DEVOTED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALASKA AND THE PORTLAND CANAL MINING DISTRICT.
VOL 5, NO. 31
RYDER, ALASKA, SATURDAY, MAY 11,1929.
PRICE TEN CENTS
RICH COPPER flKD
HUS UNKNOWN
MIKERILHD AREN
A copper strike, believed to
be of far greater importance
than any similar ore discovery
in the history of the Portland
Canal district, has been made
on the lower reaches of the
Portland Canal by Sam. Rob
inson, an Indian prospector,
and not only promises to devel
op into a rich copper producer
but has also resulted in the dis
covery of an hitherto unknown
mineral belt along the Alaska
side of Portland Canal.
Samples of the ore have been
found by carefully checked
assays made by several assay
ers to contain copper values
ranging from 4 to 21 per cent,
with an additional silver con
tent of from 4 to 10 ounces per
ton.
The scene of the new discov
ery is on the westerly border of
the Canal about 20 miles be
low Hyder and within a few
hundred feet of the water. The j
formation in which it lies is i
said to be entirely distinct from
that along the adjacent shore
line and is apparently associat
ed with the mineral formations
existing in the Chickamin River
district, farther to the west,
rather than to those of the Sal
mon and Bear river valleys.
Owing to the generally unfav
orable granitic formation vis
ible along both sides of Port
land Canal below town,appar
ently no one but Robinson has
thought of investigating the
area iying behind the coastal
rim, with the result that what
appears to be an entirely new
mineral field has been com
pletely overlooked by local
prospectors.
The vein from which the rich
ore was obtained is located in
what appears to be a belt of
greenstone abutting on the
granite walls of the Canal and
within fifteen minutes walk
from the beach.. The vein out
crops on the slope of a heavily
wooded canyon and is easy of
access. The ledge is exposed
at only one point, the extens
ions being covered with from
one to forty feet of overbur
den. The exposed portion of
the ledge is about 5 feet wide
but the full width has hot been
determined owing to the heavy |
overburden, which entirely,
conceals the hanging wall. The |
ore is a grayish quartz carrying!
wide stringers and heavy mass- j
es of close grained chalcopy- J
rite and displays no other form
of mineralization. Samples
taken across the lead have in
almost every instance shown!
unusually high copper values
in addition to a substantial sil
ver content. In the same can- ‘
yon, about one fourth mile up
from the chalcopyrite discov- j
ery there has also been found
what appears to be an immense
deposit of copper glance which
yields assays of seven and one
half per cent copper. This de
posit is visible for upward of
500 feet along both walls of
the canyon. Although no more
than a cursory examination has
been made, it appears that the
deposit is of great potential
value. So far as known the belt
in which the veins lie does not
reach the shore of the ‘Canal
except for a short space in the
yiclnity of Elver Point, about
TOWNSITE REFUND
NOW AVAILABLE FOR
RIVERPROTECTION
A letter received this week
by the Hyder Chamber of Com
mrce from James A. Ramsay,
Hyder Townsite Trustee, an
nounced that funds from the
sale of lots in the forest town
site amounting to $1,440.04
have been turned over to the
Bureau of Public Roads with
instructions that the money is
to be expended for river pro
tection in Hyder townsite.
Mr. Ramsay also announced
the conclusion of his trustee
ship and the approval of his
final report by the Land Off
ice.
The townsite refund, com
bined with the $7,500 approp
riation made recently by the
Alaska Legislature for the
same purpose, makes avail
able a total of $8,940 for safe
guarding the camp against the
recurrent Salmon River floods.
Chamber of Commerce mem
bers believe that the two funds
should be combined to secure
the most effective results and
an effort will probably be
made to secure the desired
combination of resources for
carrying on the work. It is the
general view of the members
that the intelligent expendi
tur of nearly $9,000 should
provide fairly adequate pro
tection against the river for a
considerable period, although
the town will never be entirely
safe until such time as perma
nent protective works are in
stalled.
