Crater of Diamonds Newsletter

Seven large diamonds top list of 2010 finds

By Waymon Cox

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! We’re already rolling along with more than 20 diamonds registered so far in 2011. While we’re looking forward to many beautiful diamonds and meeting the people who will find them this year, let’s take a look back at a few of the biggest and brightest gems of 2010!

Of 23 registered diamonds that weighed over one carat last year, seven of these were significantly large, weighing two carats or more. Last year’s long list of large finds had a quick start when Glenn Worthington, of Springdale, Arkansas registered a 2.13-carat brown diamond on February 18. He found it while wet screening in the park’s Pig Pen, a low-lying section at the south end of the diamond search area. The crystal had the elongated shape of a rice grain but was much larger. It had a frosted surface and was the light brown color of iced tea. Because of its appearance, Glenn named his diamond the Brown Rice. He later had it cut into a beautiful marquis-shaped stone, weighing 1.24 carats.

Because of its appearance, Glenn named his diamond the Brown Rice.

The following month, Pennsylvania resident Patti Kubli found the year’s first large yellow diamond. After surface searching for about 30 minutes on March 31, Patti found a flawless, 3.17-carat canary yellow diamond, about the size of a jellybean. She found the gem in the middle of the search area when she noticed it shining in the dirt. Patti named the diamond after her mother, calling it the Dorie Diamond.

Patti named the diamond after her mother, calling it the Dorie Diamond.

April was an especially-successful month for large diamond finds. On April 20, retired minister Mack Evans, of Diamond, Missouri, found the year’s largest diamond, a 4.89-carat grayish-white gem. This unique diamond is an agglomeration of crystals that formed together, not typical of most Crater diamonds. It has a characteristic metallic shine, but Mack didn’t immediately recognize it as a diamond. Because he at first didn’t realize what he had found, Mack named his gem the Ghost Diamond.

Because he at first didn’t realize what he had found, Mack named his gem the Ghost Diamond.

On April 28, 14-year-old Peter Slowik, of Strafford, New Hampshire, was surface searching with his dad near the south washing pavilion when he spotted another white diamond in a visitor’s footprint. The sparkling 2.70-carat diamond resembles a miniature cube of ice, so Peter chose to name his diamond the Arkansas Ice. The gem has a flawless, brilliant appearance, and Peter plans to keep his diamond and pass it down through his family.

The sparkling 2.70-carat diamond resembles a miniature cube of ice, so Peter chose to name his diamond the Arkansas Ice.

As the year progressed, visitors continued registering diamonds of all sizes. On July 29, Winnsboro, Texas resident Angela Vickers registered the next large Crater diamond. Angela had been surface searching for about three hours on the hot July day when she sat under a shade tree near the East Drain to rest, looked down, and saw a diamond between her feet! The 2.93-carat yellow diamond is the color of lemonade and the size of an English pea. She named it God’s Blessing, as Angela believes God brought her to the diamond.

She named it God’s Blessing, as Angela believes God brought her to the diamond.

Though most large diamonds tend to be found during the spring and summer months, one of 2010’s most successful weekends for large diamond finds came in November. On November 19, Steve Crutchfield, of Friendship, Arkansas, discovered a stunning 2.44-carat brown diamond while wet sifting. The brandy-colored gem is the size of a piece of Chicklet gum, shaped like a parallelogram, with a frozen metallic shine. Steve named his diamond the Hatfield, for his nickname.

Steve named his diamond the Hatfield, for his nickname.

Two days later, Mike Ellison, of Kings Mountain, North Carolina, found a 3.65-carat brown diamond while wet sifting. The dark brown gem has an octahedral shape. Mike named his diamond the Kings Mountain Pinnacle, after a mountain near his hometown. Both diamonds were found in a new trench excavated by the park in mid-October.

Mike named his diamond the Kings Mountain Pinnacle, after a mountain near his hometown.

In all, Crater of Diamonds State Park registered 601 diamonds in 2010. Many of these finds yielded exciting stories to inspire and encourage new visitors longing to discover their own gems. We hope that you will make plans to visit the Crater in 2011 and enjoy your own diamond mining adventure—you never know what you may find!

Search area last plowed: January 7, 2011

Most recent significant precipitation: January 10, 2011

Diamond finds for January 2 - 8, 2011 (100 points = one carat):

January 2 - Jill Brooks, Richardson, TX, 42 pt. brown

January 3 - David Anderson, Murfreesboro, AR, 4 pt. brown, 4 pt. white, 7 pt. white, 12 pt. white, 12 pt. white, 15 pt. white, 16 pt. white; Jeff Dearman, Rochester, NY, 18 pt. white

January 4 - Kenneth Shoemaker, Murfreesboro, AR, 5 pt. white

January 5 - Andrea Grotta, Savannah, GA, 47 pt. brown

January 6 - Curt Bork, Arbela, MO, 10 pt. yellow, 15 pt. white, 65 pt. brown; Sherman Thomas, Lewisville, AR, 6 pt. white

January 7 - Curt Bork, Arbela, MO, 4 pt. white, 14 pt. white, 28 pt. yellow

January 8 - Curt Bork, Arbela, MO, 9 pt. white, 1.06 ct. white; Dimitri Fergadis, Hot Springs Village, AR, 56 pt. yellow