Among the Friends of Mineralogy (FM) activities it sponsors awards for best articles each calendar year in The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, Mineral News, and MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber Award). These awards are announced and presented each year at the February Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. This award was first created in 1981 for awarding best articles of 1980 for the Mineralogical Record only.
2024
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night presentation ceremony of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2024 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2023, The Mineralogical Record, “The Dry Gill Mine, Caldbeck, Allerdale, Cumbria, England” Volume 54, Issue 5 by Peter S. Burr and J. George Wilson.
- Best Article 2023, Rocks & Minerals, “Mastering the Art of Silicate Mineralogy” Volume 98, Issue 1 by Dr. Peter J. Heaney.
- Best Article 2023, Mineral News: The Mineral Collector’s Newsletter, “Maynard Bixby – Mining Expert, Mineral Dealer and Sharp Shooter” Volume 39, Issue 3 by Mark Ivan Jacobson.
2023
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2023 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2022, The Mineralogical Record, “History, mines, and minerals of the Mogok Stone Tract, Mandalay Division, Burma” Volume 53, Issue 1 by Thomas P. Moore, Mark H.F. Mauthner, and Wendell Wilson.
- Best Article 2022, Rocks & Minerals, “Connoisseur’s Choice: Malachite pseudomorphs after Azurite – Part 2: Milpillas, Mexico and other worldwide localities” Volume 97, Issue 6 by Peter Megaw, Evan A. Jones, Bruce Cairncross, and Malcolm Southwood.
- Best Article 2022, Mineral News: The Mineral Collector’s Newsletter, “The Majuba Hill Mine, Pershing County, Nevada: A source of superb secondary copper minerals” Volume 38, Issue 6 by Dan Evanich and Philippe Roth.
2022
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2022 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2021, The Mineralogical Record, “The Milpillas mine, Cuitaca, Sonora, Mexico” Volume 52, Issue 5 by Evan A. Jones, Peter M.K. Megaw.
- Best Article 2021, Rocks & Minerals, “Gold-Associated Minerals from the Collector’s Perspective” Volume 96, Issue 8 by Robert Cook.
- Best Article 2021, Mineral News: The Mineral Collector’s Newsletter, “The World of Minerals: The Romance of Emeralds” – part 1 and 2. Volume 37, Issue 3 & 4 by Vivien Gornitz.
2021
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2021 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2020, The Mineralogical Record, “Collecting the King of Kashmir Aquamarine”
Volume 51, Issue 6, pp. 755-779 by Daniel Trinchillo. - Best Article 2020, Rocks & Minerals, “Fluorite from the North Pennines Orefield”
Volume 95, Issue 4, pp. 306-345. by Jesse Fisher. - Best Article 2020, Mineral News: The Mineral Collector’s Newsletter, “A Mineralogical Game of Connecting the Dots” Volume 36, Issue 10, pp. 1,3,6-7,12-13,15 by Andrew D. Thompson.
2020
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2020 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2019, The Mineralogical Record, “The Almaden Mining District, Ciudad Real, Spain”, by Borja Sainz de Baranda Graf, Cesar Menor Salvan.
- Best Article 2019, Rocks & Minerals, “Minerals of the Kabwe (“Broken Hill”) Mine, Central Province, Zambia” by Malcolm Southwood, Bruce Cairncross, Mike S. Rumsey.
- Best Article 2019, Mineral News, “Albert Barnes Whitmire: Operator of the Crystal Gem Mines, Teller Colorado” by Mark Ivan Jacobson.
- Best Article 2019, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), “Pala Pink and Mesa Grande Mauve” by Ryan Bowling .
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, Mineral News, and MINERAL Monograph.
2019
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2019 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2018, The Mineralogical Record, Peter K. M. Megaw for “The Santa Eulalia Mining district, Chihuahua, Mexico,” v. 49, no. 1,p. 4- 184.
- Best Article 2018, Rocks & Minerals, Kenneth Bladh for “Crystal Systems: A Qualitative Visual Guide,” v. 93, no. 1, p. 12-20.
- Best Article 2018, Mineral News, Herwig Pelckmans for
“Malhmoodite Meanderings,” v. 34, no. 6, p. 1, 3, 15.
