What minerals are found in Franklin NJ?

The primary ore minerals are the franklinite (an iron, zinc and manganese oxide) and willemite (a zinc silicate) and to a lesser extent zincite (a red colored zinc oxide) and hemimorphite (a zinc silicate). Iron is the primary product, in terms of weight, while zinc and manganese are rather significant.

Where can I dig for crystals in NJ?

Where to Find Crystals and Gemstones in New Jersey

  • Stirling – The brooks and streams all around the town of Stirling can contain high-quality carnelian.
  • Franklin-Ogdensburd-Sterling Hill Mining District – This mining district is world-famous for its gemstones, the varieties of which are too numerous to list here.
  • Mt.

What kind of minerals can be found in Franklin New Jersey unlike any other place in the world?

These unique deposits are exceptionally rich in zinc and no similar deposits have been found anywhere else on Earth. It is now generally accepted that the ore deposits at Franklin and Sterling Hill originated as hot, metal-rich fluids that were discharged onto the floor of a shallow sea about 1.3 billion years ago.

What is Franklin NJ famous for?

Franklin, known as the “Fluorescent Mineral Capital of the World,” is located over a rich ore body containing more than 150 minerals, many of them fluorescent and 25 of which are found nowhere else on earth.

Why did the Sterling Hill mine close?

The mine closed in 1986 due to a tax dispute with the town, which foreclosed for back taxes in 1989 and auctioned the property to Richard and Robert Hauck for $750,000. It opened as a museum in August 1990.

Is there gold in NJ streams?

Gold prospectors in New Jersey may benefit from searching in the more mineralized zones, as gold is certainly known to exist with these other minerals. Despite the lack of lode gold sources, glacial gold deposits can be found in many creeks and rivers in the state.

What was the percentage of zinc in the ores in Sterling mine?

The ore was fabulously rich, averaging more than 20% zinc, and occurred in thick seams that were worked to a depth of 2,550 ft below the surface, through workings totaling more than 35 miles in length.

What is special about many of the rocks found in the Sterling Hill area?

Rocks That Glow A unique element of Sterling Hill is the fluorescent rocks. Under different frequencies of light, the rocks found here glow, or fluoresce. About 90 minerals found in this region fluoresce, and more than 20 of these are found nowhere else in the world.