Vermont State Gem

Grossular Garnet Adopted: May 23, 1992

Vermont State Gem: Grossular Garnet
Belvidere Mountain Quarries
Lowell (commonly called Eden Mills), Vermont
Photograph: ©John H. Betts. Used with permission.

House Bill No. 678, cosponsored by Representatives Michael Obuchowski and Sean Campbell, called for the adoption of an official state gem (grossular garnet), an official state mineral (talc) and an official state rock (marble).

The proposal was made by Sue Hadden and sanctioned by Vermont mineralogical societies, clubs, geologists (including the recently retired State Geologist Charles Ratté), geology teachers and industrialists within the mining industry.

"Just as the state has honored the hermit thrush, red clover, and sugar maple, it should honor its unique geologic heritage by naming a state gem, rock, and mineral and join the 95% of the other 50 states to have done so."

(Hadden 29)

Grossular garnet was considered a good choice for the official gem because;

Perhaps the finest example of grossular garnet in the world was found at the Belvidere Mine in Eden Mills.

Grossular garnet, the State Gem, is technically a mineral -- a silicate, which is colored brown due to the presence of iron. Grossular garnet from the Belvidere Mine at Eden Mills is thought to be the finest specimen of its kind anywhere.

------- from Office of the Secretary of State,
Vermont Legislative Directory and State Manual,
Biennial Session, 1993-1994, p. 25.

Evidently, as the legislative process proceeded, there were no objections to declaring the grossular garnet the state gem.

But some dust was kicked up about naming marble the state rock!

Vermont Law

The following information was excerpted from the Vermont Statutes Online, Title 1, Chapter 11, Section 999.

Title 1: General Provisions
Chapter 11: FLAG, INSIGNIA, SEAL, ETC.
1 V.S.A. § 506. State gem

§ 506. State gem

The state gem shall be the grossular garnet. (Added 1991, No. 221 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 28, 1992.)

Sources...

Hadden, Sue H. "Proposal to the Vermont State Legislature to Name a State Gem, Rock, and Mineral." Quarterly Newsletter of the Vermont Geological Society. 19.1 (1992): 29. Print.
"Vermont Emblems, Facts and Figures." Vermont Department of Libraries. State of Vermont, n.d. Web. 19 Feb 2012. .
"Vermont Statutes Online." Vermont State Legislature. Vermont State Legislature, n.d. Web. 19 Feb 2012. .
Shearer, Benjamin F. and Barbara S. State Names, Seals, Flags and Symbols: A Historical Guide Third Edition, Revised and Expanded. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 3 Sub edition, 2001.

Additional Information

Vermont State Gem: Grossular Garnet
Belvidere Mountain Quarries
Lowell (commonly called Eden Mills), Vermont
Photograph: ©John H. Betts. Used with permission.

Welcome to Industrial Minerals of Vermont: 200 Years and Going Strong: by Diane Conrad and Diane Vanacek (early 1990s), with portions updated in 2005 by Sarah King.

The Mineral Grossular: Hershel Friedman's Mineral & Gemstone Kingdom; Complete information guide to rocks, minerals, gemstones and jewelry.

Minerals from Vermont: John Betts' Fine Minerals: Online Minerals Museum. Includes numerous specimens of grassular garnet from Vermont's Belvidere Mountain.

State gemstones: Complete list of official state gemstones from NETSTATE.COM.

More symbols & emblems: Complete list of official Vermont state symbols from NETSTATE.COM.

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Collecting Rocks,
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Patti Polk

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