King's Manassa Turquoise: Field Guide to Colorado's 'Lick Skillet' Mine
King's Manassa Turquoise: Field Guide to Colorado's 'Lick Skillet' Mine
King's Manassa turquoise comes from Pinon Mountain in Conejos County, Colorado, approximately thirteen miles south of Lajara and half a mile west of the Rio Grande. It is the only significant documented turquoise deposit in Colorado, and it carries one of the more memorable origin stories in American mining history — the family that found it came looking for gold.
Field Notes by Mateo James
Chambless preserves the origin story in detail (~lines 10207–10218): "According to Bill King, great grandson of J.P. King... came to Manassa in 1894 from North Carolina... came across indications of a prehistoric Indian turquoise... In 1895, he filed claims on the Lick Skillet, so named because the family was so poor they licked the skillet after every meal." Lowry's complementary account states the family "did not find much gold but they did find turquoise" — one of those clean historical ironies where the consolation prize became the main event.
The claims the King family worked included the Nellie Bly, Mexico, Arkansas, Last Chance, Lajara, and Sunset. Chambless describes the stone (~line 10270): "The mine produced handsome turquoise matrix stone with colors of dark to light blue and greenish-blue and continued to produce throughout the next decade and into the present day." The word "handsome" appears in the primary source — this is not an analyst's invention.
A 1916 USGS report documents that turquoise mined from this area was largely sold or traded to Native American buyers, establishing a direct historic connection between Manassa stone and Indigenous jewelry production. Whether specific pieces of Navajo or Pueblo jewelry contain Manassa turquoise is not always documented, but the trade relationship existed.
Collector's Handbook
What to look for: Dark to light blue and greenish-blue matrix stone. "Handsome" matrix is the primary descriptor in corpus sources — look for well-defined matrix patterns rather than plain pale material.
Recognition tells: Manassa is Colorado's documented turquoise deposit. Claims filed under the "King's Manassa" name cover the Nellie Bly, Mexico, Arkansas, Last Chance, Lajara, and Sunset claims.
Honest mine-status hedge: Chambless notes production continued "into the present day" as of his writing. Current operational status is not independently confirmed in available primary sources.
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.
References
- Lowry, Joe Dan. Turquoise: The World Story of a Fascinating Gemstone (2010). [Overview; King family history.]
- Chambless, Philip. The History of the American Turquoise Industry (~lines 10207–10218, 10270). [Primary source — substantial entry including Lick Skillet naming and stone character.]