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Consolidated Prospect- and Mine-Related Features from U.S. Geological Survey 7.5- and 15-Minute Topographic Quadrangle Maps of the United States
These data, modified from Horton and San Juan (2016), are a consolidation of point and polygon features representing mine and prospect-related symbols shown on U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5- and 15-minute topographic maps from the Historical Topographic Map Collection (HTMC). This consolidation supports more accurate counts of mine features represented in the database, which are needed to address USGS Mineral Resources Program research related to mining and exploration in the United States. This research may include making estimates of the number of abandoned mines with physical or environmental hazards or estimating the number of mine waste sites that potentially have recyclable minerals of value. The three point and three polygon feature layers representing mine symbols acquired from three primary map scales in Horton and San Juan (2016) are merged into one point and one polygon layer with duplicate points and overlapping polygons removed where that removal can be practically justified without field verification. The removal of 128,078 duplicate points and overlapping polygons resulted in 597,612 points and polygons which is an approximate 18% reduction in the total number features in Horton and San Juan (2016).
These data provide locations and general information about features related to mineral resource exploration and extraction across the U.S. The original compilation was derived by digitizing mine symbols from approximately 106,350 topographic maps across 50 states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (PR) and the District of Columbia (DC). The data are indicators of exploration and mining activities in the U.S. from 1886 to 2006 and provide an approximate timeline of when these activities occurred. Mine features that may have been destroyed or covered by subsequent mining-related activities during that time period are not addressed. These data may be used for land use planning, assessing abandoned mine lands and mine-related environmental impacts, assessing the value of mineral resources from Federal, State and private lands, and mapping mineralized areas and systems for input into the land management process.
Horton, J.D., and San Juan, C.A., 2016, Prospect- and mine-related features from U.S. Geological Survey 7.5- and 15-minute topographic quadrangle maps of the United States (ver. 10.0, May 2023): U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/F78W3CHG.
Complete Metadata
| @id | http://datainventory.doi.gov/id/dataset/265ea12067345ce86767eab5cc0ea458 |
|---|---|
| bureauCode |
[ "010:12" ] |
| identifier | USGS:64dfc0efd34e5f6cd553c265 |
| spatial | -170.377219,17.945627,-65.587443,70.56018 |
| theme |
[ "geospatial" ] |
