Mineral Evolution Database
Created and maintained by the Mineral Evolution Project in partnership with RRUFF and mindat.
Mineral locality data provided by mindat.org



The Mineral Evolution database is currently under development.

The goal of this page is to present localities at which the mineral is found, and estimates of the oldest possible geologic age of the minerals at these localities.


Locality Name:
Downieville, Downieville District, Sierra Co., California, USA

Oldest recorded age at locality: 388
Youngest recorded age at locality: 388

mindat Locality ID: 215409
mindat URL: http://www.mindat.org/loc-215409.html

Tectonic Settings:

Total number of sublocalities beneath "Downieville, Downieville District, Sierra Co., California, USA": 68
Total number of bottom-level sublocalities: 67

Number of Child Localities: 67
Child Localities:
Australia Mine
Badger Hill Placer
Bannister Mine
Bessler Mine
Big Nugget Placer
BKB Mining Company Mine
Blanche Placer Mine
Caladonia Development Company Placer
Casserly Prospect
City Of Six Mine
Cold Spring Group
Columbus Placer Mine
Crescent Placer Mine
D. A. Hatfield Placer Mine
Digmore Occurrence
Dolan (Golden Hub; Golden Bear)
Eastman Placer Mine
Elizabeth Placer Mine
Glatt Placer
Gold Bluff Mine (Fraction; New Year; Oregon; Gold Bluff No. 1 Claim; Gold Bluff No. 1 Extension Claim; Gold Bluff No. 1 Ext; Gold Bluff No. 2 Extension Claim; Gold Bluff No. 2 Ext.; Gold Bluff 4 & 5 Claims; Gold Bluff Placer Claim; Gold Bluff No. 5 Claim)
Gold Channel Placer Mine
Golden Glow Placer Mine
Golden Lion Occurrence
Golden Star Mine (Gold King Vein; Gold Queen Vein; Vesuvius Vein; Victor Vein)
High Commission Mine (Big Ledge Vein; High Commission Vein)
Hughs Mine (Hughes Mine)
Jumper & Tippecanoe Mine (Jumper Mine)
Kirkpatrick Mine (Kirkpatrick Claim; Last Chance Claim; Magnolia Claim; Virginia-Clare Claim)
Lady Ester Placer Mine
Linclon Placers
McCullough Ranch Mine
Melrose Placer Mine
Mexican Group (Mexican Mine; Colorado; Golden Star; Mexican No. 1 & No. 2; South Fork)
Mineral Mountain Mine
Mott Mine (Mott Brady)
Mount Vernon And Mott Tunnel Mine
North Pit
Old Mexican Group (Mexican Quartz Mine; Mexican Mine)
One Day At Time/Easy Does It Mine (Bummer; Blue Range Placer Mine)
Oro Mine (Code; Oro No. 1; Oro No. 2)
Ostego Mine
Owens Placer Mine
Oxford Mine (Oxford Mine And Mill; Oxford Lease And Mill; Becky; Case And Myers; Mt. Holly; Gold Bluff; Good Hope; Good Hope Extension No. 2; Jefferson No. 2 Claim; Milton Claim)
Pilot Placer Mine
Poor Boy Placer
Reliance Placer Mine
Reported Sb Occurrence [1]
Secret Canyon Mine
Shasta Mine
Sierra Gold Mining Company Mine (Ackley Vein; Crouse Vein)
Slug Canyon
Slug Canyon Tunnel Company Mine
St. Charles Hill Mine (Wehe)
Triple Pocket Mine
Unidentified Au Mine [57]
Unidentified Au Mine [61] (Unidentified Adit)
Unidentified Au Prospect [59] (Unidentified Adit)
Unnamed Au Occurrence [64]
Unnamed Au Prospect [68]
Unnamed Au Prospect [77]
Unnamed Au Prospect [78]
Unnamed Cr Occurrence [2]
Unnamed Stone Deposit [2]
Unspecified Cave
West No. 2 Mine
Wheeler Mine (Montpelier Mine; Yuba Lode Mine)
Winrod Mine

Latitude: 39°33'37"N
Longitude: 120°49'40"W
Decimal Degree (lat, lon): 39.560277777778,-120.82777777778

AThis mineral is Anthropogenic.
GThis mineral is directly dated.
BThis mineral is reported as having this age.
YThis mineral is using an age reported as an element mineralization period.
OThis mineral is using an age calculated from all data at the locality.
RThe age displayed for this mineral originates from a different, non-child locality.
PThe age displayed for this mineral is the range of ages for this mineral at all of this locality's children.
This mineral's age has not yet been recorded.

