The front of the Van Kirk family home which serves as the headquarters of the Sparta Historical Society
The History of the Site:
(from the museum website)
The Van Kirk Homestead, as it stands today, is 3.5 acres. There is one outbuilding both dating from 1930s – the red carriage barn. A detached garage, dating from the 1970s, is across from the carriage barn. The original log cabin is gone but its site is known (Sparta Historical Society website).
The house that exists today is from 1780s but because it was lived in by generational Van Kirks’ it has had a few expansions. It is this house which has been revamped into a museum. The original part of the house has a stone basement that was opened in 2019 as two exhibit galleries. The first floor has two original fireplaces comprised of four exhibit galleries. The second floor has the original wide plank floors and has another three exhibit galleries (Sparta Historical Society website).
The sign in the Main Street
The historical description of the house
The main part of the house was closed due to a renovation and the members were going to be opening a new exhibition upstairs. So I toured the lower level kitchen area.
The lower level of the house which was used for the kitchen and storage areas
The history of the kitchen at the Van Kirk House:
(from the museum website)
A two-year major restoration of century comparison period kitchens with the addition of several new gifts and collection purchases. This exhibit shows the original fireplace colonial kitchen, reopened after 100 years, and the numerous transitions experienced by American families during the Industrial Revolution and its effect on kitchen appliances (Sparta Historical Society website).
The kitchen and dining area with family China and cookware in the background
The prep area, washing equipment and summer storage area
The baking and prep area
The wash equipment and ice box and tongs in the back
The Mining Exhibition just off the kitchen:
(from the museum website)
Opened in October 2019, this permanent exhibit features original Edison artifacts, a scale model of Lime Crest Quarry, and a large fluorescent mineral display. Through these and other rare artifacts, the exhibit explores the town’s mines and the people who worked at them. Housed in the 1780 section of the Van Kirk Homestead Museum, expect insights into, and understanding of, the past which supplements our understanding of our once primary iron and lime industry in Sparta and elsewhere in Sussex County. It also provides a glimpse into the time-consuming, labor-intensive methods used in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries to prepare, and ship minerals (Sparta Historical Society website).
The other side of the kitchen has an exhibition on the Mining Industry which is a big fabric of the community. The exhibition included a model of the Lime Crest Quarry and the Sterling Quarry.
The sign for the Lime Crest Quarry Model
The Mining exhibition-the Lime Crest Quarry model
The Men, Mines and Minerals exhibition with the lights off
The minerals and the clock from the mines
The Mineral exhibition with the lights off
The iron ore and the magnet exhibition
After touring the inside exhibition, I then explored the grounds which are still being used for gardens and vegetable beds for the society.
The back of the house grounds. They were setting up for an afternoon concert
The grounds of the house and the garage in the background
The family garage on the property exhibition:
(from the museum website)
Opened in August 2019, this permanent old fashioned transportation exhibit is located in the multi-year restoration project of the Nicholson Family Wagon House. On display at the Historic Transportation exhibit, you will discover ahorse drawn carriage wagon, an oldhorse drawn sleigh, an old antique car Model T Fordand transportation artifacts. Learn how horse buggies, vintage carriages and old antique cars set the path for historic transportation to the present (Sparta Historical Society website).
The inside of the garage had a Model T car in perfect shape, a buggy and a sleigh.
The inside of the garage
The Model T car
The buggy and the sleigh in the back of the garage
The Studebaker Doctor’s buggy sign
The buggy
The Sturtevant-Larabee Sleigh sign
The sleigh
Also in the garage is various pieces of equipment and even an old gas pump
The sign for the Gilbert and Baker Self-Measuring Gas Pump
The old fashioned gas pump in the garage
Along all the walls were old pictures of the farm when it was still active and under family control
The gardens an grounds in the distance
One of the old sheds was converted into a school house and the room was set up as an old fashioned on room school house. Here kids of various ages were taught the fundamentals of Math, English and History.
The One Room Schoolhouse
The history of the Schoolhouse from the early 1900’s:
(from the museum website)
Step back in time to when classes consisted of all ages together! Welcome to our One Room Schoolhouse exhibit which opened in 2023. Sparta had four one room schoolhouses. The first school was built at the Presbyterian Church in 1812 and was replaced in 1860 after a fire destroyed it. The one-room schoolhouses were established in New Jersey when a 1819 bill funded public education, and they remained active through the 1930’s, when regional schools were established. Students from grades one to eight attended these schools. Four of the structures that housed the one-room schoolhouse remain (Sparta Historical Society website).
