Carico Lake Turquoise: Field Guide to Nevada's Apple-Green Faustite Mine
Carico Lake Turquoise — A Stone Study
← Part of the T.Skies Turquoise Stone Study
Real Carico Lake turquoise from a private collection, photographed in the T.Skies studio. These stones show the mine's range — classic blue with black spiderweb, its signature apple-green, and the apple-green faustite it is known for. Tap any stone to see it up close.
Classic blue with black spiderweb matrix
Apple-green with golden-brown matrix
Champagne-brown with cream matrix
White & pale apple-green stone
Apple-green with gold veining
Blue-green with brown matrix
Lime & pale green stone
Blue-green with golden-brown spiderweb
Documented stone examples from a private collection, photographed in the T.Skies studio. Not for sale individually — shown for reference. © Turquoise Skies Inc.
Carico Lake turquoise comes from the Carico Lake Valley in Lander County, Nevada, and is one of the few documented American deposits to produce faustite — the zinc-substituted mineral in the turquoise group responsible for the distinctive apple-green color that makes Carico Lake stone immediately recognizable in the field.
From the Library: Branson on Carico Lake (1975)
1975 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 1975, not today.
According to Branson (1975, p. 25), Carico Lake was formerly known as the Stone Cabin Mine.
Branson (1975, p. 25) also recorded that some Carico Lake nuggets had a rough, knobby surface and were sold as "Seafoam."
From the Library: Lowry, Turquoise: The World Story of a Fascinating Gemstone (2010)
2010 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 2010, not today.
According to Lowry (2010, p. 136), August "Gus" Stenich, an elderly Austrian emigrant who owned a gold mine and several turquoise claims, one of which became Carico Lake, left everything he owned to his younger friend J. W. Edgar in a will written on a bread wrapper, which was eventually honored. [2] Lowry (2002, p. 57) tells the same story of the will on a bread wrapper. [4]
As of 2010, Lowry reported that Carico Lake owner Ernie Montoya said his mine
“produces up to two thousand pounds of turquoise in about five to six months worth of work for five to seven people.”
— Lowry (2010), p. 140 [2]
According to Lowry (2010, p. 141), Montoya put the cost of working Carico Lake with a D-9 bulldozer, backhoe, water truck, dump truck, hopper and several workers at about $5,000 a week. [2]
According to Lowry (2010, p. 233), stone tools show prehistoric mining in the Carico Lake Valley, the first recorded mining was in 1909, and August Stenich claimed the area in 1930 under the name Aurora. [2]
Lowry (2010) adds a caution about provenance:
“Much more of this area's turquoise production has been mined, marketed, and sold by multiple claim jumpers.”
— Lowry (2010), p. 234 [2]
According to Lowry (2010, p. 234), the area was also marketed as Stone Cabin, produced many colours of turquoise as well as the apple-green mineral faustite, and was owned as of 2010 by Ernie Montoya of Albuquerque. [2] Lowry (2002, pp. 41, 57) also lists Aurora and Stone Cabin as trade names for Carico Lake turquoise and describes faustite as an apple-green mineral found there. [4]
From the Library: Ryan & Chambless, Turquoise in America Part Two: 1910–1990 (2020)
2020 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 2020, not today.
Ryan & Chambless (2020) on the Aurora claim in the Carico Lake Valley:
“Aurora became the source for much of the green turquoise for which Crescent Valley is known—and marketed as Carico Lake.”
— Ryan & Chambless (2020), p. 69 [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 69), the first location they found for the Aurora was dated June 12, 1908, by John Rast. [3]
Ryan & Chambless (2020) tie the market name to its original claim:
“Though not in the Bullion district, the Aurora claim has obtained lasting fame under the marketing name of Carico Lake. Known for its distinctive green color, it is the definitive example for what we know as Crescent Valley green, including Orvil Jack and other claims.”
— Ryan & Chambless (2020), p. 125 [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 126), the 1910 census shows Gus Stenich living in Tenabo, Nevada, as a prospector; he located the Norma in December 1929 and the Aurora 1 and 2 on July 30, 1930, and worked the claim until his death in 1944, the year of his last proof of labor. [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 126), Dick Edgar held the Aurora and filed its assessment work from 1946 to 1952, and J. W. Edgar held it by 1955 and filed annually through 1967. [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 126), the census, draft and claim records spell the name Stenich, although Morrissey used Steinich, and the Aurora is not the same claim as the Stenich Mine near the old town of Gold Acres that Morrissey said Stenich located in 1929. [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 213), blue was the preferred colour through the 1970s, and green turquoise only became popular from the 1990s on. [3]
Ryan & Chambless (2020) on the stone itself:
“The Aurora claim has always produced primarily green with some blue. The highest grade is a bright green with matrix.”
— Ryan & Chambless (2020), p. 213 [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 213), J. W. Edgar kept ownership of the Aurora claim, although its turquoise of the period is closely associated with Elwood Wright, who worked the area; by 1978 Gary Mays held the claim, and his hold lasted until 1987. [3]
According to Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 213), just as Royston-district stone is sold as Royston, turquoise from the Aurora claims is known as Carico Lake after the valley, on the east front of the Shoshone range across from Red Mountain, and a small amount from adjacent claims has been sold as Stone Mountain. [3]
Barb Chaney recalled, in an interview published by Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 223), that in 1973-74 she and John Chaney flew to Nevada to buy natural turquoise, and bought Carico Lake from Elwood Wright. [3]
Ernie Montoya told Ryan & Chambless (2020):
“I bought the Aurora claim from Keith Taylor in 2001.”
