Former Mineral Displays
These displays have been removed from the public area of the museum
for various curatorial purposes.
Meteorites
S
hooting stars that cross our night sky are not really stars, but pieces of rock burning in the
atmosphere. They are meteors - meteorites when they hit the ground.
Most meteorites are made
of stone, but since they look like ordinary rock they are seldom recognized.
It is the more rare iron
meteorites that dominate collections. Twelve meteorites have been recovered
in New York, the most
recent in Peekskill in 1992.
Minerals and You
New York ranks in the top 15 mineral producing states. Annually, New York miners produce over
$1.5 billion in mineral products.
What do a billiard ball, an automobile and a ceramic cookie jar have in common?
......all of these are made with New York minerals!
Did You Know ?
-
Our 2500 mines produce an amazing variety of products.
- Each year, every New Yorker uses more than 41,000 pounds of newly
mined mineral materials.
- New York's sand, gravel, and crushed stone are used to build and maintain
roads, schools, hospitals, airports, and houses.
- Halite is mined for food, medicine, and road salt.
- Garnet is mined in the Adirondacks to use for sandpaper, polishing glass
and metal, and water filtration.
- Limestone is mined in eastern New York to produce cement - the
backbone of many construction projects.
- Brick manufacturers mine clay in the Hudson River Valley.
- Lead and silver are by-products of zinc mines in the northwest Adirondacks.
- Granite, slate, and sandstone are mined in several parts of the state for use
as building stone.
- Wollastonite is an ingredient in billiard balls, electrical panels, and
automotive parts.
- Zinc is used in every car tire and as a coating to prevent steel from rusting.
Talc is mined for filler and ceramics.
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Calcite from
Uvite from Pierrepont, NY
Microcline
Almandine Garnet