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, and Mineral News.
2018
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2018 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2017, The Mineralogical Record, Gunter Grundmann, Thomas P. Moore and Wendell E. Wilson – “St. Andreasberg, Western Harz Mountains, Niedersachsen, Germany,” May – June, v. 48, no. 3, p. 301-410.
- Best Article 2017, Rocks & Minerals, Eric Heinen De Carlo and Bryan Swoboda, Mineral localities in Hawaii,” May-June, v. 92, no. 3, p. 218-235.
- Best Article 2017, Mineral News, Mark Ivan Jacobson, “The Early History of the Himalaya pegmatite mine,” in 5 parts, v. 33, no. 1-5.
- Best Article 2017, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), Dr. Bram Janse, Geology of diamond, No. 19: Diamond – The Ultimate Gemstone, p. 11-23.
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, Mineral News, and MINERAL Monograph.
2017
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2017 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2016, The Mineralogical Record, Thomas P. Moore and Wendell E. Wilson – “The Emerald Mines of Columbia”
- Best Article 2016, Rocks & Minerals, Rick Dillhoff and Joe George – “The Purple Hope Claim, Green Ridge, Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River, King County, Washington”
- Best Article 2016, Mineral News, Lance E. Kearns, Betsy S. Martin, and Michael A. Wise – “Mineral Discoveries at the Morefield pegmatite of Amelia, Virginia”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, and Mineral News.
2016
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2016 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2015, The Mineralogical Record, Andreas Massanek, Dirk Sandmann, and Gunther Neumeier – “The Freiberg Mining District, Saxony, Germany”
- Best Article 2015, Rocks & Minerals, David London – “Reading Pegmatites: What Beryl Says”
- Best Article 2015, Mineral News, Robert Werner – “The 50’s Uranium Boom: The Winners”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, and Mineral News.
2015
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2015 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2014, The Mineralogical Record, Thomas P. Moore and Rob M. Woodside – “The Sar-e-Sang Lapis Mines”
- Best Article 2014, Rocks & Minerals, John I. Koivula and Elise A. Skalwold – “Microworld of Diamonds: Images from Earth’s Mantle”
- Best Article 2014, Mineral News, Frank Lutwerk-Dudas – “Tin and Tungsten Minerals from Butte, Montana”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, and Mineral News.
2014
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2013 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2013, The Mineralogical Record, Steffen Jahn and Rainer Bode – “The Touissit – Bou Beker mining district, Morocco”
- Best Article 2013, Rocks & Minerals, Jesse Fisher, Ross Lillie, and John Rakovan, – “Fluorite in Mississippi Valley-type Deposits”
- Best Article 2013, Mineral News, Mark Jacobson, – “Walter Brown Smith (1858-1939) – Pioneer Colorado Mineralogist-Geologist”
- Best Article 2013, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), John Rakovan and Glenn A. Waychunas – “Color and Luminescence in Apatite”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, MINERAL Monograph, and Mineral News.
2013
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2013 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2012, The Mineralogical Record, Renato Pagano and Wendell Wilson – “The Sulfur Mines of Sicily”
- Best Article 2012, Rocks & Minerals, Tom Rosemeyer, – “Copper-banded Agates from the Kearsarge Copper-bearing Amygdaloidal Lode, Houghton County, Michigan”
- Best Article 2012, Mineral News, Igor Pekov, Anthony Nikischer, Martin Jensen, and Joseph Leising, – “Whitecapsite: The Story of a New Mineral Species from Nevada”
- Best Article 2012, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), Ryan Bowling – “Blue Flash and Red Fire: Mining Jacksons Crossroads Amethyst”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, MINERAL Monograph, and Mineral News.
2012
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2012 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2011, The Mineralogical Record, Berthold Ottens, – “The Yaogangxian Mine”
- Best Article 2011, Rocks & Minerals, Tomasz Praszkier, – “Morocco Tea and Minerals”
- Best Article 2011, Mineral News, Dudley Blauwet – “The Absolute, Truly Ultimate Trip from Hell in Several Parts”
- Best Article 2011, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), Dudley Blauwet – “On the Topaz Trail”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, MINERAL Monograph, and Mineral News.
