine is radioactive, but it is unlike 

Old Bed ore. No structural or lithologic controls for the abundance or composition of the apatite have been recognized.

INTRODUCTION

Analyses of a few samples of tailings and ore, collected during reconnaissance for uranium in the Adirondack Mountain area in 1952, 

showed that apatite in magnetite ore from the Old Bed in the Mineville district, Essex County, N. Y., contained a high percentage of 

rare earths, and a small percentage of thorium and uranium. In 1953, 

in order to learn more about this apatite, particularly the extent of 

its occurrence, parts of six levels in the lower Old Bed and Harmony 

Bed ore bodies and one level in the Upper Joker ore body were sampled
10 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

and tested with a scintillation counter and Geiger counter. Tailings 

from these beds were also tested and sampled. The Harmony Bed, 

Old Bed, and Upper Joker ore bodies, connected by underground 

workings, are referred to as "Mineville mines" on figure 5. Rock

FIGURE 5. Index map of the Mineville district, Essex County, N. Y.

from one level and from tailings at the Smith mine were likewise 

sampled and tested. The dumps of the Smith, Sherman, and Pilfershire mines were examined because some geologic evidence suggests
'RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MINEVILLE, N. Y. 11

that these mines may be in Old Bed-type ore. Outcrops, dumps, 

and tailings at the Cheever mine also were tested.

All the mines examined by the writers are leased by the Kepublic 

Steel Corporation. The writers are grateful for information and guidance given them by personnel of this corporation, especially E. F. 

Fitzhugh, W. A. Blomstran, H. Butterfield, and S. LaMountain.

This report is based on work done on behalf of the Division of Raw 

Materials of the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission.

GEOLOGY

The magnetite deposits at Mineville are in complexly folded highly 

metamorphosed sedimentary rocks and interlayered igneous rocks of 

Precambrian age. Kemp (1908) described them as "augite syenites 

and related types." The "related types" have a more granitic to 

dioritic composition. Norms recalculated from analyses, however, 

indicate that the rocks are not syenitic, and Buddington (1939, p. 

130) suggests that they are the kind "found locally in contact zones 

between granite and Grenville sediments or metagabbro * * *." 

Ailing (1925) also suggests that the rocks are a mixture of igneous 

intrusive and Grenville sedimentary rocks.

A generalized sequence of rock types at Mineville from the stratigraphically lowest type upward is grabbo, magnetite ore of the Old 

Bed, and granite gneiss that grades through a dioritic facies into 

gabbro and magnetite ore of the Harmony Bed. The gabbro is the 

equivalent of Kemp's basic syenite (1908, p. 64) and contains microperthite, augite, hornblende, pypersthene, and accessory magnetite, 

titanite, apatite, and zircon. The granitic facies, which is Kemp's 

"21" gneiss, is the hanging wall of the Old Bed; its percentage composition is microperthite 19, microcline 7, plagioclase 34, quartz 32, 

sphene 1, green augite 1, and magnetite 6 (Buddington, 1939, p. 130). 

Republic Steel Corporation geologists report that albitization of the 

feldspar is common (oral communication, E. F. Fitzhugh). This is 

borne out by analyses that show a high soda content (4.55 to 6.36 

percent of Na2O) of both the gabbroic and granitic rocks at Mineville 

(Buddington, 1939, p. 131). Probable correlatives of the same rocks 

several miles away contain less than 3 percent of Na2O, indicating 

that the high soda content is peculiar to the rocks at Mineville (Buddington, 1939).

Detailed geologic mapping, by Republic Steel geologists, of observed 

structures in the mines as well as surface outcrops, shows an intensely 

folded structure that includes the lower Old Bed ore body and pitches 

southwestwardly and downward at 25° and lies on the upper limb 

of a large southerly pitching overturned fold.
12 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OP URANIUM

MINERALOGY

All studies to date, which include X-ray, spectrographic (see table 

below), and optical analyses, indicate that fluorapatite in Old Bed 

magnetite ore contains an anomalously high percentage of rare earths, 

thorium, and uranium. Small percentages of monazite, bastnaesite, 

and hematite are included in the apatite. Complete chemical 

analysis and more detailed mineralogic study are still in progress, and 

the results will be given in a subsequent report. Most of the mineralogic work in the present study was done by Harry Klemic. Other 

Geological Survey personnel are credited for their contributions as 

mentioned in the text.

