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HEBRON — Jeweler Dennis Creaser, of South Paris, was the March guest speaker of the Hebron Historical Society, where he discussed mines in the town and area.
Creaser explained the geology of pegmatites, which can yield pockets of gem crystals of various minerals. The most famous of these in Hebron is the Mount Rubellite mine. In 1868 Luther Hills, while prospecting in Hebron, found a loose rock containing purple lepidolite. He recognized this as being a lithium specimen normally associated with colored tourmaline, another lithium mineral. He traced this to a nearby outcropping which did yield tourmaline. Loren Merrill and A.C. Hamlin (nephew V. P. Hannibal Hamlin) were the first to mine this site for gems.
The mine is most famous for the Rubellite gems (pink tourmaline). One gem rubellite from this mine was included in the Hamlin necklace (the most famous piece of jewelry created from the Oxford Hills region), which is kept in the Harvard Museum of Natural History in Cambridge, Mass. The rest of the necklace is composed of gems from Mount Mica in South Paris, the most famous gem mine in Oxford County. Besides gemstones, Mount Rubellite was the first place in the U.S. to produce pollucite (a cesium ore). Another significant mine in Hebron is the Hibbs Quarry, which has produced some of the finest rose quartz in the state. Creaser explained that Hebron’s geology suggests that there is good potential for untapped pegmatites to be discovered and mined.
The next Hebron Historical Society meeting will feature Jessie Yancy speaking on the history of lavender and the process of growing and harvesting it. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, at the Hebron Town Office, 351 Paris Road. The public is invited.