Our schoolhouse replicates schools that were generally equipped with a teacher’s desk, student desks, a flag, a globe or map, books, a slate board, and a clock. Our schoolhouse has an 1860 map of Sussex County. At the back of the room is an old stove similar to those used to heat the room (Sparta Historical Society website).
The inside of the One Room Schoolhouse
The Teacher’s desk
The Grounds and Gardens of the Museum:
(from the museum website)
Besides the two fenced Sparta Community Gardens, the homestead grounds have a fir pine grove, a New Jersey Champion Big Tree, a herb garden, and a continual seasonal flowering landscape (Sparta Historical Society website).
The last thing I toured at the museum was the open vegetable gardens which looked like they were getting ready to harvest.
The vegetable gardens in the back of the schoolhouse
The inside of one of the flower and vegetable gardens
The entire museum complex of the Van Kirk House, grounds with the sheds and garage and gardens on both sides.. The grounds are beautifully maintained.
Video on the site from the Sparta Historical Society:
The tour of the house:
Tour of the house and the grounds:
Historical Tour of Sparta, NJ:
The museum has interesting exhibitions and an array of special events through December 13th when the museum closes for the season. It reopens again in April with the warmer weather.
Take time to stroll the grounds and take a look at all the exhibits. It is an interesting look into New Jersey’s past.
I recently visited the Ogdensburg Old Schoolhouse and Firehouse Museum at 6 Passaic Avenue in Downtown Ogdensburg and discovered the community’s rich history of farming and mining in its past and its current destination as a weekend vacation spot and a up and coming bedroom community of New York City.
The County still has some farming and agriculture going on as the County continues to be built up with expats from the City, and Bergen and Morris Counties. The first floor is dedicated to the history of the Ogdensburg Fire Department with an old Engine and Ladders trucks, artifacts from the Sterling Mine just up the road and township property such as an old voting booth. You can read about the history of the Ogdensburg family as you head to the outside gallery.
The second floor has displays of various town departments including the Rescue, the Police Department and Fire Department. There are various displays of the town’s school system and various clubs in town. There are displays on the town’s mining and agricultural past with items such as farm advertising and mining equipment and minerals. Each display plays a role in the development of the community and how it progressed from farming to mining to manufacturing to the bedroom community it is today.
History of the Building:
“Built in 1910 as Ogdensburg’s fifth public school, it was adapted for re-use in 1930 as the Borough’s first firehouse replacing the one built in 1872. In 1984, with the aid of two state grants, the Ogdensburg Historical Society adapted it for re-use and dedicated it as the Old Schoolhouse and Firehouse Museum in 1987.
After 97 years, the Museum continues to serve the Borough of Ogdensburg as an historical learning and preservation center, and as a meeting hall. On June 10, 2006 it was dedicated as an Ogdensburg Historic Site.”
The historic sign of the museum
The Borough of Ogdensburg is the host of this marker commemorating the rich history provided by this building. This building has been maintained with much thought and care and remains as a museum and meeting place for the residents of the town. The marker is located in front of the building on Passaic Avenue just off Main Street by the Ogdensburg Elementary School. This marker was part of the 2008 placement (Museum website).
The outside of the museum which served as a school and a firehouse
The first floor of the building has the fire trucks, the history of the fire department and Ogdensburg’s 250th Anniversary of the United States on display.
The museum artifacts from the 250th celebration of the Country
The museum is on the heart of mining country of Sussex County, NJ and the museum has an interesting mineral collection along with their collection of mining artifacts.
The Mineral and Mining Collection
The museum being home to the Ogdensburg Fire Department contains the history of the local fire department along with vehicles and artifacts from the department.
One of the early pull hose beds pulled by men and then by horses
The first floor also contains the history of the Ogden family in the region.
The history of the Ogden family in the community
The town voting booth and a turn of the last century phone
The second floor gallery used to serve as offices and living space of the fire department.
The main gallery on the second floor
The gallery case lines are filled with memorabilia from different aspects of the community telling the story of the growth of the community that included Mining and Farming. It explains the growth into the modern suburbs of today. This includes the Fire and Police and Rescue Departments, the School System and cultural events in the community.
