ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS The Monthly News Bulletin of the Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society Huntsville, Alabama Volume 44 No. 4 We ll go to the Moon for a Rock April 2012 INSIDE THIS ISSUE President s Message..2 Minutes from Feb Mtg.3 Mar & Apr Birthdays & Anniversaries.. 2 Hours for Lab...4 Shows & Digs.5 Feature Article 6 2012 Officers and Committee Chairmen..7 Calendar......8 23 April Program 6:30pm Annual Rock Auction This is our main fundraiser of the year, bigger than all the dues collected, but it only works if we the membership are generous in donating some of our treasures - things of which we have more than we need. And then we get to bid on other folks contributions - things we don t have any of at all, or at least not enough. And besides all of that, we have a good time. Bring your offerings early enough for them to be organized - in some fashion at least. This also gives you a chance to peruse the offerings before the auction begins. Bidding starts at 6:30 Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society (HGMS) 2012. Reprinting Rights are granted for all material (except for minutes of the meeting and copyrighted articles) to any organization officially affiliated with the American Federation of Mineralogical Societies (AFMS) or Southeastern Federation of Mineralogical Societies (SFMS), provided credit is given to the author, the original publication, and this newsletter
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 2 President s Message - April 2012 It s once again time for our Annual Auction and I don t know about you, but I am looking forward to it. For those members who may not know (or others who may have forgotten), our April 23 rd meeting is also our Auction. We need for all to bring whatever you can spare to add to the exciting treasures to be auctioned. In years past, we have had a wonderful selection of items, and I feel that this year will be no exception. So, bring your rock and mineral specimens, cutting rough, unwanted tools and equipment, finished jewelry, or anything else that might appeal to the wide experience levels of members. Oh, and don t forget to bring your checkbook! I know that there will probably be many items that you will not be able to leave without. Setup and previewing will be at 6:00 pm in the Ball Room of the Senior Center, with the Auction scheduled to start at 6:30 pm (the time is critical because we must be finished and out of the Senior Center by 9:00). And remember to sign in and get your bidding number for auction identification. So once again, please come and have a great time! As I look at my calendar, I want to remind all, our May meeting will be on May 21 st (the 3 rd Monday) instead of our normal meeting night this year. Memorial day will be the following week and the Senior Center will be closed. Lastly, I have to bring up our Annual Show scheduled for October 12, 13, and 14. Although it sounds like that is a long way off, it really isn t. Once again, it will be held in the VBC South Hall, which is the same location as we used in previous years. We are in need of committee chairmen and many volunteer workers, and this show offers a great chance for members, new and old, to get involved with the club. I look forward to seeing each and every one of you at the Auction! Charlie Willhoite, President Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society April Birthdays Tim Eve - 6 Leslie Malakowsky - 11 Bill Sweetman - 17 Bill Friday - 23 Nathan Proper - 29 Anniversaries Mike & Myra Soroczak - 8 Joe & Judy DeFiore - 25 May Birthdays Lydia Csikos - 2 Floyd Mims - 14 Kate Patterson - 2 Mike Wesley 18 Rebecca Eve - 4 Kristine Beadle - 24 Myra Soroczak - 5 Jim Treadway - 30 Walter Cowart - 11 Larry Raymond Tanner 31 Anniversaries Dave & Gerdy Wyatt - 17 David & Dianna O'Dell - 29
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 3 Minutes of the HGMS for the month of March 2012 The meeting was called to order at 6:30p.m., March 26, 2012, by Charlie Willhoite, President. Program: Dianna O Dell and Susan Burch gave a presentation on fluorescent minerals. (How many of you went home and crunched your Life Savers in the dark?) She discussed relevant terminology and explained that fluorescent minerals require activation with an ultraviolet (UV) lamp to make them fluoresce. We saw examples of minerals that fluoresce in various colors in both short- and longwave UV light including specimens from Dianna s personal collection and examples of her Vaseline glass (in which uranium was added to the glass mix before melting making it glow-in-the-dark ). Dianna pointed out that Franklin, New Jersey is the fluorescent mineral capital of the world citing the Trotter, Buckwheat and Sterling Hill triple dig and the Sterling Hill Mining Museum in Ogdensburg, NJ. (For more information, see http://sterlinghillminingmuseum.org/.) Thanks to Dianna and her family for an awesome program! The business meeting started at 7:00pm. Old