About This Map
This interactive map shows over 75,000 gold mines, deposits, and prospects
across the United States, drawn from three public government datasets. Each marker
represents a recorded gold-bearing site — from actively producing mines to historic
Gold Rush-era claims and uncharacterised geological occurrences.
Data Sources
- USGS MRDS (Mineral Resources Data System) —
the primary dataset, covering 75,746 gold-bearing sites with deposit type, ore minerals,
production history, and development status. Systematic data collection ran through 2011.
- MSHA (Mine Safety & Health Administration) —
652 MSHA-regulated gold ore mines with verified GPS coordinates, mostly abandoned historical
operations.
- USGS GNIS (Geographic Names Information System) —
4,897 historical populated places in gold-producing states, representing abandoned mining
settlements and ghost towns from the 19th and early 20th centuries.
How to Use
Use the sidebar filters to narrow by development status
(Producer, Past Producer, Prospect, Occurrence), deposit type
(Vein, Placer, Replacement, etc.), and production size
(Large, Medium, Small). Click any dot to see full metadata including coordinates,
county, ore minerals, discovery year, and a link to the original USGS record.
Switch between All Dots, Cluster, and Heatmap views
using the buttons at the top of the sidebar.
Top Gold-Producing States
California leads with over 24,000 recorded sites — a legacy of the 1848 Gold Rush.
Nevada (7,787 sites) is the largest active gold-producing state today.
Alaska (8,287), Colorado (6,165), Arizona (5,112), Montana (4,836), and
Idaho (4,524) round out the top states by recorded deposit count.
Data is provided for informational and research purposes only.
USGS MRDS data was last systematically updated in 2011.
Site locations are approximate. Always verify with current regulatory agencies
before any field activity.