The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) made a reconnaissance geochemical survey of the Shining Rock Wilderness (fig. 1) to test for unidentified or unexposed mineral deposits that might be recognized by their geochemical halos. Similar geochemical survey based on trace-element analyses have been credited with the discovery of many types of mineral deposits (Hawkes and Webb, 1962). Although no metallic mineral deposits are known in the study area, the same sequence of rocks that is exposed there contains small deposits of copper-bearing sulfides 10-18 mi (16-28 km) west and southwest of the wilderness (Gair and Slack, 1979). Keith (1907, p. 8) reports minor amounts of copper sulfides and iron sulfides in schist and in quartz veins cutting schist near Retreat, 4 mi (6.5 km) northwest of the wilderness. An old gold mine, the Boylston mine, on Forge Mountain 10 mi (16 km) east of the wilderness (Nitze and Hanna, 1896, p. 181-191) is in metasedimentary rocks of the Great Smoky Group (Hadley and Nelson, 1971) which are probably younger than the rocks exposed in the wilderness.
