Each state in the United States of America has chosen a gem or semi-precious stone, found within its borders, to be its official gemstone, stone, rock, or mineral. The materials so designated range from diamonds to jade to turquoise, and can usually be found in charms and other jewelry or represented on state souvenirs. Let’s see which states have which stone material as their state gems and minerals.
Quartz, being the second most common mineral on the surface of the earth, is well represented in the state gemstones. In gem form, it is found as amethyst in Georgia as state gemstone, and in South Carolina, where it is actually the state choice for both gemstone and mineral. Rose quartz is the state mineral of South Dakota, and smoky quartz is the state gemstone of New Hampshire. Star blue quartz is the gemstone of Alabama.
Garnets, topaz and forms of beryl are relatively common in the US as well. Garnet is the state gemstone of New York and the state mineral of Connecticut. Grossular garnet is the state gemstone of Vermont. Topaz is the state gemstone of Utah, while Texas blue topaz is the state gemstone of Texas. The beryl family includes aquamarine, state gemstone of Colorado, emerald, state gemstone of North Carolina, and undefined beryl itself, which is the state mineral of New Hampshire.
Diamond, rare in the US, is the state gemstone of Arkansas. Black coral is the state gemstone of Hawaii, and black fire opal is the state precious gemstone of Nevada. Tourmaline is the state gemstone of Maine, and Montana has the Yogo sapphire as its state gemstone. Turquoise is favored by three states, as Arizona’s state gemstone, Nevada’s state semi-precious gemstone, and as New Mexico’s state rock.
Minerals which can appear in massive deposits and that are state gemstones include jade, fluorite, and other stones. Jade is the state rock of Alaska and state stone of California. Nephrite jade is the state gemstone of Wyoming. Fluorite is the state mineral of Illinois, and rhodochrosite is the state mineral of Colorado. Both of these make beautiful beads and beaded jewelry. Oregon has Oregon sunstone as its state gemstone, and the state gemstone of Florida is moonstone. These last two also make beautiful beads and beaded jewelry. California’s state gemstone is the rare but beautiful benitoite crystal.
As you can tell from the various choices above, there is no standard definition of stone, rock, gemstone or mineral in use to decide these state favorites. Sometimes the choice of category depends on how much of a mineral is found in the state, and sometimes the quality of that mineral as found in the state. The choice of category may also depend on whether you can find the mineral when walking around, or if it has to be mined. Whatever the case, these minerals do appear in the states that selected them, and can be found in rock shops and mine-your-own gift shops within the state in question.