The Cordova daily times., 1915-05-14

An account of the mineral resources and principal geological features of the Hanagita and Bremner river val leys, so far as they are known, Is con tained in a pamphlet just received by the Daily Times from the United States Geological survey. It says:
 Hanagita valley is a name applied to well-defned topographic depres- sion which lies south of Chitina riv- CT, a tributary of Copper River, and is occupied by several streams, of which Hanagita creek is the largest. The valley takes it's name from Hama ? who was formerly chief of the j.... Indians. Bremner river. which lies south of the Hanagita valley, is the largest tributary to the Conner river between Chitina river and the coast. These two valleys are walled in by rugged mountains belonging to the Chugach range Until recently, the district, especially the part includ. ing the Bremner valley, was difficult of access and was less known than most other parts of the Copper river basin, but the construction of a rail- road up Copper river has put an end to many of the difficulties formerly met by prospectors and explorers.
 It has been known for many years that the Indians of Copper river had knowledge of a source of native cop per and that they used the metal in making various obects, such as arrow and spear points, bullets and knives. In 1855 Major (then Heut.) II. T. Al len, under direction of the war depart ment, ascended the Chitina and M. gina valleys as far as Dan creek in an endeavor to learn something concern ing the reported occurrence of copper In that district He had been preced- ed in the first part of his journey by John Bremner, a prospector, whom Allen found living in a destitute con. dition at Taral when he arrived there in the early spring. Bremner had been compelled, on his way up the Copper during the previous summer. to stop at the mouth of the stream which now bears his name. but what ever prospecting he may have done m this district met with little success Aliens search for information regard. Ing copper in Chitina valley did not yield much definite knowledge either yet he was able to confirm it's report. ed occurrence, and to learn, as was later confirmed by Hayes, that the natives obtained it from the head of White river.
 The first organized search for val uable minerals in the Chitina valley was made in 1898 and resulted in tbe finding of copper lodes in a number of places. one of which was on the soutb side of Chitina river about eipb, iniies aDoYe the mouth. Since then prospecting for copper has been car fled on spasmodically, and severn, other promising lodes have been die covered One near TaraI was nat ented but has not been developed. he cause, until recently, there was nr I means by which the ore could he shipped to the smelters. There hoe "eon' ehefeiofe, no production of con per in the district nor is any likely Tor a number of years.
 The gold placers of Little Bremne, river and Golconda creek were d,s covered in 1901 by two small parties ol prospectors from Valdez, one con. Sis'ing or Peter Monahan, Guy Banta and Henry Anderson, and the otha, or Harry Happell, w. H. Hawes. An gus Gillis and Ralph Wheaton. Tbes. men spent part of the summer pros peeting on different tributaries of tb, bsmner and staked Golconda creel