COPPER DEPOSITS AT CLIFTON, ARIZ. 
By Waldemar Lindgren. 
FIELD WORK. 
The study of the copper deposits at Clifton was begun in October, 
1901, and finished five months later, in May, 1902. During the exam- 
ination I was assisted by Mr. J. M. Boutwell. The results of the 
investigation are expected to be published in the form of a profes- 
sional paper. As yet, however, the necessary office work, including 
the examination of the ores and minerals, is not finished, and the 
following resume is therefore to be considered only as a preliminary 
statement, which may be modified in some respects in the final report. 
PRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT. 
The Clifton mines were discovered in LS72, but owing to adverse 
conditions, principally the absence of railroad communication, the 
district did not attain prominence for a number of years. During late 
years the production lias been increasing steadily and rapidly, due prin- 
cipally to the discovery of very large bodies of low-grade ore adapted 
to concentration. During the last eight or ten years the Clifton dis- 
trict has, in point of production, ranked third among the copper dis- 
tricts of Arizona, being preceded by the United Verde and by Bisbee. 
The gradually increasing production amounted to 38,000,000 pounds 
of copper in 1901. During that year the sequence became reversed, 
Bisbee leading with 39,800,000 pounds, followed by Clifton with 
38,000,000 and United Verde with 34,500,000 pounds. It is believed 
that a still further increase took place in 1902, but statistics are not 
yet available. It is probable, indeed, that during the year just closed 
the Clifton mines produced more copper than any of the other camps 
in Arizona. 
The production of Arizona is at present a little more than one-fifth 
of the total production of the United States. 
At the present time there are three large companies at Clifton smelt- 
ing copper on an extensive scale. These are : (1) The Arizona Copper 
Company, having mines at Metcalf and Morenci, a few miles north- 
west of Clifton, and a smelter located at Clifton. The production of 
this company in 1901 was 20,500,000 pounds. (2) The Detroit Copper 
Company, having mines and smelting works at Morenci. In 1901 the 
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