Canadian mining company, Calibre Mining Corp. announced the discovery of a significant gold deposit in Ferry County, Washington. According to Calibre, the 2-million-ounce deposit was found in the Republic/Eureka mining district, part of Calibre’s “Golden Eagle Project”.

The town of Republic, Wash. sits only three miles away. Calibre conducted an initial drill and estimated a 2 million-ounce deposit might be underground. In current market value an ounce of gold is worth more than $1,800, and the deposit’s estimated value could come out to more than $3 billion before extraction costs.

Republic is a historic mining town, but its last gold mine, Kinross’ Buckhorn, closed in 2017. Its most active years were from 1898 to 1947, with the Mountain Lion Mine. According to Calibre, the Republic area has produced about 4 million ounces of gold over the past 130 years.

In 1886, prospectors Tommy Ryan and Phil Creasor discovered a continuous mineralized ledge in the North of Okanogan County, and claimed the area as Eureka Gulch, which soon after became known as Republic. Republic, Washington’s rapid heyday boasted seven hotels, twenty saloons, nine general stores, and an undisclosed number of brothels. The quality of ore discovered spurred the existence of many nearby mines and townships, including the near neighbors of Wauconda, Washington, and Bodie.