Alabama State Rock, Mineral, & Gemstone.

Alabama enjoys a diverse and widespread variety of minerals, with more than 190 mineral species occurring in the state. From the earliest of civilization minerals here were of great value when flint, mica, clay, and other rocks and minerals were used by Native Americans to survive. The state's rich stores of iron-bearing hematite provided the raw materials for Birmingham's rise as an industrial center in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. In the latter half of the twentieth century Alabama was in the top 20 among the states that produced in value amount, of minerals produced in the United States. Th estate Mineral is Hematite, the state stone is Marble, and the state gemstone is Star Blue Quartz. (A link near the bottom of the page for a Alabama Rockhounding guide)

Geology 

Much of the state is covered with sedimentary rocks, with exposures of igneous and metamorphic rocks being located to the east-central part of the state. Alabama minerals vary from common rock-forming minerals such as clay, calcite, and quartz to precious metals such as gold.

Quartz

Agate Quartz (silicon dioxide) is an important rock-forming mineral and is a prominent part of sand, gravel, sandstone, and several types of metamorphic and igneous rocks. The quartz is clear and colorless, yet it also can be brown, yellow, white, pink, red and purple depending what impurities are present in it. Small quartz crystals may be found in cavities in limestone in the rocks of north Alabama, and large quartz crystals have been found, usually along with the pegmatites, found in east Alabama. Quartz is an ideal abrasive material and is used in the manufacture of sandpaper, saws, and linings for tube-mills for grinding. Alabama's quartz sand and gravel deposits are extensive, and deposits occur in the Coastal Plain section in an area extending from Dallas County through Montgomery county and into Russel County. The Montgomery district, located in the Coastal Plain section of south-central Alabama, is the main source of sand and gravel in the state.  

Copper

Copper occurs in Alabama as chalcopyrite (copper iron sulfide) and is found in association with massive sulfide deposits in clay and Cleburne Counties. The search for copper began in the northern Alabama Piedmont in the 1850s near the towns of Pyriton and Millerville in Clay County and the Stone Hill mine in Cleburne County. Copper ore was mined at Stone Hill from 1874 to 1879.

Gold

 At Goldville, and MineGold, Gold was discovered in Alabama in the early 1830s and has been mined from several historic gold districts of the Piedmont region. The amount of gold extracted from the 1830s to 1930s equaled 49,000 troy ounces of gold. Gold has been reported in Clay, Randolph, Cleburne, Chilton, Coosa, Talladega, and Tallapoosa Counties in more than 100 prospects and mines. Several towns popped up, including Arbacoochee, Chulafinnee, and Goldville, were established during the gold rush of the 1830s. The Hog Mountain mine, which operated between 1904 and 1914 and 1934 and 1937 in Tallapoosa County, had been the most extensively developed gold mine in Alabama and has the credit of a total production of about 24,000 troy ounces of gold. Commercial gold mining ceased in Alabama during the late 1930s.

Pyrite

Pyrite also called fool's gold, is a common mineral in the Piedmont and occurs in metamorphic, igneous, and sedimentary rocks. Pyrite deposits in the Hillabee Greenstone geologic formation in the vicinity of Pyriton, Clay County, were first mined in the 1850s by mining companies and is no longer mined in the state.

Gemstones and Collectible Minerals

BerylIn addition to being useful, many of the minerals discussed above are of interest to collectors, but Alabama is home to a variety of gemstones and other specimen-quality minerals that have been collected. These minerals include amphiboles, amethyst, andalusite, beryl (emerald), apatite, calcite, fluorite, gypsum, ilmenite, magnetite, monazite, niter, onyx, opal, quartz (agate), rutile, staurolite, tourmaline, turquoise, and wavellite. The local gem and mineral clubs in Huntsville and Montgomery are a great source.

Alabama State Mineral Hematite

Hematite is known as “red iron ore” it is an oxide of iron. In 1967 hematite was designated as the state mineral. It was mined for many years in the Valley and Ridge area of central and northeast Alabama. Birmingham became an industrial center. The mining of Iron ore stopped in 1975. Hematite is abundant for the entire length or Red Mountain. Some 375 million tons were mined from about 1840 to 1975

Sylacauga marble, also known as Alabama marble, is a marble that is found in a belt running through Talladega county. It is prized for its pure white color and its crystalline structure. The stone is named after the town of Sylacauga, which is sometimes called "the Marble City". Sylacauga marble has been called the "world's whitest". Discovered in 1814, it has been mined for over 160 years, and is used for building, sculpture, and industry in 1969, this marble became the state's official rock.

Alabama has a diverse variety of gemstones. And the State Gem stone Star Blue Quartz was designated in 1990. Star blue quartz is considered one of the most beautiful common gemstones. Since it is so common its value is among the least expensive. Any star gemstone is a prize as far as I’m concerned.

Fossils
Alabama has a good variety of fossils.  In Covington County, for example, Eocene shark teeth occur near the Conecuh River.  In Russell County, collectors find marine fossils.

Collecting

Collecting will require some research, old maps and mine sites give good clues. As always check status of areas before collecting and beware of the dangers around mines. I have included below a field guide to collecting and locations to collect.

“Remember Rockhounds don’t Die They petrify” 

                                                   

Join me on the Radical Rocks Podcast, our Blog or social media below, also see our affiliate links below that help support our mission to keep Rockhounding and lapidary arts alive and thriving. Feel free to contact me with any suggestions on this blog or any other ideas you may have. If you would like to sponsor in some way, or have your club, book, or mine, spotlighted in Radical Rocks, Blog, Podcast or Video’s feel free to contact Shane with Radical Rocks.

https://anchor.fm/radicalrocks

https://radicalrocksusa.blogspot.com/

MeWe, better than Facebook; https://mewe.com/join/radicalrocks

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-ripley-a281768/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBe_Ds0ARJ7nA1TqgucZamw?view_as=public

Affiliate/referral links

Alabama Rock Hounding Guide, Title; Hunting Gold, Minerals, Fossils & Artifacts in Alabama https://amzn.to/37k4mJ9

Fundrise, become a real estate investor for only $500 I have for months now and it’s been earning an average of 10% dividends. https://fundrise.com/i/33o5g

Additional Resources

http://snr.unl.edu/Data/agatepageintro.asp
http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1273

http://www.gatorgirlrocks.com/state-by-state/alabama.html
Cook, R. B., and W. E. Smith. "Mineralogy of Alabama." Alabama Geological Survey Bulletin 120. Tuscaloosa: Alabama Geological Survey, 1982.

Dean, Lewis S. "Alabama Mineral Locality Index." Rocks & Minerals (September/October 1995): 320-33.

·         Allan W. Eckert, Earth Treasures Vol. 2 - Southeastern Quadrant (1985; reprint in 2000).

·         James Martin Monaco & Jeannette Hathway Monaco, Fee Mining & Mineral Adventures in the Eastern U.S. (2d ed. 2010).

·         Kathy J. Rygle & Stephen F. Pedersen, Southeast Treasure Hunter's Gem & Mineral Guide (4th ed. 2008)