The American Boy property is situated 10 kilometres northeast of Hazelton, on the southwest flank of Nine Mile Mountain.
The area is underlain by Middle Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Bowser Lake Group clastic sedimentary rocks (mainly calcareous tuff and argillite). The Bowser Lake sequence is approximately 1500 metres thick and includes tuffaceous rocks, sandstone, greywacke, arkose, argillite, conglomerate and shale. Carbonaceous shales and thin coal seams occur at wide intervals throughout the succession. Localized intrusive stocks of the Bulkley and Babine intrusive suites occur throughout the Hazelton area. The strata strike north, dipping approximately 15 degrees west. Granodiorite of the Eocene Babine Intrusions intrudes the sedimentary rocks in the area.
The American Boy property is underlain by fine-grained, medium to dark grey, buff-weathering, homogeneous epiclastic rock (greywacke) that is locally hornblende- and felspar-phyric. These rocks are massive, often intercalated with argillaceous beds, and play host to a system of sulphide-bearing hydrothermal quartz-carbonate veins.
At least, six quartz vein systems, comprising high-grade lenses totalling more than 212 metres in length, crosscut the tuffs and argillites on the property over an area of approximately 1000 by 550 metres. Veins 1 to 4 strike north, dipping 40 to 70 degrees east. Veins 5 and 6 strike northeast, dipping 80 degrees southeast. The veins range in thickness from 10 to 120 centimetres and consist of quartz with stringers of carbonate and irregular patches and banded seams of sulphide minerals. The sulphide minerals are in the following order of abundance: galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite and tetrahedrite (Geological Survey of Canada Memoir 223, Assessment Report 8847).
Quartz and carbonate occur throughout most of the country rock as veinlets, fracture fillings and secondary alterations. In general, very little sulphide is associated with the quartz-carbonate alteration. Ankerite alteration occurs as fracture filling and replacement with quartz-carbonate veining. Mineralization occurs as stringers, patches, bands and variably-sized seams of sulphide minerals. Quartz-carbonate-sulphide fissure veins typically form colloform, drusy and banded textures associated with epithermal depositional environments.
Two principal vein types have been identified on the property. Type 1 veins, which comprise 90 per cent of the known veins on the property and are the historic principal ore-bearing veins, consist of massive, milky quartz ± ankerite with 1 to 20 per cent combined sulphides in disseminations and blebs. The sulphides, in order of abundance, are galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite. These veins range in thickness from 2 to 20 centimetres and are uniform and continuous over lengths greater than 100 metres. Type 2 veins consist of quartz veins containing up to 15 per cent ankerite. These veins are approximately 30 centimetres in thickness and are composed of thin chlorite-sericite partings between multiple stacked quartz veins up to 7 centimetres in thickness, which give veins an overall banded structure. Sulphide content is dominated by arsenopyrite occurring as coarse-grained disseminations in quartz and massive veinlets up to 7 centimetres thick. Type 2 veins have been found at the Nos. 4 and 6 veins.
The No. 1 vein has been exposed over a strike length of 85 metres and varies in width from 0.60 to 0.90 metres in a tuffaceous sandstone and argillaceous siltstone host. Mineralization consists of variable amounts galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, greenockite, and malachite and azurite. The vein strikes approximately north-south and dips steeply east with a series of north east and north west trending fault/fracture structures which offset the splay of the vein. The country rock is sheared near the vein contacts (especially the hanging wall), and the shear zone extends into the footwall about 2 meters where a zone of quartz-sulphide stringer veins occur. These quartz-sulphide stringers generally parallel the main vein trend are 1 to 40 cm wide and contain abundant siderite and very minor coarse grained calcite with minor pyrite, chalcopyrite, galena, and sphalerite. The vein has been developed by surface trenches, an adit and two shafts.
The No. 2 vein has been exposed over a strike length of 40 metres and varies in width from 0.95 to 2.06 metres in a tuffaceous sandstone and argillaceous siltstone host. Mineralization consists of variable amounts galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, and tetrahedrite. The vein strikes approximately north-south and dips steeply east. The vein has been developed by surface trenches and an adit.
The No. 3 vein is located approximately 50 to 100 metres east- north east of the No. 2 vein but is poorly exposed. The vein has been developed by surface trenches and an adit.
The No. 4 (Main) vein has been exposed over a strike length of 83 metres and varies in width from 0.20 to 0.78 metre metre in a tuffaceous sandstone and argillaceous siltstone host. Mineralization consists of variable amounts galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, greenockite, malachite and azurite. The vein strikes north- north west and dips steeply east. The vein has been developed by surface trenches, a shaft and at least two levels of underground workings.
The No. 5 vein has been exposed over a strike length of 15 metres and varies in width from 0.27 to 0.48 metre in a tuffaceous sandstone and argillaceous siltstone host. Mineralization consists of variable amounts galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, and tetrahedrite. The vein strikes north east and dips steeply south east. The vein has been developed by surface trenches, a shaft and an adit.
The No. 6 vein has been exposed, intermittently, over a strike length of 160 metres and varies and width from 0.20 to 1.90 metres in a tuffaceous sandstone and argillaceous siltstone host. Mineralization consists of variable amounts galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, greenockite, malachite and azurite. The vein strikes north east and dips steeply south east. The vein has been developed by surface trenches.
Another vein, not described but referred to as the No. 7 vein, is located down slope to the west- south west of the No. 1 vein.
In the period between 1913 and 1955, 348 tonnes of ore produced 495 097 grams of silver, 528 grams of gold, 38 232 kilograms of lead and 10 543 kilograms of zinc.
In 1954, a sample from the No. 3 vein is reported to have assayed 49.1 grams per tonne gold, 369.7 grams per tonne silver and 13.46 per cent lead (Thomson, G.R. (2009-06-09): Technical Report on the American Boy - Mohawk Claim Group).
