Renton father and daughter find 'lucky diamond' at Arkansas diamond park
It took less than an hour for Dan Frederick, of Renton, Washington, and his daughter Lauren to spot a 2.03-carat white diamond on the side of a plowed furrow at Arkansas’s Crater of Diamonds State Park. The Fredericks arrived at Arkansas’s diamond site at 8 a.m. on Monday, October 3, 2016 and by 9 a.m. they were holding “The Lucky Diamond.”
The first time was the charm for the Fredericks. They’d never been to Crater of Diamonds State Park before. In fact, they traveled all the way from the West Coast based on what they found when they searched the Internet for “places to find gems.”
They found their gem near the Star of Arkansas diamond marker on the north end of the park’s 37.5-acre diamond search area. Dan Frederick noted that he spotted the diamond’s metallic shine on top of the ground about three feet away from where he was standing.
Park Interpreter Betty Coors noted, “Dan Frederick has proven, once again, that it is possible to find large, beautiful diamonds while surface searching. This is an example of a diamond that all park visitors dream of taking home.”
Larger diamonds are occasionally found on top of the search area by park visitors. Diamonds are a bit heavy for their size, and when rain washes dirt away, they are sometimes exposed to the surface. When the sun comes out, they sparkle and are easier to spot.
Dan and Lauren Frederick say they plan to keep their diamond. However, they haven’t said what they will do with it.
“My dad and I have always loved to hunt for gems; we’ve dug for sapphires and garnets and always search for agates when we’re on the Washington coast. Naturally, we had always wanted to go to Arkansas to dig for diamonds," Lauren said.
"As much as we have talked about the trip and planned it out, I think we’re still kind of in shock that we found something as big and beautiful as our 'Lucky Diamond.' When we first found the diamond we kept looking up pictures on the Internet to make sure it was real and kept guessing what the weight would be (my guess was closest!). We were so excited with our find that we actually walked around the park for another seven hours with the diamond in my dad’s pocket, trying to find another one. It really was the cherry on top of a fun and special trip with my dad. Finding the diamond will be one of my favorite memories, especially since my dad and I found it together.”
Coors noted, “The Lucky Diamond is pearly white in color. It appears to be a macle gem, a distinct triangular shape that results
when two diamond crystals share part of the same structure during formation deep within the earth.”
Most recent significant precipitation: September 23, 2016
Diamond finds for the weeks of September 18 & 25, 2016 (100 points = 1 carat):
September 18 – Kyle Sisson, Spearville, KS, 3 pt. white
September 19 – Mike Ellison, Kings Mountain, NC, 9 pt. white
September 21 – Colt Young, Mena, AR, 8 pt. brown
September 25 – T.J. Richardson, Greenwood, AR, 3 pt. yellow
September 26 – Roy King, Alvin, TX, 4 pt. white; Connie & Rusty Gray, Lesage, WV, 4 pt. white
September 27 – Connie & Rusty Gray, Lesage, WV, 23 pt. yellow
September 28 – Steve Allender, Vinton, IA, 3 pt. white
October 1 – Sarah Coleman, Atlanta, GA, 67 pt. white; Joey Barnett, Crossett, AR, 9 pt. yellow; Amber McCartney, Cypress, TX, 16 pt. white