The apatite occurs as slightly distorted rice-shaped grains from 

about 1 to 3 mm long. Megascopically they are transparent, white, 

light green, or reddish brown. Microscopic examination shows that 

the reddish-brown coloration is due to mineral inclusions and coatings. 

Some of the apatite is biaxial negative rather than uniaxial negative, 

which is normal for apatite. Jerome Stone, of the Geological Survey, 

found that the omega index of refraction ranges from 1.65 to 1.68. 

Much of the apatite is fractured. As estimated from the optical 

orientation of many grains, most of the fracturing is apparently subparallel to the 0001 plane. Another set of fractures are at an oblique 

angle to the 0001 plane fractures, much as feather joints are oblique 

to a fault. Both types of fractures commonly contain reddish-brown 

minerals, very thin pieces of which are transparent and amber red.

Some of the apatite has a rim, about 0.05 mm thick, of reddishbrown nearly opaque minerals. In places these minerals replace 

an entire grain of apatite. X-ray powder patterns, made by D. D. 

Riska of the Geological Survey, of apatite grains with these rims and 

inclusions, show only apatite. Presumably the quantity of reddishbrown minerals in the apatite is less than 5 percent, and therefore 

they do not produce lines intense enough to be detected in the presence of the remaining 95 percent of apatite. Leaching of apatite 

especially rich in the reddish-brown minerals with hot 6 normal 

hydrochloric acid for about 6 hours dissolves the apatite. X-ray 

powder patterns, made by D. D. Riska, of the reddish-brown residue 

from this treatment show monazite, bastnaesite, and hematite. 

Because these minerals are so fine grained and intergrown, attempts 

to separate them by mechanical methods have not been successful. 

The thickness of the rims and abundance of the inclusions do not 

seem to be related to the size, shape, or environment of the clear 

apatite with which they are associated. Magnetite commonly surrounds the apatite, both with and without the rims, but in a few places 

green augite is the adjacent mineral. The contact of the reddishbrown rim with magnetite or augite is sharp; whereas the change
RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MINEVILLE, N. Y. 13

TABLE 1. Semiquantitative spectrographic analyses, in percent, of apatite separated 

from magnetite ore, Mineville, N. Y.

[Analysts, K. E. Valentine and Joseph Haffty, U. 8. Geological Survey. For description of samples from 

which the apatite was separated see corresponding sample number (without letter suffix) in table on p. 21]

Sample No.

FK3 21A -

24A_ 

25B.--

25AB-.

26A..-

40A-...

41A42A43A-...

44A. 

45A46A_ 

48A-...

49AXO.

P, CaP, Ca_ .

P, Ca 

P, Ca- .

P, Ca, Ce.

P, Ca_ 

Ca, P 

Ca, P 

P, Ca 

P, Ca. 

P, Ca, Ce.

P, Ca .

P, Ca 

P, Ca.... .

X.

Ce, Si, La, 

Nd, Y.

Nd, Na, Y, 

Ce, La.

Na, Ce, La,

Y, Nd.

Si, Na, Ce, 

La, Nd, Y.

Si, La, Na, 

Nd, Y, Pr.

Ce, Na, Si, La, 

Nd, Y.

Si, Ce, Y, La,

Nd, Na, Th.

Si, Y, Ce, La, 

Nd, Na, Th.

Na, Y, Si, Nd, 

Ce, La.

Na, Ce, Y, 

La, Si, Nd.

La, Si, Y, Mg, 

Nd, Fe.

Ce, Si, La, Y, 

Mg, Nd, Na, 

Fe.

Na, Al, Si, Ce, 

Nd, La.

Si, Na, Ce, 

Nd, La.

.X

Fe, Al, Pr, Mg, 

Dy, Er, Qd, 

Yb, Th.

Pr, Si, Fe, Al, 

Mg, As, Qd, 

Dy, Er.

Pr, Si, Fe, Al, 

Th, As, Mg, 

Dy, Er, Gd.

Th, Pr, Gd, Mg, 

Fe, As, Yd, 

Al, Er, Dy.

Th, Al, Mg, Fe, 

Gd, Yb, Er, 

B, Dy.

