The Buckeye occurrence is located at an elevation of approximately 1100 metres, north of Cedar Creek and approximately 3.0 kilometres northwest of Ainsworth.
Regionally, the area is underlain by hornblende schists, limestone and banded quartzite of the Upper Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation and basaltic volcanic rocks of the Carboniferous to Permian Kaslo Group. Granodioritic intrusive rocks of the Middle Jurassic Nelson Batholith are exposed to the west.
The country rock of the Buckeye occurrence is reported to be argillite, limestone, quartzite and schist of the Mississippian to Permian Milford Formation. The ore is associated with a system of northwest-striking fissures but occurs as replacement in the north-south–striking limestones in the zones of intersection. The ore consists of pyrite, sphalerite, galena and their oxidation products in a gangue of silicified limestone, calcite and quartz.
In 1953 and 1954, a total of 498 tonnes of ore was mined, from which 35 644 grams of silver, 25 902 kilograms of lead and 24 578 kilograms of zinc were recovered.
Work History
The Buckeye and Buckeye No. 2 claims are located north of Cedar Creek and just to the west of the Highland property (MINFILE 082FNE015). They were Crown granted to Dalgleish and Parker in 1904 and have been worked infrequently since that time.
Development work on the Buckeye claim in 1918 consisted of two inclined shafts, 30 metres apart, each approximately 12 metres deep, and one tunnel 61 metres long driven in under the shafts. The tunnel, which is approximately 23 metres below the surface showings, was driven as a crosscut for 21 metres. At that point a body of zinc ore was intersected and followed for 14 metres. A second tunnel, driven 30 metres below the outcrop, was not extended far enough to reach the limestone. Another adit or tunnel is reported to north of the Buckeye workings, near the southern boundary of the Buckeye No. 2 or Carter Fraction claims.
In the late 1940’s or early 1950’s, Guichon Mine Ltd. acquired the claims along with an option on the Silver Bell, Ellen Glen, Free Silver, Harrison and Silver Glance. In 1952 the main adit was extended along what appears to be the most eastern of three narrow cross-fissure veins in echelon to the northwest. Two narrow, bedded fissure veins appear to displace the cross-fissure for 1 metre at 12 and 73 metres from the portal. At 73 metres from the portal a raise was driven 24 metres to connect with the bottom of one of the shafts. A sublevel was started 12 metres below the surface and replacement ore, to a width of 4.5 metres, was mined adjacent to the shaft. Diamond drilling completed during the year amounted to 287 metres in nine holes. In 1954, leasers drove a short drift to investigate the diamond drill results. In 1956, Highland-Bell Ltd. conducted a program of geological mapping on the area as the Big Bluff, Fred, Mar and Nick groups of claims.
In 1979, the area was held and explored by Ainsworth Resources Ltd.
In 1996, a program of prospecting and geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling was conducted by George Addie on the area as the Silver Hoard property. A 4-metre chip sample (81928) from the Buckeye open stope yielded 25 grams per tonne silver, 2.01 per cent lead and 1.45 per cent zinc, and a rock sample (51930) from a pit, located 36 metres southwest of the stope, assayed 196 grams per tonne silver, 2.36 per cent lead and 5.33 per cent zinc (Assessment Report 25055).
During 2007 through 2011, Goldcliff Resource Corp. completed programs of prospecting, geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and an airborne geophysical survey on the regionally extensive Ainsworth Silver property.
In 2012 and 2013, David Wallach prospected and rock sampled the area as the Ainsworth property. In 2015, Goldcliff Resource Corp. conducted a program of prospecting, geological mapping, geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 4.1 line-kilometre ground electromagnetic survey on the area as part of the Ainsworth Silver property.
In 2020 and 2021, Goldcliff Resource Corp. conducted a further program of geochemical (rock, silt and soil) sampling and a 508.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic, electromagnetic and radiometric survey on the Ainsworth Silver property. Also in 2021, a 48.0 line-kilometre airborne (drone) magnetic survey was conducted on the area by Taylor Lorenzen. In 2023, a 92.0 line-kilometre airborne magnetic survey was conducted on the area by Shane Smith.
