NEVADA.
Considerable
prospecting and development work was done in 1913 in the opal field in
the valley of Virgin Creek, Humboldt County, Nev., about 25 miles
southwest of Denio, Oreg. A number of new claims were located, which
extended the known opal-bearing area. Precious opal was discovered in
this region in 1908, in which year several claims were located. Other
claims have been located successively each year since, and some of
them have been worked on a small scale. The yield of precious opal from
some of the prospects has been very encouraging in regard to both
quality and quantity. Other claims are still of doubtful value.
This
opal field was visited in August, 1913, but only three days were
available for examination of the deposits. Under favorable conditions
the region can best be reached from Jungo, Nev., a station on the
Western Pacific Railway, by automobile stage to Denio, Oreg. From Denio
the trip can be completed by automobile or other conveyance. •
Virgin
Creek drains northward, joining Beet Creek at the head of anarrow
canyon below which place it is called Thousand Creek. The valleys above
the canyon form an irregular-shaped basin with outlet into Thousand
Creek. The opal deposits are in certain formations exposed in the sides
of the valley of Virgin Creek.
The
opal claims examined He at elevations ranging from 5,100 feet to 5,400
above sea level. Some of them are in rather gently sloping ground in
the foothills along the sides of the valley and others are in the steep
valley walls. The plateau country in which Virgin Valley has been
carved has an elevation of over 6,000 feet above sea level. The region
is desert, but water supplied by several large springs, some of which
are hot springs, flows into Virgin Creek and Beet week. The creek
waters are used for irrigation and supply several large meadows for the
different ranches.
Four
groups of claims were visited, the location of which will be given with
respect to McGee's ranch, about a mile south of the junction of the
creeks. The principal group is that in which the claims of Ivan Dow,
George D. Mathewson, Alfred Thompson, and others are located, about 3
miles southwest of McGee's ranch in the west side of the valley. Among
these claims are the Cracker Jack, Bonanza, Opal Queen, and Opal Queen
Fraction. Most of the opal from this group of claims has been handled
by the International Gem Co., of New York. Another group of claims
belonging to D. Roop, E. McGee, and George T. Hill is situated about 5
miles south of McGee's ranch. W. B. Seitz and C. A. Howard hold claims
to a third group about 5 miles southwest of McGee's ranch. In the
fourth group is the Stone Tree claim, owned by several parties, about a
mile and a half north of west of McGee's ranch.
Bateman
& Boyd have the Big Horn claim nearly half a mile east of the Stone
Tree claim. George W. Brown has located a claim about 2-1/4 miles west of W. K. Ebeling's ranch, or Z\ miles north of west of McGee's ranch. A large number of other claims have been located in the opal field, some of which may prove of value.
Developments
have not been large, and most of the work is limited to pits, small
open cuts, and trenches. Some of the deposits are so situated that
practically all of the mining can be done by open cuts,
