Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1905-05-18
GOLD BELT, ALASKA
Resembles the Gold Belt Of Califor-
mia in Character and Age
of Rocks.

Examinations of the known gold pros.
poets in the belt tributary to juneau
Alaska, indicate that they are of sufii.
Gient promise to warrant all the worA
now in progress and the expenditure Of
still more capital in development work
Such Is the conclusion of Mr.. Arthur Z
Spencer, of the United States geological
survey, who with Mr. Charles w
Wright, spent the summer of 1903 max.
ing detailed study of the geology and
mineral resources of limited area in.
Guiding the Alaska-Treadwel and as.
ISOLATED mines near juneau. Mr.. Spen.
Ger has written a short paper on the
geology Of the Juneau gold belt, ALASKA.
which is published by the survey in
bulletin z25, emitted Contributions &c
Economic Geology, 1903"
The Juneau gold belt resembles the
gold belt OF California in several ways.
The various rCcls T. at occur in this part
OF southeastern ALASKA are similar in
character ard partly equivalent IN age
to those forming the country rock of
the Mother LoGe district, and there is
also @ definite linear distribution OF
some Of the goid-bearing veins parallel
with the general strike of tie bedrock
formations. As IN the California gold
belt. however, there are many inGepen-
dent deposits lying outside the main
complex of lodes.
Prospecting has been in progress In
different parts of this belt since 1876,
but the main incentive to vigorous ex-
ploration came with the discovery Of the
Gold Creek placer and the founding OF
Juneau in 1880. The first mile to be
put upon a productive basis was the
Alaska-Treadwell, on Douglas island.
about two miles southwest OF Juneau.
L lis property was opened in 1881, and i
continued to grow in Importance for
several years, so that by 1889 it had
reached practically its present rating as
one Of the great mines of the world. The
discovery of the Klondike, however in
1896, gave great impetus to prospect
ing in the interior of British Columbia
and Alaska and caused the mineral re-
gion tributary to Juneau to be temper
arily abandoned as a field for invest
ment 1t may be said that only now.
after seven years, has the district re-
gained the position which it appears to
have held in 1896.
Several circumstances would now
seem to indicate a growing interest IN
the Juneau gold belt A large num-
Der of properties have recently
changed hands, a number of we'll
known engineers have been making
examinations in the field with view
to acquiring property for their clients,
and there appears to be a steady de-
mand for experienced miners. Il is
that 1,140 miners and labor
ers are now engaged in this region.
About 80 per cent. of them were doing
development work during 1903 and in-
dications are that the exploration OF
recently purchased by out
side parties will soon materially in
crease the proportion of men engaged
In work not Immediately productive
In 1903 there were seven productive
mines in the district in addition to
the placers Of Porcupine and adjacent
creeks. These were the Alaska-Tread-
we'll, Alaska-Mexican and Ready Bull
lion, on Douglas island; the Sil0er
Queen, on the mainland opposite; the
Sumdum Chief, so miles TO the south.
now worked out and abandoned; and
the Alaska-Juneau and Elmer mines,
IN Gold creek, both of which will soon
be opened up on large scale. The
product Of these mines for the year il
estimated at $2.4OO0OO, while the total
output of the belt to the end of 1909
has been more than S2O.0OO.OOO.