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

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NMI 082F4 Mo3
Name GIANT (L.997), GIANT, NOVELTY (L.958) Mining Division Trail Creek
BCGS Map 082F001
Status Past Producer NTS Map 082F04W
Latitude 049º 05' 04'' UTM 11 (NAD 83)
Longitude 117º 49' 32'' Northing 5437171
Easting 439719
Commodities Gold, Molybdenum, Copper, Cobalt, Nickel, Bismuth, Tungsten Deposit Types L05 : Porphyry Mo (Low F- type)
K05 : W skarn
L01 : Subvolcanic Cu-Ag-Au (As-Sb)
Tectonic Belt Omineca Terrane Quesnel, Kootenay
Capsule Geology

The Giant claim is located at 1295 metres elevation on the southwesterly slope of Red Mountain about 1.6 kilometres northwest of Rossland. The claim is adjoined to the north and east by the Novelty claim (Lot 958) and to the southeast by the California (Lot 956). The Gold King claim (Lot 1061) lies about 91 metres west of the Giant claim.

The Giant, Novelty, California, and Gold King claims were Crown-granted in 1896 to G.W. Coplin, T.F. Wren, Chas. Warren and D.M. Lennard, respectively. Very little development work was reported on the Gold King. On the Novelty claim a shaft was sunk to 12 metres and 2 short adits driven. The Giant and California were developed by two companies, the Giant Gold Mining Company and the California Gold Mining Company, which were organized in Spokane. Development work continued into 1903 and included, on the Giant, 2 shafts totalling about 61 metres and 152 metres of drifts and crosscuts, and, on the California, about 305 metres of drifts and a 51-metre shaft.

The Giant-California Mining Company, Limited was incorporated in 1907 as successor to the above companies. The property was apparently optioned by The Granby Consolidated Mining, Smelting and Power Company, Limited. Development work during 1907-1908 was confined to the California claim in search for the extension of the ore zone from its adjacent Annie claim held by Le Roi No. 2, Limited. A 366-metre crosscut and a 91-metre shaft were driven to connect with the Le Roi No. 2 workings. In 1914 the Le Roi No. 2, Limited secured a bond on the Giant and California and some development work was reported in 1914 and 1915. The Cal-Roi Mining Company, Limited was incorporated in 1921 to acquire the property but no work was reported.

Cascade Molybdenum Mines Ltd. was incorporated in October 1964 to acquire 9 Crown-granted claims (Gold King, Evening, etc.). The Giant claim was acquired on a 20-year lease from Cominco Ltd. During 1965 the company explored several zones of mineralization by 30 diamond drill holes totalling 2624 metres on the Giant, by 15 holes totalling 1159 metres on the Evening, by 7 holes totalling 920 metres on the Gold King, and by 3 holes totalling 295 metres on the Little Darling. The work on the Giant was localized in two areas, the first in the vicinity of the upper adit at about 1295 metres elevation, and the second a breccia zone to the northeast of the first at 1356 metres elevation. In 1966 approximately 9144 metres of AX wireline drilling in 17 holes was done, mainly on the Giant claim.

Reserves on the Giant claim were estimated at 558,375 tons. The company reported total indicated open pit reserves at 1,078,233 tons averaging 0.282 per cent molybdenite and 1.16 grams per tonne gold.

In January 1967 Cascade Molybdenum and Scurry-Rainbow Oil Limited agreed to a joint exploration program. During the year the full width of the breccia complex on the Giant and adjoining Novelty claim, and the eastern part of the breccia on the Golden Queen and St. Elmo claims (see 82 T/4, Mo 2), was tested by diamond drilling totalling 14020 metres in 174 holes, mainly on the Giant claim. Scurry thereby earned a major share position (282) in Cascade and assumed the management of that company. Based on the drilling by Scurry on this property, and on the adjoining Golden Queen-St. Elmo property, independent consultants calculated the indicated reserves available for open pit operations in 5 separate orebodies at 810,540 tons averaging 0.39 per cent molybdenite. In addition, some 88,000 tons of possible ore of various grades are indicated below open pit limits. In 1970 Red Mountain Mines Limited carried out trenching on the Novelty claim. Mine Finders, Inc. of Lakewood Colorado carried out a geochemical soil survey over the property in 1973. Scurry-Rainbow sold its interest in Cascade Molybdenum in 1975. The company name (Cascade) was changed in June 1975 to New Cascade Minerals Ltd., and In January 1976 to Maloney Steel Ltd.

David Minerals Ltd. by an agreement of August 1980 acquired the property from Maloney Steel for 12,000 shares, subject to a 5 per cent net smelter interest in Giant claim in favour of Cominco Ltd. Drilling was carried out on the Novelty claim in 1981. From the exploration done by Cascade there were estimated 1,070,280 tons grading 0.282 per cent MOS2 and 1.16 grams per tonne gold on the Giant and Novelty (1967) or 778,500 tons grading 0.340 per cent MOS2 and 1.98 grams per tonne gold (1971). (Geol. Rept. for David Minerals in SMF 268/80, 24/12/80).

Undiluted drill indicated reserves on the Novelty Main Zone were reported as 85,000 tons at 5.14 grams per tonne gold, 0.380 per cent MOS2, 0.126 per cent cobalt (J.L. Deleen (1984) - in David Minerals Statement of Material Facts, 11/07/85, p. 7).