CONSOLIDATED TAKES
A & T PROPERTY
The A. & T. property, located
in the upper Bear River section
and owned jointly by W. R.
Tooth, A. B. Armstrong and
Jack Howse, has been taken
over under option by the Con
solidated Mining & Smelting
Co. The consideration involved
is said to be $100,000, with a
small cash payment.
A crew of eight or ten men
left Monday for the Mountain
Boy property on American
Creek to commence preparat
ions for the summer’s activi
ties. A majority of the men
are carpenters and will be en
gaged in putting up new camp
buildings.
30 miles below Hyder.
Robinson, the discoverer, is a i
full-blooded Indian and one of
the few surviving members of
the tribe which at one time had
their habitat in the Portland
Canal district and is credited
by those who know him as
the original discoverer of the
famous Outsider mine. In
stead of locating the latter
property, Robinson first took
some white men to see it and
found himself left out of the
subsequent locations. He is
said to have found the copper
ledge last year but made no
attempt to locate owing to the
lateness of the season. On re
turning this spring Robinson,
recalling his previous experi
ence with the whites, enlisted
the assistance of Ernest Blue,
local attorney, in prefecting
his locations and otherwise
safeguarding his interests.
Mr. Blue visited the property
last week and is convinced
that the strike possesses Im
mense possibilities.
BIG DEVELOPMENT .
IS PLANNEED FOR
THE BIG MISSOUR
A diamond drilling program
is to be carried on throughout
the summer on the Big Missou
ri property with the view that
the company may be in a pos
ition to build a concentrator
earlyjiext fall, according to
a preafannouncement made in
Vancouver last week by J. T.
Gregory, president of the Big
Missouri Mining Co.
Mr. Gregory’s statement was
made following a conference
with J. J. Warren, president
of the Consolidated Mining &
Smelting Co., in which W. M.
Archibald, Consolidated mine
manager, Capt. Ehincan Mac
Vichie, general manager of the
Big Missouri, and F. D. Oak
ley, Big Missouri secretary, al
so participated.
These officials, according to
the press reports, have under
consideration the plans for the
coming season, and decided on
the program of drilling and
the location of the holes that
will be sunk. The property cov
ers an area of 800 acres and
an effort will be made to lo
cate the positions of the richer
ore bodies so that the company
may be in a position to deter
mine the best site for the pro
posed mill.
Mr. Gregory pointed out that
while there is a prospect *>f
the Consolidated erecting a
smelter somewhere on the B.
C. coast in the near future,
most of the Big Missouri ore
will require concentration be
fore shipping to smelter. Some
of it, he said, is of sufficiently
rich variety to ship in the raw
form and will be sent direct to
the new smelter as soon as it
is available.
The results of the explorat
ion work done so far have been
very satisfactory to the comp
anies concerned, the statement
continues, although the gold
and silver values are so irreg
ular that it has so far been al
most impossible to arrive at an
average per ton, some of the
ore being under $1 per ton
while other ores had reached
as high as $2,000 per ton.
There is a water supply ad
joining the property which
will call for hydro-electric de
velopment, concurrently with
the mill construction, and Mr.
Gregory said there will be am
ple power for all the require
ments of the property.
Mr. Gregory, in an interview
published in the Alaska Week
ly, of Seattle, is also reported
as saying that representatives
of the Consolidated company
expressed themselves at the
meeting as “highly pleased
with the development work to
date on the property.” It ap
pears from this statement,
that both Capt. MacVichie
and Mr. Archibald were op
posed to mill construction with
i out further development. The
plans, Mr. Gregory said, com
prehended an operation of
such magnitude that the care
ful selection of a millsite is a
question of paramount import
ance in the efficient working
of the property and it was
therefore decided to proceed
with the diamond drilling for
the purpose of accurately lo
cating the logical site for con
structing the mill.
