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File Created: 24-Jul-1985 by BC Geological Survey (BCGS)
Last Edit:  04-Aug-2020 by Karl A. Flower (KAF)

Summary Help Help

NMI 082F14 Ag9
Name VICTOR (L.4565), VIOLAMAC Mining Division Slocan
BCGS Map 082F094
Status Past Producer NTS Map 082F14W
Latitude 049º 59' 42'' UTM 11 (NAD 83)
Longitude 117º 16' 18'' Northing 5538110
Easting 480528
Commodities Silver, Lead, Zinc, Gold, Cadmium, Copper Deposit Types I05 : Polymetallic veins Ag-Pb-Zn+/-Au
Tectonic Belt Omineca Terrane Quesnel
Capsule Geology

The Victor property is situated west of Shea Creek on the southwest side of Carpenter Creek. The underground workings are on Crown grant Lot 4565 at 1478 metres elevation above sea level.

Production from the Victor mine between 1923 and 1985 yielded about 129 tonnes of silver, 21,746 tonnes of lead, 14,226 tonnes of zinc, 82 tonnes of cadmium, 69 kilograms of copper and 76.8 kilograms of gold from 149,502 tonnes mined.

This property is located on the southwest side of Carpenter Creek. The original discovery here was made in 1921 by G.A. Petty as the result of trenching and ground sluicing on a hillside almost covered with overburden. No. 1 adit was driven 15.2 metres below the discovery and 4 lower adits were subsequently drivern. The property was leased in 1931 by Mr. E. Doney, who worked the property in 1947. In 1948 Violamac Mines (B.C.) Limited purchased the property along with Mr. Doney's lease.

Mining commenced early in 1949 and milling operations started in December 1950, with a 50-ton mill situated at the Victor Mine. Late in 1952 the company began shipping its ore to the mill of Western Exploration Company Limited, and continued to do so until the end of 1957. In January 1958 shipments were started to the mill of the Carnegie Mining Corp. Ltd., a subsidiary company.

The Victor Mine is opened by 8 adits, situated one below the other, through a vertical distance of about 274 metres. With the exception of the lowermost adit, No. 9, these adits are completely on the Victor property. No. 9 adit was collared in 1953, 161.5 metres east and 68.5 metres lower than No. 7 portal, on the adjoining Cinderella claim (082FNW014). In 1954 this level had been driven to a point 152.4 metres in advance of the face of No. 7, some 914 metres from the portal. A winze started from the No. 7 level was completed in 1955 to connect with No. 9 at a point 640 metres in from the No. 9 portal. The longest levels are No. 9, about 1280 metres, and No. 7, which is over 671 metres, and No. 5 about 366 metres in length.

In 1957, due to depletion of reserves and low metal prices, production was curtailed from a rate of 70 tons a day to 25 tons. Exploration during the next 3 years was not successful in developing a sufficient tonnage of ore, and in November 1960 the last shipment was made to the Carnegie mill. Possibilities of finding further ore in the present workings are considered remote.

During 1961 mining was done above No. 7 level and above and below No. 5 level. Total development was 79.5 metres, including 33.5 metres of drifts and crosscuts and 46 metres of raising. Violamac held the lease until 1965. Kam-Kotia Mines Limited acquired the property in 1966, and production continued under lease to E.H. Peterson until 1985.

Regionally, the area lies on the western margin of the Kootenay Arc, in allochthonous rocks of the Quesnel Terrane. In the vicinity of the occurrence, the Quesnel Terrane is dominated by very fine grained clastic sedimentary rocks of the Upper Triassic Slocan Group that include locally weakly metamorphosed argillite, quartzite, limestone and some tuffaceous rocks. These sedimentary rocks are intruded by dikes, sills and stocks of varied composition and origin. Permian and/or Triassic Kaslo Group metamorphosed volcanic rocks occur to the north of the Slocan Group rocks. Middle Jurassic Nelson intrusions are immediately south of the Slocan Group and are inferred to be the source of granitic to pegmatitic sills and dikes found in the area. The Nelson intrusions comprise at least six texturally and compositionally distinct phases ranging from diorite to lamprophyre. The most dominant phase is a medium to coarse grained potassium feldspar porphyritic granite (Paper 1989-5).

