MURFREESBORO, Ark. — Diamonds are forever and rare, but within a two-hour drive out of Little Rock sits the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro.
Their diamonds are the main attraction, as for more than 50 years, the state park has drawn people from all over the world.
"There's nowhere else to go diamond hunting," said Caleb Howell, Crate of Diamonds State Park superintendent. "This is the only diamond mine or diamond soil where the diamonds naturally occur... people can come and search and find their own diamond."
The Crater of Diamonds State Park is just as rare as the gems beneath its surface.
While it's a busy job, Howell said it's worth it as he considered himself an ambassador for people worldwide.
"What I love the most about it is the diversity of people who come here," Howell said. "Just hearing their stories makes a very special connection."
Around 150,000 to 170,000 people visit Crater of Diamonds a year. With each visit comes a story that Howell will hold close.
"There's a husband whose wife lost her wedding ring, and he made it his mission... to build her one," Howell said. "He found that yellow diamond he was looking for, and now she has another wedding ring."
Howell described stories of people passing down their Arkansas diamonds in family wills. He said they hold onto it because of its rarity, not only of the diamond but also of how they got it.
“The diamond you find here, there's a good chance you're the first person that laid eyes on it," Howell said.
Sarah Reap is the park interpreter, and Waymon Cox is the state park's assistant superintendent. Each has claimed that the state park is unique.
"When you enter the search area, there's a sign that says you're becoming a part of history," Reap said. "That is a true statement."
Cox said the park itself is what’s so iconic.
"This is the only place we know of in North America, and possibly the whole world, where anybody can come and search for their own diamond and take that home in its original volcanic source," Cox said. "Different things and different levels of history happen here all the time."
The significant history that led to the state park began in the early 1900s.
“People kind of knew there was a weird type of soil out here, and they speculated that there might be diamonds out there," Reap said.
Geologists came to Murfreesboro because the soil resembled the diamond-bearing soil in South Africa.
While nothing came from their visit, the next significant change happened in 1906.
“A pig farmer who had owned this land, John Huddleston, found diamonds on his land and actually got those diamonds verified,” Reap said.
According to Reap, that discovery led to a diamond boom, much like a gold rush.
"For about 50 years, this area was mined commercially by different entities," Reap said. "Different people owned different portions of the land."
In the years following, different portions would have to be sold away by the square foot. With a field stretching 37.5 acres in only the diamond-bearing portion, it was not an easy feat.
However, it was a turning point in getting closer to the park's creation.
"In 1972, the state did buy it from someone who tried to mine it commercially," Reap said. "Arkansas bought it and opened it to the public for good."
The Crater of Diamonds State Park has stood for 52 years and has produced the discovery of more than 35,000 diamonds.
In addition to the history of people who were the stepping stones to bringing the state park to fruition, the money maker is more than 30 acres of lamproite soil, the park's foundation.
Lamproite is the lava that erupted from a volcano in this area billions of years ago.
Howell said some Arkansans are clueless about the Crater of Diamonds State Park, much less that there used to be a volcano where it stands today.
That’s how Cox said the state park gets its namesake and how diamonds are on half of the crater today.
"The entire crater is more than 80 acres, but only 37.5 acres are diamond bearing," Cox said. "Most geologists believe that the first eruption out of this volcanic pipe was the largest and one that brought the most diamonds up with it."
As Cox explained, lava and ash that fell back into the crater carried diamonds with them, and today, the search area includes diamonds.
Historic diamonds have come from this lamproite soil like the largest diamond to ever come from the park.
“The Uncle Sam diamond is the largest diamond to be found in North America,” Reap said. “The Uncle Sam was a more than 40-carat diamond.”
Visitors can see its location marked with a memorial shovel, as the park does with the other significant diamonds.
Another iconic gemstone is the Esperanza—the nearly nine-carat diamond that Howell and Cox inspected themselves.
"Waymon Cox handed me the diamond, and I couldn’t believe it; here we have this beautiful white diamond,” Howell said. “We had to take six pictures of it to get the entire diamond through the microscope."
Most diamonds found will be a fraction of the Esperanza’s size.
However, Howell said people still ask about the best ways to be successful in their dig.
Good news: The park does half the work by plowing the soil, but Howell said a plow and rain make for the most extraordinary conditions.
Howell also advised visitors to monitor their website to find their diamond digging processes to help in a dig. Most importantly, he said to keep the time of year in mind as well, as in the summer months, Arkansas and the diamond-mining area get hot and humid.
While not everyone will walk away with a diamond after their search, Howell said the park averages anywhere from 700 to 800 found diamonds a year.
“It's better than the lottery, but it's still not the greatest,” Howell said. “Come for the adventure. That's what this is about.”
The excitement around the park boils down to the rarity of the Crater of Diamonds State Park.
Cox encouraged anyone to come and dig at the park to find a diamond, or rather a memory, that lasts forever.
“Anyone can go to a lake or a mountain, but there's only one diamond mine, and that's right here in Arkansas,” Cox said.
The state park is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., while the diamond searching area closes at 4 p.m.
How much does it cost to search for diamonds?
- Adults: $15
- Children aged 6-12: $7
- Children under six years old can dig for free
For more information about the Crater of Diamonds State Park, please click here.