The Coeur d'Alene Mining District is one of the most prominent and productive mining districts in North America. This 5-mile stretch of ground has hosted over 90 historic mines yielding over five billion dollars' worth of metal (and a billion ounces of silver) in a little over 100 years. At least three of these mines have produced over one hundred million ounces of silver each over that period and so the area has come to be known as "The Silver Valley".
Within the Coeur d'Alene Mining district, the largest silver producing mines include the Crescent, Sunshine, Silver Summit, Coeur, Galena, and Lucky Friday. SNS Silver currently holds a large portfolio of exploration and development properties including the Crescent and Sunshine Mines. The Crescent Mine is strategically located between two world-class ore bodies. Adjoining the Crescent Mine on the east side is the world famous Sunshine Mine, one of the richest silver mines in the world. The Sunshine has produced over 325 million ounces of silver, 71,000 tons of lead, 50,000 tons of copper and 37,500 tons of antimony. Bordering the Crescent Mine property on the west is the Bunker Hill Mine with a production history of 3,119,121 tons of lead, 161,384,305 ounces of silver and 1,311,266 tons of zinc.
The Coeur d'Alene District is underlain by members of the Precambrian belt super-group rock formations. This super-group extends east-westerly for many miles and hosts the numerous mines that have made the District one of the major silver producing areas in the world and the premier silver district in North America. The Silver Valley boasts some of the oldest, deepest, and richest silver mines in North America, consistently producing nearly 40% of the nation's silver. Silver is a metal which exhibits industrial, precious and monetary values and with demand outstripping supply for the past decade, the Silver Valley has again become the focus of intense exploration and production activity.
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