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California Symbols

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California State Mineral & Mineralogic Emblem

Gold

 

Adopted in 1965

 

As one might expect, gold is the official state mineral and was so designated in 1965. In the four years following the discovery of gold by James Marshall in January of 1848, California's population swelled from 14,000 to 250,000 people. Miners came from all over the world and extracted 28,280,711 fine ounces of gold from 1850-1859 which would be worth approximately $10,000,000,000 today. Although production is much lower, present day prospectors can still pan for gold in California's streams.

 

 

Characteristics
Mineral class Elements : Copper-silver-gold group
Chemical formula Au
Crystal system Cubic
Habitus As grains, crack fillings and jugs. Rarely as octaedric crystals.
Cleavage None, malleable.
Hardness 2.5-3
Density 19.3
Color Yellow, without tarnish.
Streak Yellow shiny.
Luster Metallic
Description
Occurance Primarily in quartz veins of hydrothermal origin, but also as magmatic and metamorphic rock.
Concentrated in alluvial deposits.
Associates Quarts, sulfides.

 

 

 

 

  

 

50 State Resource Guide

State Resource Guide

Everyone needs a little help, advice, or inspiration now and again. Find state colleges, universities, headline news, newspapers, debt consolidation, financial offerings, radios and TV stations, traffic reports, and state symbols: animals, birds, flags, flowers, seals, and more as well as quick links to social, demographic, and economic statistics.
 

 

 

 

 
 
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