Delaware Mineralogical Society Ramsey Run Page

Delaware’s first National Monument has been set by President Barack Obama around April 2013. Part of it will cover the Woodlawn Quarry area. Vice-President Joe Biden was reported to be ecstatic. As responsible rockhounds, we know that we can no longer collect at the property. We updated the mindat.org locale page with this information for the community.

If you have photos and data you’d like to submit on the site, please do.

October 20, 2012 (Saturday): Woodlawn Quarry, Wilmington, DE (9:00 AM - 1:00 PM) Tom Pankratz will e-mail/contact those who sign up with specific directions. (Some photos below.)

WHAT TO BRING: The material to be collected here is not large, is loose and does not require anymore than a rock hammer or a hand-held garden tool to collect. Bring collecting bags or backpacks to carry your specimens in! Wear appropriate clothing.

Ramsey Run (aka Woodlawn Quarry), Wilmington, DE is an abandoned feldspar quarry in the Piedmont Province of Delaware. The minerals that can be found here are microcline and plagioclase feldspar, quartz, mica, garnet and beryl. For more information about the quarry see the Delaware Geological Survey website at www.udel.edu/dgs/Education/woodlawn.html.

Past dates for this Fieldtrip:

June 25, 2011 (Saturday): Woodlawn Quarry, New Castle Co, DE
(1pm-3pm) This is an inactive pegmatite quarry where mica was mined. The minerals that can be collected here include muscovite mica, pink orthoclase feldspar, plagioclase feldspar, quartz, and with luck, garnet and beryl. There is no age limit to collect. Safety glasses are required. Contact Tom by email (tjpankratz@verizon.net) or phone (302 239 0140) to sign up.

Sunday, December 5, 2010: [CANCELED] Woodlawn Quarry (aka Ramsey Run), Wilmington, New Castle Co., DE. This is a family friendly field trip for DMS members to collect pegmatite minerals such as feldspar, quartz, mica and rare beryl. Minerals such as mica, quartz and feldspar can be collected easily on the surface.

Please sign up by December 1st if you would like to attend!

November 1, 2009 (Sunday): Woodlawn Quarry (aka Ramsey Run), Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware. This is a family friendly field trip for DMS members to collect pegmatite minerals such as feldspar, quartz, mica and rare beryl. We will meet at the Brandywine Creek State Park at 1:00 PM and hike about ½ mile up to the abandoned quarry. Please sign up by October 29th if you would like to attend!

November, 11, 2007, Sunday: Ramsey Run, Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware: This is a family friendly field trip for DMS members to collect minerals including feldspar, quartz, mica and beryl. Please sign up by November 9^th if you would like to attend!

May 20, 2007, Sunday: Ramsey Run, Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware: DMS invites its members especially its junior members to collect minerals including feldspar, quartz, garnet and beryl.

Trip is from 1:00PM to 3:30PM.

Please sign up by May 16th if you would like to attend!

Ramsey Run & Woodlawn Quarry Fieldtrip, 5-20-2007

DMS Members & Juniors gather at quarry site		Quartz just lying in the leaves

Old quarry filled with rainwater over the years		This camoflauged snail rests in some graphic granite

An old mine tailings pile hosts uncovered boulders		Snakes live here, as evidenced by this shed skin

Large mica books in graphic granite		Fran, Bob, Karissa and Bill discuss minerals in boulder

Group review mineralization for study		Close-up of pegmatite with blue beryl crystals

Members discover beryls in pegmatite boulder		Ken, our webmaster, ducks in the shot

A better blue beryl close-up shot		View over the hills around Ramsey Run
		Photos by Ken Casey
Trailhead to Woodlawn Quarry

Geologic Time Scale

Wilmington.DE Weather Conditions and Forecast

June Program, Monday, May 13, 2013:

"June Picnic" at Greenbank Mill