Vipond Mining District, Beaverhead County, Montana, USA.

There are two mines on the claim. One has collapsed; the timbering from the entrance is still partially visible. The second mine has been secured with a steel box grate. It is accessible as is. The mine has been cut into solid rock and there is plenty of room to work in this mine. The average dimensions of the adit are 8’ x 10’. Inside the mine the air was cool. Electrical wire support was also found inside the mine. The floor of the mine is uneven. The vein at its widest point measures one foot. Suggestion is to modify the grating into a gate and secure the entrance. This would make it simple to store gear and supplies without fear of them being stolen or damaged. As we traveled down the main tunnel we noticed that at 73 feet the host rock alteration increased. At 80 feet the adit splits into two tunnels. At 196 feet the right branch of the mine ends at a face with a winze. The left branch continues on and at 90 feet there is a large open stope in the mine of 30’ by 20’. Minerals exposed are gold and copper on a huge lode that expands and breaks off into veins. At 126 feet the tunnel narrows to a crawl space 6’ by 2’ and at 200 feet the tunnel ends. This mine follows a primary lode composed of gold and copper with occasional silver and lead deposits. High grading would be the preferred method of mining for the maximum ROI. Extraction of the richest sections of the vein with a hammer drill or chisel, and then crushing and sluicing would be an ideal plan.

Quartzite and Barite

Copper carbonates, Yellow mineral with copper. Some free-mill gold in the form of small nuggets on iron veins, Iron Hydroxides and Iron oxides. Galena occurs in spotty lenses and is not consistent.

We were not able to find production records for the Log Cabin Claim, but we were able to see firsthand what was inside one of the Log Cabin mines.

The Log Cabin mine is located in a beautiful conifer forest with plenty of wood. Most of the way up to the claim is relatively easy traveling on dirt road 187, however the last leg of the journey is down a rough road. The last several hundred feet are down steep grade in and are best accessed by ATV. We were able to park the ATV’s 40 feet away from the entrance of the mine. There was no foot traffic in or around the mine.

We found a collapsed structure on the site and a good amount of old miner’s trash. Circa 1880-1910. The tailings pile was relatively small. The survey team noted copper , silver and quartz were abundant, very minimal gold was seen. The assumption is that the ores were of high value and the majority were taken off site for processing. As a point of reference, the Log Cabin claim and workings are less than 1000 ft. from the patented old Faithful Claim. The Faithful was probably the largest producer in the district. Production totaled 1037 tons of ore yielding 69,512 lbs lead, 6700 lbs zinc, 2582 lbs copper, 1576 oz silver, and 268 oz gold. This production was recorded over 2 years after the mine had been re-opened after being abandoned for almost 45 years. Sassman (1941) states that in 1894 a Burlington mill was constructed by the Old Faithful Mining Company. He also states that little mining had occurred in the district since the late 1800s. Tailings were dumped in the dry drainage;. The survey team noted extensive free gold in flake and small nuggets were found in siliceous breccia on the tailings pile. The vein here is composed of red-brown jasper, goethite, limonite, manganese oxide, with blebs of pyrite and galena (Geach, 1972). Workings explored the north-south vein for 1200’; the vein averages 3-5’ wide. Host rock reported includes Mississippian Madison Limestone or Pennsylvanian Quadrant Sandstone or Cambrian Hasmark Formation. Workings include a 250’ deep shaft with 300’ of workings driven off it.