RockWoofSketch map
Woof’s favorite find
Cox Prospects 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 6 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, Galena. Approx. location 36.389, -83.845. 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?
The mineral was noted here, without development.
Explored or test-dug, with no recorded production.
Produced ore or material at some point in the past.
Was producing when the record was made.
Status not recorded.
Status terms come from USGS MRDS records.
Mineral cards
Pyrite
Mohs 6–6.5. Brassy “fool’s gold,” often cubic. Mindat
13 sites
Galena
Mohs 2.5–2.75. Heavy, silvery lead ore that breaks into cubes. Mindat
12 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
Sphalerite 13Galena 11Pyrite 8Limonite 7Smithsonite 5Barite 2Greenockite 2Calamine 1Cerussite 1Marble 1Commodities
Zinc 5Iron 4Barium-Barite 3Marble 3Dimension 3Lead 2Calcium 2Cadmium 1Sites (first 40)
| Site | Commodity | Minerals recorded | Status | Approx. location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lost Creek Barite | Barium-Barite | Barite | Past Producer | 36.330, -83.860 |
| Lost Creek Barite Mine | Barium-Barite | Barite, Limonite, Pyrite | Past Producer | 36.330, -83.860 |
| Cox Prospects Mine | Zinc | Calamine, Cerussite, Galena, Greenockite, Limonite, Pyrite, Smithsonite, Sphalerite | Past Producer | 36.389, -83.845 |
| Shofner-Weaver Prospect | — | Galena | Occurrence | 36.402, -83.777 |
| Evans Prospect | — | Galena | Occurrence | 36.402, -83.809 |
| New Prospect Mine | Zinc | Galena, Greenockite, Pyrite, Sphalerite | Past Producer | 36.398, -83.840 |
| Russell Prospect Mine | Zinc | Galena, Limonite, Smithsonite | Past Producer | 36.397, -83.842 |
| Woods Prospect | — | Galena, Pyrite | Occurrence | 36.369, -83.812 |
| Shofner Prospect Northeast | — | Galena, Pyrite, Smithsonite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.428, -83.805 |
| Tolliver South Prospect | — | Galena, Pyrite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.398, -83.790 |
| Graves Prospects | — | Galena, Pyrite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.349, -83.772 |
| Braden Prospect Western | — | Galena, Smithsonite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.382, -83.857 |
| Caldwell Mine | Zinc, Lead | Galena, Sphalerite | Past Producer | 36.419, -83.799 |
| Williams Western Prospect | — | Limonite | Occurrence | 36.419, -83.817 |
| Williams Eastern Prospect | Iron | Limonite | Occurrence | 36.418, -83.809 |
| Rouse Prospect | — | Limonite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.367, -83.814 |
| Stiner Prospects | — | Limonite, Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.396, -83.829 |
| Luttrell Marble Quarry | Marble, Dimension | Marble | Producer | 36.213, -83.744 |
| Shofner Prospect Southwest | — | Pyrite | Occurrence | 36.425, -83.808 |
| Beeler Prospect | — | Smithsonite | Occurrence | 36.382, -83.845 |
| Braden Prospect Eastern | — | Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.381, -83.854 |
| J. W. Taylor Prospect | — | Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.393, -83.793 |
| Bowen Occurrence | — | Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.401, -83.815 |
| Dees Prospect | — | Sphalerite | Occurrence | 36.401, -83.803 |
| Caldwell | — | — | Past Producer | 36.420, -83.799 |
| Western H. M. Graves | — | — | Prospect | 36.349, -83.781 |
| Russell | — | — | Past Producer | 36.397, -83.842 |
| Tenn-Luttrell Mining Co. Plant | Calcium | — | Producer | 36.224, -83.728 |
| Eastern Braden | — | — | Prospect | 36.377, -83.853 |
| Shofner-Weaver | — | — | Prospect | 36.402, -83.776 |
| Cox #1 | — | — | Prospect | 36.388, -83.842 |
| Western Braden | — | — | Prospect | 36.382, -83.857 |
| Woods | — | — | Prospect | 36.370, -83.812 |
| Cox #2 | — | — | Prospect | 36.389, -83.846 |
| New Prospect | — | — | Past Producer | 36.398, -83.840 |
| Lost Creek Barite Mine | Barium-Barite | — | Past Producer | 36.330, -83.860 |
| Luttrell Marble Quarry | Marble, Dimension | — | Producer | 36.213, -83.744 |
| Southwest Shofner | — | — | Prospect | 36.426, -83.808 |
| Wilson Prospect | Iron | — | Prospect | 36.343, -83.891 |
| Beeler | — | — | Prospect | 36.383, -83.845 |
Fossil collections
The Paleobiology Database lists 2 fossil collection records in Union County. These are research records, not public dig sites.
Nearby counties
Claiborne County · Grainger County · Campbell County · Anderson County · Jefferson County
Tennessee mineral guides
- Quartz in Tennessee
- Gold in Tennessee
- Mica in Tennessee
- Magnetite in Tennessee
- Pyrite in Tennessee
- Galena in Tennessee
Back to all Tennessee counties.
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