Congress Mine

The Congress Mine is a gold mine located at the ghost town of Congress, Arizona, on the southeastern slope of the Date Creek Mountains, approximately 18 miles north-northeast of Wickenburg, Arizona, at an elevation of about 3,000 feet (Lat. 34.216 – Long. -122.841). The nearest community, four miles away, is modern Congress, formerly known as Congress Jct railroad station or Martinez Post Office. The Congress Mine produced substantial quantities of gold and was considered one of the most productive gold mines in Arizona.

The gold found in the mine was primarily small veins embedded in white quartz with inclusions of iron pyrite (fool's gold), iron, and sulfur. The Congress vein was considered a peculiar formation, characterized as "a dike of green stone trap." The ore ran through this dike and the dike was found throughout the entire geographical ledge. The most valuable ore-bearing rocks could be found lodged on or near a foot wall in the ledge usually in drifts 12 to 15 feet high. The vein had a dip of 22 degrees and was usually about 15 feet wide. The vein was accessed by shafts dug (often quite deep) into the areas around the ledge.