TEXAS CREEK GROUP
IS OPTIONED TO
SPOKANE PEOPLE
The Silver Bell property, lo
cated on the north side of the
west fork of Texas Creek and
owned by Joe. Connors, pion
err prospector of this district,
has been bonded by Spokane
interests, who plan to start ac
tive development work on the
property as soon as possible
and also contemplate ore ship
ments during the present seas
on.
The deal for the property was
consummated by L. R, Doggett,
well known local mining man,
on behalf of Mr. Connors and
it is understood that Mr. Dog
gett will be connected with the
proposed development activi
ties.
The Silver Bell is one of the
earliest locations in the Texas
area and is situated in close
proximity to the well-known
Hcfrnestake and Ibex groups.
■ The property is also situated
j close to the projected govern
j ment highway to the head of
Texas Creek and is otherwise
ideally located with respect to
mining and transportation pos
sibilities. The property displays
a number of important miner
al showings carrying shipping
grade ores. The ore is primarily
a lead ore, but also contains
important values in gold, silv
er and copper. The main vein
ranges irom Z to 3 teet in
width at the surface and has
been traced for a considerable
distance by stripping. Four
samples taken from the vein
with a view to determining the
general average gave assay re
turns of lead ranging from
$41.44 to $77.44, the four aver
aging $63.56. The copper con
tent of the same samples av
eraged $7.90 and the gold 86
cents per ton. Samples from
other sections of the vein have
ranged from $30 to upward of
$140 per ton Owing to the ex
ceptionally favorable situation
the new owners can start ship
ping ore almost at once and
are said to be planning to ship
at least fifty tons during the
season for testing purposes.
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FIRE DISASTER AT RUBY
A conflagration which wiped
out a large part of the town of
Ruby, Alaska, was reported
here Monday in a wire from U.
S. Marshal Lynn Smith re
ceived by E. M. Reynolds of
the Nugget Shoppe, who is an
old friend of the Interior offic
ial.
According to the message, a
total of 22 buildings were de
stroyed in the fire but no furth
er details of the disaster were
given.
-,-o
Several representatives of the
Northern B. C. Power Co. ar
rived Thursday to look over
the new local holdings of the
| company.
Mr. Gregory concluded his
Seattle statement with the fol
lowing significant utterance:
“All we are prepared to say
at this time is that develop
ment will be pushed as rapid
ly as possible and that the
property will be in production
as quickly as is consistent with
good mining and good busi
ness.
i. JSL .jl~ sL *.•
HfOER RESIDENT
WIHS SHARE IN
NENANA ICE POOL
E. M. Reynolds, proprietor of
: the Nugget Shoppe, was one
of the fortunate participants
in the annual Nefeana ice pool
and will be richer by approxi
mately $5,800 as a result of
guessing the time at which the
ice broke in the Npnana River
last Sunday afternoon.
Mr. Reynolds was advised of
his good fortune Monday in a
wire from J. S. Milligan, man
ager of the pool, in which it
■ was stated that Mr. Reynolds
would divide approximately
i $52,300 with eight others who
had also guessed the time when
when the break-up would oc
cur.
The message stated that the
ice moved in the river at 3:41
p. m. May 5th. Included with
Mr. Reynolds on the winning
list are Mrs. P. Shelly, Francis
M. Cribb and G. L. Shepard,
all of Anchorage; Chas. Har
ris, of Novak; Andy Painter, of
Seward; Jack Keating, of Fish
Creek; A. Chilerio, of Healy
Forks, and Jay F. Kelly, of
l Miller House.
LEGIONNAIRES PLAN
VISIT TO HYDER
j Local members of Ketchikan
j Post No. 3, American Legion
: arc making preparations for an
j anticipated visit of a delegat
| of Ketchikan Legionnaires, ei
ther on May 18 or 25, the ex
act date being undecided at
present. It is said that at least
some of the visitors are plan
nig to make the trip over by
sea-plane. The local Legion
members and ex-service men
; held a meeting in the immigra
i ion office Tuesday evening to
! perfect a local organization
j and elected Noel M. Traversy
president and D. J. Mulcare
secretary, Plans for the visit
of the Ketchikan comrades
were discussed and a tentative
program was aranged, includ
ing a sight-seeing tour, a base
ball game and a dance in the
evening. The Canadian Legion
of Stewart has also promised
to assist in showing the visitors
a proper good time. The local
organization is also planning a
drive for new members and
have a considerable number in
in sight.