— Ryan & Chambless (2020), p. 275 [3]
Ernie Montoya recalled, in an interview published by Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 275), that the mine now called Carico Lake was known as the Aurora claim, owned by August Stenich and then by Eddie Mauzy, who worked for J. W. Edgar; Montoya mined it heavily for the first couple of years after buying it, took a break, and was mining it again when he spoke to the authors. [3]
Ernie Montoya told Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 276) that Carico has very little chalk, that most of it is natural hard stone, and that he does not stabilize Carico at all. [3]
Ernie Montoya told Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 276) that Carico is worked as an open pit that has to be benched for safety, with regular MSHA and BLM inspections and a yearly Nevada water permit. [3]
Ernie Montoya told Ryan & Chambless (2020, p. 275) that he normally spent three hundred thousand to five hundred thousand dollars a year on fuel and equipment to keep his operations going, which is what made the turquoise expensive. [3]
From the Library: Lowry, Turquoise Unearthed: An Illustrated Guide (2002)
2002 primary source. Anything described as current here describes 2002, not today.
According to Lowry (2002, p. 57), J. W. Edgar was living in Colorado in the late 1920s when his brother wrote from Tonopah, Nevada, that he had seen turquoise all over the ground there; J. W. packed his pickup, headed west, and there met Gus Stenich, owner of the claims that became Carico Lake. [4]
As of 2002, Lowry (2002, p. 57) described Carico Lake as a relatively large, active mining district of several claims producing a variety of graded blue and green turquoise. [4]
Field Notes by Mateo James
Lowry describes the deposit clearly: "This area has produced many colors of turquoise as well as the apple green mineral faustite." Faustite was first formally identified as a mineral species in 1953, and Carico Lake is among its documented sources. Lowry (2002, p. 57) gives the same 1953 date and notes that faustite incorporates zinc rather than copper. [4] For collectors, this is significant: when you encounter vivid apple-green stone from this region, you are likely looking at something chemically distinct from standard blue-green copper-phosphate turquoise.
Prehistoric mining evidence — stone tools found in the Carico Lake Valley — establishes that this deposit was known and worked long before modern commercial operations. The first recorded mining activity dates to 1909. August Stenich claimed the area in 1930, naming it after his Austrian girlfriend Aurora — a naming story that Lowry preserves verbatim.
The mine's connection to Morenci adds an interesting chapter to its commercial history: "William 'Lucky' Brown and J. W. Edgar were mining turquoise at the Carico Lake Mine in Nevada when they received a letter that offered them the turquoise mining rights at Morenci." The offer pulled two experienced operators away from Carico Lake toward Arizona's copper country — where the turquoise found in porphyry copper deposits would become a famous source in its own right. As of Lowry's 2010 account, Ernie Montoya is the current owner.
Collector's Handbook
What to look for: Carico Lake's signature is apple-green to yellow-green stone — the faustite end of the color spectrum. Blue and blue-green stone is also documented from the deposit.
Recognition tells: Apple-green "turquoise" from the American Southwest should prompt a Carico Lake consideration. Faustite is genuinely distinct from copper-blue turquoise; both are legitimate gemstones with documented jewelry use.
Honest mine-status hedge: Lowry's 2010 account documents Ernie Montoya as owner. Current production details are not confirmed in primary sources beyond that date.
Related mine guides: Pages for Bisbee, Sleeping Beauty, Number Eight, Cerrillos, Royston, Kingman, Lander Blue, and Morenci mines are coming soon to this field guide.
I notice the Aurora record starts earlier in Ryan & Chambless (2020) than in Lowry. Lowry gives 1909 for the first recorded mining and has August Stenich claiming the area as Aurora in 1930, while Ryan & Chambless found an Aurora location dated June 12, 1908, filed by John Rast. A location and the start of mining are not the same event, so both dates stay on the page.
We strive for accuracy. This field guide entry is compiled from the published references cited below and is continuously updated with new information from the artists, their families, and the community. See something inaccurate, or hold documentation on this mine? Get in touch — corrections are welcomed and credited.
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References
- Lowry, Joe Dan. Turquoise: The World Story of a Fascinating Gemstone (2010).
- Branson, Oscar T. Turquoise: The Gem of the Centuries. Santa Fe: Treasure Chest Publications, 1975. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 1975.
- Lowry, Joe Dan, and Joe P. Lowry. Turquoise: The World Story of a Fascinating Gemstone. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith, 2010. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 2010.
- Ryan, Mike, II, and Philip Chambless. Turquoise in America, Part Two: 1910–1990. Callais Press, 2020. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 2020.
- Lowry, Joe Dan, and Joe P. Lowry. Turquoise Unearthed: An Illustrated Guide. Photography by Mark Nohl. Tucson, AZ: Rio Nuevo Publishers, 2002. Cited by printed page. Statements describe conditions as of 2002.
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