The Hendersonville Mineral Museum
Admission to this museum at 400 North Main St. is free, but volunteers raise money to keep it going by selling the rough looking stones that are guaranteed to contain a cluster of gems. Children who purchase a dull-looking rock for a nominal fee can then have it opened to reveal a natural treasure. In addition to stunning examples of gems and minerals - like a six-foot tall Brazilian amethyst - the museum has Indian artifacts, fossils, and a dinosaur egg nest. There are large petrified wood logs, replicas of the Hope diamond carved from zircon, and case after case of native gems and minerals of all colors, including ones that glow in the dark.
Larry Hauser, who founded the museum in 1997, is a knowledgeable and well-traveled “rock hound” whose personal collection is part of the museum and includes rare specimens from around the world. He opened the museum as a way to share his hobby, hoping to attract as many as 2,000 visitors a year. “Now about 30,000 visitors per year sign our guest book,” he reports, adding that the busiest week for the museum is during the Henderson County Apple Festival, one of North Carolina’s most vibrant small town celebrations. “That’s our big festival,” he explains. “We get lots of tourists coming through the door for that week, and we’re happy to have all the visitors.”
This is apple country, first and foremost. Hendersonville’s official Visitor Center even provides a list of 16 different “apple harvest dates”, so that you can mark your calendar and plan your pies around the many species of apples that grown on nearby farms.