CANTON -- The St. Lawrence County Rock & Mineral Club announces that their 53rd annual Gem & Mineral Show & Swap will be held at the Canton Pavilion, 90 Lincoln St. on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 24 and 25.

Admission is $2 for adults; children 12 and under are admitted free.

This show offers something for everyone: handcrafted jewelry made with precious and semi-precious stones for the jewelry lover, gemstone beads, jewelry making supplies, free lessons for the crafter, museum quality crystals, fossils, mineral specimens for the nature lover and art collector, handcrafted gift items, free mineral kits for the kids, mineral collecting trips to some of St. Lawrence County's famous rock-hunting sites for the serious and novice rockhound alike, fun and fellowship for rockhounds from all over the Northeast, and a different type of shopping experience for the general public.

A specially featured mineral identification table is available for those bringing unknown rock or mineral specimens along with them.

Dozens of collectors from several Northeastern states and Southeastern Canadian provinces will be set up for selling starting Saturday at 9 a.m. They’ll offer part of their extensive collections for sale to the public on Saturday and Sunday. You’ll be able to purchase chances to win a large Brazilian amethyst cathedral for $1 per ticket or six for $5. The winning ticket will be drawn on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

A fluorescent, “glow in the dark” mineral hunt for kids will take place after dark on Friday, Aug. 23 in the evening. This popular event is free to children 12 and younger. Children will be able to borrow a portable black light to search for samples of brightly colored fluorescent minerals and keep all of the minerals that they find.

Specially featured this year are free wire-wrapping lessons. Dave Millis, from Pennsylvania, has been a vendor at the show for several years. He is well known for his gem trees and wire-wrapped jewelry. Millis has offered to give free demonstrations to anyone who wants to learn his craft on Sunday of the show.

The food concession will be open Saturday and Sunday, featuring hamburgers, hot dogs, drinks, chips, fries, etc.

At 5 p.m. on Saturday there’s an auction of donated mineral specimens and other items of interest to rockhounds. It’s held at the conclusion of Saturday’s sales, starting at 5 pm.

Anyone interested in swapping and/or selling gems, jewelry, rocks, minerals, fossils, etc, may reserve a space for a nominal fee. (Application forms and fee schedule are posted on the club’s website, www.StLawrenceCountyMineralClub.org)

Guided field trips will go to Power’s farm, renowned location for black tourmaline and quartz crystals on Saturday, and to the Bush farm, collecting location for brown tourmaline and tremolite on Sunday, leaving at 9 a.m. The fee for collecting at each of these locations is $5 per day.

The Canton Pavilion has an extensive parking area and is located on the banks of the Grasse River with convenient walking trails and benches, and a playground for children.

For more information, check the club’s website at www.StLawrenceCountyMineralClub.org .

Or contact club president Bill deLorraine at 315-287-4652, or wdellie@gmail.com. Proceeds from events help sponsor mineralogy scholarships at SUNY Potsdam and St. Lawrence University, and the kids’ fluorescent mineral hunt.