Crater of Diamonds Newsletter

Since the Diamond is the Traditional Birthstone for Those Born in the Month of April, Family Visited Arkansas’s Diamond Site in Hopes Daughter Would Find a Birthday Diamond--and, She Did.

The diamond is the traditional birthstone for those who were born in the month of April. How perfect that Andrea Murphy of Gentry, Arkansas, found a 2.10-carat brown diamond yesterday while she and her family visited the Crater of Diamonds State Park this week to celebrate her birthday. According to Park Interpreter Margi Jenks, “Andrea and eight of her family members gathered together at the Crater of Diamonds to celebrate a milestone, her 30^th birthday. Her mother, Karen, came up with the idea to visit Arkansas’s diamond site and celebrate the occasion here since the diamond is Andrea’s birthstone.” Jenks said, “The square, iced tea brown diamond was a surface find after Andrea had been here for about two hours. At first Andrea thought her find was either a diamond, or some kind of toy. After the park staff verified and registered her diamond, Andrea decided that the best name for it would be the Andrea Birthday Diamond.”

The diamond is the 144^th diamond found this year by a park visitor, and it is the sixth diamond since January 1^st weighing over one carat. The colors of diamonds found at the park are white, brown, and yellow, in that order. “Because of their dark color, brown diamonds arethe most difficult to find. However, this is the second large brown diamond found at the park in the last two weeks. A beautiful 1.61-carat brown diamond was found by a park visitor from St. Louis, Missouri, on March 28,” said Jenks.

“The Crater of Diamonds State Park is very much a family place. Multi-generational families, like Andrea’s relatives, often enjoy the park together. The park staff is thrilled that this family get-together resulted in just what they’d hoped for—a diamond to celebrate Andrea’s birthday.”

She noted that the conditions were perfect at the park yesterday for a diamond to be found on the surface of the diamond search area. “The park received a number of washing rainstorms in March, and then yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day. A good hard rain will wash dirt away that may be covering the diamonds. So, when diamonds are on the surface of the field, they sparkle, and can be seen easily.”

The diamond was found in the East Drain area of the field, a 37 ½-acre plowed field that is the eroded surface of the eighth largest diamond-bearing deposit in the world in surface area.

It is the world’s only diamond-producing site open to the public. On average, two diamonds are found each day at the park. The park’s policy is finder-keepers. What park visitors find is theirs to keep. The park staff provides free identification and registration of diamonds. Park interpretive programs and exhibits explain the site’s geology and history and offer tips on recognizing diamonds in the rough.

Other semi-precious gems and minerals found in the park’s search area include amethyst, garnet, peridot, jasper, agate, calcite, barite, and quartz. Over 40 different rocks and minerals are unearthed at the Crater making it a rock hound's delight.

In total, over 75,000 diamonds have been unearthed at Arkansas’s diamond site since the first diamonds found in 1906 by John Huddleston, the farmer who at that time owned the land, long before the site became an Arkansas state park. The largest diamond ever discovered in the United States was unearthed here in 1924 during an early mining operation. Named the Uncle Sam, this white diamond with a pink cast weighed 40.23 carats. Other large notable finds from the Crater include the Star of Murfreesboro (34.25 carats) and the Star of Arkansas (15.33 carats).

Search area last plowed: March 8, 2013; Most recent significant rainstorms: thunderstorm

April 1 - Ron Cudmore, Berryville, AR, 2 pt. white; David Anderson, Murfreesboro, AR, 24 pt. white, Ryan Steinke, Rockford, MI, 70 pt. yellow

April 3 - Ron Cudmore, Berryville, AR, 17 pt. white; Morgan Bohannon, Battle Creek, MI, 18 pt. white

April 5 - Andrea Murphy, Gentry, AR, 2.1 ct. brown; Eve Campbell, East Jordan, MI, 5 pt. yellow