The main gallery on the second floor of the museum
The main gallery on the second floor
The display case of Ogdensburg departments including school, fire and police departments
Blanket with historical sites and artifacts of the town of Ogdensburg, NJ
The businesses including schools and the domestic and farming industries
Each of the display cases represented different aspects of the town and has a variety of pictures and memorabilia from a variety of eras. The case lines show how the community changed over time from a mining community to the changes of a bedroom community of Newark and New York City.
The Entertainment display of recorders, phonographs, radios and early record players
The influence that Thomas Edison had on the community with new technology. Several pieces of Thomas A. Edison memorabilia are on exhibit to honor the ten years Edison spent mining iron ore at the old Edison Ore Milling Company on Sparta Mountain. Several of his phonographic inventions were created here (Ogdensburg Historical Society website).
Close up view of record players and Victrola’s
The Ogdensburg School system display
The Ogdensburg Presbyterian Church display of artifacts from inside the church
The NJ Zinc Mine display with minerals and equipment
The NJ Zinc Mine and Mineral display is a small s as molding of the museum down the street and the importance of the mining industry at the turn of the last century.
A closer look at the minerals display
A replica of a working mine operation. The machine shows how workers descending and brought up rock from the mines.
The Dedication to Mr. Waco Hadowantez, the town historian
The last display as you leave the museum is dedicated to the man who founded the historical society, Waco Hadowantez.
The museum tells an interesting story of the history of Ogdensburg and the surrounding area. It shows the importance of the Mining Community at the turn of the last century and how the community is pivoting towards tourism to tell its story.
Please contact the museum directly for seasonal hours and tours.
Open: Sunday 9:30am-3:30pm/Monday-Friday 9:00am-3:30pm/Saturday 9:30am-3:30pm/Check the schedule on their website outside of July and August. The tour is usually 1:00pm.
Tours: 10:00am & 1:00pm
Fee: Adults $20.00/Seniors (65+) $14.00/Children 4-12 $13.00/Children under 4 Free
I visited the Sterling Mining Museum when visiting Sussex County to learn more about New Jersey’s Mining past. The Sterling Mine was once a big source of zinc in the United States until it became cheaper to mine it elsewhere. There is still zinc in the mines. The mining stopped in 1985 and the mine was closed in 1986.
The statues of the miners greet you at the beginning of the tour
Statues of the miners at work
Mining equipment outside the museum
Tours at the museum vary by the time of the year and during the summer months there are two tours, one at 10:00am and one at 1:00pm and the tours take two hours with time to visit the gift shop and the restaurant at the beginning and end of each tour. Everything shuts down after the last tour around 3:15pm so plan your visit accordingly. Take some time though to visit the Gift Shop and have a snack at the Snack Bar, which was open until 3:30pm when I visited in October 2024.
The Zobel Hall Museum part of the tour:
Arriving late for the tour, I started in the downstairs museum section which has the original lockers for the miners and their daily equipment, specimens of minerals and ores that have been found in the mine and elsewhere in the country. There are Native American artifacts and fossils of dinosaur tracks, bones and fragments of sea life. There are also many antiques from the Victorian age to the 1960’s to look at and items like detonators to show the items used to do the mining.
The museum main gallery
The museum’s main gallery
The museum used to be the workers changing room and this locker display is homage to the working days of the mines
Mining equipment displayed at the museum
Mining equipment on display at the museum
A dinosaur head at the museum
Various fossils at the museum
Detonators on display at the museum
Gold and Fools Gold on display at the museum in a large safe
The Meteorite display with pieces from all over the country
The Minerals display is a big part of the back part of the museum
The Minerals display
The Amethyst Display
The Mine sample display
The Miner Supervisor’s office in the museum
The second part of the tour will take you outside to see the outer workings of the mine and how things moved around. There are mining carts and transports, equipment to more the ore for washing and to market. There is a silent eeriness about the mine like someone just shut off the power and then walked away.
The entrance to the mine before you start the tour
The best part of the tour is of the mine itself. You will tour the tunnels where the miners worked, see in the tunnels when mining was done by hand instead of machine. where the mining cars moved and how the miners got from one level to another to work and the dangerous conditions of the work as a miner. You will travel down tunnels and see the inner workers of a foreman’s office down in the mines and how the system of ‘tag out’ works for accountability.