This Mineral list contains entries from this locality, including sub-localities. Minerals in bold are reported by mindat.org as occurring directly at this locality, and do not occur at any children (sublocalities) of this locality.

Elements at this locality, including sub-localities: Al As Au Bi Ca Cr Fe H K Mg O Pb S Sb Si 

Elements from minerals reported directly at this locality: S Sb 

Structural Groups for minerals in this locality: 
ArsenicArsenopyriteChloriteClayCopperGarnetMicaNonePyriteQuartz
RocksaltSpinelStibniteTalc

13 IMA Minerals at location:
Arsenopyrite  (*)Bismuth  (*)Chromite  (*)Clinochlore  (*)Galena  (*)
Gold  (*)Magnesiochromite  (*)Muscovite  (*)Pyrite  (*)Quartz  (*)
Stibnite  (*)Talc  (*)Uvarovite  (*)
Mineral nameStructural GroupsIMA FormulaMax Age (Ma)Min Age (Ma)# of Sublocalities containing mineralLOCALITY IDs, not mindat ids# of localities containing mineral
Arsenopyrite  (*)ArsenopyriteFeAsS2177494,1775199052
Bismuth  (*)ArsenicBi11775211966
Chromite  (*)SpinelFe2+Cr2O411774783902
Clinochlore  (*)Chlorite ClayMg5Al(AlSi3O10)(OH)838838811775121756
Galena  (*)RocksaltPbS117753424243
Gold  (*)CopperAu38838842177470,177472,177473,177476,177479,177481,177482,177483,177485,177486,177487,177489,177490,177491,177493,177494,177495,177496,177498,177499,177501,177502,177503,177506,177507,177508,177509,177510,177511,177512,177513,177515,177517,177519,177522,177523,177524,177525,177526,177530,177535,17753630554
Magnesiochromite  (*)SpinelMgCr2O43883881177512311
Muscovite  (*)Mica ClayKAl2(Si3Al)O10(OH)2117749317380
Pyrite  (*)PyriteFeS22177489,17750239462
Quartz  (*)QuartzSiO238838821177470,177472,177473,177479,177485,177493,177494,177495,177496,177502,177503,177507,177509,177510,177512,177517,177519,177522,177526,177530,17753661156
Stibnite  (*)StibniteSb2S338838803418
Talc  (*)Clay TalcMg3Si4O10(OH)238838811775123337
Uvarovite  (*)GarnetCa3Cr2(SiO4)33883881177512212



1 Ages assigned to this locality:

Excel IDMax Age (Ma)Min Age (Ma)Age as listed in referenceDating MethodAge InterpretPrioritized?Sample SourceSample NumRun NumAge from other LocalityDated MineralMinerals explicitely stated as having this ageAge applies to these ElementsMinDat Locality IDDated Locality (Max Age)Location as listed in referenceReferenceReference DOIReference IDAge Notes
podchrome-00189388388pre-Early Devonian-Jurassic (388±17 Ma U-Pb zircon from felsic igneous rocks; 174 Ma K-Ar white mica from blueschists)       Cr93512Oxford Mine (Oxford Mine And Mill; Oxford Lease And Mill; Becky; Case And Myers; Mt. Holly; Gold Bluff; Good Hope; Good Hope Extension No. 2; Jefferson No. 2 Claim; Milton Claim), Downieville, Downieville District, Sierra Co., California, USAOxford Pit 1Moiser et al. (2012) USGSSIR2012_5157 


SampleSource LocalityReference URL


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