The Erickson mine is located southeast of Callison Lake and approximately 12 kilometres southeast of the former mining town of Cassiar.

Gold- and silver-bearing white quartz veins occur in the Sylvester Allochthon, which is Upper Paleozoic in this area. The Sylvester Allochthon is a fault-bounded imbricate assemblage of Devonian to Triassic regionally metamorphosed (greenschist facies) oceanic rocks thrust over autochthonous North American sediments. In this area, the assemblage consists of Slide Mountain Complex greenstones, pillow metabasalts, serpentinite, listwanite and argillites. West-plunging veins occur on both limbs of a synclinal fold with an east-trending axis.

Two types of gold-bearing structures occur. Cymoidal quartz-filled sheared fault structures dip north or south forming ore where they pass from competent to incompetent rock types. The Jennie, Maura, Alison and Caitlin veins belong to this type. The Devine, Bear, Goldie and Dease are tension fracture veins. The McDame is a late-stage vein consisting of layered dolomite, clear quartz, pyrite and calcite. The Kelly vein, just north of the Bear vein, is presently in the exploration phase. Veins are up to 5 metres thick with alteration envelopes commonly being 1 to 15 metres thick.

Mineralization in the Erickson veins consists of pyrite, tetrahedrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, covellite and gold. The gold is associated with chalcopyrite and tetrahedrite as well as occurring along in quartz-bearing fractures. Tetrahedrite occurs as blebs and fine disseminations with associated chalcopyrite. Malachite and azurite staining is common in the veins.

Listwanite, and less common carbon-bearing alteration envelopes, are well developed. Where quartz veins cut or lie directly underneath a listwanite zone, the gold values for that portion of the vein increase. Dussell (1986) proposed that "ore solution infiltrated and metasomatized bodies of partially serpentinized peridotite producing a listwanite. Gold precipitation was then triggered by a decrease in sulphur activity when the ore solution reacted with the listwanite parent".

Work History

The Jennie vein was first identified in 1935 or 1936 by Hans Erickson. In 1937, Cominco optioned the claims and completed programs of trenching and diamond drilling before dropping the option the following year. In 1938 and/or 1939, McDame Lake Mining Co. milled approximately 117.9 tonnes of ore.

In 1973, Agnes and Jennie Mining Co. Ltd. acquired the area and in 1975 completed a single percussion drill hole, totalling 43.0 metres, and three diamond drill holes, totalling 201.0 metres, on the FG 1-2 claims. The percussion drill hole yielded an average of 0.9 gram per tonne gold over 30 metres; no assays were reported for the diamond drill holes (Assessment Report 5628). The following year, Nu-Energy development Corp. optioned the FG claims and completed 19 diamond drill holes, totalling 398.0 metres, and in 1977, a crosscut adit was driven for 227 metres with 27 underground drillholes and 29 surface drillholes, totalling 2559.0 metres, being completed. Further drifting was completed in late 1977 and early 1978. Also in 1977 and 1978, five diamond drill holes, totalling 324.0 metres, and a 29.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic (VLF) survey was completed on the BB, Up, Nora, FG 1, Mill, Val, Ned and Jennie Ext. claims to the north.

In 1978, Erickson Gold Mining Corp. commenced production from the Jennie vein. The following year, 15 diamond drill holes, totalling 1450.0 metres, were completed on the Jennie property.

During 1979 through 1982, Esso Resources Canada Ltd. completed programs of geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling, 1261.3 metres of diamond drilling, trenching and ground electromagnetic (VLF) surveys on the area as the McDame property. In 1985, Erickson Gold Mines completed 12 diamond drill holes, totalling 315.6 metres, on the Kelly vein on the Jennie Extension No.4 claim. The following year, a further 31 diamond drill holes, totalling 2601.4 metres, were completed on the Hurricane 3-4, Up, Jennie Ext. 4, Sun and FG 1-2 claims.

Total Energold Corp. suspended production at the Erickson mine in late October, 1988. See Table Mountain (MINFILE 104P 070) for subsequent production in the area. To date (1988), Erickson Gold Mining Corporation has produced 489,780 tonnes of ore grading 15.6 grams per tonne gold and 11.31 grams per tonne silver (A. Boronowski, personal communication, 1988). Figures includes production from the Vollaug (MINFILE 104P 019), Wildcat (MINFILE 104P 057) and Table Mountain (MINIFLE 104P 070) occurrences.

