Ever heard of Johnson’s rock shop in South Texas near Livingston Lake? I hadn’t. But now that we’ve been there, I am going to shout its praises to anyone traveling in the area.
Camping at Lake Livingston State Park
Camping at Lake Livingston State Park near Houston Texas is a perfect getaway for Spring break in Texas. It is just warm enough to be enjoyable, but not hot and humid. The lake is beautiful with woods and beaches to explore. Because it rained on our last day camping we packed up and headed to Johnsons Rock shop.
Getting to Johnson’s Rock Shop
While you won’t find a website or online shopping center for this unique shop, the GPS had no problems finding it.
The shop was a bit out of the way and I didn’t know what to expect. Honestly, I wondered if ANY shop would be worth the 30-minute drive. However, I was blown away with Johnson’s rock shop!
Although it’s 20 minutes from the downtown area of the town of Livingston, the address is still considered in Livingston. After driving into the boonies, your GPS will instruct you to turn onto a dirt road… and another… and another. Although there are signs for the rock shop, you may still feel like you are being led to an abandoned cabin in the woods. This is exactly the point!
When we pulled up, Mr. Johnson and his family were casually rocking on the wrap around front porch and gave us a friendly wave to invite us in. I imagine anyone on this abandoned road is coming to see what they offer.
What you’ll find at Johnson’s Rock shop
The home you see from the dirt road/parking lot is where the Johnsons live, but as you walk around the back of the home, you will see 9 distinct little log cabins. Each is filled with rocks, shells, coral, stone jewelry and music. Every possible mineral or stone you know {and many you’ve never heard of}can be found here.
All my kids of different ages (ages 2-10) were fascinated to see various colors, textures, and shapes of rock.
You will first encounter tables of unfinished stones. Grab a water bottle and spray them down to get a glimpse of their finished potential.
Peek your head into each of the cabins to find a taste more of gems, crystals and shells than you can imagine.
Mr. Johnson, Himself
We had the chance to talk with 93-year-old Mr. Johnson. He moved to this remote area to get away from it all when he was 50 and began attending and buying rocks at rock shows. When he would get home from the show he would build a log cabin to house his collection. One thing leads to another and bam! 9 cabins!
He said there was $5 millions dollars worth of rocks at his home.
He also writes songs and plays the guitar. Just ask him to accompany you to the Music cabin and he will play and sing for you. And introduce you to a photo of his late wife.
Shopping at Johnson’s Rock Shop
Everything was for sale. From 10 cents to 100s and 1000s of dollars, you will find so much to shop for. I gave my children a $3 limit and it took over an hour to center in on exactly what they wanted. There was so much for cheap prices so it was nice they had so many options (or not nice if you are in a hurry).
Have a Minecraft lover? My son found Bloodstone, snowflake obsidian, granite, and blue topaz… all included in the Minecraft game.
Have a fashionista? My daughter found earrings, bracelets and a ring to suit her fancy.
My toddler wanted all this shiny and smooth.
And mom? I wanted the trees made from tiny colorful stones to decorate my mantle.
Education at its finest
This shop is definitely worth a trip. It’s like a museum of science, only you can touch it all! a Geologist Dreamland. My kids were mildly interested in Rocks and Stones. After this trip, my daughter chose to do her Capstone research project in her gifted course on Crystals.
Having grandparents who dug for Geodes, took me to rock shows and collected Crystals, made me connect to this shop at my core. But even without a past connected to rocks, you just might find yourself in love with them after a trip to Johnson’s Rock Shop.
If you are touring around Texas, you’ll also want to check out Waco.
If you love Rocks and Science, the Perot museum in Dallas also has a level dedicated to Geology.
The Fort Worth Science Museum is also perfect for the Scientist in everyone. {coming soon}
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