The Socorro chieftain. [volume] (Socorro, N.M.) 1902-1959, 1906-02-03
SOCORRO COUNTY LEADS
Foremost among the Counties Of
New Mexico in the Production
of Mineral.
THRIVING MAGDALENG DISTRICT
Promises 20 Become One of the
Greatest Mining Districts in
the Southwest.

This county is by far the larg-
est in New Mexico and is regard
ed as having the greatest variety
of useful minerals of any county
in the commonwealth.
Every mountain range of any
consequence seems to be we'll
mineralized, and great areas of
the flat and more level lands are
underlaid with coal.
AT present writing, the most
important mining center in So
corro county is in the Magdale-
ma mountains.
MAGDALENA DISTRICT.
Since these mountains were
known To contain minerals they
have contributed largely to the
metallic wealth of the country,
the chief products, until quite
recently, being lead and silver. 1t
is estimated that the district has
produced 1900, 900 up to Janu-
airy |, 1905. In round numbers,
81, 900, 600 of the total production
is zinc and has been produced in
the last two years, 1908 and
1904; the remainder, So, 600, 900,
was in silver and lead in the APP
proXimatc ratio of | to Il, re-
Spectively.
During the year 1902 not
pound of zinc was marketed;
until the spring of 1908 it was
considered worthless and detri-
ment to the mine, and was ac-
cordingly gotten rid of by throw
ing it over the dumps as waste.
A number of old dumps are now
undergoing sorting and much
valuable smithsonite is being re-
covered.
Most every known zinc ore is
found i'll the Kelly and Graphic
mines. During a visit in Janu-
airy, 1904, to the Magdalena Dis
trict several rare varieties were
observed, extending the list as
given in the publication New
Mexico Mines and Minerals"
which was issued two years ago.
TO the list therein given may be
added ziucocalcite, zincosite,
monheimite, goslarite, hererite,
chalcophanite and, perhaps, some
forms of zinc aluminates and ar
senates.
The most valuable zinc ore of
the district is a carbonate; usu-
ally the sulphide of zinc is so in
timately mixed with galenite and
and the percentage of each metal
so nearly equal that this class of
ore does not find a ready market,
due to the difficulty in properly
separating the two metals. In
fact, main bodies of sulphide
ores of this character have never
been touched.
The rapid rise in production of
zinc in the Magdalena NOUN
tains has attracted attention
from all over the country. 1t is
the opinion of the writer that
these deposits, after further de-
velopment, will scarcely be paral-
leled in this country, and will
compare favorably with those of
the Rhine and Silesia, in the
Old World.
The Magdalena mountains
may eventually become a factor
of no small degree in the produc-
ton of copper, In the lower lev
els of the Graphic mine a few
cars of copper ore have recently
been shipped; the character of
the ore at the present time is
that of caTbonates, Snlphides and
considerable native copper.
Around toward the south end OF
the range some splendid carbon
ate and sulphide copper ores have
been taken out of the Wheel OF
Fortune group. This property
is but meagerly developed and
made it's first small shipment dur
ing the summer of 1904.
The following tabulation gives
the mineral output of the Magda'
lena district for the years 1905
and 1904:
=. 1908.
Gold-Fine ounces, $50: valu,
500.
Silver-Fine ounces, 34,sO4
value, $1S,3S4.
Lead-Pounds, l,050, 900; val
ue, $44, 488.
Zinc-Pounds, 1886, ,267; value
S100,240.