State of Washington ARTHUR B. LANGLIE, Governor Department of Conservation and Development JACK V. ROGERS, Director DIVISION OF MINES AND GEOLOGY SHELDON L. GLOVER, Supervisor Bulletin No. 39 ANTIMONY OCCURRENCES OF WASHINGTON by C. PHILLIPS PURDY, JR. STATE PAINTING PLANT OI_VMPIA . WASH . 1951 For sale by Department of Conservation a nd Development, Olympia, Washington. J>rice, one dollar. Corrections to Division of Mines and Geology Bulletin No . 39 Page 37 - line 6, the word 11 Ha.gnesian11 should precede the word "Amphiboles. 11 Page 37 - line 8, should read "temperatures and pressures in the silica rich solutions of a neutral, weakly acid, 11 Page 56 - line 15, 11 oervanite," should be spelled "cervantite. 11 CONTENTS Page Introduction . 7 Acknowledgments . 9 Properties, treatment, uses, and consumption of antimony........ ..... 10 Physical properties .... ........................................ 10 Chemical properties . • . 11 Treatment . 12 Uses and consumption . 12 Lead-antimony alloys 12 Antimony compounds . • . 14 The antimony market and outlook . 15 Antimony minerals of Washington and their identHication. • . 16 Native antimony . 17 Antimonide . • . 17 Dyscrasite . 17 Sulfides . 18 Stibnite . 18 Kermesite . 20 Sulfosalts . 20 Polybasite . 20 Stephanite . 21 Pyrargyrite . 21 Tetrahedrite . 22 Geocronite . 22 Bournonite . • . 23 Berthierite . 23 Meneghlnite . 24 Boulangerite . 24 Jamesonite . 25 Zinkenite . • . 25 Diaphorite ........ .. ... ................... ........ , . 26 Andorite ......... : . 26 Oxides . 26 Senarmontite . 27 Valentinite . • . 27 Cervantite . 27 Stibiconite . 28 Antimonate . 28 Bindheimite 28 4 Table of Contents Page Origin of mineral veins and associated antimony minerals......... ... 29 A possible origin for some structures controlling and related to vein formation . 29 Origin and nature of the mineralizing fluid. 32 Crystallization of magma. 32 Nature of the hydrothermal solution fraction. 34 Factors causing the solutions to rise. 39 Factors controlling precipitation . 39 Order of precipitation . 42 Vein formation and mineral zoni.ng. 43 The classification of the hydrothermal ore deposits.... ........... 47 Oxidation of the antimony minerals. 55 Prospecting for stibnite. 57 Antimony occurrences investigated... ... ............ ..... ... .. 59 Chelan County . 59 Orphan Boy prospect............... .. .. ..... ........... 59 Peshastin mine . 62 Snook and Ellen prospects. ........................... .. 62 Ferry County . 66 Covada district . 66 General description . 66 Longstreet and Robert E. Lee mines. 68 Silver Leaf min e. 71 King County . 74 Gold Mountain prospect.. .. .. ..... ... .. ........... 74 Great Republic mine...... .. ..... .................... 75 Buena Vista and Miller River districts. 78 Cleopatra group . 79 Dawson prospect . 83 Bear Basin mine, Adit No. 3 . 84 Coney Basin mine.................. ..... .... .... .. 87 Kittitas County . 87 Denny prospect . 87 Lewis County . 91 Reeves prospect . 91 Okanogan County . 92 Carlquist prospect . 92 Lucky Knock mine ............... , . 92 Introduction and history . 92 Description of the Lucky Knock stibnite deposit. 96 Carlton-Gold Creek area . 104 General geology . 106 Conclusions . 107 Antimony Bell mine. 107 Antimony Queen mine . 109 Bales prospect . 122 Coyote prospect . 123 Jumbo prospect . 124 Stibnite prospect . 125 Table of Contents 5 Page Antimony occmrences investigated- Continued P end Oreille County . 126 Lena Belle prospect . ..