Mica has been recorded at 53 places in 19 states on the USA Rockhounding map. Connecticut, New Hampshire and Virginia have the most. 4 are marked Ready, 4 Conditional and 42 research only, so check each place’s status before you go.
.jpg){kind=link}
Mica sites by state
| State | Sites | Ready | State guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | 9 | 0 | Connecticut rockhounding map |
| New Hampshire | 5 | 1 | New Hampshire rockhounding map |
| Virginia | 5 | 0 | Virginia rockhounding map |
| Maine | 4 | 2 | Maine rockhounding map |
| Maryland | 4 | 0 | Maryland rockhounding map |
| North Carolina | 4 | 1 | North Carolina rockhounding map |
| South Dakota | 4 | 0 | South Dakota rockhounding map |
| Rhode Island | 3 | 0 | Rhode Island rockhounding map |
| Colorado | 2 | 0 | Colorado rockhounding map |
| Delaware | 2 | 0 | Delaware rockhounding map |
| New York | 2 | 0 | New York rockhounding map |
| Texas | 2 | 0 | Texas rockhounding map |
| Alabama | 1 | 0 | Alabama rockhounding map |
| Georgia | 1 | 0 | Georgia rockhounding map |
| Massachusetts | 1 | 0 | Massachusetts rockhounding map |
| Minnesota | 1 | 0 | Minnesota rockhounding map |
| New Mexico | 1 | 0 | New Mexico rockhounding map |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | 0 | Pennsylvania rockhounding map |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0 | Tennessee rockhounding map |
Places to find mica
Sorted with Ready sites first.
- Dig Maine Gems — Authorized Mt. Mica Sunday Field Trip, Oxford County, Maine: Ready
- Dig Maine Gems — West Paris Tailings Dig Site, Oxford County, Maine: Ready
- Ruggles Mine — Public Mineral Collecting, Grafton County, New Hampshire: Ready
- Emerald Village — McKinney Mine Dumps Mineral Collecting, Mitchell County, North Carolina: Ready
- Case Quarries — Educational Mineral Collecting Permit, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Conditional
- Clark Hill Quarries — Educational Mineral Collecting Permit, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Conditional
- Connecticut Private Quarry / Mineral Club Field Trips, Statewide County, Connecticut: Conditional
- Morefield Gem Mine — Public Collecting Context, Amelia County, Virginia: Conditional
- Authorized Private Mine Agent Gate, Oxford County, Maine: Rules apply
- East-Central Alabama Graphite/Mica/Pegmatite Research, Clay / Coosa / Tallapoosa / Randolph / Chambers County, Alabama: Research only
- Mount Antero Aquamarine District, Chaffee County, Colorado: Research only
- Glastonbury Pegmatite Research, Hartford County, Connecticut: Research only
- Case Quarry Geology Research, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Research only
- East Hampton Pegmatite Research, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Research only
- Haddam Pegmatite District Research, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Research only
- Portland / Strickland Quarry Pegmatite Research, Middlesex County, Connecticut: Research only
- Connecticut Pegmatite Districts Research, Statewide County, Connecticut: Research only
- Delaware Piedmont Gneiss Research, New Castle County, Delaware: Research only
- Delaware Piedmont Schist Research, New Castle County, Delaware: Research only
- Blue Ridge Pegmatite/Mineral Research, Fannin / Gilmer / Union / Rabun County, Georgia: Research only
- Topsham Pegmatite Research, Sagadahoc County, Maine: Research only
- Harford County Pegmatite Research, Harford County, Maryland: Research only
- Patapsco Valley Pegmatite Research, Howard County, Maryland: Research only
- Maryland Beryl and Pegmatite Research, Statewide County, Maryland: Research only
- Maryland Mica Occurrence Research, Statewide County, Maryland: Research only
- Middlesex Pegmatite & Metamorphic Research, Middlesex County, Massachusetts: Research only
- Ely / Northern Minnesota Pegmatite Research, St. Louis / Lake / Itasca County, Minnesota: Research only
- Chickering Mine Research, Grafton County, New Hampshire: Research only
- Grafton Pegmatite District Research, Grafton County, New Hampshire: Research only