As, Th, Fc, Pr, 

Yb, Al, Mg, 

Dy, Gd, Er.

Gd, Pr, Yb, Er, 

Fe, As, Dy, 

Mg, Al.

Gd, Pr, Er, As, 

Yd, Fe, Al, 

Dy, Mg.

As, Fe, Yb, Pr, 

Er, Gd, Al,

Mg.

Fe, Th, Al, Er, 

As, Gd, Pr, 

Yb.

Th, Na, Yb, Al, 

B, Pr, Gd, Er.

Al, Yb, Th, Pr, 

B, Gd, Er.

Y, Fe, Mg, As, 

Gd, Pr, Er.

Y, Fe, Mg, Gd, 

As, Pr, Rr.

.OX

As, Sr, Pb, Co, 

Ni, Mn, B, 

Tm, Lu, Sm, 

Eu, Ho.

Yb, Sr, B, Sm, 

Tm, Co, Ni, 

Mn, Lu, Pb, 

Ho.

Yb, B, Sr, Lu, 

Tm, Pb, Sm, 

Mn, Ho, Co,

Ni.

Sr, Ho, Pb, Tm, 

Eu, Sm, Co, 

Lu, B, Ni, 

Mn.

Sm, Sr, Tm, Lu, 

Ho, Mn, Eu, 

Pb.

B, Sr, Pb, Lu, 

Mn, Ho, Tm, 

Sm, Ni, Co.

B, Sr, Pb, Sm, 

Ho, Tm, Lu,

Mn, Co, Eu, 

Ni.

Sr, Pb, Sm, Ho, 

Tm, Lu, Mn, 

B, Eu, Co, Ni.

Sr, Dy, Th, B, 

Mn, Tm, Ho, 

Pb, Lu, Co, 

Sm.

B, Mg, Dy, Sr, 

Mn, Ho, Pb, 

Tm, Lu, Sm, 

Co.

Dy, Sr, Sm, 

Tm, Ho, Pb, 

Mn, Lu, Eu,

Ni.

Dy, Sr, Sm, Tm, 

Ho, Pb, Mn, 

Lu, Eu, Ni.

Dy, Sr, Th, Yb, 

B, Tm, Mn, 

Sm, Pb, Ho, 

Co, Lu, Ba.

Al, Dy, Sr, Th, 

Yb, Sm, Tm, 

Mn, Pb, Ho, 

Co, B, Lu.

.OOX

Sc, Cu, BaEu, Cu, Ba,

Se.

Eu, Ba, ScSc, Ba---- 

Se, Be, Ba 

Eu, Cu, Sc, 

Ba.

Sc, Cu, Ba. _

Se, Cu, Ba __

Eu, Ni, Cu, 

Sc, Be, Ba.

Eu, Ni, Cu, 

Sc, Ba.

Se, Co, Cu, 

Be, Ba.

Sc, Co, Cu, 

Be, Ba.

Eu, Ni, Se, 

Cu.

Eu, Ni, Sc, 

Ba, Cu.

.OOOX

Be.

Be.

Be.

Be.

Be.

399255 56 2
14 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

from the rim to clear apatite is gradational. The innermost part of 

the rim is yellow or cloudy white. Leaching polished sections of 

magnetite ore containing apatite with cold 6 normal hydrochloric 

acid for several days dissolves the clear white and green apatite 

leaving the reddish-brown rims and inclusions.

Within some of the reddish-brown zones pyrite occurs as minute 

grains in a line that follows in detail the shape of the grain of apatite. 

A few grains of pyrite may rarely be found between magnetite grains. 

Augite, albite, quartz, tourmaline, and hornblende are minor gangue 

minerals of the magnetite ore but are so scarce that thin sections of 

apatite-rich ore contain little or none of them.

Magnetite surrounds apatite and fills interstices between grains 

of apatite, indicating that magnetite crystallized later than apatite. 

The relationship of the other minerals in the ore is not determinable 

from the specimens available for study.

ORE DEPOSITS

Two distinct types of ore occur in the Mineville district; one is 

high in phosphorus, (more than about 0.50 percent) the other low 

(less than about 0.50 percent). Each type is represented by several 

ore beds which may or may not be coextensive with one another. 

