Page 8 • DEPOE BAY BEACON • May 13, 2005 WOODMARKS AND PARTNERS CORNER SUNSTONE MARKET!

By RICK BEASLEY used the transparent, glittering Of The Beacon gems as trading stones and to DEPOE BAY — A lucra- enhance their medicine tive gravel mining operation wheels, sacred bundles and that looks like scenes from burial sites. In 1992, major the hit HBO TV show jewelers H. Stern and Tiffany Deadwood has struck pay & Co. added the Oregon gem dirt for the Woodmark fam- to their lines, calling it ily and their partners! American Sunstone. Now, John and his wife Talley John and his partners are dig- Woodmark are longtime busi- ging the stone from the earth ness operators and downtown and cutting it for sale to the property developers. Their far- domestic and international flung enterprises include the jewelry markets. Blue Heron and Silver Heron “We’re getting ready to go galleries in Depoe Bay, mining again,” said John, who Superfast Cash in Lincoln operates the claim out of a City, a jewelry store in Gold Rush-style camp with Portland, a pizza parlor in canvas tents and Dutch ovens. Bandon and a winery in “We have 20 retail outlets now California. including casinos, and 5,000 Two years ago John part- strands of beads. We’re selling nered with Talley, big-game wholesale, retail and in bulk. hunting partner Bruce Moore At our Portland store we have PARTNERS and family provide most of the elbow grease at The Ponderosa Mine, located and a handful of other hired a fulltime jeweler to deep in the Ochoco Natl. forest 40 miles from the nearest town. The open mining is done by investors to form Desert Sun mount stones and produce hand, shovel and pic axe. Gravel is then siften through mesh screens. Oregon is the only Mining & Gems. The compa- custom mounts. The market place in the world that produces gem-quality sunstones, and The Ponderosa sits atop the ny’s purpose was to acquire for Oregon Sunstone is largest known vein of Oregon Sunstone in the world. and exploit a Southeastern exploding.” Oregon mining claim deep in Open mining in the lava The Ponderosa deposit was double for imperial topaz.” faceted deep red stone weigh- the Ochoco Natl. Forest flows is hard work, but John, discovered in the summer of In 1985, miners unearthed a ing 10.78 carats. It was named known as The Ponderosa his sons Clay and Wade, 1980 when a logging opera- Mine, the world’s largest pro- Talley, Burce and company tion cut roads through the area ducer of the premier gem- toil with grins on their faces. and cowboys running range quality labradorite. The muted grinding of their cattle discovered clear crystals Oregonians may recognize shovels and the swish of grav- on the surface. Gem brokers the multi-colored gem as el hitting the sorting screens is Larry Gray and Chris Oregon Sunstone, the state’s punctuated by the victorious Johnston first worked the official gemstone since 1987. yell announcing another rich claim, the third known deposit Formed and crystallized in discovery. It is exciting, invig- of Sunstone in Oregon. As ancient volcanic flows, orating work in beautiful mining activities continued it Oregon Sunstone is unique country, John said. became obvious that the among gem feldspars due to Aside from its stunning Ponderosa produced the the “Schiller Phenomenon” beauty, market forces are driv- widest range of colors in caused by millions of micro- ing the popularity and price of labradorite feldspar ever dis- scopic copper platelets found Oregon Sunstone and other covered. Oregon Sunstone in each stone. gemstones. Many custom jew- comes in all shades of the rain- “The Schiller makes the elers favor colored stones bow except blue, although col- stone appear to glow with its because the margins in dia- ors of red and green are the own internal light source,” monds are so thin. But most sought after and com- said Talley, the mining compa- reserves of many popular mand the highest prices. ny’s vice-president of market- stones are diminishing. “At its best, the red facet- ing. “Oregon Sunstones retain “Tanzanite will be com- grade material from the this glow when viewed from a pletely depleted by the year Ponderosa Mine is as fine a great distance or even by 2020,” said John. “The Red color as the finest ruby or red starlight.” Barrel of Colorado is closed spinel from Burma,” wrote Sunstones are encountered out. Emeralds, sapphires and author Chris Johnston in a in India, Russia, Finland and rubies are the same way — the leading gem industry periodi- Norway, but only in Oregon is ancient mines are being cal. “The blue greens are like OREGON SUNSTONES are brisk sellers at the Blue the stone found of gemstone depleted. All colored stones emeralds, the gray greens like Heron Gallery in Depoe Bay. Above, gift store owner and quality. Native Americans have a finite supply.” green diamonds, and the mining magnate John Wookmark displays ome dazzling peaches and orange roses can stones that will be set into custom-made jewelry. Page 9 • DEPOE BAY BEACON • May 13, 2005 the Ponderosa Queen and the Oregon Sunstone. She and carat size. Prices range caused such a sensation that realized it takes a lot of from $20 to $2,500 per carat the Oregon legislature adopted money. A lot have tried and for loose stones. Prices for fin- the rare labradorite as the offi- not many have been very suc- ished jewelery dpends on the cial state gemstone. cessful.” quality of the stone and the In Sept., 1998 Janus Locally, Oregon Sunstones setting. The best designers in International announced its can be found at the Blue the country are using our sun- intention to buy the mine for Heron in Depoe Bay. stone to produce jewelry sell- $8.5 million. Based on geo- Scribbles, a gift and card store ing in the tens of thousands of logical surveys, the company at the upscale Salishan Mall, dollars per piece. Paula estimated the claim would features Lori Green Originals Crevoshay, who has designed produce $100 million worth of with Ponderosa Mine sun- pieces for the Queen of Sunstone gems. But the deal stones. England, Carly Simon, Oprah, fell through, and the untimely Woodmoore & Gray and Elton John, is one of our death of Larry Gray soon Jewelers, 609 S.W. premier designers. Her pieces thereafter brought operations Washington in Portland, is a begin at $3,500 and exceed to a standstill. wholly owned subsidiary of $200,00. A former accountant and Desert Sun Mining managed The Portland Oregonian IRS auditor who bought the by retail V.P. Burce Moore. newspaper dispatched a Depoe Bay Aquarium in 1978, Burce explained how prices reporter to the swandk John is an astute entrepreneur are set: Portland store for a full page with a knack for identifying “Prices are determined by story with dazzling color pho- and developing business the three C’s — cut, clarity tos o Oregon Sunstones. The opportunities. Attuned to the gem markets through his gallery, John and his partners bought five Sunstone mining claims near Plush, Ore., a place too small for a map. SOME OF THE LARGER stones, left, found at The “Word got out that we were Ponderosa will be shipped to the international jewelry mar- interested in Oregon Sunstone ket, where they are cut in China and sold for up to $2,500 and we were contacted by per carat. A nice discovery, above, catches the eye of John Karen Gray, Larry Gray’s Woddmark and his son, Clay. widow,” John told the Beacon. “We went over and met her, article flooded the store with stones in any way with chemi- inspected the mine and new-found sunstone fans. cals, irrigation, heat or oiling. learned that she was very “Oregon Sunstone is an all- Created by nature — pure, interested in either selling out- natural gemstone,”said Talley. radiant, and simply beautiful. right or teaming-up with “Desert Sun Mining & Gem Oregonians should be very somebody who could market does not enhance its gem- proud of their state gem.”