2011
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2011 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2010, The Mineralogical Record, Tom Moore, – “Alpine Pink Fluorite”
- Best Article 2010, Rocks & Minerals, László Horvath and Elsa Pfenninger-Horváth, – “Mineralogy of the Alpine-type Fissures and Talc Deposit at Saint-Pierre de Broughton, Quebec, Canada”
- Best Article 2010, Mineral News, Jessica Simonoff and Lance Kearns – “Skeletal Galena from Madan, Bulgaria – Natural or Fake”
- Best Article 2010, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), Peter Megaw – “Geology and Genesis of (Most) Collectable Smithsonite”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, MINERAL Monograph, and Mineral News.
2010
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2011 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2009, The Mineralogical Record, Rock Currier, – “About Mineral Collecting”
- Best Article 2009, Rocks & Minerals, John Betts, – “The Minerals of New York.”
- Best Article 2009, Mineral News, Martin Jensen – “Mineralogy of the Taogangxian Mine, Hunan Province, China”
- Best Article 2009, MINERAL Monograph (Werner Lieber award), Jaroslav Hyrsl and Alfredo Petrov – “Llallagua: A Mineralogical Paradise”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, MINERAL Monograph, and Mineral News.
2009
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2009 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2008, The Mineralogical Record, D. London, – “Barite Roses of Oklahoma”, v. 39, n. 4
- Best Article 2008, Rocks & Minerals, J. Marty and W. Wise, – “Minerals from the Hidden Treasure and other mines in the Ophir District, Tooele County, Utah”, v. 83, n. 1
- Best Article 2008, Mineral News, J. Rumrill – “Splitters vs. Lumpers and their influence on species creation” v. 24, n. 3
- Best Article 2008, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), P. Powhat – “The Garnet Group: fifteen species, endless variety” (No. 9 – Garnet).
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, extraLapis English, and Mineral News.
2008
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2008 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2007, The Mineralogical Record, G. Favreau, J.E. Dietrich, N. Meisser, J. Brugger, L. Ait Hadddouch and L. Maacha – “Famous Mineral Localities: Bou Azzer, Morocco”, v.38, n. 5 p. 338
- Best Article 2007, Rocks & Minerals, S.M. Carlson, G.W. Robinson, M.J. Elder, J.A. Jaszczcak, and T.J. Bornhorst – “Greenockite and Associated Uranium-Vanadium Minerals from the Huron River Uranium Prospect, Baraga County, Michigan”, v. 82, n. 4, p. 298; (This was a tough call because there were so many fine articles to choose from.)
- Best Article 2007, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), M. Weibel – “Rainbows, Harlequins and Pins Afire: Play of Color in Opal” (No. 10 – Opal, p. 14)
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presented a check for $200 to each of the magazines, The Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, and extraLapis English.
2007
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2007 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2006, Rocks & Minerals, Mark Mauthner and Carl Francis – “Gold Crystal Localities of British Columbia, Canada”
- Best Article 2006, The Mineralogical Record, Bruce Cairncross & Uli Bahmann – for the “Erongo” issue.
- Best Article 2006, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), Ross Lillie – “The Great Southern Illinois Fluorspar Deposits”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, the Mineralogical Record, and extraLapis English each a check for $200.
2006
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2006 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2005, Rocks & Minerals, Martin Jensen – “Fluorite from the Xianghualing Polymetallic Ore Field, Hunan Province, China” (v. 80, n. 1, p. 32-38)
- Best Article 2005, The Mineralogical Record, Berthold Ottens and Guanghua Liu – for a collection of articles on Chinese mineral localities (v.36, n.1, p. 4-80, the “China” issue)
- Best Article 2005, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), Frederico Pezzotta – “The Italian Island of Elba – A Mineralogical Jewel in the Tuscan Archipelago”
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, the Mineralogical Record, and extraLapis English each a check for $200.
