Tucson Gem and Mineral Society
The Tucson club, founded in 1946, that puts on the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show
- Founded
- 1946, by 28 rockhounds
- Meets
- 1st Monday of the month, 7 pm; potluck dinners in summer
- Office
- 3727 E Blacklidge Dr, Tucson
- Interests
- Minerals, gems, lapidary, geology
- Field trips
- Yes, for members, with the society's collecting rules
- Annual show
- Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, every February, Tucson Convention Center
- Supports
- Mineral collections of the University of Arizona and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
Prospect on your own near Tucson
9 gem and mineral spots on open public land with no claim on record, within 50 miles.
There are more on the map, some of them with a possible mining claim.
About Tucson Gem and Mineral Society
The Tucson Gem and Mineral Society began in 1946, when 28 rockhounds started meeting to share a hobby that was just beginning to grow. Its founding aim was simple: to encourage interest in minerals and gems and the study of them. Today it is a nonprofit with hundreds of members, and the Arizona Historical Society keeps its history and scrapbooks in its archives.
The society is known worldwide for one thing: the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, held every February at the Tucson Convention Center. It is the main event of the weeks when Tucson fills with dozens of independent gem, mineral and fossil shows across the city. The society's show is the one built around exhibits: museums and collectors bring cases of their best specimens, there are lectures and a micromount symposium, and each year has a theme. The 2026 show, held from February 12 to 15, celebrated red, white and blue minerals for the country's 250th anniversary.
Behind the show there is a club that works all year. Society meetings are held at 7 pm on the first Monday of the month, with talks on field collecting, famous collections, Arizona mines and mineral science, and in the summer months members get together for potluck dinners and share their adventures instead. The society teaches classes drawn from its members' experience, runs field trips for members under its own collecting rules, and every year supports the mineral collections of the University of Arizona and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
Other clubs and places nearby
- Old Pueblo Lapidary ClubClub · 0 mi
- Gold Prospectors Association of Tucson (GPAA)Club · 3 mi
- Desert Gold DiggersClub · 5 mi
- Pinal Gem and Mineral SocietyClub · 61 mi
- Huachuca Mineral and Gem ClubClub · 61 mi
- Huachuca Prospectors AssociationClub · 65 mi
Where to buy gear nearby
- The Rock Yard (Tucson)Shop · 4 mi
- Raining RocksShop · 10 mi
- Tucson Mineral & Gem WorldShop · 12 mi
- The Wizard's WorkshopShop · 63 mi