Ore with low phosphorus content includes the Harmony Bed, Fisher 

Hill deposit, and New Bed of the Barton Hill mine. Ore with high 

phosphorus content came from the Old Bed, Upper Joker mine bed 

and, probably, the abandoned Pilfershire, Sherman, Smith, and 

Cheever mines. The gangue minerals in low-phosphorus ore are 

primarily quartz, feldspar, and pyroxene; those in high-phosphorus 

ore are apatite, feldspar, pyroxene, and quartz.

In Old Bed ore the persistence of apatite, independent of the variations in percentage of other minerals, is notable. There is no obvious 

relation between percentage of magnetite and apatite; some apatite 

is always present, even where all other gangue minerals are absent. 

The apatite content of small blocks of ore, measuring less than about 

1,000 tons, ranges widely. This is apparent both by radioactivity 

measurement and visually. Blocks of ore larger than 1,000 tons tend 

to have about the same average apatite content. Coarse-grained 

high-grade ore generally contains the least percentage of apatite and 

other gangue minerals. Medium- to fine-grained ore (magnetite 

grains less than 2 mm across) contains apatite-rich layers and stringers, 

as well as disseminated apatite.

Magnetite ore from the Cheever mine is reported to be rich in 

phosphorus, about 0.5 percent (Kemp, 1908, p. 71), though not as 

rich as Old Bed ore which contains about 0.7 percent. Pieces of ore 

found on the dump are mineralogically similar to Old Bed ore except
RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MESTEVILLE, N. T. 15

that quartz is more abundant and all of the apatite is green or white. 

The dump is only slightly radioactive, averaging about 0.04 mr per 

hr. 1 Large pieces of apatite-rich magnetite ore on the dump are 

commonly as radioactive as 0.07 mr per hr; a few outcrops of ore in 

the hanging wall are as radioactive as 0.15 mr per hr in places. The 

paucity of radioactive ore on the dump and at outcrop suggests that 

the Cheever mine does not contain much of it. Because the mine is 

inaccessible, however, its potential as a source of radioactive material 

is unknown.

The Smith mine is accessible from the Fisher Hill mine through the 

Fisher Hill-Smith mine crosscut. Several hundred feet of the left and 

right branches of the cross cut were tested for radioactivity. All 

parts of the underground workings were about as radioactive (averaging about 0.10 mr per hr) as workings in the Old Bed. Parts of the 

dump were radioactive; a few pieces of ore gave readings as high as 

0.17 mr per hr. Green apatite is more common in the ore on the 

dump of the Smith mine than in Old Bed ore; otherwise the two ores 

are about the same mineralogically. Further, analyses (FK3-48A, 

-49A, tables 1 and 2) show that the same elements are present in the

TABLE 2. Partial chemical and radiometric analyses, in percent, of apatite separated 

from magnetite ore from Mineville, N. Y. 1

Sample No.

FK3-21A. _ _ _ _ - _______ __ _ _

24A_ ___________________

25B

25 AB___________. _______

26A

40A______-__--_-__--__-

41A

42A

43A

44A

45A______________ ____

46A

48A_______.__ _^_..___^_

49A

TJ2

0.055

.009

.018

.026

. 027

.025

. 11

.078

.009

.025

. 026

.027

. 009

.011

.032

ThO2 2

4 n. d.

0.01

. 14

.30

n. d.

n. d.

.38

.36

. 06

. 18

. 36

. 05

. 03

.03

. 17

Th

n. d.

0.01

. 12

.26

n. d.

n. d.

. 33

.32

.05

. 16

.32

.04

.03

.03

. 15

He 2

n. d.

5.61

5.92

8. 52

n. d.

n. d.

17.2

12.9

4.28

7.90

32.4

18.4

4.79

4 69

11. 14

eIJ3

0.088

.018

.044

. 070

. 067

.047

. 204

. 153

.023

.063

. 102

.068

. 015

.027

. 070

1 For description of samples from which the apatite was separated see corresponding sample number, 

without letter suffix, in table on p. 21.

3 Uranium (U), thorium dioxide (ThOa), and total rare-earth oxides (Re) analyses by Harry Levine, 

U. 8. Geological Survey, 

s Equivalent uranium (eU) analyses by B. A. MeCall, U. 8. Geological Survey.

