ARKANSAS - A Brief History
of Mineral Development
Arkansas Mineral Map
Prior to the arrival of the first European explorers within
Arkansas’ present state boundaries, various Native American tribes made use
of some of the region’s mineral resources. In the Ouachita Mountains region,
quartz crystal was traded and had limited use for manufacture of projectile
points, novaculite was highly prized and used for a variety of projectile
types, and some igneous rock types were made into counterweights for atl-atls
(spear throwing device) and as fishing net plummets (weights). Flint from the
Ozark region was the raw material for making projectile points and sandstone
was used for corn grinding. Significant pottery-making cultures were
established in the Gulf Coastal region in southwest and northeast Arkansas,
utilizing local deposits of clay. Salt was recovered from some salty springs
and seeps. Native Americans considered the thermal waters of present day Hot
Springs National Park in Garland County a holy place and all tribes had access
to them.
With the advent of European exploration, the region began to
receive settlers. By the middle 19th century, they had discovered
lead and iron ore deposits in the Ozark and Ouachita region, coal beds in the
Arkansas Valley, and clay and salt springs in the Gulf Coastal region, and
began to utilize these resources locally. During the Civil War, saltpeter was
mined from caves in the Ozarks, along with lead ore from nearby deposits.
Near the close of the 19th century, significant
deposits of zinc, lead, and limestone had been recognized and mined in
Arkansas. Deposits of antimony ore were mined in Sevier County beginning
shortly after the Civil War and ending after World War I. Bauxite had been
discovered in Pulaski and Saline Counties by 1900. At the end of this period,
Arkansas was the Nation’s leading freshwater pearl producer, the pearls
being recovered primarily from the Black and White Rivers in Independence
County.
The first half of the 20th century saw the advent
of large scale mining for limestone, sandstone, clay, sand & gravel,
chalk, coal, bauxite, manganese, mercury, zinc and lead, barite, novaculite,
quartz crystal, diamonds, and nepheline syenite. Petroleum and natural gas
resources in southern Arkansas and the Arkansas Valley were discovered and
developed.
Significant mineral industries based on the discovery and
development of deposits of glass sand in Izard County, bromine in Columbia and
Union Counties, gypsum in Howard and Pike Counties, and vanadium in Garland
County highlight the second half of the 20th century. The latter
period of this time saw the end of production of barite, bauxite for aluminum
production, and a serious decline in coal production. However, production of
industrial minerals on the whole, especially crushed stone and sand &
gravel, greatly increased during this time.
Arkansas continues to be the Nation’s leading producer of
bromine and quartz crystal and ranks high for the production of raw clay and
tripoli.
More Information from the U.S.
Geological Survey:
Mineral information and Map for Arkansas.