FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[David Fryauff]

Does anyone have recent experience with collecting minerals at the mine dumps in Cornwall, Lebanon Co., PA?

How many sites are there? Can anyone provide directions, addresses, & contact points for the landowners?

I can see evidence on-line that various groups (at least one EFMS club) have obtained permission for their members to collect at one of these sites. Which one(s)?

I am a member-officer in two EFMS clubs (Gem Lapiday & Mineral Society-Montgomery County, MD & Micromineralogists of the National Capital Area) and would like to get permission for a maximum of 8-10 members of our group to collect on the Cornwall mine dumps during a Saturday morning-noon or early afternoon time.

We are adults, will wear all recommended safety equipment, sign waivers, and abide by the landowners advisements.

Would love to hear about recent collecting experiences there, recommendatsions, & any update or insights to the Mindat listing of minerals present.

Thanks!!!

Dave Fryauff

[kushmeja]

Hi David,

I'm pretty sure that at least some of the Cornwall dumps are still accessible for collecting without permission. There was a book recently published regarding PA & NJ sites, which has a site for Cornwall listed. I can't remember the name of the book offhand (it's definitely worth getting if you are interested in collecting in the area), but I do recall that there was a large dump, which was essentially a huge hill of material. I'm not sure what the quality of the material is or what specifically is available there, but I know they had at least 1 site listed as publicly accessible. In fact, I was planning on taking a trip out there sometime in the next month or so to check it out.

It also happens that I was online and saw your club last week and was thinking of joining as well - I'll get an application in sometime in the next few days, and hopefully my fiancee and I can join up with you guys on your next expedition!

[David Fryauff]

Thanks for the quick & encouraging reply.

I am planning to go up to Lebanon Expo & Fairgrounds in Lebanon, PA on the 15th or 16th of this month to check out the "Gem Miner's Jubilee" but I really prefer to collect my own & do mostly micros, anyway.

I have heard some good things about the Cornwall dumps & even have a few specimens from there.

I will try to get up there early enough to look around & explore for collecting sites.

Regards'

David

[kushmeja]

Wow - didn't know about that show, and I've been looking for an excuse to head out that way to visit Cornwall and some other sites. I'm going to try to swing out there for the show and some collecting. If I do, I'll drop you a line if you want to meet up. I've seen many nice specimens come out of Cornwall, so I've been itching to get out there to check it out.

I've been on a PA/NJ rockhounding spree this summer, so I've been trying to get out to as many places as I can while the weather is still nice. If you're looking for more info on any PA/NJ site, drop me a message and I can give you some personal insights/tips, if I've been there.

I just looked it up, and the book I was referring to is "Rockhounding Pennsylvania and New Jersey: A Guide to the States' Best Rockhounding Sites". It's a very useful and insightful book, which was well written and has directions, tips, etc... for each of the localities. It also has some fossil sites listed as well, if you're into them as well. Definitely worth picking up in my opinion.