Business: Minutes from the February meeting were approved. Floyd Mims, Treasurer, reported a current balance of $244.09 (not including membership dues collected tonight) with all bills paid. Charlie announced the upcoming field trip to Graves Mountain, Lincolnton, GA, Fri., April 27 th Sun., April 29 th, 2012. Contact Clarence Norman Jr. at 706.359.3862 (business) or 706.359.2381 (home). Jim Treadway announced that there was a work day in the lapidary shop and a new saw blade was installed. New Business: Charlie announced that the drawing for the William Holland/Wildacres scholarships would be tonight, and signups were collected. (Classes run Mon. - Fri., April - October, 2012.) Four names will be drawn (two main names and two alternates). The scholarships are $125.00 each. He reminded us about three upcoming shows: the Dothan Gem and Mineral Show in Dothan, AL, Sat., April 21 st and Sun., April 22 nd (arlambert@comcast.net or wiregrassrockhounds.com); the Memphis Mineral, Fossil and Jewelry Show in Memphis, TN, Sat., April 28 th and Sun., April 29 th (TheEarthWideOpen.com); and the Ben E. Clement Gem and Mineral Show in Marion, KY, Sat., June 2 nd and Sun., June 3 rd (clementmineralmuseum.org/). He also announced that the annual HGMS auction is next month - April! This is a major fund raiser for the club! Volunteers are needed to help set up at 6:00p.m. The auction will begin promptly at 6:30p.m. We need to be out of the senior center by 9:00p.m. Scott McCoy announced that he brought samples of plant fossils collected from the Stephen C. Minkin Paleozoic Footprint site (see blog.al.com/birminghambuzz/2011/07/fossils_in_your_backyard. html) and invited everyone to see them. These fossils are from the Carboniferous Pennsylvanian period of the Paleozoic era (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/geologic_tim e_scale#table_of_geologic_time). Tony Smith, Show Chairperson, announced that new contracts have been sent out to vendors, and Charlie called for show volunteers. Charlie welcomed our visitors including Eric Gillespie and Michael Mercer. Visitors and members (Florence & Floyd Mims, Leslie Malakowsky, Bob Joyce, Jeannie Green, Leslie Whitehead, Marty Martinez, Judy DeFiore, Bill Friday, and Julie Eve) selected door prizes. (Thanks to Dianna O Dell for her generous donation of fluorescent minerals for many door prizes!) Charlie drew the names for the Wm. Holland/Wildacres scholarships. Jim Treadway and Kathy Bowman were the main winners, and Terry Alexander and Gerdy Wyatt were the alternates. Congratulations to all! Bill Friday handed out copies of the newsletter to our visitors The meeting was adjourned at 7:35p.m., and refreshments were enjoyed by all! Respectfully submitted by Leslie Malakowsky, Recording Secretary
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 4 UPDATED April 2012 Lapidary, Silver Jewelry and Wood Carving To use lapidary equipment, you must be certified unless a licensed instructor, is present - currently: B. Friday, J. Treadway, W. Falkenberg Monday 7:30-9:00 am Open Lab: Silver and Lapidary, Seniors Only 9:00- Noon Silver Jewelry - Ron West Instructor - Seniors Only 12:30-2:30pm Open Lab: Silver and Lapidary Seniors Only 2:30-4:30 pm Open Lab: Silver and Lapidary Seniors and HGMS 18+ Tuesday 7:30-10:00am Open Lab: Silver and Lapidary, Seniors Only 10:00-Noon Silver Jewelry - Ron West Instructor- Seniors Only 1:00-3:00 pm Silver Jewelry- Terry Clarke Instructor - Seniors Only 3:00-4:30pm Open Lab: Silver and Lapidary, Seniors, HGMS 18+ 6:00-9:00 pm Open Lab: HGMS Members 18+. Wednesday 7:30-2:30 pm Open Lab: Lapidary and Silver Jewelry - Seniors Only 2:30pm-4:30pm Open Lab: HGMS 18+ Thursday 7:30-11:30am Open Lab: Lapidary and Silver Jewelry- Seniors Only 12:00-3:00pm Wood Carving - Copeland Instructor Seniors Only 3:00-4:30 pm Open Lab: HGMS 18+ Friday 7:30-11:30am Open Lab: Lapidary and Silver Jewelry - Seniors Only New Wednesday afternoon Lapidary Class will be Starting May 9th - check with Bill Friday ********************************************************************************************************************************* Photos from the 2011 Rock Auction - Many Treasures
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 5 HGMS is invited to join M.A.G.M.A. for The Emerald Lake Dig! North American Emerald Mine (NAEM) Hiddenite, North Carolina April 20th and 21st, 2012 (Friday and Saturday) Official field trip of the Mountain Area Gem and Mineral Association This is a working quarry and strict safety rules are in place for this dig. There is a full page of instructions which must be reviewed prior to attending this trip, but which are too long for the HGMS newsletter. Contact Bill Friday to receive those instructions - bill.friday@earthlink.net Members will be collecting in the pit where Jamie Hill has found numerous emeralds, including the largest emerald ever discovered in North America. Weighing in at 1,869 carats, it is now on permanent display at the Houston Mineral