The Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks and Minerals in Hillsboro, Oregon, houses a world-class collection recognized as the finest in the Pacific Northwest and one of the finest in the United States. Richard and Helen Rice constructed the building that would become the museum as their family home in 1952. The Museum building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places for its unique architectural style, natural stonework, and the extraordinary native Oregon woodwork found throughout the building.
In 2005, the museum opened what had originally been Richard Rice’s workshop as the Rudy Tschernich Northwest Mineral Gallery. This gallery focuses primarily on the mineral heritage of the Pacific Northwest.
Shown below is some of the barite which is on display. According to the Museum display:
“Barite is used for oil-drilling mud, hard finish in linoleum, slick magazine pages, and barium cocktails used for stomach x-rays.”
Oregon
Montana
Idaho
British Columbia
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