Silver

specimen number:
8311218

location:
White Pine Mine, Ontonagon Co., Michigan, USA

description:
Attractive thumbnail specimen of branching crystallized native silver. In good condition.

The White Pine Mine, located in Ontonagon County, Michigan, was one of the most significant copper mining operations in the Lake Superior region, with large scale production beginning in the 1950s and continuing for several decades. Unlike many earlier Keweenaw mines that worked amygdaloidal or fissure vein deposits, White Pine exploited a stratiform copper deposit hosted in the Nonesuch Shale, where finely disseminated native copper and copper sulfides occurred in sedimentary rock. Mining was carried out using underground methods with extensive room and pillar workings. In addition to its economic importance, the mine produced distinctive copper specimens, often occurring as thin sheets, flakes, and disseminated masses within shale matrix rather than large solid masses typical of other Michigan localities. Although the mine eventually closed in the 1990s due to economic factors, it remains an important example of a unique style of copper mineralization and a major chapter in Michigan mining history.

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