Rockhounding in York County, PA: 60 USGS Mineral Sites (2026)

Check access before you go. Most sites listed here are old mines, quarries or prospects, and many are on private land or active mining claims. Get the landowner's permission, check the rules of the agency that manages any public land, and never enter mine workings. Locations are approximate.

Sketch map

Past ProducerProducerProspectOccurrenceStatus unknown

43 paw pins; nearby sites are grouped into one pin. Hover or tap a pin for the site name. 1 site(s) with USGS coordinates outside the outline are not pinned. County outline: US Census Bureau cartographic boundary file (2023). Locations approximate.

Woof’s favorite find

Bender and Vicinity

We picked it because its USGS record mentions 2 of the minerals on our cards and 2 of our card minerals overall. No other named site here scores as high on both counts. USGS lists it as past producer for Iron. Minerals mentioned: Magnetite, Copper. Approx. location 40.102, -77.044. USGS record.

Ask first: a USGS record doesn’t mean you can visit. Find out who owns the land and get permission before collecting.

Field cards: what kind of sites?

Past Producer

Produced ore or material at some point in the past.

Producer

Was producing when the record was made.

Status terms come from USGS MRDS records.

Mineral cards

Magnetite
Mohs 5.5–6.5. Black and strongly magnetic. Mindat
6 sites
Mica
Mohs 2–3. Peels into thin, flexible, shiny sheets. Mindat
3 sites
Copper
Mohs 2.5–3. Native copper is soft and turns green as it weathers. Mindat
1 site

Counts are sites whose USGS record mentions the mineral or commodity. Hardness from Mindat.

Minerals recorded here

Limonite 27Magnetite 6Mica 1

Commodities

Iron 50Mica 3Zinc 2REE 1Calcium 1Copper 1

Sites (first 40)

Site	Commodity	Minerals recorded	Status	Approx. location
J. Moul's Bank & Ashland Bank & Numerous Others	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.850, -76.930
Walter Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.861, -76.779
Margaretta Furance Bank Et Al.	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.963, -76.540
Geisselman's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.864, -76.747
York Co. Mine-Best Known Bank In York Co.,	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.843, -76.816
Hanover Branch Rr Open Cut	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.824, -76.844
Unnamed Banks, 4 Represented	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.100, -77.094
Eckert & Kauffman Bank & Forrey Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.818, -76.889
Ballinger's Bank & Sprenkle Shaft	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.840, -76.905
Eyester's Bank & Emig's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.924, -76.851
Mengis Bank & Roth's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.889, -76.883
Bechtel's Ore Pit & 2 Additional	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.872, -76.912
Brillhart's Bank & Feigley Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.863, -76.687
Ex. Gov. Poter's Bank & Numerous Others	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.843, -76.966
J Keller's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.969, -76.564
Unnamed--Wrightsville Area	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.006, -76.513
Gohn Bank/Strickler's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.026, -76.566
Ruby's Ore Bank & 4 Additional Banks	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.011, -76.601
Blessinger's Ore Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.001, -76.632
Grubb's Bank Codorus Banks	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.046, -76.616
Help Mine	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.769, -76.704
Cottrell & Benson's Bank & 2 Additional Banks	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	40.013, -76.691
Hofacker's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.750, -76.890
L. Delone's & A.M. Forney's Banks	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.785, -76.973
Moser's Opening	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.928, -76.666
S. Hengst's Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.967, -76.611
Moser's New Bank	Iron	Limonite	Past Producer	39.935, -76.636
Bender and Vicinity	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	40.102, -77.044
Mine Bank Group	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	40.035, -76.966
Lichte Mine	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	39.996, -76.986
Dillsburg Area	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	40.111, -77.008
Old Kauffman Bank	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	39.944, -76.783
Grantham Mines & 3 Additional	Iron	Magnetite	Past Producer	40.150, -77.001
Hokes Mine and Mill	Mica	Mica	Past Producer	39.736, -76.839
Smyser's Bank	Iron	—	Past Producer	40.003, -76.748
Logan Shaft	Iron	—	Past Producer	40.103, -77.001
Hokes Mine and Mill	Mica	—	Producer	39.735, -76.836
Dogwood Mine	Iron	—	Past Producer	40.108, -77.079
Price Mine	Iron	—	Past Producer	40.103, -77.004
Lighty Property Mine	Iron	—	Past Producer	39.997, -77.001

Fossil collections

The Paleobiology Database lists 17 fossil collection records in York County. These are research records, not public dig sites.

Nearby counties

Dauphin County · Cumberland County · Adams County · Lebanon County · Perry County

Pennsylvania mineral guides

Back to all Pennsylvania counties.

Is It Legal to Collect Rocks on Public Land? BLM, Forest Service and National Park Rules

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 October 2026

Rockhounding in York County, Pennsylvania