Picuris Placer District — Taos County

McLemore (1994) lists Picuris among 36 New Mexico mining districts containing placer gold (NMBGMR Resource Map 24, district DIS236). Estimated placer production: trace to small-scale placer production (est. 100 oz) from 1828–1991 statewide context (662,000 oz total NM placer production). Production period: 1902-1955. District cumulative production (all commodities): $3,000. Deposit types: Vein and replacement deposits in Proterozoic rocks, pegmatite, placer gold. Also known as: Copper Hill, Copper Mountain, Copper Ridge, Copper Ridge, Glenwoody, Harding, Hondo Canyon, Penasco, Picuras, Rinconada. Mined lepidolite in 1919-1930, microlite in 1942-1947, and beryl in 1950-1958 from Harding mine (NMTA0015). Historic resources at Copper Hill (NMTA0014) are estimated at 46,500,000 short tons of 0.42% Cu. Placer gold occurs as native gold and electrum in incised valleys and alluvial fans. Most economic placers were discovered by 1900; recreational panning may find fine colors — verify land status before prospecting. Coordinates approximate the district centroid from NMBGMR Resource Map 24 GIS (DIS236).