Graniteville: Actinolite & Apatite Rockhounding in Iron County, Missouri

Plan your visit

Generally open to casual rockhounding

County

Iron County

State

Missouri

Nearest road

County Road 96

Postcode

63623

Coordinates

37.66174, -90.68136

Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground in the RockHoundR app, where land overlays show which agency manages the area.

Land & collecting status

Generally open to casual rockhounding

Most public-tagged spots sit on BLM, U.S. Forest Service, or other federal land where reasonable hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed. Confirm posted rules and active mining claims before you dig.

Public-land rules vary by agency, season, and field office. The RockHoundR app pulls live BLM, USFS, NPS, and tribal overlays so you can see exactly which agency manages the ground at this spot.

Best time to visit Graniteville

Comfortable months (45 to 90°F highs)

Best months: February to December. Typical highs run 87°F in midsummer and 42°F in midwinter, with winter lows near 21°F.

Climate normals: NOAA 1991-2020 monthlies, FARMINGTON station (17 mi away), adjusted for elevation.

Geology at Graniteville

This spot sits on St. Francois Mountains intrusive suite (subvolcanic, alkali granitic ring complexes), mapped as alkali feldspar granite that formed roughly 1600 to 1000 million years ago. Granitic rock like this is where pegmatite pockets tend to occur, the coarse-crystal settings that typically carry beryl, tourmaline, mica, and feldspar.

Mapped unit

St. Francois Mountains intrusive suite (subvolcanic, alkali granitic ring complexes)

Age

1600–1000 Ma (Mesoproterozoic)

Rock types

alkali feldspar granite

Elevation

1,210 ft

Geologic mapping via Macrostrat and the underlying state geological survey maps (CC BY 4.0). Bedrock at the surface can vary within a mapped unit.

Sources & verification

Spot details combine the public RockHoundR location dataset, normalized mineral labels, agency land-status checks in the app, and community submissions. Coordinates are approximate until verified in the field.

• Missouri Geological Survey
• Mark Twain National Forest
• Missouri State Parks rules
• Community submissions reviewed against published agency rules