- Palermo Mine Research, Grafton County, New Hampshire: Research only
- Acworth Mine & Pegmatite Research, Sullivan County, New Hampshire: Research only
- Petaca / Ojo Caliente Pegmatite Districts, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico: Research only
- Manhattan Schist Research, New York County, New York: Research only
- St. Lawrence Pegmatite Research, St. Lawrence County, New York: Research only
- Kings Mountain Lithium Belt Research, Gaston / Cleveland / Lincoln County, North Carolina: Research only
- Spruce Pine Mining District Research, Mitchell / Yancey / Avery County, North Carolina: Research only
- North Carolina Mica Research, Western North Carolina County, North Carolina: Research only
- Wissahickon Schist and Garnet Research, Philadelphia / Montgomery / Delaware County, Pennsylvania: Research only
- Diamond Hill Quartz Geology Research, Providence County, Rhode Island: Research only
- Westerly Granite District Research, Washington County, Rhode Island: Research only
- Custer Pegmatite & Garnet-Staurolite Research, Custer County, South Dakota: Research only
- Southern Black Hills Pegmatite District Research, Custer / Pennington County, South Dakota: Research only
- Hill City Pegmatite Research, Pennington County, South Dakota: Research only
- Keystone Pegmatite & Mineral District Research, Pennington County, South Dakota: Research only
- Tennessee Mica and Pegmatite Research, East Tennessee County, Tennessee: Research only
- Burnet County Pegmatite & Granite Mineral Context, Burnet County, Texas: Research only
- Llano Uplift Mineral District, Llano County, Texas: Research only
- Amelia Mica–Feldspar Pegmatite Belt, Amelia County, Virginia: Research only
- Amelia Pegmatite & Amazonite District, Amelia County, Virginia: Research only
- Blue Ridge Quartz & Pegmatite Research, Blue Ridge County, Virginia: Research only
- Virginia Feldspar & Mica Resources, Piedmont and Blue Ridge County, Virginia: Research only
- Mica Mine / Rough Canyon — Geology Viewing Control, Mesa County, Colorado: Protected / viewing only
- Diamond Hill Town Park — Collecting Prohibited, Providence County, Rhode Island: Protected / viewing only
What mica is
Mica is a family of sheet silicate minerals that split into thin, flexible, shiny flakes. Muscovite is clear to silvery; biotite is black; lepidolite is pink to purple and contains lithium. Large “books” of mica grow in pegmatites, and small flakes make granite and schist sparkle.
How to identify mica
- Peels into thin, flexible sheets with a fingernail.
- Pearly to glassy shine; flakes reflect light like tiny mirrors.
- Soft: a fingernail scratches it.
- Often found with feldspar, quartz, garnet, beryl and tourmaline in pegmatites.
Where mica is found
The Spruce Pine district of North Carolina was the leading US mica producer, and old mine dumps there, such as at Emerald Village, are open to collectors. New Hampshire’s Ruggles Mine area, the Black Hills of South Dakota, Maine’s Oxford County and Colorado pegmatites also produce mica.
Rules
Most pegmatite mines are private; collect at fee sites or with permission. National forest land in New Hampshire and North Carolina allows small amounts for personal use.
Questions
Where can I find mica in the USA?
Mine dumps in the Spruce Pine district of North Carolina, pegmatites in New Hampshire, Maine and South Dakota’s Black Hills.
Is mica valuable to collect?
Large clear books and colourful lepidolite are attractive specimens, but mica’s main value to collectors is as a guide to pegmatites that may also hold beryl, tourmaline and garnet.
What the map statuses mean is explained in how map statuses work; collecting rules for each kind of land are in rules by land type.
Other rocks and minerals
Agate · Geodes · Quartz · Jasper · Petrified Wood · Fossils · Shark Teeth · Gold · Garnet · Sapphire · Crystals · Calcite · Chalcedony · Copper · Diamonds · Fluorite · Pyrite · Beryl, Aquamarine & Emerald · Tourmaline
Data: USA Rockhounding atlas records, checked through 2026-08-30. See all rocks and minerals.