Cub Scout Pack 55
Little Rock's First Baptist Church, Little Rock, AR
Quapaw Area Council, Boy Scouts Of America

Crater Of Diamonds State Park

WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT THIS PARK?

Let's start with the geology.  Arkansas is blessed with an abundance of minerals and unique geological features, but Crater of Diamonds has to rank as the premier attraction among them.  This ancient volcanic pipe is composed of a rather unusual rock type, called lamproite (LAMP-row-ite), which has its origins some 70-150 miles beneath the surface of the Earth.  Being similar to the kimberlites of South Africa and Russia, and the lamproites of Australia, it too contains genuine, carbon diamonds.   For many years, it was the only proven diamond mine in North America, until recent discoveries of a minor deposit in Colorado.

Another special feature of the park is the forest itself.  Having several small tracts of older growth forest intermixed within park boundaries, there is a surprising diversity of plants and animals.  Park Naturalists document over 80 species of trees and shrubs, 30 species of mammals, 80 species of breeding birds, 188 species of migratory birds, 42 species of frogs, lizards, snakes and turtles, and 31 species of fish.   This plentiful mixture contains several types that are distributional records for Pike County, including one species of long-nosed darter endemic to the Little Missouri River.  Pretty impressive for a small (887.3 acre) piece of the southwestern Arkansas landscape, isn't it!

And while we're talking about the park's special character, a word must be said about it's historical features.  Many remnants of old mining ventures remain including the Mine Shaft Building, the Guard House, mining plant foundations, old mining equipment and smaller artifacts.  Nowhere else is North American diamond mining history as evident or as well preserved.  The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its unique historical character.  In fact several citizen's groups have suggested that the Mine Shaft Building be placed as a National Landmark.

In addition to these features, at least 31 other historical sites including John Huddleston's home site and Issac White's 1837 horse mill have been identified.  This, along with the thousands of documents and photographs archived at the park, make this an historian's paradise.

I ONLY HAVE AN HOUR, WHAT SHOULD I SEE?

The park has several "must see" areas, even if your time is limited.

The park exhibit room, housed in the Visitor information Center, has an excellent collection of displays showing rock types, geology and explaining the park history.  Above all else, it has a collection of rough diamonds, just as they came from the Crater - a definite "must see" item!

Next on the list would be the diamond search area itself.  Most visitors find that their experience is not complete unless they actually set foot on the 36 acre site, see the olive green soil for themselves, heft the lamproite fragments in their hand, sift the dirt or mud through their fingers and actually try their own luck at finding a diamond.

Finally, the park's prominent historical features make outstanding photo opportunities.  The Mine Shaft Building, Guard House and the old mining equipment are all located on the north end of the diamond field, near the park restaurant.  They certainly add to the understanding and character of one's visit.

DO THEY REALLY FIND DIAMONDS HERE?

Over 40 types of rocks and minerals are found at the Crater, including: lamproite, amethyst, banded agate, jasper, peridot, garnet, quartz, calcite, barite, hematitie and diamond.  Among the larger diamonds that have come from the deposit are:

Many of the diamonds found here rival the quality of the gem diamonds from any deposit in the world and can be searched for on a finders-keeper's basis.  In fact over 20,000 diamonds (4,000cts) have been weighed and certified at the park since March of 1972.  A conservative estimate has been made of 70,000 diamonds removed from the site prior to State ownership.  However, one must consider that theft, fraud and poor record keeping under private ownership make certainty impossible.

Following is a summary of the yearly diamond find statistics from 1972-1995

WHY ARE THE DIAMONDS HERE?

The Crater was formed some 100 million years ago, during the Age of Dinosaurs.  A shallow sea covered much of the region to the south and the Ouachita (WASH-i-taw) Mountains were being formed to the north.  The shoreline environment became a hotspot for volcanic activity, allowing deep seated lamproites to surge to the surface, bringing diamonds along with them.

Although the area was geologically active at that time, the geology has changed and volcanic activity ceased many million years ago.  All that remains today is the "throat" of the ancient volcano along with its cargo of diamonds.

