I've done quite a bit of mining in NC. There are mines, real operating mines, in the pegmatite district. There are also a number of old mines that allow a dig for a fee. I recently worked a mine that I worked back in 1990 called the Wray Mine. It's on NFS land and is open to the public. We found 2 common beryl, a piece of non gem quality aquamarine, and a piece of achroite. The latter is a non-colored beryl, a clear beryl - not blue like aquamarine.
The Wray mines are fabulous. You walk into the woods and did and see what you can find. The original miners here were the Native Americans that mined mica for trade with the Ohio mound builders. The mounds in Ohio have turned up an interesting collection of rock specimens: native copper from Michigan, shells from Florida, mica from NC, native silver from Ontario, and other specimens that illustrate the wide trading practices of the peoples of North America over 1000 years ago.Statistics: Posted by Nostradamus — 04 Dec 2009, 12:30
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