Jackson Crossroads Amethyst Mine
Tignall, Georgia

Owner: Terry Ledford

Jackson Crossroads is a premiere collecting site for world-class amethyst specimens. Famous for its dark purple crystals with a "Georgia Blue Flash", it has been featured on the Travel Channels "Cash and Treasures" show.

Visits to Jackson Crossroads can be scheduled by individual collectors and groups.

Each person entering the property will be required to sign a release form and pay on the day of their arrival. Minors must be accompanied by a paying adult, and a parent or guardian must sign a release form for them.

FEES: $25 per day per person. Persons must be at least 12 years of age to enter the mine property!

M.A.G.M.A. Platinum Members receive a $5 discount.

NOTE: Due to recent unsafe actions conducted by children at the Jackson Crossroads Mine. The owner, Terry Ledford has stated that no one under the age of 12 will be allowed to enter the property! You must be 12 years of age or older to collect at the mine.

This is a working mine. The main pit is roped off for safety, and entrance to the pit is forbidden. Collecting is allowed in the numerous dump piles that have been generated all over the property.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Visits to Jackson Crossroads need to be arranged in advance. E-mail Steve Barr for permission to go to the site. You can contact him at:

stevebarr@windstream.net

Please schedule your trip at least a week in advance, preferably two weeks in advance. This is due to the fact that arrangements must be made to have a caretaker meet you at the gate to let you in and give you a brief tour.

DIGGING TIPS:

When you are at Jackson Crossroads, do not go inside the area that is roped off. This is the pit area where Terry Ledford is working commercially.

Wear gloves. Gem tips can be sharp, and gloves will help protect you.

You can work the dump piles that are all over the property. I would suggest taking the first hour or so that you are on the property and just walking all over the piles, looking for any glimmer of light reflecting from a crystal or a change in color in the ground. Amethyst may look darker than the surrounding dirt. It doesn't always glitter in the sunlight, it may depend on which angle you are approaching it from.

Sometimes, only a small tip of a larger crystal is showing. Look closely at anything that looks different than the surrounding dirt.

More often than not, the dark amethyst forms in pockets of white clay, so if you see any signs of that, that is where you want to look. Poke around in the white clay with your hands, a screwdriver or a knife…carefully, so you don't ding anything. Patience can be rewarded with a nice cluster, sometimes several clusters.

Break large rocks with a sledgehammer. The ones that look more porous than the others usually have better odds of containing amethyst vugs, but you never know. In many cases, if you smack a boulder with a vug in it, the rock will shatter along the existing fault line and not cause damage to the crystals. (Always wear safety glasses when you are breaking rocks, and make sure no one is nearby who might be injured by flying chips.)

Turn over every rock you see and inspect it. If it has white clay or red clay in it, poke into the mud to see if it is hiding crystals. For large boulders, get down on your hands and knees and peer under them. Sometimes you'll see a vug that would otherwise be hidden.

Also, if you see a dump pile that has a large area of dark red clay in it, dig there. Squeeze EVERY mud clump with your hands to see if something is hidden inside.

Working the dump piles, especially the newer ones, can also reward you handsomely. Use a sturdy rake or other hand tool to slowly move the dirt. Take your time. Break open each and every cluster of mud with your hands….whether it is dark red clay or white clay. The crystals can be in either. Pick a place and poke around patiently. Sometimes it takes a while to get down to the good stuff. Due to the intense heat we've had this summer, the top layer of the dumps could be baked hard. Digging down a bit should get you into softer soil.

When you are working the dump piles, look for clumps of clay that tumble down oddly, kind of like they have something heavy inside them. That's usually a sign that they do indeed have something worthwhile inside.

DIRECTIONS

Take I-85 South to the second exit in Georgia. Turn right at the top of the ramp. This is 17 South. Follow 17 South through Elberton.

Take 17 South all the way to Tignall. You will see a Tignall town limits sign as you enter the town.

Turn RIGHT at the first (and only) traffic light in Tignall. (Independence)

Stay on this road for about 8 miles. You will see a cemetery opposite the Clark Station Church.

Turn right onto Hollis Norman Road…just across the road from the church, in front of the cemetery.

Go just a short distance and you will see a metal gate on the right. Drive past it, and turn right into the first dirt road you come to.

There is a metal gate at this point. Meet the caretaker here to let you in, unless the gate is already open, at which point you can drive in to sign in.

This road leads straight to the mine, through the woods. It is VERY bumpy. Go slow, even on the short gravel part. Park wherever you can without blocking the entrance road when you see the pit and dump piles.

Sign in at the metal hut.

IF YOU ARE COMING FROM THE SOUTH:

Take 17 North from the town of Washington into Tignall. Turn left at the only traffic light in Tignall, then follow the rest of the directions above to get to Jackson Crossroads.

RULES OF CONDUCT

All persons visiting the Jackson Crossroads site must make arrangements ahead of time and sign a release form or permission form immediately upon arrival. No one is to enter the property or go past the main gate without one.

You may keep any mineral specimens that you find at the mine. Hand tools only are allowed at the mine: shovel, pick, hammer, chisel, etc. No power tools, jackhammers, or motorized equipment, backhoes or bulldozers.

Keep the Property clean. Remove any trash that you see at the site, whether it is yours or left by others, this will help keep the site open to collecting.

Report any problems to the caretaker. Things to report include: large amounts of pre-existing trash on the property, the presence of unauthorized people on the property, persons using equipment other than hand tools, any actions that could risk the safety and health of others such as tunneling into the walls of the mine which could cause a cave-in or entering the roped off areas. If you see someone doing any of these things, try to get their name, license/tag number from their vehicle and any other identifying information to report.