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; J. D. Wychoff, district forest
! ranger of the U. S. Forest Ser
vice has been a visitor in camp
this week in connection with
the forest service trail program
in this district. The projects
planned embrace a consider
able number of trail improve
ments and involve substantial
expenditures. Lack of suffici
ent space prevents full de
scription of the several pro
jects until next week.
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i The Canadian Legion gave a
highly entertaining minstrel
show in Stewart Friday even
ing. The program included a
highly diversified medley of
songs, dances, monologues and
comedy skits and was marked
by unusual cleverness on the
part of the performers.
The program will be repeat
ed this evening and is entitled
to generous patronage from
those who failed to attend the
first performance.
MRS. M, 1 IVES
CULLED 10 REST
Mrs. Mary A. Ives, one of the
most highly regarded lady
members of the community,
reached the end of life’s journ
ey and passed away at her res
idence on Premier Ave. short
ly before 9 p. m. Sunday even
ing, at the ripe age of 68 years.
Death came as the sequel to an
illness extending over a period
of three months and was due
to an appoplectic stroke.
The deceased lady was a nat
ive of Prince Edward Island
but had resided in the United
States and Alaska more than
46 years. Mrs Ives came to
the Northland in 1921 and re
sided at Cordova for two years
before coming to Hyder in
1923. She is survived by three
sons; Heath A. Ives, who is a
resident of Hyder, C. G. Ives,
of San Francisco, and R. H.
Ives, of Blaine, Wn.
The funeral services were
held Wednesday afternon in
Pioneer Hall before a large
gathering and with many beau
tiful floral offerings attesting
the sorrow of friends at the de
parture of her gentle and kind
ly soul. The ceremonies were
marked by an impressive sim
plicity and included the rendit
ion of ‘Lead Kindly Light” and
“Abide With Me” by a trio
composed of Rev. S. V. War
ren, Mrs. Louis Legge and E.
D. Haddon, followed by a
reading of the 14th chapter of
St. John by Mrs S. V. Warren.
With Messrs B. B. Smith, A.
J. Mayer, Wm. Gray, Dan.
Woodmore, Clyde B. Hager
and T. H. Evans as pall bear
ers, the funeral cortege then
proceeded to Riverview ceme
tery, where the remains Were
laid in their last resting place,
following brief services at the
graveside.
witn tne passing ol Mrs. Ives
the community is bereft of one
of its best beloved members.
To those who knew her as she
was; a true woman, a gentle
and kindly soul, a tender and
devoted mother and a sympa
thetic and generous friend, her
departure to that bourne from
whence no traveller returns is
the cause of most profound
sorrow and regret. Resting at
last from the trials of a long
and useful life, she leaves in
the minds and hearts of all
who knew her many virtues a
sweet and tender memory that
will long endure.
NOTIC E
..The Forestry Department has
appropriated the sum of $500
to be expended on the trail
from the main road to the
swimming pond in Moose Park,
work to start Monday May 13.
..Before this work can start it
will be necessary to burn all
dead brush for a distance of
100 feet each side of the trail.
This work will have to be done
by volunteer labor and, in view
of the fact that the park and
swimming pool will be for the
benefit of the entire communi
ty, YOUR help will be greatly
appreciated.
..If you cannot come yourself
send a man in your place. Gus.
Erickson will be in charge of
volunteer labor. Cars will leave
Traversy's at 9 a. m. ..Sunday.
..A good turn-out will show the
Forestry department that we
appreciate their co-operation
in making the park a recrea
tion place for the community.