The Eden and Crescent claims extend in a general north-south direction across Coffee and Krao creeks. The mine may be reached by a 2.4 kilometre long road up Coffee Creek from the Nelson-Kaslo highway.
The claims cover a layer of crystalline grey limestone in micaceous quartzites and mica schist of the Mississippian to Lower Permian Milford Group. The workings follow two shear zones about 75 metres apart which strike north and dip 45 degrees to the west.
The most easterly zone, followed by an adit contains highly sheared and dark-grey to black schist in a zone 1.2 to 1.5 metres wide that near the portal contains lenses of quartz but no sulphides. The most westerly fault is in mica schist and micaceous quartzite just west of a prominent limestone. It contains fine-grained quartz with many vugs, minor calcite and siderite as well as resinous brown sphalerite, galena and pyrite.
Both claims were Crown-granted to the Columbia Mining Co. in 1894. Small scale mining operations were first reported in 1890 but the details of this and later operations have not been recorded.
Development work was begun in 1916 when the property was worked by leasers under an option from the Larson estate. In 1919 the Eden and Crescent Mining Co. acquired the property along with 7 other claims plus a fraction. They drove a crosscut 168 metres to intersect the vein at a depth of about 44 metres and then drifted on the vein for about 9 metres. Two shafts, 30 metres apart, were sunk on the Crescent vein, one 12 metres deep, the other 8 metres deep. The company ceased operations in 1919 and the mine remained closed until 1937. Leasers worked the property during 1937-38.
The Yale Lead and Zinc Mines Ltd. acquired the property in 1949 and leasers mined on a contract basis until 1956 when the operation was abandoned. A stope, about 15 metres long, was carried up the vein to the surface. An inclined shaft was sunk 37 metres on the vein from the adit level. Some stoping was carried out up to the adit level but very little ore was found to either side of the shaft.
