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

Horse Creek Zinc Prospect + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Wells Zinc Prospect + 2 more nearby (Occurrence)Fall Branch Zinc Mine + 5 more nearby (Past Producer)Cox Barite Prospect + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Carmack Prospect (Prospect)Pactolus-Holston Barite Mine + 1 more nearby (Past Producer)Bowman Zinc Prospect + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Sunset Hills Barite Occurrence + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Orebank Iron Prospects + 3 more nearby (Occurrence)Hammer Iron Bank + 1 more nearby (Occurrence)Weavers Arm Prospect (Occurrence)Thomas Iron Bank + 2 more nearby (Past Producer)Crockett Iron Bank + 2 more nearby (Past Producer)Sharp Iron Bank + 2 more nearby (Past Producer)Cowan Iron Bank + 2 more nearby (Past Producer)
Past ProducerProducerProspectOccurrenceStatus unknown
15 paw pins; nearby sites are grouped into one pin. Hover or tap a pin for the site name. 4 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

Fall Branch Zinc Mine

We picked it because its USGS record mentions 2 of the minerals on our cards and 2 of our card minerals overall. That ties with 1 other site(s), so we broke the tie by mine status (past producers first), then USGS record quality, then name. USGS lists it as past producer for Zinc. Minerals mentioned: Pyrite, Copper. Approx. location 36.439, -82.614. 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?

20
Past Producer

Produced ore or material at some point in the past.

14
Occurrence

The mineral was noted here, without development.

9
Prospect

Explored or test-dug, with no recorded production.

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 11Limonite 6Sphalerite 4Pyrite 4Siderite 3Chalcopyrite 2Hematite 1Magnetite 1Smithsonite 1

Commodities

Iron 16Barium-Barite 13Zinc 6Copper 2Manganese 1Sulfur-Pyrite 1

Sites (first 40)

SiteCommodityMinerals recordedStatusApprox. location
Sunset Hills Barite Occurrence—BariteOccurrence36.501, -82.515
Lovelace MineBarium-BariteBaritePast Producer36.405, -82.641
N.C. Hartman MineBarium-BariteBaritePast Producer36.172, -82.881
Horse Creek Barite Prospect—BariteOccurrence36.437, -82.611
Fall Branch Cemetery BariteBarium-BariteBaritePast Producer36.418, -82.621
M.E. Harmon/R.P. Johnson MinesBarium-BariteBaritePast Producer36.201, -82.850
Pactolus-Holston Barite MineBarium-BariteBaritePast Producer36.501, -82.532
Orebank Barite MineBarium-BariteBarite, LimonitePast Producer36.568, -82.437
Orebank Iron Prospects—Barite, LimoniteOccurrence36.559, -82.462
Horse Creek Zinc Prospect—Barite, SphaleriteOccurrence36.461, -82.650
Bowman Zinc Prospect—Barite, SphaleriteOccurrence36.583, -82.503
Wells Zinc Prospect—Chalcopyrite, Pyrite, Smithsonite, SphaleriteOccurrence36.456, -82.593
Fall Branch Zinc MineZincChalcopyrite, SphaleritePast Producer36.439, -82.614
Thomas Iron BankIronHematite, MagnetitePast Producer36.558, -82.099
Sharp Fe BankIronLimonitePast Producer36.583, -82.059
Crockett Fe BankIronLimonitePast Producer36.554, -82.075
Thomas Fe BankIronLimonitePast Producer36.558, -82.099
Cowan Fe BankIronLimonitePast Producer36.573, -82.051
Crockett Iron BankIronPyrite, SideritePast Producer36.554, -82.075
Sharp Iron BankIronPyrite, SideritePast Producer36.583, -82.059
Cowan Iron BankIronPyrite, SideritePast Producer36.573, -82.051
Cox Barite ProspectBarium-Barite, Zinc—Occurrence36.456, -82.589
Hammer Iron BankIron—Occurrence36.529, -82.340
Fall Branch Zn MineZinc—Past Producer36.439, -82.614
Cox Barite ProspectBarium-Barite—Occurrence36.456, -82.589
Murrell Farm ProspectZinc—Prospect36.442, -82.615
Cowan Iron BankIron—Prospect36.573, -82.051
Sharp Iron BankIron—Prospect36.583, -82.059
Bowman——Prospect36.583, -82.503
Carmack ProspectBarium-Barite—Prospect36.437, -82.590
Horse Creek Barite ProspectBarium-Barite—Occurrence36.437, -82.611
Hammer Iron BankIron—Prospect36.529, -82.340
Orebank MineBarium-Barite—Past Producer36.560, -82.456
Cox ProspectZinc—Prospect36.457, -82.600
Orebank Iron ProspectsIron—Occurrence36.559, -82.462
Weavers Arm ProspectManganese—Occurrence36.428, -82.173
Fall Branch——Past Producer36.439, -82.614
Wells Zinc ProspectZinc—Occurrence36.456, -82.593
Sunset Hills Barite OccurrenceBarium-Barite—Occurrence36.501, -82.515
Thomas Iron BankIron—Past Producer36.558, -82.099

Fossil collections

The Paleobiology Database lists 3 fossil collection records in Sullivan County. These are research records, not public dig sites.

Nearby counties

Washington County · Unicoi County · Carter County · Greene County · Hawkins 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