Pinal Gem and Mineral Society
(pinalgemandmineralsociety.org)
Newsletter Volume 1, number 1, January 2015
The next meeting of the gem and mineral society will be on Wednesday, February 18, 2015 at 7 PM at the Artisan Village of Coolidge (North School), 351 N. Arizona Blvd., Coolidge.
The program will be “Why Arizona has so many mines and minerals” by Ray Grant.
There are several periods of mineral formation in Arizona. The three major ones are in the Precambrian about 1.7 billion years ago, in the Laramide from 70 to 50 million years ago and in the Mid-tertiary from 30 to 15 million years ago. Because of this long history of mineral formation, Arizona has a tremendous wealth of minerals. Over 900 different mineral species have been found in the state and more than fifty percent of the copper mined in the United States comes from Arizona. Some examples of mineral deposits in Pinal County will be included in the program.
Map showing Metallic Mineral Districts in Pinal County
Members can bring specimens to the meeting for show and tell and to have specimens identified. Every one is welcome at meetings and field trips. If you know a junior who is interested in geology or minerals please tell them about our meetings.
Field trip
There will be a field trip on Sunday January 25. Members in Sun City can meet at the Union parking lot at 8 AM and we will meet other members at Burger King in Florence at 8:30 AM. We will car pool and use high clearance vehicles. Richard Sichling will lead the trip to the Superior area to visit the site of the town of Pinal, collect Apache Tears and visit some other locations as time permits. Bring water, food, and collecting tools. If it is raining we will not have the trip (Check emails before the trip for up to date information.)
Membership applications
Membership applications can be found online at the club website or obtained at a meeting. The cost is $12 for an individual and $20 for a family/couple. Please send the application with a check made to the Coolidge Performing Arts Center Foundation (they are the central organization for our 501c3 designation). Note on the check it is for the gem and mineral society. As we get more organized we will separate our funds to a separate account. Send it to 320 W. Central Avenue, Coolidge, Arizona 85128, or bring it to a meeting or field trip.
Origin of the name Pinal
Pinal County was formed on February 1, 1875, from parts of Maricopa and Pima Counties. The name may have been derived from that of the Pinal Apaches or possibly from the pine groves in the lofty mountains (from Will Barnes’ Arizona Place Names by Boyd Granger, 1975).
Please send this newsletter along to anyone you think might be interested in our club.
Vanadinite from Grey Horse mine, Riverside District, near Kelvin, Pinal County, Arizona, photograph by Marc Fleisher.