THE 



JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY 



NOVEMBER-DECEMBER, igo8 



THE GOLD REGIONS OF THE STRAIT OF MAGELLAN 

 AND TIERRA DEL FUEGO 



R. A. F. PENROSE, JR. 



LOCATION OF THE REGION' 

 t 



The Strait of Magellan intersects the southern end of South 

 America from east to west. To the north of the strait is Patagonia, 

 to the south of it is the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego. Both these 

 regions are owned partly by Chile and partly by the Argentine Repub- 

 lic. The dividing line follows the Andes southward in Patagonia to 

 the Strait of Magellan, thence eastward for some distance along the 

 strait, and thence southward again through Tierra del Fuego, giving 

 most of that archipelago to Chile, but an important part on the eastern 

 side to Argentine. The Chilean possessions in the Magellan region, 

 on both sides of the strait, are officially known as the Territory of 

 Magallanes, a term locally abbreviated to simply "Magallanes," 



Patagonia represents the southern end of the mainland of South 

 America, terminating at Cape Froward, in the Strait of Magellan, 

 The name Tierra del Fuego properly belongs to the whole archipelago 

 of islands lying south of the Strait of Magellan and north of Cape 

 Horn, though sometimes it is applied to the one large island which 

 comprises most of the land area of the group and which is often 



I During the year 1907 the writer twice visited the Strait of Magellan and had an 

 opportunity to learn something of the gold-mining industry of that region. Other 

 researches in South America prevented his making a special study of the deposits on 

 which this industry has been built up, but it is hoped that the following general account 

 of the occurrence and environment of the gold in this little-known region may be of 

 some interest. 

 Vol. XVI, No. 8 683 



