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File Created: 24-Jul-1985 by BC Geological Survey (BCGS)
Last Edit:  29-Sep-2011 by Laura deGroot (LDG)

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NMI 082K9 Ag1
Name PRETTY GIRL (L.2570), VENUS (L.2571), NEW CHUM (L.2572), BEAUTY (L.2573), OLD CHUM (L.2574), MINNIEHAHA FR. (L.2575), SNOW CAT, BURRO, JAY, SILVER THREAD Mining Division Golden
BCGS Map 082K059
Status Past Producer NTS Map 082K09W
Latitude 050º 31' 13'' UTM 11 (NAD 83)
Longitude 116º 18' 46'' Northing 5596706
Easting 548717
Commodities Silver, Copper Deposit Types I06 : Cu+/-Ag quartz veins
Tectonic Belt Foreland Terrane Ancestral North America
Capsule Geology

The Pretty Girl claim is located at the 2280-metre elevation at the head of a northwesterly flowing tributary of Law Creek, some 19 kilometres west of Invermere. The original property extended from the summit of the mountain at 2590 metres elevation to Law Creek at the 1920 metres elevation.

In 1898 the property comprised 6 claims, the Pretty Girl, Venus, New Chum, Beauty, Old Chum, and Minniehaha Fr., held by New Golden British Columbia, Limited of London, England. Development work was confined to the Pretty Girl claim at the 2280-metre elevation and included open cuts, a 72-metre adit, a 12-metre shaft and crosscut. A 450-kilogram shipment of ore was sent to England for test purposes. The claims (Lots 2570-2575 respectively) were Crown-granted to the company in 1900. The property was worked under lease in 1903 and two apparently new adits were driven to lengths of 100 metres and 14 metres, and the shaft deepened to 21 metres. Five tonnes of ore were mined in 1904 with 10,482 grams of silver and 1,214 kilograms of copper recovered.

The Pretty Girl claim was re-Crown-granted to Jas McKay in 1914. The following year the claim was acquired by Messrs. Peake and Cornwall, who had re-staked adjacent lapsed claims; no work was reported.

Although no work is recorded for that year production records indicate that in 1917, 2 tonnes of ore were mined and 3110 grams of silver and 363 kilograms of copper were recovered.

No further activity was recorded until 1927 when prospecting was done. In 1928 North Kootenay Mines, Limited acquired the property and some activity apparently continued until the fall of 1929, but there is no report of work done. One tonne of ore was shipped in 1928 and 622 grams of silver and 91 kilograms of copper were recovered.

In 1972, G.B. Allan acquired the grants which were mineral leases at the time. A rock sampling program was completed.

Pearson, Gallagher Ltd., of Nelson, held the property in 1981 but operators reported that they could not find the workings and surmised that there were discrepancies in the surveyed location of the Crown Grant.

In 1987, a self-potential survey (3.2 kilometres) was completed by T.R.B. Dundas & Associates for owner W. Pochylko. Much of the original crown grant area had been restaked as the Snow Cat claims of the Silver Thread group.

By 1988, nine reverted crown grants of the Pretty Girl and Delos/Trojan (082KNW030/082KNE033) groups were owned by Clive Ashworth as recorded in 1986. These were subsequently optioned to Gold Ford Capital Corp. and the Burro claims were staked to surround the Pretty Girl group and the Horse and Ass were staked around the Delos/Trojan group. At that time, 5 rock samples, 12 silt samples and 633 soils samples were taken. Approximately 21 metres of hand trenching were completed. Gold Ford returned in 1990 and conducted a 5 kilometre VLF survey.

In 1995 W. Pochylko had a 20-kilometre self-potential survey completed on his Jay claims which cover the Delos/Trojan and Pretty Girl workings as well as other workings to the south. Some of the survey was completed in the Pretty Girl area. In 1996, W. Pochylko completed a 6.4-kilometre self-potential survey in the same areas.

The Pretty Girl area is underlain by upper Proterozoic coarse clastic sedimentary rocks of the Horsethief Creek Group. Early surface workings were reportedly in shale or slate dipping near vertical and striking about north 25 degrees west. The upper adit evidently followed a vein, which varies from a seam up to 25 centimetres in width, consisting of quartz somewhat stained with malachite (copper carbonate). The ore in the shaft, some of which was shipped and some specimens of which are still to be seen on the dump, carried grey-copper with high values in silver.

A visit to the old Pretty Girl workings in 1988 by Gold Ford Capital showed the mineralization to consist of semi-massive tetrahedrite with minor chalcopyrite and pyrite within a malachite-azurite stained shale. At that time 7 hand trenches were dug averaging 3 metres in length. The work done in 1988 revealed a 25 metre long by 1.18 metre wide mineralized horizon. The showing was reported to be open along strike.

Bibliography
EM GEOFILE 2003-2
EMPR AR 1898-1042,1055; 1899-595,667; 1900-980; 1903-104; 1914-513;
*1915-96; 1927-265; 1928-276; 1929-292
EMPR ASS RPT 10248, 16808, *18342, *20887, 24025, 24579, 25146
EMPR BC METAL MM00575
EMPR INDEX 3-209
EMR MP CORPFILE (North Kootenay Mines, Limited)
GSC MAP 2070; 12-1957; 1326A
GSC MEM 148; 369
EMPR PFD 886515

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