RockWoofFound alongside
Silver
Mohs 2.5–3. Native silver tarnishes black. Mindat
12 sites
Fluorite
Mohs 4. Cubes in purple, green or yellow; many glow under UV. Mindat
11 sites
Quartz
Mohs 7. Six-sided points; smoky quartz is NH’s state gem. Mindat
2 sites
Galena
Mohs 2.5–2.75. Heavy, silvery lead ore that breaks into cubes. Mindat
2 sites
Gold
Mohs 2.5–3. Soft, heavy and bright yellow; it doesn’t tarnish. Mindat
1 site
Pyrite
Mohs 6–6.5. Brassy “fool’s gold,” often cubic. Mindat
1 site
Counts are sites whose USGS record mentions the mineral or commodity. Hardness from Mindat.
By county
Hardin County (11) · Cook County (1)
Sites
| Site | Commodity | Minerals recorded | Status | Approx. location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cave In Rock Quadrangle Mine | Zinc, Fluorine-Fluorite, Lead | Fluorite, Sphalerite | Producer | 37.517, -88.200 |
| Knight Shop & Hms Plant | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Past Producer | 37.434, -88.385 |
| Crystal Mine | — | — | Past Producer | 37.515, -88.193 |
| Minerva No. 1 Mine | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Producer | 37.543, -88.159 |
| Victory Mine | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Past Producer | 37.509, -88.206 |
| (Facility) Simmons Precious Metals Refinery | Ruthenium, Gold, Iridium, Palladium, Platinum, Silver | — | Plant | 41.883, -87.625 |
| Annabell Lee | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Producer | 37.583, -88.208 |
| East Green Mine | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Past Producer | 37.531, -88.177 |
| Deardorff Mine No. 1 | — | — | Past Producer | 37.520, -88.199 |
| M.F. Oxford No. 7 | — | — | Past Producer | 37.532, -88.176 |
| West Green Mine | Fluorine-Fluorite | — | Past Producer | 37.524, -88.180 |
| Southern Illinois District | — | — | Past Producer | 37.500, -88.417 |
Back to Rockhounding in Illinois.
How we built this page: we counted named sites in the USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) for this area, left out sand, gravel, crushed stone, clay pits and unnamed sites, grouped them by Census county, and linked every site to its USGS record. We did not visit these sites, and MRDS does not tell you who owns the land or whether collecting is allowed.
Source: USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS). USGS ceased systematic updates to MRDS around 2011, so status and details may be out of date. Each site links to its USGS record.
Updated