North Bay Resources Inc. ("North Bay" or the "Company") is very pleased to report that the Company has achieved another major milestone with the recovery of its first ounces of specimen gold at the Ruby Mine in Sierra County, California.
This marks the first production of gold at the Ruby Mine since the 1990's, and the first gold produced since North Bay acquired the Ruby in 2011.
The gold was recovered during a preliminary geological survey of a newly-accessible area of the Ruby Mine located toward the south end of the Black Channel workings. The economic significance of the Black Channel is documented as being that section of the mine that was just getting into full production when the Ruby was ordered to close in 1942, along with all other gold mines in the US, by order of the US government pursuant to War Production Board Order L-208. Up to that point, the Black Channel had already produced over 58,000 ounces of gold, including the world-renowned C.L. Best Collection of Ruby Nuggets currently on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.
As previously disclosed in a Company press release dated September 10, 2013, the Company has recently advanced past the 4900 level of the Ruby Tunnel and has crossed over the Melones Fault, the major controlling structure of the Motherlode, to gain access to the Black Channel. The Company has since been conducting additional rehab work to reinforce and retimber the Black Channel workings when the gold nuggets were recovered.
Pictures of the new nuggets recovered this week are now available at the Company website at http://www.northbayresources.com/ruby/1stnuggets.html. These nuggets speak volumes as to the unique intrinsic nature of the Ruby Mine, and are representative of the premium quality of specimen gold we expect to recover in abundance on a consistent basis as mining operations move forward into the production phase.
About The Ruby Gold Project
The Ruby Mine, a/k/a the Ruby Gold Project, is a fully-permitted underground placer and lode mine located near Downieville in Sierra County, California that is known to have produced over 350,000 ounces of gold since the 1850's, and which is considered to be part of the northern extension of the historic Mother Lode system. The Ruby Property covers approximately 1,755 acres, only a small portion of which has been explored to date. The property consists of the subsurface mineral rights of two patented claims totaling approximately 435 acres and 30 unpatented claims containing approximately 1,320 acres. The equipment, fixed assets, and infrastructure in place include a 1,000 yard per day placer wash plant, 50-ton per day quartz mill, 6,000 feet of tracked haulage, and related support equipment needed for underground mining operations. The property also features an excellent system of roads, is accessible via paved highway from Reno or Sacramento, has abundant water and timber available for mining purposes, and has PG&E power available on-site. For further information on the Ruby Mine, please visit the Ruby page on the North Bay website at http://www.northbayresources.com/ruby/.