The mine tour as you enter the beginning of the mine
At the end of the tour you will be taken to the tunnel of illumination and when the tour guide dims the lights, you will see the tunnel come to life in color as the minerals radiate with color.
The Rainbow Tunnel before it gets lit
The magic begins when the room goes dark
In another cave the ceiling lightshow is amazing
I would not recommend this tour to anyone with a walking disability or who has to use a stroller with children. It is a lot of walking and very difficult to maneuver around the tunnels. I know they say it is accessible but I saw so many couples struggling through the tunnel you have to do it at your own discretion.
The mining movement from tunnel to tunnel
The ‘Tag Out’ system inside the mine
The “Tag Out” room inside the mine
Mining equipment inside the mines
You end the tour with a view of the indoor lake inside the mine shaft.
The indoor lake inside the mine
Mission Statement of the Museum:
(From the Museum Pamphlet)
Our mission is to tell the story of the Sterling Mine and to inspire lifelong learning about earth sciences, engineering and the responsible use of the earth’s nonrenewable resources.
The outside of the mine
Additional information on the Mission Statement:
(From the Museum Pamphlet)
Since the crafting of this mission statement the museum has broadened its focus considerably. We are concerned not just with the metallic resources that most people think of when they hear the word “mining” but with commodities taken from the Earth-bulk rock taken from our quarries, sand and clay excavated from surface pits and oil and gas obtained by drilling. These commodities constitute the raw materials from which almost everything else, our house, cars, highways and bridges, computers, on and on are made.
Slush Machine outside the entrance to the museum
As an institution we are neither pro-mining nor anti-mining. Instead, we are a museum about mining, again with that word used in its broadest possible context. We teach not only how mined materials are produced but also the many uses to which mined materials are put and we place special emphasis on the environmental and societal consequences of resource extraction. Alternatives to mining such as recycling and the use of alternative materials are highlighted as well.
Mine lockers in the museum
The Snack Shop and Gift Shop:
At the end of the tour, be sure to visit the gift shop and the snack shop for a quick meal and to look at the gifts and minerals on display and for sale. Make sure to try one of the Pasties, a meat pie that the miners used to have for lunch, at the snack shop. They are really good.
The Miner’s Lunchbox Snack Shop at the museum
The Meat ‘Pastie’, which is filled with ground beef, potatoes and onions
The inside of this delicious snack! It was really good
The gift shop has an array of tee shirts, books and gifts for sales. The walls are lined with minerals for sale.
The Gift Shop
Minerals on sale at the gift shop
What the organization does:
*We inspire students to pursue careers in science and engineering.
*We inspire people to be thoughtful and responsible stewards of our environment.
*We are committed to preserved our historic facility, rock and mineral samples, artifacts and records to support research and foster understanding of this unique geologic area.
*We promote an understanding of human involvement in our environment and how science and technology relate to that connection.
The outside of the museum at the Mine site
The Sterling Hill Mine History:
The Sterling Hill Mine is a former iron and zinc mine that was last working underground mine in New Jersey when it closed in 1986. It became a museum in 1989.
Mining began at the site in the 1630’s, when it was mistakenly thought to be a copper deposit. George III of the United Kingdom granted the property to William Alexander, titled Lord Stirling. Stirling sold it to Robert Ogden in 1765. It went through several owners until the various mines were combined into the New Jersey Zinc Company in 1897. The mine closed in 1986 due to a tax dispute with the town, which foreclosed for back taxes in 1989 and auctioned the property to Richard and Robert Hauck for $750,000. It opened as a museum in August 1990.
The ore bodies at the Sterling Hill Mine lie within a formation called the Reading Prong massif; the ores are contained with the Franklin Marble. This was deposited as limestone in a Precambrian oceanic rift trough. It subsequently underwent extensive metamorphosis during the Grenville orogeny, approximately 1.15 billion years ago. In the area of the Franklin and Sterling Hill mines, 357 types of minerals are known to occur; these make up approximately 10% of the minerals known to science. Thirty five of these minerals have not been found anywhere else. Ninety one of the minerals are fluoresce.
There are 35 miles of tunnels in the mine going down 2,065 feet below the surface on the main shaft and 2,675 feet of the lower shaft. As of 2017, other than the very top of the mine the entire lower section has been flooded due to underground water table and hence longer accessible. The mine remains at 56 degrees F constantly (Wiki).
