HARCROSS
This group of mines, reportedly discovered by
Otto Taubert in 1908, is located in Lyon County,
Nevada. Taubert, while looking for gold, found
turquoise deposits in the area. He later sold
his group of claims to Walter Godber, of the
famed Godber-Burnham mine. Godber had come to
Nevada from Los Angeles and these were his first
Nevada claims. He went on to later operate a
number of turquoise properties throughout the
State. After over $50,000 worth of turquoise
was produced mining stopped at this group of
mines as Godber’s attention and resources
were required at his other mines.
F.B. Cross and J.J. Harrison later claimed the
main mining area in September of 1965 as the
Harcross group. The turquoise is very hard and
is usually formed in veinlets. It covers a range
of most all the colors from blue, bluish green,
to every shade of green, mostly with a limonite
matrix. The material with a greenish cast can
have dendrite markings. It can be translucent
and is one of the harder turquoises available.
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INDIAN MOUNTAIN
On the south range of Bald Mountain in Lander
County, Nevada is the Indian Mountain turquoise
mine. A Shoshone sheepherder was said to have
found the mine in 1970. The Indian Mountain
was owned and operated by Ed Mauzy and J.W.
Edgar, both legends in Nevada turquoise mining.
Mining at Indian Mountain was carried on from
late May to early October with a recovery of
"about three pounds" (Turquoise Annual)
of good turquoise a day. During winter the mine
could be covered in up to 10 feet of snow. Indian
Mountain turquoise was difficult to mine, found
in very compact rock. During mining season the
miners lived in trailers 75 miles from electricity
and the closest telephone. The vein material
and small nuggets found were of a very high
grade turquoise. Seen in both a green and fine
blue color, sometimes combined. The spider web
Indian Mountain is considered to be some of
the finer turquoise available.
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KING'S MANASSA
King’s Manassa turquoise mine is located
east of Manassa, Colorado. It was mined for
centuries by Indians and is thought to be the
oldest turquoise mine in Colorado. It is the
largest of many deposits in the area. I.P. King
came upon the mine in 1890 while prospecting
for gold. According to Bennett’s work
on turquoise, "He thought the blue stain
on the rocks was copper, but in 1900 it was
identified as turquoise, and by 1908 ten claims
were being worked nearby."
Since it’s rediscovery mining has been
carried out by members of the King family intermittently
with both blue and blue-green turquoise being
found. Today King’s Manassa turquoise
is seen in an attractive green color with a
beautiful golden matrix.
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