The Giant Crown grant is underlain by the Pennsylvanian and possibly Permian Mount Roberts Formation siltstone, hornfelsed siltstone, hornfels and a breccia complex. The siltstone is rusty, sooty and massive or thinly bedded with minor disseminated pyrrhotite and pyrite. The hornfels and hornfelsic siltstones are thinly laminated, massive cherty rocks, which locally contain brown garnet and epidote.

The succession is thought to have been thrust over augite porphyry of the underlying Rossland sill of the Elise Formation (Rossland Group) prior to the intrusion of the Middle to Late Jurassic Trail pluton (Nelson Intrusions). The siltstone is also intruded by the Early Jurassic Rossland monzonite and monzonite breccia as well as by the syenitic Middle Eocene Coryell Intrusions and associated syenite dykes. Lenticular masses of andesite and late, steeply dipping, north-trending lamprophyre and diorite dykes have also invaded the siltstone.

Two types of mineral deposits occur on the property. The initial underground workings were on a narrow easterly dipping vein mineralized with sulphides of cobalt, nickel, arsenic, iron and molybdenum, all with gold. The molybdenum zone developed in later work occurs in breccia and consists of molybdenite, pyrrhotite, and minor chalcopyrite.

The mineralized vein strikes north and dips steeply to the east. Sulphides infill along a sheared dyke and comprise ore shoots which end abruptly against cross structures. Native gold occurs in impregnations of arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite, pyrite, molybdenite and bismuthinite near the dyke. The pyrrhotite is the most abundant ore mineral and carries determinable amounts of cobalt and nickel. Cobaltite is also present. Bismuthinite and native bismuth occurs in particles or aggregates up to a few centimetres in diameter and is found associated with the pyrrhotite and frequently is found with visible gold. Microscopic magnetite forms a thin rim or coatings around arsenopyrite grains which are associated with molybdenite, pyrrhotite, and chalcopyrite.

Between 1898 to 1913, 4,131 tonnes of ore was shipped from the Giant and California claims (082FSW113). From this ore, 113,246 grams gold, 23,265 grams silver, and 1,330 kilograms of copper were recovered (Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 77, page 141). Included in these figures are 3,940 tonnes of ore shipped from the Giant claim before operations were suspended in 1903.

Later work discovered molybdenum-gold mineralization essentially within the breccia complex. The hornfels and hornfelsic siltstone comprises a breccia with angular blocks ranging up to 30 metres across. The matrix between the blocks is comprised of fine silicates, quartz and calcite, garnet or scheelite. Molybdenum occurs in randomly oriented fractures in the hornfels breccia. It commonly lies along the margins of the breccia blocks and locally, is concentrated at junctions between the blocks. Pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, pyrite, and arsenopyrite are disseminated in the hornfels and occur in fractures and as massive lenses between breccia fragments. The sulphide distribution seems independent of the distribution of the molybdenite.

In 1966, 17 drill holes indicated open pit reserves on the Giant claim were 50,700 tonnes of molybdenite averaging approximately 0.282 per cent molybdenite and 1.16 grams per tonne gold. In 1971, the indicated reserves for the Novelty and Giant claims were 706,177 tonnes averaging 1.9 grams per tonne gold, 0.20 per cent molybdenite. Actual grade is 0.34 per cent MoS2 (David Minerals Limited, Statement of Material Facts, Dec. 24, 1980). Conversion used for MoS2 to Mo is 1.6681.

The characteristics of the molybdenite mineralization and its association with the Middle to Late Jurassic Trail pluton, especially its upper and western margins, point to its classification as a porphyry-type deposit (Bulletin 74).

Bibliography
EMPR AR 1896-558; 1897-543; 1898-1096; 1899-599; 1900-858,862;
1901-1049; 1903-155,162; 1907-107; 1908-105; 1915-178;
*1923-230; *1965-178; *1966-200-208; *1967-238-239; 1968-237
EMPR BULL 9, p. 93; *74; 109
EMPR FIELDWORK 1987, pp. 19-30; 1988, pp. 33-43; 1989, pp. 11-27;
1990, pp. 9-31
EMPR GEM 1970-437; 1973-62
EMPR OF 1988-1; 1989-11; 1990-8; 1990-9; 1991-2; 1991-16; 1991-17
EMPR PF (Various reports, surface plans and maps in 082FSW106, 109 and
110; Gilbert, G. and Malcolm, D.C. (1958): Rossland Properties -
Geology Report No. 2 (in Le Roi file - 082FSW093))
EMR MP CORPFILE (Cascade Molybdenum Mines Ltd.; Scurry-Rainbow Oil
Ltd.; 1967 Annual Report; David Minerals Ltd.)
GSC ANN RPT 1900, Vol.13, p. 84
GSC EC GEOL #20, pp. 288-289
GSC MAP 941; 1002; 1004; 1090A; 1091; 1504A; 1518
GSC MEM *77, pp. 73,77,141,153; 308, pp. 172,182
GSC P 79-26
EMR MIN BULL MR 223 B.C. 26
CANMET IR 592, p. 46
CIM Jubilee Vol., 1948, pp. 189-196
GCNL Jan.9, 1967; Mar.23,#138; 1973, #170, 1981
PERS COMM Andrew, K.P.E., March 1991
W MINER Jun., 1966, p. 60
David Minerals Limited, Statement of Material Facts, Dec. 24, 1980
Hodges, L.K. (editor), (1897): Mining in the Pacific Northwest, page
124
*Thorpe, R.I. (1967): Controls of Hypogene Sulphide Zoning, Rossland,
British Columbia, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Wisconsin
Howard, A.E. (2018-04-09): Technical Report on the Rossland Project

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