Greathouse Visitor Center Entrance, Black Diamond Mines

Black Diamond Mines Greathouse Visitor Center

Area Closure

The Greathouse Visitor Center and mines are Temporarily Closed. Please check back for updates on reopening dates. Mine tours are unavailable until further notice. Weather permitting, staff is available by the upper parking lot with park information and educational activities Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays 10am-2pm. Programs and walks are still being offered, please click VIEW EVENTS button in the Black Diamond Mines Naturalist Programs box below for details. Updated March 27, 2025.

Fees

Admission is free. Parking fee is $5 per vehicle on weekends and holidays (Visa/Master Card, cash or check only).

Hours

Sat. & Sun.: 10am-4pm
Friday: 10am-2pm

Address

5175 Somersville Road
(Somersville Road exit off Highway 4)
Antioch, CA 94509

Phone

(510) 544-2750

Venue Activities

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Kid friendly
Kid-Friendly

The Greathouse Visitor Center is located in Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve in an underground chamber excavated in the mid-1920s. View the workings of a 20th-century sand mine and learn about the lives of 19th-century coal and 20th-century sand miners. The center contains displays, photographs, and artifacts related to the park’s coal and sand mining eras.

Admission is free. Parking fee is $5 per vehicle on weekends and holidays (Visa/Master Card, cash or check only). Dogs are permitted on leash within the Visitor Center but not on Mine Tours.

For more information, call (510) 544-2750

Accessibility

The Greathouse Visitor Center is located ¼ mile past the upper parking lot along a partially paved, partially gravel trail with some incline. If you would like to request an accommodation to access the Visitor Center, experience exhibits and videos, shop in the gift store, or participate in a mine tour, please call ahead at (510) 544-2750. Please give at least 1-week advanced notice for accommodation requests.
The Greathouse Visitor Center is wheelchair accessible. There are also ADA-accessible restrooms and an accessible water fountain in the upper parking lot.

View programs/events at all visitor centers

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Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve

Black Diamond Mines Naturalist Programs

Join us for our monthly programs!