Sampling of the No. 1 and No. 4 veins in 1976 and 1978, respectively, is reported to have yielded 4.0 grams per tonne gold with 10,243 grams per tonne silver and 5.9 grams per tonne gold with 57.1 grams per tonne silver over a length of 30 metres (Thomson, G.R. (2009-06-09): Technical Report on the American Boy - Mohawk Claim Group).
In 1983, diamond drilling immediately east of the No. 1 vein yielded intercepts of 121.8 grams per tone silver over 0.20 metre in hole AB-1 and 59.5 grams per tonne silver over 0.15 metre in hole AB-2 (Thomson, G.R. (2009-06-09): Technical Report on the American Boy - Mohawk Claim Group).
In 1984, the weighted average of 18 samples from the No. 1 vein was 1069.54 grams per tonne silver across 0.48 metre (George Cross Newsletter #3, 1984). The weighted average of samples from a section of the No. 4 vein, exposed on surface, was 946.13 grams per tonne silver and 5.38 grams per tonne gold (George Cross Newsletter #41, 1984). Samples from the No. 6 vein assayed between 6.856 and 14 671.8 grams per tonne silver (George Cross Newsletter #41, 1984).
In 2006, sampling of the veins yielded values up to 0.46 gram per tonne gold, greater than 200 grams per tonne silver, 0.46 per cent copper, 3.55 per cent lead and 2.66 per cent zinc (samples 5005 to 5019) from the No. 1 vein, greater than 200 grams per tonne silver, 0.32 per cent lead and 0.30 per cent zinc (samples 5220 to 524) from the No. 2 vein, 9.90 grams per tonne gold, 1759 grams per tonne silver, 0.29 per cent copper, 10.15 per cent lead, 4.76 per cent zinc and 0.18 per cent cadmium (sample 451064) from the No. 4 (Main) vein, 1.03 gram per tonne gold, greater than 200 grams per tonne silver, 2.1 per cent lead and 4.76 per cent zinc (samples 5029 to 20538) on the No. 6 vein and 48.1 grams per tonne silver, 0.32 per cent lead and 0.12 per cent zinc (sample 5025) from the No. 7 vein (Thomson, G.R. (2009-06-09): Technical Report on the American Boy - Mohawk Claim Group).
In 2009, drillhole AB10-DDH-1 returned 0.61 metres of 1.2 grams per tonne gold, 151 grams per tonne silver, 1.07 per cent zinc and 2.35 per cent arsenic (Assessment Report 31655, page 28).
Work History
The American Boy property was first staked in 1910. Between 1911 and 1916, Harris Mines Limited conducted surface trenching and underground development on five veins. From 1912 to 1915, small shipments of high-grade ore were sent to the smelter at Trail. In 1918, 218 tonnes of low-grade development ore were shipped to the Silver Standard gravity mill on Two Mile Creek.
In 1950, the property was acquired by American Standard Mines. Exploration work by the company consisted of stripping, diamond drilling and underground development. In the fall of 1951, a new high-grade vein, the No. 6 vein, was discovered. Further stripping of veins was conducted by Pioneer Gold Mines of B.C. Limited in 1952. Later, in 1955, J. Gallo shipped 19 tonnes of crude ore from a shoot on the No. 6 vein.
The property was restaked by George Braun in 1967. At this time, Northwest Midland Development Limited shipped 10.35 tonnes of Wifly Table concentrate from existing stockpiles. Minor trenching was completed in 1968 and 1971.
The property was restaked in 1976 by Tri-Con Mining Limited and then further expanded in 1981. In 1978 and 1980, Tri-Con carried out backhoe trenching, sampling and limited electromagnetic geophysical surveying. Exploration work in 1981 resulted in the discovery of a new vein, the rediscovery of an old vein, the Two Mile Creek occurrence (MINFILE 093M 157) and the discovery of mineralized float from a possible third vein.
In 1982, Can-Ex Resources Limited optioned the property. Between 1982 and 1984, Can-Ex Resources carried out a major exploration program consisting of geochemical and geophysical surveying, mapping, sampling, diamond drilling and trenching. Further programs conducted in 1986 consisted of soil sampling, very low-frequency electromagnetic surveying, backhoe trenching and diamond drilling. In total, 455 metres of backhoe trenching was completed on the Janelle claim and 72.7 metres of diamond drilling was completed in three drillholes. In 1987, exploration consisted of reconnaissance geological mapping, detailed soil geochemical sampling, electromagnetic geophysical surveying and trenching. The following year, three drillholes totalling 44.2 metres and 5 kilometres of very low-frequency electromagnetic and magnetometer geophysical surveying were completed.
The ground lay dormant until 2005, when Cadre Capital Incorporated staked new claims over the area. The following year, Golden Sabre Resources optioned the claims and carried out a limited exploration program of rock sampling and soil grid geochemistry.
By 2009, TAD Capital Corporation (later known as TAD Mineral Exploration Limited) had acquired a 94 per cent interest in the American Boy property. That year, Rio Minerals Limited conducted an exploration program of grid surveys, geochemical sampling, geophysical surveying, hand trenching and geological sampling and mapping on behalf of TAD Capital. In total, 280 metres of trenching were completed, and 423 soil and 23 rock samples were collected. In 2010, eight diamond drill holes totalling 704.24 metres were completed: two drillholes near the No. 1 vein, three drillholes near the No. 4 vein and three drillholes near the No. 6 vein.
By 2012, the Sidina property to the north had been expanded to include additional claims covering the Nine Mile Mountain area, including the American Boy property area. That year, Rio Minerals Limited conducted grid surveying and soil sampling on a grid near the former Silverton mine (MINFILE 093M 038).
