Mineral Section

of the Rochester Academy of Science

Feature Article

If you missed Bob Morgan's talk at the 2003 Tucson Mineral Show or at the section meeting in the spring of 2003 (or just wish to see it again), here is your chance! Bob has graciously made his slides and narration notes available for viewing on the Web. Thanks, Bob.

Amazing Pyrite Shapes of Huanzala, Peru

Other Club Events

Annual Rochester Mineralogical Symposium
This world-renowned event takes place each April at the Radison Hotel on Jefferson Road.

Science Exploration Days  This annual event at St. John Fisher College each May provides us with an opportunity to demonstrate, talk about, and give away minerals to area Junior and Senior ) high school students.  
June Picnic as guests of the Rochester Lapidary Society.

Annual ADK Outdoor Expo put on by the Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club at Mendon Ponds Park Beach Area. We will have a booth advertising our club to the public.

Annual Gem, Mineral & Fossil Show  Co-sponsored with the Rochester Lapidary Society at Minett Hall at the Monroe Co. Fair and Expo Center.
  2009 Dates:
    Saturday October 24– 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
    Sunday October 25– 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Annual Club Holiday Party  In December each year.  A special year-end get together and pot-luck dinner.

 The October 2007 meeting featured Dr. David Bailey, Associate Professor of Geology at Hamilton College, who gave an interesting talk about the Kimberlitic Rocks of New York.   For a summary of this talk, click here!

Barton & Hooper Garnet Mine Field Trip

Officers for 2008
President —
Vice President — Robert Hiler
Secretary — Bronwyn Mura
Treasurer — Paul Dudley
Curator — William Pinch

Directors
  Chuck Hiler
  Nancy McCann
  Jeff Karpenko

Our Newsletter: RocKester News

Soliciting contributions for the next issue...
Link to e-mail the editor

Coming Events

Monthly Club meetings are generally on the third Tuesday of each month at the Brighton Town Hall, 2300 Elmwood Ave., Rochester NY.  Our December meeting will be elsewhere, and occasionally we may need to change the date or meeting locations.  This site will list any such changes or updates.

Tuesday, January 27 (Note this is the 4th Tuesday) at 7:30 p.m. at the Brighton Town Hall at 2300 Elmwood Avenue, in the Downstairs Meeting Room.  Al Mura will give a talk entitled "Evolution and its Effect on Minerals."  Door prizes and refreshments; visitors welcome.

Tuesday, February 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the Brighton Town Hall at 2300 Elmwood Avenue, in the Upstairs Auditorium.  Paul Dudley will give a talk Meteorites.  Door prizes and refreshments; visitors welcome.

Tuesday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the Brighton Town Hall at 2300 Elmwood Avenue, in the Upstairs Auditorium.  Program to be announced.  Door prizes and refreshments; visitors welcome.

There is no meeting in April due to all the mineralogical excitement created by the Rochester Mineralogical Symposium.

Tuesday, May 19 7:30 p.m. at the Brighton Town Hall at 2300 Elmwood Avenue, in the Downstairs Meeting Room.  Program to be announced.  Door prizes and refreshments; visitors welcome.

Field Trips

A benefit of Mineral Section membership are the club-sponsored field trips.
An advance headcount is required for field trips, and you must be a member to receive field trip details.  

To sign up for field trips, or if you have an idea for a field trip, contact mineraltrips@rasny.org.

If you are not currently a member here is a link to the RAS membership form

2008 Field Trips

Saturday, May 10th - Penfield Quarry (Dolomite Products Co., Inc.), Minerals that may be found here are Fluorite, Selenite, Dolomite, Calcite, Sphalerite, Celestine, Gypsum & Fossils.

Saturday, May 17th - Herkimer "Diamond" Mine, Herkimer, NY for quartz crystals..

Saturday, May 24th - "Diamond" Acres, Fonda, NY for quartz crystals.