The occurrence is hosted by predominantly black argillite and quartzite of the Slocan Group intruded by numerous dikes and sills of quartz porphyry and granite probably related to the Nelson intrusions. The sedimentary rocks have been folded, fractured, faulted and regionally metamorphosed to greenschist facies. The regional northwest trending asymmetric Slocan syncline is thought to be Middle Jurassic and is the first recognizable deformation in the sequence. Several fault structures are evident in the immediate area and host vein mineralization. Later stage normal and thrust faults and shearing have chopped, deformed and remobilized the veins and mineralization. Drag features are also present.

The Victor deposit occurs in a fracture zone, up to 35 metres wide, where various veins are found. The veins are hosted by joints or faults with relatively small oblique normal dextral movement. The fracture zone is perpendicular to the strike of the sedimentary rocks and to the axial plane of a recumbent fold suggesting that it resulted from dilation along the axis of the fold. The ore zones are developed on a system of veins that follow single or multiple fractures. The veins vary from a mere crack up to 2.5 metres in width close to crossfaults that are subparallel to bedding. The veins are slightly moved by dextral and sinistral displacements along these faults. Within the underground workings the veins averaged about 30 centimetres in width, striking 040 degrees and dipping 75 to 80 degrees northwest.

Where the veins are thin, sphalerite dominates but where the veins widen, massive galena occurs. The galena is commonly sheared at the hangingwall and coarse grained at the footwall. Pyrite, chalcopyrite and tetrahedrite occur within the galena-rich portions of the veins. The ore minerals are associated with a gangue of siderite, calcite and quartz.

The veins have been explored with at least six adits over a vertical range of 120 metres. The largest orebody occurred on the No. 5 level and was mined continuously for a strike length of about 115 metres.

During 2005 through 2014, Klondike Silver Corp. examined the area as apart of their Slocan Silver Camp property.

Bibliography
EMPR AR 1900-989; 1901-1227; 1922-199; 1923-223; 1924-196; 1925-244,
246; 1926-251; 1927-270,478; 1928-286; 1929-285,308; 1930-250;
1931-142; 1932-160,178; 1933-200,206; 1934-A26; 1935-A26,E35,G51;
1936-E52; 1937-A38,E55; 1938-A37,E43; 1939-39,95; 1940-27,80;
1941-27,75; 1942-28,72; 1943-72; 1944-41,71; 1945-43,105; 1946-35,
164; 1947-170; 1948-145; *1949-187; 1950-146,150; 1951-43,173,175,
177; 1952-44,176; 1953-46,140; 1954-51,140; 1955-A49,62; 1956-A51,
95; 1957-A47,53; 1958-A47,46; *1959-A49,68; 1960-A55,76; 1961-A50,
76,77; 1962-A50,80; 1963-A50,77; 1964-A56,123; 1965-A56,192; 1966-
A52,222; 1967-A55,252; 1968-A55,254; 1969-A56; 1970-A55; 1972-A55;
1973-A55; 1974-A121; 1975-A95; 1976-A105; 1977-A116; 1979-130
EMPR ASS RPT *15444
EMPR BC METAL MM01448
EMPR BULL *29, pp. 117-120
EMPR GEM 1969-328; 1970-453; 1972-59; 1973-79
EMPR INDEX-217; 4-126
EMPR IR 1984-3; p. 109; 1984-4, p. 122; 1986-1, p. 112
EMPR LMP Fiche No. 61728-61747
EMPR MIN STATS 1985, p. 50
EMPR MINING 1975-1980, Vol.1, p. 33
EMPR OF 1998-10
EMPR P 1989-5
EMPR PF (Pedley, S.J. (1956): Longitudinal projection of East Victor
orebody and cross-section of Victor mine; Photograph of Victor
mine portal, 1962; see Reco, 082FNW035 - Jefferson, L.M. (1971):
The Potential of Reco Silver Mines Ltd., pp. 50-51)
EMR MP CORPFILE (Violamac Mines - (B.C.) Limited; Violamac Mines
Limited)
GSC MAP 273A; 1091A; 1956-3
GSC MEM 173, p. 15; *184, pp. 153-155; 308, p. 127
CANMET IR MD 2725 (1950)
CIM Vol.2, p. 72
Höy, T. (2016-06-28): Technical Report – The Slocan Silver Camp

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