Hunting for Petoskey stones? Tips and advice for rock hunters

Jillian Fellows, The Petoskey News-Review
·4 min read
This Petoskey stone was found in Bayfront Park in Petoskey.
This Petoskey stone was found in Bayfront Park in Petoskey.

PETOSKEY — Michigan is a rock hound’s paradise.

From the Leland Blue, a stone-like slag leftover from the iron ore and mining industry, to the glowing Yooperlite and Lake Superior agates found in the Upper Peninsula, Michigan is home to plenty of sought-after stones.

The most popular, however, is Michigan’s official state stone — the Petoskey stone.

Petoskey stones have a distinctive six-sided honeycomb pattern.
Petoskey stones have a distinctive six-sided honeycomb pattern.

Found most commonly along the Lake Michigan shoreline in the northwestern Lower Peninsula, Petoskey stones are actually a form of fossilized coral.

Each spring and summer, it’s common to spot people bent over on beaches as they search for the distinctive six-sided honeycomb pattern of Petoskey stones.

People hunt for Petoskey stones along the Petoskey waterfront.
People hunt for Petoskey stones along the Petoskey waterfront.

Perhaps the best place to look for Petoskey stones is in the city that bears the same name.

Both the stone and city get their names from the Odawa Chief Ignatius Petosega. If you’re looking for Petoskey stones, there are plenty of places along the waterfront and in nearby sand dunes, but downtown businesses are also filled to the brim with Petoskey stone products.

At Grandpa Shorter’s Gifts, a family-owned souvenir store that’s been in business since 1946, shoppers can find raw, unpolished Petoskey stones piled in barrels by the door. Polished stones can be bought by the bag. They’re carved into animals, the shape of Michigan and fashioned into jewelry. They’re made into door knobs, clocks and pretty much any other kind of tchotchke you could think of.

“We have snowmen made out of Petoskey stones, you name it,” said owner Jennifer Shorter.

These Petoskey stone magnets are available at Grandpa Shorter’s Gifts in Petoskey.
These Petoskey stone magnets are available at Grandpa Shorter’s Gifts in Petoskey.

Petoskey stones are a big business for local souvenir and art stores. Some people walk in just to purchase a stone.

“We have carried polished Petoskey stones basically since we opened,” Shorter said. “My grandfather had a little set-up in the basement and my cousins were in and polishing stones and selling them. We have customers who come in and they’re looking for that. They’ve heard about Petoskey stones. It’s unique to this area, they want that natural Michigan souvenir to take home.”

Petoskey stone products can be found in plenty of stores in downtown Petoskey.
Petoskey stone products can be found in plenty of stores in downtown Petoskey.

Shorter noted that local residents will also come in to buy Petoskey stone products because they want to share that special piece of their hometown with others.

“If they’re traveling, they want to take a Petoskey stone with them to give to the people that they’re going to see,” she said. “If they’re going abroad, maybe for a study abroad program, they might come in and buy 25 of them because they want to give them to all the people they’re going to meet and they want to share that really, truly unique thing from Petoskey.”

Petoskey stones are the Michigan state stone and a type of fossilized coral.
Petoskey stones are the Michigan state stone and a type of fossilized coral.

Buying and selling Petoskey stones comes in all shapes and sizes. Shorter said she sources stones for her store from a variety of people, ranging from local artisans to children who have found a handful at the beach.

“I have a variety of individuals who cut and polish stones to make jewelry or to make carvings or to make knives or other things,” she said. “I have kids who will go out and get small, unpolished Petoskey stones and they use that for the pocket money so I buy their stones from them.”

The Petoskey stone is Michigan's state stone.
The Petoskey stone is Michigan's state stone.

Common questions about Petoskey stones include where they can be found and how to identify them.

Experienced rock hunters will tell you it’s easier to spot the stones when wet, because when they’re dry it’s harder to see the six-sided pattern.

“We do encourage that they take water. That they spray stones or that they get out in the water and wade. We encourage people to look after a storm because the waves have pushed the rocks up so they can find them easier,” Shorter said. “I have a gravel driveway and I find Petoskey stones every day in my gravel. You can literally look down and you might find them.”

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Some people might confuse the Charlevoix stone, a similar type of fossilized coral, for a Petoskey stone at first.

“The Charlevoix stone is the much smaller, tighter pattern,” Shorter said. “So once you show it to someone they get it, that it is different.”

Fake Petoskey stones originating from overseas are circulating in online marketplaces.
Fake Petoskey stones originating from overseas are circulating in online marketplaces.

Shorter also warned about fake Petoskey stones circulating in online marketplaces that are manmade and come from overseas.

People should also be cautious about how much stone they harvest and where they take it from. It is against the law to remove more than 25 pounds of materials from state lands, a law that someone ran afoul of in 2015 when they removed a 93-pound Petoskey stone from Lake Michigan.

But, if people still have trouble finding the real deal, there are plenty of local stores stocked with Petoskey stones ready for customers.

— Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.  

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Hunting for Petoskey stones? Tips and advice for rock hunters