Where to Find Chert in Missouri

Missouri has 7 mapped collecting spots that report chert, spread across 6 counties. The largest share sits in Benton County County with 2 spots. 7 of the spots are on land mapped as publicly accessible.

Standout chert spots in Missouri

Hand-picked from the full list below, with the reason each one earns a trip.

Lincoln
Benton County County
Lincoln sits at the heart of the mozarkite country in Benton County, the source of Missouri's official state rock, a multicolored gem chert that weathers out of the Mississippian Burlington and Warsaw limestones. Freshly broken cobbles show red, pink, purple, and green banding against gray, and the town hosts an annual mozarkite festival built around the material. It is one of the few places in the country where this specific gem chert occurs in collectible quantity.
Warsaw
Benton County County
Warsaw anchors the southern end of the Benton County mozarkite belt and sits on the Harry S. Truman Reservoir, where falling lake levels expose chert and mozarkite cobbles along the shoreline. The same Burlington and Warsaw limestone weathering that supplies Lincoln also feeds gravels and lakeshores around Warsaw, yielding banded gem chert plus agate and ordinary chert. It is a second strong access point for the state rock, with miles of public shoreline to walk.
Elk River near Bee Bluff
McDonald County County
The Elk River in McDonald County is a clear, floatable Ozark stream whose gravel bars are packed with colorful Mississippian chert, including the locally prized blue and gray banded chert weathered from the surrounding Boone Formation. The river runs through Pineville and Noel with numerous public-access bars and ramps. It offers easy, family-friendly surface collecting away from the Tri-State mining district hazards.

Best counties for chert in Missouri

Ranked by the number of mapped chert spots. County links open the full rockhounding page for that county.

Benton County2 spots
Dade County1 spot
Hickory County1 spot
McDonald County1 spot
New Madrid County1 spot
Washington County1 spot

Every chert spot we track in Missouri

Sorted by county. Coordinates open in Google Maps.

Spot	County	Minerals	Coordinates	Access
LincolnBenton County Northeast 281	Benton County	Chalcedony Chert Mozarkite Galena Jasper	38.3830, -93.2318	Public
Warsaw	Benton County	Agate Chert Mozarkite	38.1868, -93.3821	Public
GreenfieldEast Dade 114	Dade County	Agate Chert Petrified Wood	37.4162, -93.8310	Public
HermitageEast Dallas Street	Hickory County	Chalcedony Chert	37.9435, -93.3081	Public
Elk River near Bee BluffMO E	McDonald County	Chert Blue Chert	36.6316, -94.1918	Public
DexterMO D	New Madrid County	Chert Blue Agate Gray Agate Pink Agate White Agate	36.6143, -89.9624	Public
Old MinesMO 21;MO 47	Washington County	Barite Calcite Galena Goethite Malachite Marcasite Pyrite Chert +1 more	38.0152, -90.7561	Public

Before you go

Read the chert identification guide so you know what a keeper looks like in the field: Chert in the encyclopedia.

Chert in Missouri FAQ

Where can you find chert in Missouri?+

The mapped spots concentrate in Benton County County, Dade County County, and Hickory County County. Every spot on this page appears on the map above with coordinates and access notes.

How many chert spots are mapped in Missouri?+

7 spots across 6 counties. The RockHoundR app keeps the same spots on an offline map with public land overlays, geology layers, and your saved finds.

Is it legal to collect chert in Missouri?+

Hand collecting of common rocks and minerals in small amounts for personal use is generally allowed on BLM and U.S. Forest Service land, with limits set by the local field office. National parks, most state parks, and tribal land are closed to collecting. 7 of the 7 mapped spots here sit on land marked public. Always confirm current rules with the managing agency before you dig.

Where else to find chert

More minerals to hunt in Missouri

Hunt chert in Missouri with the map in your pocket

RockHoundR puts these spots on an offline map with BLM and Forest Service overlays, geology layers, and a log for your finds.