Thanks for the info. I, like just about everyone else on TN, am in Ohio.
Ohio does have gemstones. It has gold. It has oil. It has everything. But just not in the quantities to make it worth anyone's effort. There are a few places that have those buy a bucket and sift it yourself, then we charge you to cut the rough---those types of places, but not much in the wild. Not much of the good stuff. I haven't given up, though, and I've been asking around a lot lately, and if I get any leads, I'll post them.