The inner workings of the mine on display
(This information on the mine was taken from both Museum brochure and Wiki and I give each full credit both the information on the mine and the museum).
The Sterling Hill Mining Museum Promotional Video:
Promotional Video
The History of the Mining in New Jersey
I want to thank YouTube and The Sterling Hill Mining Museum for these videos on the museum.
Fee: Combination Rock Collecting & Museum: Adults $15.00/Children 3-16 $10.00/Seniors (65+) and Veterans $12.00; Museum Only: Adults $10.00/Children 3-16 $8.00/Seniors & Veterans $9.00. See packages on the website.
I recently visited the Franklin Mineral Museum on a trip to Sussex County wanting to learn more of the mining history of New Jersey. I never realized that the mines were so close to my home in Bergen County. I have to admit though that the museum is a little dated with the typed signs and no video information on the exhibits. What is lacks in modern QR codes and Virtual Reality it makes up in depth of collection and historical artifacts.
The historical sign outside the museum
Where the museum shines though is in its depth of display, the interesting artifacts that the museum contains with both fossils and Native American pieces. It really shows the extent of Paleontology in the State of New Jersey and how the make up of the Earth and its history is shown in the displays. Many of the fossils have been found all over the State. The Native American pieces were from both North and South American with a impressive selection of Pre-Columbian art.
The Native American Gallery with pieces from all over the Americas
The Native American collection
The beauty of some of the artifacts
This piece of Inca silver impressed me as most of these artifacts were melted down for the minerals by the Spanish
Two of the exhibits that I thought stood out that you must see is the “Fluorescent Room”, which when left alone when the lights go out is an illumination of colors due to the fluorescent make up of the minerals in the rocks. It displays all the colors of the rainbow. When the lights go back on they just look like ordinary rocks. Take time when the lights are out to really look at the colors of the stones. I was told that the blue or violet ones are the rarest.
The Fluorescent Room before the lights got out
The gallery with the lights off when the magic happens
The Collection in full view
Samples of the mineral’s as they glow
Another stand out display is the simulated “Mine Replica” that takes you in a tunnel and then maze of the make up of working in a mine complete with ladders down the lower tunnels, a working office of the foreman, the mine car tracts and displays on how miners went about there business. It shows how hard and dangerous the mining industry is and was back then to today. Try to see this display first as it takes time to tour.
The Mine entrance
The simulated mine walk through
The Franklin Mine sign
The simulated mine walk
The toilet area of the mine
The miners at work in the mine simulation
Before you go inside to the museum, take some time to look through the quarry for rocks and minerals. You are given a bag to keep your specimens and there is a fluorescence light to check if you found anything. At first I thought this was just for little kids but later discovered that I found some ‘glowing rocks’ that I could take home and I found this fascinating. I never knew these types of rocks existed in New Jersey.
The Path to the Quarry area where the minerals were located
The path to the quarry area
The quarry area where you can collect specimens of minerals
The quarry was busy in the afternoon
The beauty of the quarry in the Fall of 2024
Give yourself about three hours to really explore these rooms and it will give you a clear indication of how New Jersey formed as a State and its role in the evolution of the Earth. There are some really interesting displays to see and read about.
History of the Museum & Mines:
(This information was provided by the Franklin Mineral Museum pamphlet)
Due to the depletion of zinc and other ores the Franklin Mine closed operations in 1954. In preservation of the mining heritage the local Kiwanis Club started an annual mineral show donating the funds to charitable causes. Popularity of the show lead to the formation of the Franklin Mineral Museum, a non-profit educational museum, incorporated July 1, 1963, which is governed by a board of trustees and powered by a dedicated staff. Of note: Although the Kiwanis Club is no longer involved with the museum, the original sign still hangs over the outside door to the mine replica.
The former Buckwheat engine house, thought to be the hoist house that supplied the power to lift the mined ore from the Buckwheat open pit was donated to the museum in 1963. The mine replica was installed and made a permanent display inside the hoist house. Of note: Around 1940, the original replica was a modular unit displayed at the local community center “Neighborhood House” and was used to show the miners’ families how they worked inside the mine. Prior to being reconstructed inside the engine house the modular replica was used at the NJ Zinc Company for the purpose of training mine rescue workers.
