Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-03-14
SOUTH SANTA FE GOLD FIELDS
Description of The Geological Forma
ton at the Base of the Ortiz
Mountains.
UNTOLD VALUE OF GOLDEN RICHES THERE
Worked by Crude Processes for Cen
turies-Santa Fe Placer Mining
Company Will Employ Modern
Methods.

It The appended deeply interesting, in
Q structive and truthful description of the
. famous gold fields of south Santa Fe
4 from the pen of gentleman who has
made thorough study of the geology OF
the region, ls reproduced from the South.
: western Manufacturer of Kansas City:
From the extreme north to the extreme
south of the western hemisphere, runs a
. mountain range which has been aptly
I termed the "backbone of the continent, y
8 Throughout the entire length are found
deposits of gold, silver, copper and other
"A precious and useful metals; the gold
being either held in it's original bond of
rock, or having become dlsintregated
therefrom, has been deposited by erosion
! at the foot of the slopes, forming what
are called placer deposits. One of the
greatest of these deposits known and
also one of the earliest ones discovered,
is at the base of the Ortiz mountains of
New Mexico, about twenty-five miles
from the historic city of Santa Fe.
The elevation of the axis of this noun.
tain is from 5000 to 10000 feet above the
sea; the valley of the Galisteo river at
; its foot is 5,675 at the station of Los Ger
rillos, on the line of the Atchison, Topeka
d Santa Fe railroad. The trend of the
axis of the mountain is nearly north and
south, the north end being near Los Ger
rillos. Along the axis are tho usual for
| .tf ita 70
10 the east and west of the axis and verv
nearly parallellng it are large, black trap.
rock dykes; these dykes extend across the
country indefinitely and are on the Ortiz
range from three to five miles from tho
axis. About three.fourth OF the distance
from the dykes to the axis are
we'll define lodes, which very near
ly parallel the axis of the range. |
Running at right angles to these lod |
are secondary lodes that reach from the |
primary down to the dykes. This is espe-
| cially true of the east side of the range.
In one or two instances there, secondary
lodes CROSS the primary and extend up
to the axis of the range. The western
primary lode extends southwark to San
Pedro and possibly beyond, but seems to
cut off short a few miles south of los Ger
rilos. The eastern lode is obsoured on the
"Cunningham mesa, but extends FRONT he
northern limit of that mesa to point +
some ten miles further north.
TIE FAMOUS oUNNINaHAx HILL.
There are some fne bodies OF low
grade ore on these lateral or secondary
lodes, among which may be rnoatonea.ii
the famous cunningham Hill' and ad-
joining properties near Dolores. The
main western lode, especially in it's south.
ern extension, is rich IN copper; the San !
Pedro copper mines are on this lode. To-
ward its northern extremity are several
very promising properties, among which
may be mentioned the Gypsy Queen aud
the Lincoln. Lucky, which have been and 9
are gold producers of more than local I
reputation. The main or primary lode 9
on the east side of the range has been Z
worked at intervals since the spring of q
I'LL, few months after the second Span n
ish conquest of New Mexico; the famous
Ortiz gold mines are on this lode. The y
original Senor Ortiz located this mine .
and obtained from the Spanish govern
ment grant which has latterly been con- u
strued to convey about $4,000 acres.
The vein matter of the Ortiz lode is de- =
quartz and carries free gold,
but, as is usual with such formations,
with depth 1t has gradually changed to
sulphidee. The Spanish worked out great
quantities of this ore by means of old
fashioned Slopes aud inclined galleries,
but on account of their crude methods of
jrestment, they could not successfully 7
work the mines below the depth that
,ielded the free milling ores; modern I
methods now being brought to bear on y
he properties on this lode will, no doubt, !.
levelop them into gold prodnt ers of high y
ank. d
The geological formations of the Ortiz
mountains are somewhat peculiar, in that a
he axis ia in such close proximity to the n
lewer formations that so closly flank it's
lopes. The uplift came after the creta.
eous period, probably about the close of
he tertiary. The granite axis with its
associated formations ,s lifted to height
If, perhaps, 1000 feet above the highest
sandstones that flank the noun.
aims. The gauge or vein matter Of these
odes, as well as the trap-rock dykes, was
hrust upward through the newer forma- ~
ions to an unusul elevation. 10 these 1t
andstones are splendid veins of both T
ard and soft coal of cretaoeous origin. gi
'hese Goals have already become great II
actor in tie coal market of the world, so
.os Csrrilos anthracite competing in -
umber of markets with the anthracites
{ Pennsylvania. ct
bt
"i A"o'A"N' Sa
Ihese cretacioos sandstones, are un- fr
sually soft and easily eroded and as they
the uconntrv rockn tbotrsro,,u
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