Show THE SOUTH FORK OF BIG cottonwood by WILL C HIGGINS j from the mouth of big cottonwood canyon to the headwaters of the stream near the great summer resort of brighton and up its numerous brand branches hes to the very summits of the high mountain ranges the is not only extensive and heavy but the character of ores abounding is so versatile that it includes gold silver lead and copper and these cover an area so great that much of it has never yet been visited by even the most persistent prospector and mining man the section above described is part and parcel of salt lake county in the very heart of utah it is a rough and rugged country and the canyon is a thoroughfare that is extensively used in going up and down this beautiful and natural avenue one hardly enters the mouth of the canyon before evidences of are to be seen prospect holes abound on either hand and a few miles up the old maxfield mine boldly confronts the traveller a property that has a production record of a million or more and which is still being profitably operated from the maxfield up mining has been more active in the days gone by and old producers line the canyon sides aides way up to the utah coalition now shipping regularly along the route being the old evergreen now in course of extensive and systematic development at d N M panoramic view showing location of the howell mine left of center and the american consolidated to the extreme right see heavy snow in foreground photo taken july 20 by will C higgins the south fork section about a mile above argenta which for years boasted of post office facilities and which was headquarters for many mining men the south fork of the main canyon comes in from the south the south fork has been a history maker in the annals of the mining industry in utah for more than half a century for it was here that the greatest of activity prevailed many years ago agg when mining in utah was but in its infancy and it was from the mines of south fork that many thousands some say millions were produced in the precious and baser metals long before the discovery of other camps and districts which of late years have been so prominent in the public eye before the panic of 73 and before the decline in lead and silver quotations led to a closing down of its mines and scattered their owners to sections where gold and gold only existed in paying quantities A change in conditions how ever which permitted a return to silver lead mining has rehabilitated the south fork to a certain extent and now for the first time within a quarter of a century activity in mining prevails in that section where the rugged and towering peaks permit of obtaining profound depths in mining operations up and down the south fork almost from the point where it debouches bouches de into the main canyon up to the very summit of the alta divide mining properties are to be found on either hand some of the workings are to be ba found almost on a level with the stream others are to be seen at dizzy heights in the crags and pinnacles up in the clouds to reach which one must have the sure footing of the deer the steady balance of the eagle some of the old producers of south P 41 3 YZ ae A F 01 4 V X q Y 4 Y I P 1 A if A 7 4 w 0 ta S tunnel entrance and waste durna cardiff mine photo by avill C higgins fork have almost been forgotten so long ago were they worked and operated some of them have been relocated located re and merged into new corporations others have changed hands by purchase and have been given new names but we remember such names as the phoenix the reed and goodspeed and the old carbonate the reed and goodspeed is now owned and is being operated by the kennebec company the old carbonate with over a million in production to its credit is being worked vor ked by the carbonate mining alining compana while other old timers have taken a new hold upon life and their owners have resumed work in their development and operation some of the younger fry many of the old time operators in the fork have answered the last call but a newer generation has taken hold where the pioneers left off thi tins 1 s fresh blood has not only undertaken the resurrection of old and practically abandoned mines but has also made many new discoveries the oldest of these might well include the baby mckee and the jones mines both were productive sixteen or eighteen years ago after which a period of idleness ensued but the true merit of such promising propositions ions could not long be overlooked and now the cardiff the successor of the jones mine is a regular producer of high grade ore while the howell mining ining 11 company which inherited the baby mckee less than a year ago has since been a profitable producer and also has fine bodies of ore blocked out in its mine workings the rexall is a product of the later vintage so to speak and has done a large amount of work in the development of its promising property below the howell is the property of the american con copper silver mining ning company the american has been prodoc tive during the past few years and its property is well equipped for profitable operation in the future still further down the canyon is the property of the big cottonwood consolidated mining alining company whose extensive holdings border on the section is so justly festl y noted