WAS THE AREA EVER COMMERCIALLY MINED?

John Huddleston quickly decided that the business of diamond mining was not for him, and he sold the property for $36,000.  John thought that this amount would be enough to keep himself and his family wealthy for the rest of their lives.   Sadly, the money was soon gone, and John Huddleston died a pauper.  In the end, he said that he had no regrets because, after all, he was the "Diamond King."

When word got out about the diamond finds, a diamond rush developed that was much like the California gold rush. In one year, the Conway Hotel in Murfreesboro turned away more than 10,000 people because there were no vacancies.  Out of necessity, the tent city of Kimberley was established between Murfreesboro and the diamond fields.  Today, the site of Kimberley is nothing but a quiet cow pasture.

In addition to the old Huddleston farm, diamond bearing soil was found on an adjacent 40acres belonging to M. M. Mauney.  The Mauney's at first attempted to mine their property, and at one point, they allowed guests to search on the mine for a fee, much as the park does today.

Both pieces of property changed hands several times, and most diamond mining operations were short lived.  The most successful plant was built and operated by a geologist from Kentucky, Austin Millar, and his son Howard.  At their Ozark Diamond Mines Corporation, the diamond bearing soil was loaded by hand into narrow gauge railroad cars.  These cars carried the ore to the plant where it was crushed.   The material was then washed with water pumped from Prairie Creek.  This washing removed the lighter soils.  The remaining heavy rocks and minerals were transferred to washing pans designed specially to separate stones by their relative weight.  Anything light that floated was rejected, while the more dense materials were retained.  The heavy rough diamonds in the gravel concentrate continued on to be processed at the recovery plant.

Diamonds have a clean outer surface and are never muddy, dirty, or even wet. This fact was used by diamond miners to separate the diamonds from other heavy materials.  The diamond bearing ore was washed over a grease table.  This is simply a sloping table coated with lard or animal fat.  While the gravel would become wet and pass over the table, the diamonds would remain dry and, therefore, become embedded in the lard.  Several times throughout the day the lard would be scraped off of the table and melted to release the trapped stones.  The end product was diamonds ready for hand sorting.

WHY HAVEN'T THEY RUN OUT OF DIAMONDS YET ?

To increase the visitor's chance of finding diamonds, the search area is plowed on a monthly basis.  It is plowed in such a way as to help the natural processes of erosion and weathering.

Soil erosion from the diamond mine's surface has been calculated to average about 64tons/acre/year over most of the mine, or roughly 2,300 tons/year overall.   This is equivalent to a vertical loss of about 1/2 inch/year, or about 12 inches since 1972.

Diamonds, being relatively heavy, have a tendency to stay in place while the lighter soil particles are eroded away.  This explains why diamonds continue to be found by surface searchers.

Because recent studies have shown that the diamond deposit is at least 669 feet deep,there should be diamonds available for many generations to come!

HOW DID THIS BECOME A STATE PARK?

A large tract of land was leased and operated by James Roscoe Johnson as a tourist attraction called the Arkansas Diamond Mine or "The Big Mine."   Howard Miller, Austin Millar's son, thought that the idea could be a good one if properly managed.  He moved onto the adjacent property in 1952 and coined the name "Crater of Diamonds" for his tourist attraction.  Many delighted tourists paid a small fee to visit the diamond field, and it was "finders-keepers" (except for stones over 5 carats)!

The tourist business was not always easy for these two private diamond mines.  Competition between neighboring operations was keen and often unpleasant and controversial.  The townspeople of Murfreesboro watched with great interest and varying loyalties.

In 1969, a milestone was reached when all of the owners of the diamond bearing property agreed to sell.  The land was sold to the General Earth Minerals company of DaIlas.  This company did little with the land and after a short time, sold the property to the state of Arkansas for $750,000.  The Crater of Diamonds State Park was created on March 15, 1972.

All doubts about the authenticity of the diamond mine have disappeared, and the site has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  On average, over 70,000 tourists visit the park each year.

Last Updated 05/12/98