Mining in Arizona has grown significantly over the past several centuries thanks to extensive mineral identifications within its borders.
In the publication, βMinerals of Arizona,β W.P. Blake in 1909 reported to territorial governor J.H. Kibbey on 91 mineral specimens and 15 varieties previously discovered. This report included βtype mineralsβ representing minerals first discovered in Arizona.
Traditionally minerals have been named after people or the locality where they have been discovered. Minerals also have been named for their chemical composition or physical properties.
More than 76 Arizona type minerals have been identified.
Renowned mining localities in Arizona that contain type or co-type (minerals first described from Arizona and other states) minerals include Bisbee in Cochise County. It is one of the great mineral-producing camps in Arizona.
The discovery of copper ores there in 1876, led to over 100 years of mining operations that resulted in the discovery of many minerals. These minerals are the result of geological weathering over millions of years resulting in the breakdown of pyrites and other sulfide minerals and limestones.
The Copper Queen Mine is credited with over 320 mineral species. That includes six Arizona type minerals: Chalcoalumite, a rare secondary mineral copper aluminum sulfate found in oxidized copper deposits and named for its composition after the Greek word βchalkosβ for copper and the Latin word βalumβ representing aluminum, Henryite, Graemite, Paramelaconite, a rare secondary copper oxide mineral, Shattuckite, and Spangolite.
Jeromeβs United Verde Mine is known for six type minerals that resulted from an underground mine fire in the massive sulfide orebody initiated in 1894 and continuing for several decades. The fire resulted from the spontaneous combustion of unstable sulfide minerals when exposed to air.
The resulting minerals formed included seven out of 11 minerals that were previously unknown. They were named Butlerite, Claudetite, Guildite, Jeromite, Lausenite, Ransomite, and Yavapaiite.
The Mammoth-St. Anthony Mine near Oracle is another diverse mineral producing site credited with eight Arizona type minerals. Those include: Bideauxite, Creaseyite, Macquartite, Mammothite, Murdochite, Pinalite, Wherryite and Yedlinite.
Mines at Tombstone have produced eight Arizona type minerals found among its rich silver ore deposits resulting from faults and fissure veins intruding sediments and dykes. They are: Dugganite lead zinc copper, tellurate arsenate hydroxide, Emmonsite, Fairbankite, Girdite, Khinite, and Schieffelinite, named after the miner Ed Schieffelin, who discovered the Tombstone ore deposits and named the town.
Other type minerals from that locality include Winstanleyite, a titanium tellurite and rare mineral derived from the oxidation for tellurium minerals. Oboyerite, a notable rare tellurium mineral, is found at the mine dumps of the Grand Central Mine.
The Grand Reef Mine a tabular ore body found in schist and limestone located in Graham County is a type locality for minerals. They include: Calcioaravaipaite, Grandreefite, Laurelite, Pseudograndreefite, and Shannonite.
Other noteworthy localities include the Christmas Mine, a large replacement deposit of copper in limestone in Gila County about 35 miles south of Globe. It produced four Arizona type minerals including Apachite, Gilalite, Junitoite, and Ruizite.
Ajoite, a potassium sodium copper aluminum silicate hydroxide hydrate, is considered a rare mineral first discovered at the New Cornelia Open Pit Mine at Ajo. It occurs with shattuckite in oxidized zone of copper deposits. Papagoite, a calcium copper aluminum silicate hydroxide, is another Arizona type mineral found at the New Cornelia Mine.
The International Mineralogical Association is a worldwide group composed of 38 national societies that was founded in 1959. It is responsible for assigning new mineral names along with determining future revisions of existing names along with discreditation of invalid species. Currently there are over 4,000 mineral species defined worldwide with over 900 minerals having been discovered in Arizona.
Over the past 50 years the number of mineral discoveries has increased due to greater scientific knowledge of mineral collectors along with modern instruments used to make chemical analysis to confirm these new finds. That includes the use of Raman spectroscopy, used to identify the structural analysis of minerals using laser light as a tool to measure the frequency shift of scattered light.
As mineral identification methodology evolves and more detailed chemical composition of mineral specimens is analyzed, the number of mineral discoveries in Arizona and elsewhere will no doubt increase.