In 1990, Erickson Gold Mining completed 18 diamond drill holes, totalling 3350.6 metres, on the Adit, FG 2, Redhill 5, Sun and Up claims. Also at this time, a program of trenching, 13 diamond drill holes, totalling 1639.9 metres, an 18.0 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey and a 45.3 line-kilometre induced polarization survey on the Wildcat 13 and 15-16, AA, GO and Bit claims. In 1991, the potential mineral resource for the property was reported at 199,562 tonnes grading 22.9 grams per tonne gold (George Cross News Letter No.243, 1991).

In 1998, Cusac Gold Mines Ltd. carried out a program of overburden trenching and vein sampling to expose and evaluate an extension of the Bear vein. Originally discovered by Erickson during the course of driving the 21 Level drift, this Type 1 vein was partially mined out from the 21 and 14 Levels. Exploration drilling in 1997, designed to test for veining east of the Erickson Creek fault zone and east of the Main Mine area, yielded several interesting intersections on a Bear Vein extension. Additional follow up holes began to define a near surface mineralized shoot. The decision was taken in late 1997 to halt drilling on the structure and to undertake a trenching and sampling program to determine the continuity of the structure and of gold grade within the structure. Initial sampling yielded gold grades sufficient to warrant the extraction of a bulk sample and is currently underway (August 30, 1998). Cusac Gold Mines Ltd. estimates mine tailings from the 1979 to 1988 period contains 700,880 tonnes averaging 1.25 grams per tonne gold that is 70 per cent recoverable (Exploration in British Columbia 1998, page 24 and George Cross News Letter No.203 (October 22), 1998).

In 2007 and 2008, Hawthorne Gold Corporation and Cusac Gold Mines Ltd. entered into a merger agreement whereby the two companies would continue to operate under the corporate entity of Hawthorne Gold Corporation. Hawthorne became the owner and operator of Cusac’s Table Mountain (MINFILE 104P 070) and Taurus (MINFILE 104P 012) properties and proceeded to form a private subsidiary company, Cassiar Gold Corporation, to retain assets acquired from Cusac. The entirety of this land package became known as the Cassiar Gold property. Table Mountain project areas contain the historical Erickson Gold Mines mine site (MINFILE 104P 029) located adjacent to the southern shores of McDame Lake, historical underground workings at the Main Mine area along Erickson Creek, historical portals used to mine and access the Vollaug vein (MINFILE 104P 019) on top of Table Mountain and east of the Main Mine, and the Cusac and Bain Portals approximately 8 kilometres south of the Main Mine. The Taurus project area is approximately 6 kilometres north of the Main Mine and contain the historical Taurus, Sable and Plaza portals and underground workings. The intent of the 2008 exploration year was to reassess the overall scope of the Cassiar Gold property. The exploration program comprised field reconnaissance, soil sampling (606 samples), rock and chip sampling (365 samples), airborne magnetic and VLF-EM surveying (6567 kilometres), geophysics ground truthing and diamond drilling (15 holes totalling 2536.5 metres on the East Bain vein, MINFILE 104P 070). A rock sample (5000304) from the Jenny’s Revenge/Erin vein assayed 558.3 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 30623)

In 2010, Cassiar Gold Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of China Minerals Mining Corporation, completed a helicopter-borne time domain-electromagnetic, magnetic and radiometric survey covering 5090 line-kilometres.

In 2012, China Minerals Mining Corporation completed drilling campaigns at the Taurus (MINFILE 104P 012; 43 holes) and Table Mountain (MINFILE 104P 070; 10 holes) properties of their Cassiar Gold Project. The 10 holes, totalling 1355 metres, from the Table Mountain area were completed on the Sky (MINFILE 104P 078) vein.

In 2013, China Minerals Mining Corp. completed a small program of prospecting and geochemical (stream, rock and soil) sampling on the Hunter and Pooley areas.

In 2018, Cassiar Gold Corp. completed a program of sampling, metallurgical studies and 128 direct push drillholes, totalling 512.0 metres, on the mines tailings to examine the potential for gold recovery in a tailings reprocessing program. Tailings samples yielded from 0.51 to 6.67 grams per tonne gold with an average of 1.26 grams per tonne gold (Assessment Report 38310).

In 2019, Margaux Resources completed a program of prospecting, geological mapping and rock sampling on the area as the Cassiar Gold property.

In 2020, Cassiar Gold Corp. completed a program of regional photogeological interpretation, prospecting and rock sampling on the Cassiar Gold property.