Where to Find Quartz in Kentucky

Kentucky has 8 mapped collecting spots that report quartz, spread across 6 counties. The largest share sits in Lincoln County with 2 spots. 8 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.

Standout quartz spots in Kentucky

Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.

Little Sandy River
Elliott County
Elliott County holds the only kimberlite in Kentucky, the Late Cretaceous Elliott County Peridotite at Ison Creek, a mantle-derived intrusion that carries pyrope garnet, chrome diopside and olivine.
Graves County
Graves County
Graves County, in the far-western Jackson Purchase, is the state's best-known source of gravel-pit agate, jasper and silicified wood.
Kentucky Agate District (Jackson County)
Jackson County
Jackson County is a core producer of Kentucky agate, the banded red, black and gray quartz named the official state rock in 2000.
Lincoln County
Lincoln County
Lincoln County sits at the heart of Kentucky's geode belt, where the Mississippian Fort Payne and Warsaw formations shed hollow, quartz-lined nodules into the upper Green River drainage and its feeder creeks.

Best counties for quartz in Kentucky

Ranked by the number of mapped quartz spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.

Every quartz spot we track in Kentucky

Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.

Spot	County	Minerals	Coordinates	Access
Little Sandy River	Elliott County	Apatite Almandine Garnet Chromite Diopside Feldspar Quartz	38.1175, -83.1100	Public
Graves CountyKY 121	Graves County	Agate Chalcedony Chert Jasper Quartz Silicified Wood	36.6705, -88.5417	Public
Kentucky Agate District (Jackson County)	Jackson County	Agate Chalcedony Jasper Quartz	37.4187, -83.9350	Public
Green RiverRube Brown Road	Lincoln County	Geode Quartz	37.4298, -84.7421	Public
Lincoln CountyNorth Fishing Creek Road	Lincoln County	Geode Quartz Celestite Goethite Fluorite Pyrite	37.3433, -84.6821	Public
BirdsvilleBizzel Bluff Road	Livingston County	Calcite Dolomite Fluorite Quartz	37.2012, -88.3728	Public
CarrsvilleTolu Road	Livingston County	Calcite Fluorite Quartz	37.3959, -88.3528	Public
Kentucky LakeForest Service Road 111-A	Lyon County	Geode Jasper Quartz	36.9374, -88.1699	Public

Before you go

Read the quartz identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Quartz in the encyclopedia.

Quartz in Kentucky FAQ

Where can you find quartz in Kentucky?+

The mapped spots concentrate in Lincoln County, Livingston County, and Elliott County. Every spot on this page appears on the map above with coordinates and access notes.

How many quartz spots are mapped in Kentucky?+

8 spots across 6 counties. The RockHoundR app keeps the same spots on an offline map with public land overlays, geology layers, and your saved finds.

Is it legal to collect quartz in Kentucky?+

Hand collecting of common rocks and minerals in small amounts for personal use is generally allowed on BLM and U.S. Forest Service land, with limits set by the local field office. National parks, most state parks, and tribal land are closed to collecting. 8 of the 8 mapped spots here sit on land marked public. Always confirm current rules with the managing agency before you dig.

Where else to find quartz

More minerals to hunt in Kentucky

Hunt quartz in Kentucky with the map in your pocket

RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.

Standout quartz spots in Kentucky

Little Sandy River

Graves County

Kentucky Agate District (Jackson County)

Lincoln County