A mineral repository was also added in 1963 to the museum. The first mineral exhibit was donated by the NJ Zinc Company to the Kiwanis Club for display in the then permanent mine replica. The collection consisted of 71 specimens and mill samplings, including 11 fluorescents. The first mineral exhibit was later used as a traveling exhibit is displayed in the “Local Mining District Mineral” room of the museum. (Of note: The collection was originally on display in 1920 at the local high school and then moved around to several other locations, then the Neighborhood House in 1940.
On October 9, 1965, the Franklin Mineral Museum opened to the public. On June 20, 1968, the State of New Jersey declared the Borough of Franklin, NJ “The Fluorescent Mineral Capital of the World”. The discovery of more than 200 varieties of minerals from the working mines brought forth the great phenomena of mineral wonders from this area, particularly brilliant fluorescent minerals. On September 24, 1971, the State of New Jersey declared the Franklin Mineral Museum an Historic Site. Today this museum houses the most comprehensive display of local fluorescent minerals in the world.
The Museum is broken down into several rooms and displays:
World Minerals “Welsh Hall”:
*There are approximately 6000 world-wide specimens and some from outer space.
*The three rock types are displayed. Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary.
*Displays include meteorites, solidified lava, a volcanic bomb, pumice the floating rock, gold and birthstones in natural and gem forms.
The Mineral Room
The Mineral Room
*The hollow rocks called geodes are formed from air bubbles in lava and often contain crystals. (Wilfred Welsh, a former teacher from Saddle River, NJ and his wife, Mary, collected and donated the majority of specimens in this room. This collection represents the passion they had for minerals. New specimens are continually added to this exhibit).
The Mineral Room
“Mine Replica”:
*In the lower level, left tunnel, the can in the alcove represents the miners’ “bathroom”. If a miner showed up late for work it was his job to carry the cans at the end of the shift (Where the expression “Going to the Can” comes from).
‘Hitting the can’
*This area contains the “Wall of Zinc”. The exhibit demonstrates the layers of various zinc ores that may have been visible in the mine.
*The original ore cars were pulled by mules.
*The miners of the 1800’s used candles & oil wick lamps on top of their helmets. Later in the 1900’s the carbide light was used to do away with candles. Water dripping on carbide produced acetylene gas which provided better light.
*Rats were prevalent in the mines. They stole lunches out of the metal lunch boxes if not locked. Most importantly they were very good indicators of cave-ins and provided early warning signs.
*The office exhibit represents that of a NJ Zinc scientist. This exhibit and open display area with “Sam” show mining artifacts. “Sam” is the original miner statue that stood outside of the museum, now replaced by a bronze statue sculptured by Carey Boone Nelson.
*Upstairs show the stope and pillar mining used in the 1900’s
*The large drill weighed 300 pounds and took two men to operate.
*The man cage (mine elevator) delivered men to their work levels inside the mine. A signal bell was rung to alert the operator.
Artifacts:
The artifacts of Native American, Artic & Aztec tribes, representing various regions are displaying in this exhibit.
“Fossils & Artifacts”:
*Petrified wood, the large circles along the wall are slices of fossilized tree trunk. The wood has been replaced with mineral over a long period of time. The tree rounds are estimated to date back to the Triassic Age 230 million years ago.
*The dinosaur footprint is from a Grallator, that roamed NJ. Grallator means “stilt walker”. This was a herding dinosaur known only from its fossilized footprints. Grallator-type footprints have been found in formations dating from the late Triassic through to the early Cretaceous periods. It is said to have up to five toes.
*The large bone is from a Mastodon. Mastodons are an extinct group of mammal; species related to elephants. They inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of the Pleistocene 10,000 to 11,000 years ago. Their genus name is Mammut and they are members of the order Proboscidea. They lived in herds and were predominately forest dwelling animals.
*Coprolite is fossilized dinosaur dung.
*The giant shark tooth is from the Megalodon one of the largest most powerful predators. It is an extinct species of shark that lived approximately 28 to 1.5 million years ago, during the Cenozoic Era. Fossil remains suggest that this giant shark reached a maximum length of 46-59 feet. Some believe that the Megalodon still swims in the deep waters today and are larger in size than originally thought.
The Fossil Room
The Fossil Room
The Fossil Room
The Fossil Room
The Fossil Room
The Fossil Room
*Trilobites are extinct arthropods, distant relatives of modern lobsters, horseshoe crabs and spiders. Trilobites existed for approximately 300 million years. They lived from the Lower Cambrian Period (521 million years ago) to the end of the Permian (240 million years ago). Trilobites were probably the first life forms with complex eyes with some species having hundreds of individual lenses per eye.
