RockWoof
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

Boatman Mine + 2 more nearby (Past Producer)Sulfur Creek (Prospect)Deep Well-Sphalerite Occurrence + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Terry (Prospect)Terry Prospect (Occurrence)Elmwood Zinc Mine No. 2 Shaft (Producer)Jersey Miniere South Carthage Mine (Past Producer)Elmwood Zinc Mine #4 Shaft (Producer)Gordonsville Concentrator + 1 more nearby (Plant)Cumberland Mine (Producer)Elmwood Zinc Mine #3 Shaft + 6 more nearby (Producer)Cowin and Company Gordinsville Mine (Past Producer)Outcrop Sample For Uranium + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Elmwood Mine No. 2 Production Shaft + 1 more nearby (Past Producer)Elmwood Mill (Plant)Stonewall (Past Producer)John Fitzpatrick Prospect + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Outcrop Sample For Uranium + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)
Past ProducerProducerProspectOccurrenceStatus unknown
18 paw pins; nearby sites are grouped into one pin. Hover or tap a pin for the site name. 3 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

Central Tennessee Zinc District

We picked it because its USGS record mentions 2 gem or collectible minerals (Quartz, Fluorite) and 2 of our card minerals overall. No other named site here scores as high on both counts. USGS lists it as producer for Zinc. Minerals mentioned: Quartz, Fluorite. Approx. location 36.197, -85.934. 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?

10
Occurrence

The mineral was noted here, without development.

9
Past Producer

Produced ore or material at some point in the past.

9
Producer

Was producing when the record was made.

5
Prospect

Explored or test-dug, with no recorded production.

2
Plant

A processing plant site.

Status terms come from USGS MRDS records.

Mineral cards

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

Minerals recorded here

Barite 9Sphalerite 8Fluorite 7Galena 6Calcite 1Fluorspar 1

Commodities

Zinc 21Fluorine-Fluorite 6Cadmium 3Barium-Barite 2Uranium 2Germanium 2Stone 1

Sites

SiteCommodityMinerals recordedStatusApprox. location
Congo Bottom Prospect—BariteOccurrence36.143, -85.190
Boatman MineFluorine-FluoriteBarite, Calcite, FluoritePast Producer36.305, -86.121
Terry Prospect—Barite, Fluorite, Galena, SphaleriteOccurrence36.160, -85.989
Elmwood Zinc Mine No. 2 ShaftZincBarite, Fluorite, Galena, SphaleriteProducer36.255, -85.952
Elmwood Zinc Mine #4 ShaftZincBarite, Fluorite, Galena, SphaleriteProducer36.218, -85.952
Elmwood Zinc Mine #3 ShaftZincBarite, Fluorite, Galena, SphaleriteProducer36.197, -85.934
Elmwood Zinc Mine InclineZincBarite, Fluorite, Galena, SphaleriteProducer36.193, -85.934
Gordonsville-Elmwood MineZincBarite, Galena, SphaleriteProducer36.197, -85.934
John Fitzpatrick Prospect—FluoriteOccurrence36.161, -85.854
Deep Well-Sphalerite Occurrence—SphaleriteOccurrence36.257, -86.047
Central Tennessee Zinc DistrictZincSphalerite, Barite, FluorsparProducer36.197, -85.934
Outcrop Sample For Uranium——Occurrence36.413, -85.901
Elmwood Mine Slope EntryZinc—Past Producer36.193, -85.934
Elmwood Mine No. 2 Production ShaftZinc—Past Producer36.224, -85.907
Elmwood Mine No. 3 Production ShaftZinc—Past Producer36.197, -85.934
Outcrop Sample For Uranium——Occurrence36.208, -85.834
Terry——Prospect36.151, -86.030
Congo Bottom ProspectBarium-Barite—Prospect36.895, -85.867
Outcrop Sample For UraniumUranium—Occurrence36.413, -85.901
Outcrop Sample For UraniumUranium—Occurrence36.208, -85.834
Carthage PropertyZinc—Prospect36.235, -85.903
Gordonsville ConcentratorZinc—Plant36.192, -85.957
Boatman MineFluorine-Fluorite—Past Producer36.305, -86.121
John Fitzpatrick ProspectFluorine-Fluorite—Occurrence36.161, -85.854
Jersey Miniere Gordonsville ProjectZinc—Past Producer36.192, -85.957
Deep Well-Sphalerite OccurrenceZinc—Occurrence36.257, -86.047
Gordonsville-ElmwoodGermanium, Zinc—Producer36.197, -85.934
StonewallZinc—Past Producer36.192, -85.867
Cowin and Company Gordinsville MineZinc—Past Producer36.186, -85.946
Jersey Miniere South Carthage MineZinc—Past Producer36.228, -85.949
Cumberland MineZinc—Producer36.258, -85.933
Elmwood MillZinc—Plant36.221, -85.910
H.W. Hudson ProspectFluorine-Fluorite—Prospect36.309, -86.118
Sulfur CreekZinc—Prospect36.250, -86.100
Central Tennessee Zinc DistrictZinc—Producer36.600, -86.200

Fossil collections

The Paleobiology Database lists 1 fossil collection records in Smith County. These are research records, not public dig sites.

Nearby counties

Putnam County · Wilson County · Trousdale County · Jackson County · DeKalb County

Tennessee mineral guides

Back to all Tennessee counties.

Related articles

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