2005
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2005 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 2004, The Mineralogical Record, Doug C. Toland – Famous Mineral Localities: Green Monster Mountain, Prince of Wales Island, Alaska (v. 35, n. 5, p. 383-404, 419-420)
- Best Article 2004, Rocks & Minerals, Jesse Fisher – Fluorite from the Northern Pennines Orefield, England (v. 79, n. 6, p. 378-398)
- Best Article 2004, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), Herb Obodda – Opening Pakistan’s Mineral Market (No. 6 – Pakistan – Minerals, Mountains, & Majesty)
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, the Mineralogical Record, and extraLapis English each a check for $200.
2004
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2004 Tucson Show for articles published in 2003 were:
- Best Article 2003, Rocks & Minerals, Tom Rosemeyer — History and mineralogy of the Indiana mine, Ontonagan County, Michigan (v. 78, n. 5, p. 336 – 346)
- Best Article 2003, The Mineralogical Record, Thomas P. Moore and Peter K. M. Megaw – Famous mineral localities – The Ojuela Mine, Mapimi, Durango, Mexico (v.34, n. 5, p. 4- 91)
- Best Article 2003, extraLapis English (Werner Lieber Award), Rupert Hochleitner and Terry Huizing —
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, the Mineralogical Record, and extraLapis English each a check for $200.
2003
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2003 Tucson Show for articles published in 2002 were:
- Best Article 2002, The Mineralogical Record, Jesse Fisher – Gem and rare -element pegmatites of southern California (v. 33, n. 5, p. 363 – 407)
- Best Article 2002, Rocks & Minerals, Daniel E. Kile – Occurrence and genesis of thunder eggs containing plume and moss agate from the Del Norte area, Saguache County, Colorado (v. 77, n. 4, p. 252-268)
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, and the Mineralogical Record each a check for $200.
2002
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2002 Tucson Show for articles published in 2001 were:
- Best Article 2001, The Mineralogical Record, “Val Graveglia Manganese District, Liguria, Italy”
by Renato Pagano, Marco Marchesini, (v. 32, n.5)
- Best Article 2001, Rocks & Minerals. The award this year went to the continuing article series by Robert C. Cook entitled “Connoisseur’s choice,” specializing in a particular species from one locality and then summarizing all prominent world-wide localities for that species.
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, and the Mineralogical Record each a check for $200
2001
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2001 Tucson Show for articles published in 2000 were:
- Best Article 2000, The Mineralogical Record, Henderson, William, A., Jr., R. Peter Richards, and Donald G. Howard. 2000. Elongated twins of sodalite and other isometric minerals. Mineralogical Record, v. 31.
- Best Article 2000, Rocks & Minerals,Raines, Ed, 2000a. A historical overview of the Telluride District, San Miguel county, Colorado and the Smuggler Union and associate mines and veins of Marshal Basin, Part 1. Rocks and Minerals, v. 75, no. 5, p. 318-343
Raines, Ed. 2000b. The mineralogy, geology and mining history of the Telluride District, San Miguel county, Colorado, Other mines and veins of Marshall Basin and the mines and veins of Coronet, Savage, and Ingram Basins. Part 2. Rocks and Minerals, v. 75, no. 6, p. 378-401.
In conjunction with the Best Article awards, FM presents to Rocks & Minerals, and the Mineralogical Record each a check for $200
2000
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 2000 Tucson Show for articles published in 1999 were:
- Best Article 1999, The Mineralogical Record, C. Jones, J. K. Jones and G. LaBerge for The Flambeau Mine, Ladysmith, Wisconsin (v. 30, n. 2, p. 107-130).
- Best Article 1999, Rocks & Minerals, Tom Rosemeyer for The History, Geology, and Mineralogy of the White Pine Mine, Ontonagon, Michigan (v. 74, n. 3, p. 160-175).
1999
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 1999 Tucson Show for articles published in 1998 were:
- Best Article 1998, The Mineralogical Record, Thomas Moore, Bryan K. Lees, Karen J. Wenrich, Steve Voynick, Jack A. Murphy, James Hurlbut, T. James Reynolds, Regina aumente-Modreski, Dean Misantoni, and Miles L. Silberman for The Sweet Home Mine, Park County, Colorado issue (v. 29, n. 4, p. 1-153).
- Best Article 1998, Rocks & Minerals, Jesse Fisher, Eugene E. Foord, and Garth A. Bricker for The Geology, Mineralogy, and History of the Himalaya mine, Mesa Grande, San Diego County, California (v. 73, n. 3, p. 156-180).
