[Rockhounds] fluorspar district update

[Alan Goldstein]

I've organized a few trips to the KY side of the IL-KY fluorspar district via this list serve over the past  several years. The Clement Museum is now handling all the arrangements and have groups several weekends per month from late March ending with deer hunting season in early November. Because of the success of this program, the museum is not having the financial difficulties it was in several years ago. I want to thank everyone who has supported those digs - and had fun in the process!  A group from Evansville is scheduled to dig this weekend and towards the end of the month a very large group from Georgia is coming up. 

Bill Frazer & I checked out another possible collecting area yesterday, on the Big Four fault system. I'm not optimistic that it will pan out. I picked up some 'gravel spar' (crystalline fluorite on the surface), but that doesn't always mean ground crystals are just below.

Bill showed me some work he has done at the Columbia mine. He had the fluorescent mineral dump turned yesterday and I pointed out an overgrown rock pile that has been very productive for me over the past five years at the Eureka. (One miniature specimen can have goods crystals of fluorite, quartz, calcite, sphalerite and smithsonite on it!) We also determined that some dumps on the fault associated with the Mary Belle mine are on his property and that he will dig into them. The Mary Belle is not on his land. (He showed me an open shaft dug in the 1940's. Judging from the time it takes the rock to hit the bottom of the shaft, it is about 50' deep. No water. Needless to say, he doesn't want anyone wandering up the hill any more!)

I was down there to pick up a dump truck load of material from the old Ozark-Mahoning dumps in Rosiclare. It is nice having access to a dual axle dump truck! We now have 15 tons of material for the Fossil Festival at the Falls of the Ohio State Park on the 15th & 16th of this month. For the diehard mineral collector, it may not be worth looking at, but for our typical festival attendee the yellow and purple fluorite, barite, calcite and sphalerite will be very popular. I anticipate the pile will be as popular as the fossil piles. We have water there so people can wash off the material. In addition, the rock is generally small enough that the use of rock hammers isn't necessary. For liability reasons, we do not let people use rock hammers on the piles during the event. There are too many people packed in!

The best fluorite is at Hastie Quarry. Unfortunately it is still OFF-LIMITS to collectors. However, I talked to them and they are willing to sell a quantity of low grade ore (the bedding replaced limestone with crystal vugs) which can be trucked over to the grounds of the museum for collectors to split. It will prboably cost about as much as it did to rent the track hoe. The material can be very nice because the purple and yellow crystals are fresh, clean and often lustrous. They aren't big (typically under 1 cm wide). I am working with Bill so that we can organize a dig at the museum with Hastie fluorite.  Just a reminder for those visiting the Illinois side of the district, don't bother asking at Hastie Quarry - that just irritates them! Trespassing is worse and is the main reason why they closed all access to their property. 

I'll be down there again in mid October to do more collecting.

Alan G.

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