Kidwellite with Strengite
specimen number:
2354087
location:
Midvale Mine, Midvale, Rockbridge Co., Virginia, USA
description: The Midvale Mine, located near South Mountain near Midvale in Rockbridge County, Virginia, is situated within brecciated ferruginous sandstones along the edge of the Appalachian Valley and Ridge province. Originally opened as an iron mining operation in the 1890s, the surface and underground workings yielded limited limonite ore from a large open pit and adits before production ceased. Today, the site is historic as the type locality for rockbridgeite, an iron phosphate mineral named after the county. Mineral collectors value the locality for produce-worthy dark green to black fibrous, botryoidal, and microcrystalline phosphate mineral specimens, including rockbridgeite, dufrenite, and cacoxenite, often matrixed within iron-stained sandstone host rock.
Light green radiating crystals of kidwellite across the top of an area 1.2 x 0.8 cm in size on matrix with strengite. Neat locality example for the species.
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