across the canyon from the dig big cottonwood consolidated is the property of the east carbonate which it is believed carries with it the extension of the cardiff and kennebec veins just above and lying between the east carbonate and the kennebec is the tar baby a lusty youngster who glories in its surroundings and who pins its faith to the fact that its territory is traversed by such large fissures and veins which in neighboring properties have been so productive in the past ad adjoining bining the big cottonwood on the north is the property of the reeds peak mining alining company which is now in in course of development then there is ia the bachelor and a a galaxy of promising prospects and bonanzas in embryo most of which are receiving attention at the present time A few years ago one could secure desirable ground almost anywhere in the south fork section now however it would be difficult to find an open fraction so great has been the demand of late for property in this favored locality and the tide that I 1 is now settin setting in in the south fork still lacks a great deal from deachin reaching high mark visit to south fork on the and edth of the present month the editor of the TA mining lining review visited the south fork of big cottonwood canyon the start was made from sugar I louse house one of the suburbs of salt lake here a livery rig was engaged and early morning found him on his way through beautiful salt lake valley to the mouth of t A waft 0 Y the howell mine by will C higgins canyon stream and extends up and over the towering crest of reeds and kesslere Kess lers peaks and taking in on its course the extension of the old carbonate vein and embracing within its boundary lines lilies the great quartzite lime contact for which that big cottonwood the ascent of which continually unfolded panoramas of scenic beauty such as few realize exist within a lew few miles of TJ talis capital one found the writer at the camp of the rig pig cottonwood consolidated where an appetizing dinner was provided bawl by W L marwood harwood the president or lie he company after dinner the journey s continued to the cardiff so cozily ensconced n in the pines below the divide which separates the south fork from little cottonwood canyon here every courtesy was extended by superintendent I 1 jenry henry barney whose entertainment extended from supper until breakfast the next morning in and under whose guidance the cardiff underground workings were inspected the howell adjoining the cardiff on the west was also visited and its treasure vaults were examined under the of superintendent erin W L harwood later the surface and tunnel workings of the big cot conwood consolidated were inspected as were also the preliminary work being done at the tar baby in one of the illustrations act accompanying this article it will be seen that huge snow banks still exist near the head of the divide this snow is packed hard and can be driven over with hors borss and rig without hardly making a mark on its surface up and down the canyon from the divide down to the main canyon road the country is a veritable flower garden all co colors lors and shades intermingling and presenting is such a profusion of variety as to enthuse the beholder geology of south fork the following description of the south fork of big cottonwood canyon was written by henry barney an experienced mining man who has made an exhaustive study of the formation as it exists in this section mr barney makos makes especial mention of the formation on the east s side de of south fork mr barney says beginning at the mouth of south fork and going almost due south up the canyon one will see to the east an abrupt ridge caused by an upheaval benching the rocks up and leaving them tilted and exposed and standing up like huge marble stairs in this terrific upheaval it is very apparent that resistance to the west was too great consequently a huge normal fault which extends the entire length of south fork and through the ridge and down superior gulch into little cottonwood canyon this uplift exposes to view the edges of a series of sedimentary or stratified rocks which are slightly antic lined the axis of which is the east and west dividing ridge between the head of south fork and little cottonwood canyon the trend being north and south arid and pitching bout about 30 degrees to the east these rocks consist at the base of exposure of quartzite about feet alic ahm n comes about feet of basaltic rock andesite on top of which there is feet of conglomerate feet of quartzite fifty feet of horri hornblende blende and feet of lime rock it is in the above described rock that the columbus con ore bodies are found also the col Colt 71 bus extension the ores of those proper t lc a 0 t ell 17 ZI 3 A AA I 1 oco 04 t 01 i r 4 G q 0 C 00 41 31 9 1 1 P OF 0 7 7 C 0 C al cottonwood mining district courtesy W IL II 11 child co map showing south fork section of big bg ties form in ill the quartzite with the trap rock as the hanging wall the old flagstaff and kennebec ores are also found in the upper limes of these series the ores of the cardiff are found in the lower quartzite west of the andesite this ore is found in a fault fissure caused by the benching up movement the ore from all appearances having been dragged into the fissure at