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MSA MEETING PROGRAM & PLACE
Franciscan Renewal Center, (Piper Hall),
May 15, 2025 @ 7.30 pm Arizona time
"Fluorite from the Oatman District, Mohave County, Arizona”
Presented by
MARK HAY
FLUORITE on Quartz, 7.4 cm
Homestake Mine, Oatman, Mohave County, Arizona, USA
Mark Hay collection - Jeff Scovil photo.
* If you are receiving this as a REMINDER email and attending via Zoom, please scroll to bottom for Zoom Link.
* Meeting is on the 3rd Thursday.
* Please bring refreshments to share.
* MEETING will be (In-Person and Zoom).
* MAY Mineral of the Month: FLUORITE
Okay to bring 1-2 examples of Mineral of the Month.
Our May 15th program will be presented by Mark Hay on “Fluorite from the Oatman District, Mohave County, Arizona." The old mining town of Oatman lies in northwestern Arizona, among the dramatic volcanic spires and cliffs of the Black Mountains. In the early 20th century, it was a bustling mining center known for rich gold deposits. Mine promoters and investors loved them, but they offered virtually nothing to the mineral collector.
For that we must look to the small outlying mines to the north along the sides of Hardy Mountain and Silver Creek. With few exceptions, veins in that area, though a bust financially often carry fluorite as a gangue mineral and to the good fortune of mineral collectors, the veins are vuggy and the fluorite is crystallized.
The fluorite ranges from colorless to pale green to rich lime green to dark purple. In some rare cases bi- and tri-colored crystals have been found. Crystals are commonly octahedral with silky to rough composite faces. Under a hand lens they are seen to be formed by tiny cubic crystals arranged in classic fashion to form the octahedron. In most instances, they are an inch or less in size though crystals to four inches on an edge have been found.
Throughout the area, the fluorite occurs on massive, white, vein quartz and matrix pieces are the rule.
Many of the mines are still accessible and the chances of collecting additional specimens are excellent. However, as with all field collecting, many of them are in private hands and cannot be collected without permission from the owners.
Mark Hay grew up in southwest Colorado where he developed a love of mountains, rocks and nature. His family moved to Scottsdale when he was in high school. After graduating from Arizona State University with a degree in geology, he worked at the Magma Mine in Superior, Arizona. Magma was an underground, hardrock copper mine known for its beautifully crystallized specimens of barite, calcite and pyrite. It was there that his interest in mineral collecting began. That was over 40 years ago. Today, he specializes in Arizona minerals but has an appreciation for minerals from anywhere. He and Dick Morris, his long-time partner, did extensive field collecting in Arizona starting in the mid-1980s. This led to Minerals of Arizona, a retail mineral business he shared with Dick. Additionally, Mark has authored or co-authored numerous articles for The Mineralogical Record.
Save the date on your calendars for this very special program for Mineralogical Society of Arizona!
Thank You Mark for your many contributions to the hobby and support of Mineralogical Society of Arizona!
Meeting starts at 7.30PM Arizona time.