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Quartz Mountain was believed to have been initially prospected for gold by migrant Chinese
in the 1890s. Rare prospect pits that contain ponderosa pine trees over four feet in diameter
are indirect evidence of this initial early stage of exploration activity.
The earliest recorded work was performed by the Sun Oil Company, between 1936 and 1940.
Sun Oil was prospecting for mercury with shallow pits and trenches. In 1949, small amounts
of gold were reportedly recovered from two 24 m (80-foot) shafts on Crone Hill and Quartz
Butte. The shafts were sunk by employees of the Ewauna Camp Lumber Company and have since
caved in.
The property saw renewed interest in the late 1950s due to a nation-wide mercury "boom"
that resulted from a U.S. government price support of US$750 per flask of quicksilver (34.4 kg,
76 lbs flask). Local prospectors staked dozens of claims in what became the 155 km2 (60 mile2)
Quartz Mountain mercury district. The total reported recovered mercury from the district has
been estimated to be in the range of 50 flasks with the bulk of production derived from the
Angel Peak mine. Most of the cinnabar claims were allowed to become delinquent during the
1960s in a general collapse of the mercury mining industry.
In 1980, Don Tracy of Lakeview, Oregon relocated his Crone, Green, Madera and Mansanita
claims in the Quartz Mountain district following the Homestake Mining Company's announcement
of a commercial mercury-gold deposit located in Napa County, California (McLaughlin Mine).
In the autumn of 1982, Exploration Ventures Company (EXVENCO) of Spokane, Washington, acquired
a lease option from Tracy and staked 35 claims on the perimeter of his property. The Anaconda
Company entered a joint venture partnership with EXVENCO in December 1982, and subsequently
enlarged the claim block to include the entire Quartz Mountain district. Anaconda was the
operating partner and initiated the first systematic exploration program for gold in the district.
In the spring of 1985, Anaconda was disbanded by its parent company, Atlantic Richfield
Corporation, and Quartz Mountain, along with all of their other mineral properties, was
placed up for sale.
Wavecrest Resources Ltd., a British Columbia Corporation, secured Anaconda´s interest in
the property through a purchase agreement in the autumn of 1985. Wavecrest quickly consolidated
their holdings on the entire claim block by purchasing EXVENCO's interest. The remaining small,
inlaying claim blocks dating from the late 1950´s were systematically acquired and for the first
time in its history, the Quartz Mountain district was consolidated under a single owner in June of
1986. In the summer of 1986, Wavecrest began an aggressive exploration campaign, by following on
Anaconda´s success. Wavecrest intended to fast track the property through to a production decision
by the summer of 1988.
Wavecrest Resources Ltd. and Galactic Resources Ltd. created Quartz Mountain Gold Corporation
in June of 1987 to jointly advance the project. Galactic Resources Ltd. had the right to earn a
50% operating interest in Quartz Mountain Gold Corporation by completing certain share and project
financing commitments. In 1987, 460 drill holes were completed on Crone Hill, Quartz Butte and
Angel´s Camp totaling 52,284 meters (171,537 feet) of drilling. In 1988, 100 drill holes
(including 47 large diameter metallurgical drill core holes) were completed on Crone Hill, Quartz
Butte, Angel East and Drews Dome for a total of 10,600 meters (34,778 feet). The Crone Hill and
Quartz Butte deposits were drilled off on at least 30.5 meters (100-foot) centers during these
programs.
In April 1988, Minproc (U.S.A.) Inc. completed a preliminary feasibility analysis of the
Crone Hill and Quartz Butte deposits. This study suggested mining of the deposits would be
economically unattractive in light of their low grade, low gold recovery and total oxide reserves.
As considerable uncertainty surrounded the metallurgical and assay work which formed the basis
of the Minproc study, Davy McKee Corporation was retained in May 1988 to re-evaluate the
metallurgical process and assay data and, if warranted, produce a full feasibility analysis
of the Crone Hill and Quartz Butte deposits. This study was completed in August of 1989 with
generally positive conclusions. Between mid-September and late November 1988, 19 deep drill
holes totaling 4,473 meters (14,675 feet) were completed on Quartz Butte to explore for high-grade
feeder veins within the throat of the Quartz Butte dome. A total of 34 deep drill holes now define
this feeder zone system.
In July 1989, a three-way option agreement was created among Quartz Mountain Gold Corporation,
Galactic Resources Ltd. and Pegasus Gold Corporation. Pegasus became operator of the Quartz
Mountain Gold Project in July 1989. This agreement provided Pegasus with an opportunity to
purchase a 50% interest in the project and for Quartz Mountain Gold to acquire Galactic´s interest
in the property. In September 1992, Galactic terminated its interest in the option agreement.
Quartz Mountain and Pegasus continued with the joint venture where eventually Pegasus purchased
an option for a 60% controlling interest in the property.
In December 1994, Pegasus terminated the joint venture agreement with Quartz Mountain.
Some of the key terms of this termination agreement required Pegasus to return its interest in
the property, forgive outstanding loans to Quartz Mountain and performed all required reclamation
work. Pegasus completed these obligations and Quartz Mountain Gold assumed undivided ownership
of the property without debt or reclamation obligations.
In August 1995, Quartz Mountain Gold Corporation concluded a letter agreement with Newmont
Exploration Ltd. on the Quartz Mountain property. This agreement allowed Newmont to earn an
80% operating interest in the property for certain cash payments and work commitments. Newmont
drilled 10 holes on the project, which were focused on expanding the near-surface, low-grade
gold resources that had been previously identified. The project did not satisfy Newmont´s
investment criteria and was returned to Quartz Mountain Gold in 1996. Since 1996, little work
has been performed on the project.
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