Living in a state as big as Texas means people get accustomed to splitting the state into various regions. But confusion easily arises when some regions acquire multiple names, and not everyone knows all the alternative titles of an area, even after living there for years. The Central Mineral Region is just one of the many regions in Texas that no longer is well-known by that name. The title explains the natural resources found there, but it does not give a complete picture what you can find in the area.
Nature
What is the Central Mineral Region in the Texas Hill Country?
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Origins of the Name
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
The Central Mineral Region is an older name for the area around Llano, Texas. This name comes from the rich mineral deposits found only in this portion of the state. Semi-precious gems and other economically important rocks are found beneath the ground here. These minerals come from the area’s long history of geological uplift and erosion. The diversity of the minerals found here and their amounts have given this area its name of the Central Mineral Region.
Minerals to Find There
Photo: Flickr/James St. John
Minerals found in this area include precious metals such as gold and copper and not-so-precious but important materials like talc and iron. While gold was only ever found in limited quantities at the Heath mine in the area, you can still find some topaz on private ranches in the Hill Country in Mason County. Perhaps the most commonly known rock associated with the area is pink granite, much of which is Town Mountain Granite, near Marble Falls. Before mining took it over, Town Mountain likely resembled the more popular granite dome of Enchanted Rock.
Also Known As…
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
You may be more familiar with the modern name of the Central Mineral Region, the Llano Uplift. This name refers to the higher land of the area compared to the rest of the Hill Country. In fact, this region is the only place in the Hill Country to find mountains, or at least what Texans call mountains. Another popular name for this part of the state is the Highland Lakes. Highland refers to the land’s higher elevation, and the lakes refer to the six major bodies of water created along the Colorado River. Boaters and tourists tend to refer to this region as the Highland Lakes rather than the Central Mineral Region or the Llano Uplift.
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