Museum in Texas. There are tons of material/boulders and smaller rocks covering the mine floor in huge piles from the frequent blasting that takes place. The members will have full access to these piles to search for the various minerals the mine produces too include; garnet, calcite, smoky quartz, pyrite, tourmaline, siderite, rutile, amethyst, dolomite, muscovite, beryl, emerald and more. Jamie says that every now and then, workers find pieces of emerald that were deposited in the piles after a blast, so there is a good chance that a member may find a nice piece of facet grade emerald or even a small emerald that survived a blast! Our last two digs at this site have produced several hundred carats of emerald and numerous mineral specimens for members. To make this dig even more interesting, we will be pumping all the water out of the bottom of the pit. This area covers approximately 3 acres and is 20 feet deep in places, and this field trip will be the first group in after the pit has been drained. Tools: Rock hammers, sledge hammers to break rocks, chisels, shovel, safety glasses, heavy gloves, heavy boots, hardhat. Hard hats, safety glasses and heavy boots are required to attend this dig, no tennis shoes or other footwear will be allowed. You must be 18 years of age to attend this dig. Persons 21 years of age and under will be required to show ID at the dig. Camping / Motels: There are several hotels/motels in the nearby city of Statesville, NC. The Hiddenite Family Campground is close by for the members that want to camp. There will be no camping at the mine property. Hiddenite campground info: website; http://www.hiddenitecampground.com Phone number; 828-632-3815 Daily digs will begin at 8:00 a.m. and will end at 6:00 p.m. each day, with the expectation that everyone will be off the property by 6:30 pm. There is a $10,000 limit on the value of gems to be retained by the finder or group of finders. Directions: From I-40, take exit 148 to get on Hwy 64, turn North and head into Hiddenite, Turn right onto Old Mountain Road. At old Hwy 90 is a stop light, pass straight through it and the road becomes Hiddenite Church Road. Go about 1/2 mile until the road comes to a T. Go left on Sulphur Springs Road. You ll enter S-curves and see a guard rail to the right. In this area you make a right on Hill River Road. Go about 6/10 mile and turn right on Duncan Lane. The mine is at the end of the road. Follow the signs into the quarry. You can also follow the signs for Alexander Quarry This is the same site. You can watch videos of the mine owner at work at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kcs4nzeo_k&feature=related
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 6 Facts about Gold... Researched and presented by Tom Taffel, member San Francisco GMS Golden Facts: Atomic Symbol: AU Melting Point 1,945 degrees F Atomic Number: 79 Boiling Point: 5,371 degrees F Atomic Weight: 196.967 MOH's Scale of Hardness: 2.5 Gold was formed with the earth's crust, generally in quartz veins, millions of years ago. It makes up just.001 parts/million (ppm) of the earth's crust. In the sea it is approximately.004 ppm. Iron meteorites have been found to contain gold in concentrations as high as 0.7 ppm. Gold is very dense. 1.5 times more dense than lead, 19.3 times more dense than water. Gold is malleable. An ounce of gold can be hammered to a thin sheet of at least 100 square feet. In a thin leaf, gold transmits green light. An ounce of gold can be stretched into a thin wire more than 5 miles long. A thread drawn from one ton of gold would stretch to the moon and back. Various industries use 1,750 tons of gold a year. Dentists use 3 tons a year. Gold is used in computers, weaponry, spacecraft and medicine in the treatment of chronic ulcers and surgery to patch damaged nerves, blood vessels and bones. The electrical conductivity of gold is 71 times that of copper. Purity of gold: 10 karat gold is 40% pure. Black Hills gold is alloyed with copper. 14 karat gold is 58% pure and 42% alloy, generally silver. 18 karat gold is 75% pure. 24 karat gold is 100% pure and is attainable only through processing and refining. Natural placer gold, 80-92% pure, is 21-23 karat 77% of all gold recovered is by lode mining and is crushed, processed and refined. 