“Fluorescent Room”:
The Fluorescence of the Franklin ores was discovered accidentally in the early 1900’s. Sparks from primitive electrical equipment in the mines caused the rocks to glow. Sparking equipment in the mines caused the rocks to glow. Sparking equipment was built and the fluorescents were used to follow ore zones and to monitor the quality of mill concentrates. Later, fluorescence was used to determine if exploratory drill holes were close to the ore body. If the holes would glow red. Calcite further from the holes had no fluorescence.
The Fluorescent Room
The reason why some minerals fluoresce is because of the impurities in the mineral. The ultraviolet light rays dislodge and excite electrons from their orbits in a molecular structure of the mineral and in their efforts to get back in the orbit, the electrons give off energy in the form of light.
Fluorescence refers to the emission of visible light from a substance being irradiated by ultraviolet light which the human eye can not see.
In the displays:
The large exhibit displays some of the finest fluorescent minerals from the local mining district, shown under shortwave ultraviolet light. Most local fluorescent minerals look fairly ordinary in natural light and only fluoresce under shortwave ultraviolet light. The exhibit on the opposite wall identifies local specimens in alphabetical order under shortwave ultraviolet light. Only a few local minerals fluoresce under long wave ultraviolet light, some of which are displayed in the first case you enter.
“Local Mining District Mineral Room”:
*Every mineral on display is from the local mining district of Franklin or Sterling-Hill.
*Several geological events produced the wealth of mineral species found in this area.
*The first one mined in Franklin was magnetite iron ore. Searching for more magnetite, zinc was discovered.
The Mineral Room
The discovery of zinc in the minerals franklinite, willemite and zincite brought on a new era of mining. Between 1848 and 1897 several small companies began underground zinc mining and continued to do so until the great consolidation of 1897.
In 1897, these smaller companies consolidate to from the New Jersey Zinc Company which operated in Franklin until 1954 and then closed after exhausting the mineral resources available.
The Franklin open cut “surface mining” with an underground opening to the mine is across the street and currently under water. The open cut was originally named the “Buckwheat Mine”. The “buckwheat dump” is the collecting area of the museum, comprised of discarded rock from that mine.
*The mine produced 22 million tons of ore worth 500 million dollars.
*Many uses for Zinc include sunscreen, pennies, paint, batteries…
*Solid zinc bars are on display in this room.
In this exhibits:
*The left side of the room as you walk in, displays various species of local minerals. The primary economic ores mined were willemite, franklinite and zincite. See a sample that contains all of these minerals in “High Grade Franklin Ore” located on the floor next to the Franklinite Crystal model.
Willemite: Colorless to white, gray, flesh-red, dark brown, honey-yellow, apple-green, blue, Fluorescent (green) under shortwave ultraviolet light.
Franklinite: is an oxide mineral. Commonly occurs with willemite, calcite and red zincite forming small black octahedral crystals. Franklinite was only found here in the local mining district until recently.
Zincite: A mineral form of zinc oxide. Its crystal form is rare in nature except at the Franklin and Sterling Hill Mines. The hexagonal crystal is red-colored (mostly due to iron and manganese) and associated with willemite and franklinite. Some zincite fluoresces yellow under long wave light.
*You can collect for these mineral species on the “buckwheat dump” located on the property of the museum.
Amethyst on display
*On display are small amounts of gold found here.
*The corner floor display consists of local common rocks and minerals some of which contain iron. There was an iron furnace located at the now Police station at the edge of the Franklin pond. Most of the iron mined here was called magnetite. Magnetite is highly magnetic.
Some minerals on display are on loan from various institutions and major universities. We have out minerals on display in museums all over the world. The majority of the specimens are acquired through donations or purchased for the betterment of the museum.
The Mineral Room
As of this publication, the Franklin-Sterling ore deposits have produced 359 different mineral species about 10% of all those known to man. More mineral species than anywhere else on earth, 19 of these are unique to the area, 92 of which are fluorescent.
(This information on the museum and on their displays is taken from the Franklin Mineral Museum pamphlet and I give the museum full credit for the information. Please check the website for more information about programs at the museum.)
Visiting a Museum: The Unique, Unusual, Obscure and Historical 