Saturday, June 7th - LaFarge Lockport Quarry, Lockport, NY for dolomite, calcite, selenite, celestine.

Sunday June 22 - LeFarge Quarry in Dundas, Ontario,  for celestine, brown fluorite, marcasite, and calcite.

Saturday, June 28th - Syracuse area.  Rochester Lapidary Society (RLS) field trip. Meet at 8 a.m. at Exit 42 on I-90.  There will be several stops to collect selenite, pyrite, and fossils and selenite.  As always, you will need to wear safety glasses and you may wish to bring a hard hat with you since sites have not been checked out ahead of time.  Well-supervised children are allowed - Safety glasses and sturdy footwear also required and hard hat or bicycle helmet may be necessary. A weather decision will be made the day before.

Thursday, July 3rd - Sunday, July 6th - RLS field trip to Bancroft, Ontario, Canada area.  Driving up on the 3rd to Bancroft (about a 6 hr. drive).  On Friday we'll be hunting for sapphire, Saturday green apatite & titanite in the Bear Lake area, and Sunday will be going to Marmora Quarry which is about an hour south of Bancroft. Option: Some folks may be carpooling & going up early Sunday just for the Marmora Quarry portion.  E-mail me & let me know if you're interested in all, or part of this trip to receive more details.

Saturday, July 19th;  Barton Garnet Mine, North River, NY. 11 a.m. – 'till. Garnet, gneiss, feldspar, hornblende.  Gift shop. Children's sluice.  We'll get group rate - not sure what that will be yet (new management).  We'll get into public Pit #1 where no tools allowed & pending safety inspection after the snow melts, Pit #8/9 where tools are allowed.  All material removed was $1/pound last year. We'll stop at the closed Hooper Mine at the end of the day.

Saturday, July 19th, Lafarge, NA at Lockport (Quarry) - 7:30 a.m. - 12 noon.  400 Hinman Rd., Lockport, NY.  Usual PPE required.  No children or power tools allowed.  Must sign liability release & be present for safety talk.  Bring your club ID card.  Minerals you may find: Pink-tinged dolomite crystals, calcite crystals, celestine, gypsum (selenite & massive), anhydrite, and marcasite.

Saturday, August 2nd or Sunday, August 3rd –; Spring Creek, Alden, NY depending on people's preference, for fossils, pyritized fossils & nodules and septarian nodules. 11a. m.

Saturday, August 16th & Sunday, August 17th - Lewis & St. Lawrence Counties.  Drive up Saturday.  Exact collecting sites to be determined.  If you have a tent & camping gear, free shower-less camping will be available in Potsdam.

Saturday, August 23rd - Please note the field trip to Bower Powers farm for uvite, quartz & apatite on the www.efta.biz Web site(click on 2008 Field Trips.)  This trip is sponsored by the St Lawrence County Rock & Mineral Club.  You must contact the FT coordinator listed on the Web site.  They will be meeting at the St. Lawrence County Gem & Mineral Show that is going on that weekend at the Canton Sportsmen Club in Gouverneur to sign in at 9am. Free camping is available there.  If you are interested in carpooling to this event, please e-mail me.

There will be no September field trips to Meckley's Limestone Products, Inc. Quarry in Mandata, PA due to a change in their insurance company - Field trip groups are no long allowed in the quarry.  Since trips to National Limestone Quarry were always held in conjunction with trips to Meckley's, they are canceled unless members contact the Field Trip Coordinator and express an interest in going to National for wavellite, calcite & strontianite.

Saturday, October 11th & Sunday, October 12th - Dolomite Products Co., Inc., Walworth Quarry, Walworth, NY. Power Tools allowed. Personal Protective Equipment: Hard hat, safety glasses, sturdy footware, long pants. Gloves recommended.

Tentative Date: LaFarge Lockport Quarry often holds a fall open house on a Saturday morning in late October.

For more information on field trips, contact mineraltrips@rasny.org