4 Not determined.

1 For equivalence between milliroentgens per hour (mr per hr) and percent equivalent uranium (eU) see 

figure 6.
16 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

two ores in about the same quantities. Because of the mineralogic 

similarity and certain interpretations of the complex structure of the 

Old Bed and Smith mine magnetite bodies, Republic Steel Corp. 

geologists (oral communication, E. F. Fitzhugh) have considered the 

possibility that these two ore bodies are part of the same deposit. 

Similar trace-element contents of these ore bodies also tend to support 

this hypothesis.

The dumps of the Sherman and Pilfershire mines contain no radioactive rock. A small amount green fine-grained apatite is present 

in some of the Pilfershire ore, but the most abundant gangue mineral 

is feldspar. According to Kemp (1908, p. 71), the ore and the geologic features of the Pilfershire mine are very much like those at the 

Cheever mine. The maximum radioactivity measurement on the 

dump was 0.04 mr per hr. The Sherman mine has been considered 

(Kemp, 1908, p. 88) the northern extension of the Smith mine ore 

body. On the basis of radioactivity, however, this does not seem 

probable, because the maximum radioactivity measured on the dump 

of the Sherman mine was only 0.03 mr per hr whereas pieces of ore 

in the dump of the Smith mine measured as much as 0.17 mr per hr. 

A grab sample (FK3-39) of the ore from the Sherman mine contains 

0.001 percent equivalent uranium.

Part of the underground workings, dump, and tailings of the 

Fisher Hill deposit, and dumps of rock and ore from the New Bed, 

were tested for radioactivity. Neither, however, contained any 

material that measured more than 0.03 mr/per hr.

INTERPRETATION OF DATA

To visualize the various relationships between radio-activity, phosphorous, uranium, thorium, and rare earths in apatite in Old Bed ore 

and tailings, the available data are plotted on scatter diagrams (figs. 

5-10).

Figure 5 shows the relationship between radioactivity of outcrops, 

expressed in milliroentgens per hour (mr/per hr), and laboratory 

analyses for equivalent uranium of corresponding samples. The 

measurements of outcrop radioactivity were made with a Geiger 

counter, sensitive to both beta and gamma rays, held on the outcrop; 

the gamma response of the counter was calibrated in milliroetgens per 

hour by comparison with a standard radium source. The radioactivity of the samples is given as percent equivalent uranium and was 

measured with laboratory equipment of the U. S. Geological Survey. 

The equation for the regression line for the data, as calculated by the 

least squares method, is eU=0.10 mr per hr 0.002. This agrees 

closely with the equation computed from a similar set of data, collected and measured the same way, previously reported by McKeown
RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MTNEVILLB, N. T. 17

SAMPLE MEASUREMENTS 

(PERCENT EQUIVALENT URANIUM -eU)

opoppppppc dddQooooo*-

SlStOwAuimvlCOlOC

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v.-

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t (

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/

Y''

Equatio 

by th

 eU = 

curve 

dence

/

//

/

n for cur\ 

e last sq 

10 mr/h 

s are 91 

limits

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re as dete 

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3 percen

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rmined 

thod is

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0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0

OUTCROP MEASUREMENTS 

(MILLIROENTGENS PER HOUR mr/hr)

FIGURE 6. Scatter diagram showing relation between outcrop and corresponding sample measurements of

radioactivity.

.>V*

0 p

0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 

PERCENT EQUIVALENT URANIUM -eU

FIGURE 7. Scatter diagram showing relation between phosphorus content and equivalent uranium tailings 

and magnetite ore from the Old Bed.
18 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

0.11

0.09

0.08

^ 0.06

0.05

0.02

0.01

0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20

PERCENT EQUIVALENT URANIUM ^eU 

FIGURE 8. Scatter diagram showing relation between uranium content and equivalent uranium of apatite.

and Klemic (unpublished report, 1953). The coefficient of correlation 

for the data in figure 6 is 0.98, where 1 is perfect correlation. Confidence limits are also plotted on the figure to show the approximate 

error to be expected when using the curve for correlation of radioactivity measurements.

Figures 7-10 are scatter diagrams showing the relation between 

radioactivity (expressed as equivalent uranium) and content of phosphorus, uranium, thorium, and total rare-earth oxides respectively. 