1998
The Friends of Mineralogy presented the awards at the Saturday night banquet of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show®. The winners at the 1998 Tucson Show for articles published in 1997 were:
- Best Article 1997, The Mineralogical Record, Alan Goldstein for The Kentucky -Illinois Fluorite District (v. 28, n. 1, p. 3-49).
- Best Article 1997, Rocks & Minerals, Ed Raines for Colorado Gold: Part 1 – The Discovery, Mining History, Geology, and Specimen Mineralogy of Selected Occurrrences in the Front Range (v. 72, n. 4, p. 218-239) and Colorado Gold: Part 2 – The Discovery, Mining History, Geology, and Specimen Mineralogy of Selected Occurrrences in Central Colorado and the San Juans (v. 72, n. 5, p. 304-320).
1997
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1996. The winners at the 1997 Tucson Show for the best articles were:
- Best Article 1996, The Mineralogical Record, Mirjan Zorz, The hyalophane occurrence at Zagradski Potok near Busovaca, Bosnia and Hercegovina.
- Best Article 1996, Rocks & Minerals, Peter Modreski and Thomas Michaski, Colorado Topaz.
1996
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1995. The winners at the 1996 Tucson Show were:
- Best Article 1995, The Mineralogical Record, Michael Menzies, Mineralogy, geology, and ocurrence of Topaz. January-February
- Best Article 1995, Rocks & Minerals, Susan Erickson, Only a Calcite?!
1992
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1991. This is the first year that Rocks & Minerals magazine was added to the best articles of the past year awards.
- Best Article 1991, The Mineralogical Record, K. L. Von Bezing, R. D. Dixon, D. Pohl, and G. Cavallo. The Kalahari manganese field: An update.
- Best Article 1991, Rocks & Minerals, Daniel E, Kile, Peter Modreski, and Dianne L. Kile, Colorado Quartz: Occurrence and discovery,
1991
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1990.
- Best Article 1990, The Mineralogical Record, Laszlo Horvath and Robert A. Gault. The Mineralogy of Mont Saint Hilaire, Quebec. v.
1990
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1989. This was the start of also presenting a $200 check to the magazine.
- Best Article 1989, The Mineralogical Record, G. Gautier, A. Francois, M. Deliens, and P. Periet. Famous Mineral Localities: The Uranium deposits of Shaba Region, Zaire, v. , no. 4, p. 265-288.
1988
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1987.
- Best Article 1987, The Mineralogical Record, Marco Franzini, Giovanni Braci, and Domenico Dalena, Minerals of the Carrera Marble, Italy, July-August, v. 18, no. 4, p. 263-296.
1987
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1986.
- Best Article 1986, The Mineralogical Record, Thomas Campbell and Roberts, Phosphates minerals from the Tip Top Mines, Black Hills, South Dakota.
1985
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1984. The granting of lifetime membership to the Mineralogical Record was terminated in 1984 and replaced in 1985 of providing certificates of award to the winners and a donation to the Mineralogical Record in the winners name of $100. All previous winners were supposed to be given certificates of award also.
- Best Article 1984, The Mineralogical Record, George W. Robinson and Steven C. Chamberlain, The Sterling mine, Antwerp, New York.
1984
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1983. Each author was given a credit of $250, for a subscription to the Mineralogical Record.
- Best Article 1983, The Mineralogical Record, W. Jim Thomas and R. B. Gibbs, Famous Mineral localities; The New Cornellia Mine, Ajo, Arizona, September-October, v. 14, no. 5, p. 283-298.
1983
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1982.
- Best Article 1982, The Mineralogical Record, Robert King, the Boltsburn Mine,
1982
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1981.
- Best Article 1981, The Mineralogical Record, Richard Graeme, “Bisbee, Arizona. September-October 1981, v. 12, no. 5, p. .
1981
The Friends of Mineralogy announced the award at the FM National board meeting in February for an article published in 1980. This was the first best article of the year award ever:
- Best Article 1980, The Mineralogical Record, Richard Bideaux, “Famous Mineral Localities: Tiger, Arizona. May-June 1980, v. 11, no. 3, p. 155-181.