20% of all gold recovered is byproduct of other base metal mining and must be refined. Only 3% of the gold recovered is from natural placer deposits. Less than 1/10 of 1% of gold is found in nugget form. Of this, 10% is selected for jewelry. An average of 80 cubic yards of gravel must be sluiced to find one ounce of placer gold. A one-ounce nugget is as rare a find as a 5 carat diamond. Like snowflakes, no two nuggets are alike. Laboratory Pure Gold is 1.000 Fine. Commercially Fine Gold is.999 Fine. U.S. Gold Coins are.9166 Fine (22 karat). Annual world production of gold approaches 50 million ounces. Of that, 30 million ounces comes from South Africa 5 million ounces comes from Russia 3.3 million ounces comes from Canada 1.8 million ounces comes from The United States 0.9 million ounces comes from Australia Gold is 19 times heavier than water. Gold will fall quickly to that bottom of a water course and then tend to stay in that place. Where it falls and how far down stream it will travel is the deciding factor in where to look for gold. Gold being heavier than any other material in the stream will be moving very reluctantly. In doing so, it will generally move in a straight line, following the path of least resistance. When gold does encounter resistance--like a large boulder, it will stop and of course fall to the bottom of the river, or get stuck in a crevice of the boulder as it is falling. The first place to look for gold is out in the middle of the river around boulders. However if that boulder is in fast part of the river, unless the gold piece was big, the gold may have been washed right over or around and on downstream. The ideal spot for a boulder area that would produce gold would be in part of the river where the water slows to almost a stop. A pool of water on either side of the boulder would be a good spot to start a search. The largest gold nugget ever found in Alaska was discovered near Nome. It weighed 155 ounces, was 7" long, 4" wide and 2" thick. According to Alaska's Mineral Industry 1990, major operators produced 231,000 ounces of gold in 1990,down from 297,900 ounces in 1989. Gold was first discovered in Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula in 1848. From http://www.sfgms.org/articles/taffelgold.html Article downloaded from the March 2012 issue of the Lodestar
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 7 2012 HUNTSVILLE GEM & MINERAL SOCIETY OFFICERS President: Charlie Willhoite, (256) 340-3448 cdwillhoite@yahoo.com Vice President: Dianna O Dell (256) 828-1813 swamp_rat_2@yahoo.com Recording Secretary: Leslie Malakowsky af71@mchsi.com Treasurer: Floyd Mims, (256) 778-8097 fmims1@bellsouth.net Newsletter Editor: Bill Friday, (256) 883-8487 bill.friday@earthlink.net Directors at Large: Mike Soroczak (256) 446-9938 mjsoroczak49@yahoo.com Wayne Hall (256) 232-6575 novacar65@aol.com Ben Carroll (256) 772-0185 bensadspec@knology.net 2012 COMMITTEE CHAIRS Membership: Lori Willhoite (256) 340-3448 Property: Jim Treadway, (256) 859-1484 lewillhoite@hotmail.com jtreadway51@mchsi.com 2705 Jarvis Street S. W. Decatur AL 35603 Scrapbook: Dianna O Dell, (256) 828-1813 Curator: Bob Neuschaefer, (256) 650-0400 Librarian: Susan Burch, (256) 828-1727 2012 Show Chair: Tony Smith, (256) 852-3210 Club Publicity: Jeff Neely (256) 572-0448 2012 Show Volunteer Chair Lori Willhoite (256) 340-3448 Education & Craftsmanship: 2012 Show Vendor Chair: Marcia Stone, (256) 653-4744 Bill Sweetman,(256) 539-8503 2012 Show Publicity Chair: Tony Smith, (256) 852-3210 Hospitality: Bonnie & Jim Treadway 2012 Show Treasurer: Floyd Mims, (256) 778-8097 (256) 859-1484 Field Trips: Bill (trying hard) Friday, (256)-527-8227cell Mineral ID: Vacant (William Holland offers a class for this) Constitution & Bylaws: Peggy Sweetman, (256) 539-8503 PURPOSE OF THE SOCIETY: The Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society is a non-profit educational organization for people interested in mineralogy, geology, paleontology, and related lapidary arts. Its primary purpose is the education of the members and the general public in these areas. This purpose is accomplished through programs, shows, lectures to school children and organizations, and exchange of rocks, minerals and artifacts. DUES: Annual dues are $15.00 per person, $20.00 per family, and are due on January 1st of each year MEETING PLACE: Huntsville/Madison County Senior Center, 2200 Drake Ave, Huntsville, AL at 6:30pm Fourth Monday of each month except for June picnic/rock swap, Christmas Dinner and major holidays: Federation Liaison Mail: Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society, 449 Comet Dr., Toney, AL 35773, Attn: Susan Burch This Society is affiliated with the American Federation of Mineralogical Societies and the Southeast Federation of Mineralogical Societies
April 2012 ROCKET CITY ROCKS AND GEMS Page 8 2012 CALENDAR 23 Apr 12 Annual Rock Auction Fund Raiser, Madison County Senior Center - come early to review the offerings 21 May 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 23 Jun 12 - Saturday Annual HG&MS Picnic, place & time to be determined 23 Jul 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 27 Aug 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 24 Sep 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 12-14 Oct 12 Rock Gem & Mineral Show, Von Braun Civic Center 24 Oct 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 24 Nov 12- Regular HG&MS Meeting, Madison County Senior Center, 4 Dec 12 Annual Christmas Dinner - TUESDAY 4 Dec in the cafeteria Deadline for the next Newsletter will be 16 May 2012 Rocket City Rocks & Gems Bill Friday, Editor 2508 Excalibur Dr. Huntsville, AL 35803 HGMS April 2012