Show nickel in alaska nickel ore has been reported at three localities in alaska on the west coast of Chicha island near copper river and on knight island prince william sound the deposits on Chicha island and near copper river were examined in the summer of 1917 by R M of the united states geological survey A brief statement of the results of that examination follows the nickel deposits of Chicha island are situated on the west coast of the island about three miles northwest of pinta bay or about sixty five miles northwest of sitka the developments consisted in 1917 of a foot shaft with feet of drifts at the eighty and foot levels and of several prospect holes the ore occurs in and near the margin of a mass of hornblende gabbro or which is intrusive into quartz mica schist this contact is parallel to the shore the ore is exposed in two outcrops about half a mile apart A shaft was sunk at the more northerly of these outcrops there is a third outcrop about halt half a nile mile farther north where a mass of limonite is believed to be the weathered capping of the ore these outcrops form irregular areas about seventy feet in maximum diameter projecting somewhat above the surrounding surface at several other places the ore minerals were seen disseminated in small amounts through the country rock the ore contains copper and nickel the most abundant sulphide minerals being rho tite and is an iron nickel sulphide fenis containing about 22 per cent of nickel the minerals in the ore include also a small amount of which is an of nickel containing about per cent of nickel ille kel two selected samples of ore from the e eighty foot level contain and per cent of nickel and a trace of cobalt the number size and shape of the ore bodies have not been determined the only opportunity for underground observation in 1917 H was in the eighty foot level at the center outcrop the shaft is in igneous rock that at is ig free from ore minerals the drift for r about thirty feet from the shaft is also ill barren hornblende gabbro but the last thirty feet of the drift is in massive ore at the face of the drift there are some masses basses of barren rock but the drill holes in the face are apparently in sulphides sulp hides there has been some faulting at this level bit t its extent is not known the drift at the e foot level could not be reached but it is said to be about eighty feet long alad d to reveal ore which has apparently been medhat broken up by faulting the rhe three outcrops described above ap 1 patently Parent ly have no surface connection and may ay have no connection underground they anay ay possibly be the exposures of a single continuous ore body but they are more likely to be outcrops of separate ore bodies that lie in a mineralized zone along the intrusive contact this zone probably contains other ore bodies that do not show at the surface neither the outcrops nor the underground workings are of sufficient extent to permit any reliable estimate of the amount of ore that may be present at this locality ore bodies of this kind are generally very irregular the amount of ore shown in the present workings therefore does not justify large investments in facilities for mining ore treatment or shipping the amount of ore in sight and the geologic conditions at the locality do however encourage the hope that workable ore bodies will be developed and justify the expenditure of a moderate amount of money in blocking out the known ore body and in the search for other ore bodies this search should include the thorough prospecting of the entire area along the contact of the intrusive rock with the schist it is believed that diamond drilling near the known outcrops and at the localities where disseminated ore is seen may reveal additional ore bodies that do not reach the surface the copper river nickel locality is situated near the headwaters of canyon creek about thirteen miles east of copper river opposite mile on the copper river northwestern railroad at an altitude of more than feet mining claims have been located on the outcrops of basic dikes which cut t the he but only a little underground work has been done and co pyrite are localized at a few places but there is no evidence of extensive the amount of ore cannot be estimated on account of the small amount of underground work and the fact that at one locality at least the ore body has been faulted A selected specimen of ore contains per cent nickel and a trace of cobalt but most of the known ore is believed to be of much lower grade A nickel deposit is said to have been discovered knight island prince william ca vered on sound it is reported that this deposit was being prospected with a diamond drill in the locality has not the summer of 1917 but member of the geological been visited by any survey and no authentic information is available |