Yogo Sapphire History

Little Blue Pebbles

When the forty-niners headed west in search for gold in the mid-19th century, few had their eyes on gemstones. During that time, America was not known for its gemstone production. As more and more people began mining for gold, gemstones would sometimes be found in the process. However, no significant gemstone discovery was found until the 1860s when gold mining operations began to spring up in Montana. The first major sapphire discovery in Montana was made in 1865 along the Missouri River. However, the discovery caused little excitement. Miners could not distinguish a valuable sapphire from a worthless look-alike. They were focused on gold. In addition, most of the sapphires found were low quality industrial grade or less valuable “fancies” (pink, green, clear, or yellow). During the late 1800s, sapphires were being found in several locations in Montana. By 1894, every deposit of gem quality sapphires had been discovered except one, and the last find was the greatest.

Montana Art

In the late 1880s, Yogo City was little more than a ghost town. The hundreds of people who had come to the town looking for gold had deserted it. Only about two dozen people remained. Yogo City had been one of the least productive areas for gold mining in all of Montana. It wasn’t until 1895, when Jake Hoover, came to the town looking for gold. Like the many miners before him, he noticed the tiny blue pebbles that settled down to the bottom of the gravel bed along with the gold. Unlike those before him, he didn’t toss them back into the water. Instead, he saved them. At the end of the season, he sent a cigar box full of these little blue pebbles to New York City to be evaluated by experts. The box eventually fell into the hands of gemologist Dr. George Frederick Kunz who identified the little blue pebbles as sapphires.

Dr. Kunz was intrigued with this new batch of sapphires. They were different than other sapphires that were coming out of Montana. While the other Montana mines produced a large quantity of less desirable colors, nearly every sapphire that came out of Yogo City had a highly sought after blue color. The color was even across the gem. In addition, the Yogo sapphires were virtually free of inclusions and other flaws. Dr. Kunz soon recognized these sapphires as the finest gems to be found in America. In the past, sapphires of this quality and color had been found only in Asia. Jake Hoover knew the significance of his discovery when Tiffany & Co. sent him a check for $3,750, a large amount of money in those days. Jake, a rough and tumble failed gold prospector had nothing but bad luck up until this time. Finally, he found something that could possibly make him rich. But would he take advantage of his discovery? Or would others take advantage of him? Find out in the book, Yogo: The Great American Sapphire.

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