| Sterling Hill Mine in Odgensburg, New Jersey, August, 1993 |
| When George and I were ready to leave Canada, instead of returning to the Detroit, Michigan airport, we had one more piece of mineral business. We had collected more fluorescent minerals than we were allowed to bring on the jet so George wanted to drive to his sister's house in New Jersey and store some of them with her temporarily. George planned on stopping at the Sterling Hill Mine in Ogdensburg, New Jersey, the Fluorescent Mineral Capital of the World. That sounded good to me - what a lucky break! On our drive down across up-state New York, we also made a quick stop at the Balmat, New York fluorescent location. We finally arrived in Ogdensburg dead tired but still excited. George, who was a trained geologist originally from New Jersey, had been there many times but it was my first time.The miners had been mining zinc and in the process discovered the brilliantly multi-colored fluorescent minerals. The specimens below are from the Franklin or Sterling Hill Mines. |
| That's me on the left with my brother Steve on the right, enjoying the sights of the Sterling Hill Mine in Ogdensuburg, New Jersey. Steve drove up from the Washington, DC, area to check out the amazing Franklin Mineral Museum and tour the Sterling Hill Mine with George and me. |
| George Polman and me standing in front of the entrance to the Sterling Hill mine tour. |
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As you can see, I liked the mine tour a lot. But the best thing I saw in Ogdensburg was the museum displays of fluorescent minerals. I also managed to buy a few outstanding "four-color" Franklin specimens. Then we hit the road, drove straight across Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio to reach Detroit. I made it home by air but when my wife Emily took me out for dinner to celebrate I could hardly stay awake. That was the most tired I have ever been in my life! What a trip we'd had....we had hit Bancroft and the Long Lake Zinc Mine in Ontario and Balmat, NY and Sterling Hill on the East Coast. A collecting trip like that only happens once in a lifetime! |
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