the time the faulting occurred showing conclusively that there must have been a strong bedded deposit broken at the time of faulting at the cardiff the company has followed by tunnel the strike of the main fault line for 1400 feet where it shows plainly that the edges of the lower quart have been brought up in contact with the edges of the upper limes which have hung back from the resistance to the west the writer has no doubt but that in the sedimentary rocks and near the trap dike large bedded deposits of ore will be founds throughout the above series there are numerous igneous intrusions and cross fissures which are usually very productive especially where they intersect the trap dike take for instance the old toledo cross fissure which produced upwards of a million dollars in the early days of alta the workings of which are in and near the trap dike the above series of rock are easily traced from the columbus con in alta through the columbus extension rexall cardiff kennebec tar baby east carbonate and the bramberg brothers contention group of claims this group of claims hold the key to a drain tunnel site along the strike of this great and long neglected mineral zone the general conditions at the tar baby are ideal for large ore bodies having a fifty foot porphyry dike cutting the strati fied rock at right angles and visible for two thousand feet the writer understands that it is on oil this dike that the tar baby company intends running its tunnel if so there is not much doubt but that the days of the old toledo flagstaff and kennebec wm K k oe A aa A 7 f 1 ALV development tunnel started by the big cottonwood Gott onwood consolidated co photo by will C higgins will be repeated to the west of this great fault erosion lia lias has s played a very active part great blocks of the upper limes have been carried away leaving bare the underlying quart and this is found to be so S it ar sacking ore at the cardiff mine photo will C higgins at the howell group and just north at the bramberg brothers property the limes have been eroded and again just north there is a slight lateral fault which fault assisted by erosions ero is responsible for the exposure of the old carbonate ore body from which so much ore was shipped in the early days of the cottonwoods Cotton woods the carbonate ore bodies are bedded deposits in the lime near the quartzite lime contact big cottonwood consolidated overshadowed by reeds peak and higher in the clouds by ke kesslere Kess salers ss lers peak which appear to be silent sentinels guarding treasure vaults of this mighty range is the group of claims owned by the big cottonwood Al mining lining company this ground is admirably located for extensive and profitable operation high up in the ni mountain buntain within the boundary lines of the company fine veins and droppings crop pings have been found these come within the influence of the great mineral b bearing baring belt for which this section is so justly noted and are on oil the lime quartzite contact in which the ore bodies of that region generally make near this contact and paralleling it in a northeasterly and southwesterly direction there are several strong fissures which can be traced on the surface for long distances one of these known as the carbonate vein from which something like a million and a half was taken in the early seventies has been worked to within seventy five feet of the endline of the big cottonwood consolidated territory and this vein continues on and through company holdings the formation in simple terms is quartzite with lime overlying and underlying from surface indications it is believed that the ore bodies will be found near the contact and that they will also make out in bedded planes into the lime the mountain on which the claims of the big B ig cottonwood company are located slopes to the northeast it is very rugged and in tunnel work depth can call be gained foot for foot on oil account of the great influx of water very soon encountered after development work has been begun mining by tunnel is imperative pera tive this is after all the most economical method of mine operation as drainage is afforded as work progresses while transportation is made easy from the fact that in the south fork the portal of such openings can generally he be located within a short distance from the main wagon road such a tunnel the company has started this tunnel has been begun on a small cross seam it is now in a distance of over sixty feet and it is the expectation of the management that a few feet more will take the workings into ts t 3 first of the fissure veins for which the tunnel is being headed and the droppings crop pings of which are so conspicuous on the surface the property of the big cottonwood consolidated mining company is bounded on oil the north by the holdings of the reeds peak company on the east by the east carbonate and the tar baby on the south mail 14 41 2 X X panoramic view of range on which is located the CarlS onate big cottonwood consolidated and reeds peak mines photo by C higgins by the ground owned by the american consolidated soli dated copper silver 11 mining ining company and on the west and northwest by the carbonate and silver mountain it is flanked on the west also by properties which were producers many years ago and |