The data for figure 7 are from table 3 and the data for figures 8-10 

are from table 2. Though each variable directly correlates to some 

degree with all other variables, the correlation is not close enough to 

use for computing percentage of one component from another for 

example, percentage of thorium from that of equivalent -uranium. 

Direct correlation among uranium, thorium, and rare earths can be 

inferred from the diagrams because each of these elements correlates 

roughly with equivalent uranium. This relationship is to be expected
RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MINEVILLE, N. T. 19

because of their geochemical similarity. Furthermore, in the Old 

Bed ore body they are probably genetically related; no evidence has 

yet been found suggesting that any one element was introduced 

earlier or later than another.

Samples FK3-11, -42, -45, and -46 have a lower ratio of phosphorus 

to equivalent uranium than all other samples. Apatite separated 

from them shows anomalously high rare-earth content compared with

0.35

0.30

0.25

2 0.20

0.10

0.05

0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20

PE'RCENT EQUIVALENT URANIUM ^eU 

FIGURE 9. Scatter diagram showing relation between thorium content and equivalent uranium of apatite.

other samples (table 2). These samples may have a higher content of 

monazite and bastnaesite than the others.

Radioactivity traverses were made and chip samples of magnetite 

ore were taken at six levels in the Old Bed ore body. Radioactivity 

traverses were also made in parts of the Harmony Bed ore body, but 

no samples were taken because neither the ore nor tailings (sample 

FK3-38) contain uranium. Typical magnetite ore as well as apatiterich magnetite ore in the Old Bed was sampled. Analyses of the 

apatite from these samples (FK3-24A, -25AB, -25B, -26A, -40A, 

-41A, -42A, -43A, -44A, -45A, and -46A, table 2) show that all the 

apatite in Old Bed ore contains a high percentage of rare earths and 

some thorium and uranium.
20 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

30.

25

20

15

10

0.04 0.08 0.12 0.16 

PERCENT EQUIVALENT URANIUM eU

0.20

FIGURE 10. Scatter diagram showing relation between total rare-earth content and equivalent uranium of

apatite.
'RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MINEVILLE, N. Y. 21

TABLE 3. Analyses of samples, in percent] from the Mineville district, Essex

County, N. Y.

[Equivalent uranium analyses by B. A. McCall, TJ. S. Geological Survey. Uranium and phosphorus 

analyses by Audrey Smith, Carmen Hoy, and Frank Cuttitta, TJ. S. Geological Survey. Measurement 

or radioactivity at the outcrop with beta-gamma Geiger counter, the gamma response of which was calibrated in milliroentgens per hour (mr per hr) by comparison with a standard radium source]

Sample No.

FK3-20 __

21_.._

22. _

23_.__

24.. __

25____

25A__

26.. ._

27_-_.

28_._.

29....

30....

31....

32....

33. _

Description

Tailings from No. 6 mill; probably from Old Bed and Upper

Joker ore bodies.

Magnetite ore with red apatite;

most radioactive piece found

on dump of Smith mine.

Magnetite-hematite (?) ore, finegrained; from dump of Smith

mine.

Magnetite ore from near hanging wall of Old Bed; +170

level.

Magnetite ore with red apatite (?); Old Bed, +170 level

near scales.

Rich magnetite ore with apatite;

Upper Joker ore body, +430

level near Clonan shaft.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore; Upper Joker ore body, +430

level near Clonan shaft.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore; Old

Bed, 200 level between 1

and 8 slopes.

Tailings from No. 5 mill, Old

Bed and Upper Joker ore; top

and east end of pile about 450

ft south of Joker shaft.

Tailings; top of tailings pile and

about 200 ft west of FK3-27.

Tailings; top of tailings pile and

about 200 ft west of FK3-28.

Tailings; top of tailings pile and

about 200 ft west of FK3-29.

Tailings; top of tailings pile,

west end and about 100 ft

southwest of FK3-30.

Tailings; about 15 ft above base

of pile and 150 ft north of

FK3-31.

Tailings; 10 ft above road level,

at turn at west end of pile..

ell

0.013

.019

n. d.

n. d.

.002

- .005

.020

.011

.004

.005

.001

.004

.006

.008

.002

u

0.005

.008

n. d.

n. d.

.001

.003

f 1 . f\f\G 006

1 nns ^ . uuo

.004

.003

.002

n. d.

n. d.

