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

Notice: Bob Morgan has left Rochester for his new home in Savannah, Georgia. For a newspaper account of how he traveled to Georgia, click this link. (as of 10/23/07)

Contacts
President – mineralpresident@rasny.org
Field Trip Coordinators – mineraltrips@rasny.org
Mineral Web site – mineral@rasny.org

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

Directors
  Chuck Hiler
  Nancy McCann
  Jeff Karpenko

Our Newsletter: RocKester News

Current and Back Issue Archive

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

Coming Events

Wednesday, May 14 & Thursday May 15 - Science Exploration Days.  This annual event at St. John Fisher College provides us with an opportunity to demonstrate and talk about minerals to area junior (Thursday) and senior (Wednesday) high school students. Volunteers will be needed to work at our table on both days from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and during the public program Wednesday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.  We also give out free specimens to interested kids, so please consider donating any surplus minerals you may have.  Contact Paul Dudley at mineral@rasny.org or 385-2368.   (A luncheon will be provided for those working at the daytime programs.)

Tuesday, May 20 - Mineral Section Meeting: 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Downstairs at the Brighton Town Hall, 2300 Elmwood Ave.  The program will be a talk by Dr. Rick Batt from Buffalo State College entitled "Fire Mountains and other Volcanic Features of the Pacific Northwest...with a Look at Hawaiian Volcanoes Too."  Refreshments and door prizes. Visitors are welcome. For more information, call Al Mura at 227-9931 or check here for updates.

Sunday June 8 - Rochester Lapidary Society Annual Picnic/Silent Auction Noon until 4:00 or 5:00. The Lapidary club has invited us to attend their annual picnic.  Bring your family, and a dish to pass. Hot dogs, hamburgers, and beverages will be provided.  A highlight of the picnic is the Silent Auction where you may bring mineral, lapidary, or jewelry-related items for sale. The Lapidary club will retain 20% of the proceeds from each auction item. Roberts Cabin, Henrietta Town Park just west of the Fair Grounds on Calkins Rd.  Just after you enter the park, turn right over the small bridge. Roberts Cabin is the first cabin on the left. .

Saturday June 14 - 11th Annual ADK Outdoor Expo put on by the Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club. 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at Mendon Ponds Park Beach Area.
Contact Chuck Hiler at Chillflou1@aol.com for more details and to sign-up.

The October 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!

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.), 746 Whalen Rd., Penfield, NY. 7:00 – 11:30.a.m.  Arrive at 6:45 a.m. for Sign-In & Safety talk.  Minerals that may be found are Fluorite, Selenite, Dolomite, Calcite, Sphalerite, Celestine, Gypsum & Fossils. Personal protective equipment required: Safety glasses, hard hat & steel-toed or sturdy boots.  Well-supervised children are allowed provided they have safety glasses, hard hat or bicycle helmets & sturdy footwear. Power equipment is allowed. This is a rain or shine event. For questions, contact mineraltrips@rasny.org.

Saturday, May 31st - Diamond Acres, Fonda, NY. 10 a.m. – till for Herkimer diamonds. $2/person.  Power tools are allowed.

Saturday, June 28th – Syracuse area. Rochester Lapidary Society field trip. Meet at 8 a.m. at Exit 42 on I-90.  There will be several stops to collect pyritized nodules/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.

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.

Tentative Date: Saturday, July 26th - LaFarge Lockport Quarry, Lockport, NY.  Since they're blasting in pit where crystals can be found, we will not have access before this. Time will probably be 7 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.  Similar to Penfield Quarry except that power tools are not allowed.

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 - Jefferson & 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.

Tentative Date: Saturday, September 20th - National Limestone Quarry, Inc., Mt. Pleasant Mills, Snyder Co., PA. 10 a.m. For clear calcite crystals, wavellite, strontianite, cacoxanite, embedded rosy-purplish fluorite & fossils. Hard hat, safety glasses & sturdy footwear required. Free, however the owner appreciates your donation of a mineral specimen from our locale.

Tentative Date: Sunday, September 21st – Meckley's Limestone Products, Inc. (Quarry), Mandata, Northumberland Co., PA. 12 noon – 5 p.m. $1/person. Celestine, calcite, strontianite, embedded fluorite. Hard hat, safety glasses & sturdy footwear required. Supervised children allowed – may wear bicycle helmet if no hard hat. No power tools.

Tentative Date: Saturday, October 11th & Sunday, October 12th – Dolomite Products Co., Inc., Walworth Quarry, Walworth, NY.

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