Cave Creek Onyx

The Cave Creek mining district, one hundred and forty-four square miles, was known for gold, silver, and later “red gold” we know as copper. Early miners noticed ledges of beautiful jasper and onyx jutting from areas near the creek (Cave Creek), about twenty miles northeast of the town of Cave Creek. Onyx and jasper are forms of quartz. Early Eastern investors purchased the deposits and hauled the slabs to Phoenix in horse-drawn wagons; from there, sent to Los Angles by railroad for cutting and polishing. Cave Creek onyx was used to decorate buildings found at the Chicago World’s Fair (also known as the Columbian Exposition) in 1893. The White House received a gift from the Cave Creek mining district via the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce during the Coolidge administration (1923-1929). It was a beautiful vase made from Cave Creek onyx. The late Cave Creek historian Frances C. Carlson “believes it’s still at the White House.