.003

.004

.001

p

4.0

'n. d.

n. d.

n. d.

.7

2.2

1 A,

J4.3

1.7

1. 1

1.3

n. d.

n. d.

1.6

2.7

n. d.

Average 

mrperhr

0. 12

.17

.08

.04

.08

n. d.

.18

.18

.09

.08

.03

.05

.08

.09

.06

See footnotes at end of table.
22 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GEOLOGY OF URANIUM

TABLE 3. Analyses of samples, in percent, from the Mineville district, Essex 

County, N. Y. Continued

Sample No.

FK3-34 _ .

35 .

36_.._

37...-

38_._.

39__._

40_._-

41___.

42. _

43___.

44. _

45.._.

46 __

47-__.

48-...

49....

Description

Tailings; 15 ft above road level,

about 200 ft east of FK3-33.

Tailings; 15 ft above road level,

about 200 ft east of FK3-34

and about 100 ft south of

Joker Shaft.

Tailings; 10 ft above parking lot,

east end of pile.

Tailings; north end of Harmony

bed tailings pile; some Old

Bed tailings mixed in.

Tailings; south end of Harmony

Bed tailings pile.

Magnetite ore; dump of Sherman mine.

Typical magnetite ore from near

top of Old Bed; -1185 level.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore; Old

Bed, -1185 level.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore; Old

Bed, 1335 level in crosscut

at top of raise 12.

Magnetite ore, coarse-grained

with red feldspar (?) ; Old Bed,

 1650 level at 34 contract.

Magnetite ore; Old Bed, - 1650

level at contract 40.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore, very

coarse-grained; Old Bed

-1650 level, at "Y" between

contracts 46 and 50.

Apatite-rich magnetite ore; Old

Bed, 1650 level at contract 46.

Tailings from June 10, 1953

production of Old Bed ore;

50 pound sample.2

Magnetite ore; +1100 ft level of

Smith mine, at left branch of

Fisher Hill-Smith mine crosscut.

Magnetite ore; + 1100 ft level of

Smith mine, in right branch

of Fisher Hill-Smith mine

crosscut.

eTJ

0.003

.004

.006

n. d.

.006

.001

. 004

.068

.053

.003

.005

.029

.018

.006

.013

.001

u

0.001

.001

.003

n. d.

. 000

n. d.

.003

.033

.025

n. d.

.003

.006

.005

.003

.006

.001

P

0.6

n. d.

1.61

n. d.

.31

n. d.

1.22

3.71

3.36

1.96

1.05

.79

1.22

1.96

.65

.52

Average 

mrperhr

0.08

.07

. 1

.07

.04

n. d.

. 1

.7

.5

.01

.08

.4

n. d.

n. d.

.15

n. d.

1 Not determined.

* This sample also contains 0.023 percent of ThOj and 1.10 percent total rare earths.
RARE-EARTH-BEARING APATITE, MINEVILLE, N. Y. 23

CONCLUSIONS

Earlier and recent analyses, radioactivity traverses, and geologic 

studies made by Republic Steel Corp. geologists have not revealed 

any distinct structural or lithologic controls to the distribution, 

abundance, or composition of the apatite. More detailed testing 

and sampling correlated with a detailed map of the mine may show 

such controls, but the available data strongly indicate that no strong 

large-scale controls exist. Also, no significant variation in the phosphorous content of the Old Bed ore seems to exist; production figures 

show that the average phosphorus content has not changed appreciably since the mine has been in operation. Though monazite and 

bastnaesite are present, they do not seem to occur in sufficient quantity 

to account for the major part of the rare earth, thorium, and uranium 

content of the Old Bed ore. Apatite must therefore be the chief 

contributor of the rare elements. The uranium, thorium, and rareearth content of Old Bed tailings is low compared with other sources 

of these elements such as monazite-bearing placers or veins.

REFERENCES CITED

Ailing, H. L., 1925, Genesis of the Adirondack magnetites: Econ. Geology, v.

20, no. 4, p. 335-363. 

Buddington, A. F., 1939, Adirondack igneous rocks and their metamorphism:

Geol. Soc. America, Mem. 7. 

Kemp, J. F., 1908, Mineville-Port Henry group: New York State Mus. Bull. 119.

o