USA > Illinois > Vermilion County > History of Vermilion County, Illinois : a tale of its evolution, settlement and progress for nearly a century, Volume I > Part 37
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THE CLAYS AND CLAY INDUSTRIES OF VERMILION COUNTY.
Compiled by F. W. Butterworth.
Although the use of clay for the manufacture of articles of utility or orna- ment is one of the oldest crafts of the world, yet the various operations connected with it have never yet been reduced to an exact science, and definite data as to character, accessibility, or methods of working, is very scarce.
Before proceeding to a description of the clays and clay industries of this county, it would probably be pertinent to give a little time to a brief description of clays in general.
It must be understood that the word clay is used in its broadest sense to designate any silicate of alumina from which ware of any description can be manufactured.
No really satisfactory classification has yet been proposed, but the following grouping is perhaps the best suited to general purposes, and this, therefore, is taken from the Geological Report of the State of Illinois, Bulletin No. 9, as adopted from Orton & Wheeler:
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION OF CLAYS.
-
Whiteware Clays.
Kaolin. China Clay. Ball Clay.
High Grade Clays.
Refractory Clays.
Plastic Fire Clay. Flint Clay. Refractory Shale.
Pottery Clays.
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
Vitrifying Clays.
Stoneware Clays and Shales. Paving-brick Clays and Shales. Sewer Pipe Clays and Shales. -
Roofing Tile Clays and Shales.
Brick Clays.
Terra Cotta Clays and Shales. Common Brick Clays and Shales. Drain Tile Clays and Shales.
Low Grade Clays. . .
Gumbo Clays. Loes and Adobe Clays.
Slip Clays. Fullers Earth.
This classification will perhaps be best understood by identifying the various kinds of clay with the wares they are best suited to produce.
Taking the first group of "High Grade Clays," all of the "Whiteware and Pottery Clays" are used to produce articles of comparatively light weight, where the cost of procuring the raw material is a very small factor in the total value of the article, and generally speaking are used in the manufacture of wares com- bining ornament and utility, such as art-ware of all descriptions, pottery, china- ware, porcelains, sanitary-ware, insulating material, etc.
Refractory Clays, as the name indicates, find their use in the making of wares of high fire and heat resisting qualities, such as fire brick, retorts, furnace, stove linings, etc.
The value of ware produced in the State of Illinois during the year 1908, (the last statistics available at this writing,) from the first group of clays was $1,008,638.00, but unfortunately Vermilion County contributed nothing to this, as up to date no so-called "High Grade Clays" have been discovered in the territory.
From the second group, called "Low Grade Clays," are produced those wares in which the cost of procuring the raw material is a large factor in determin- ing their value, as face, paving and common brick, sewer pipe, terra cotta, roof- ing tile, drain tile, etc.
The value of the products made from this group in the State of Illinois for 1908 was $9,084,338.00, and of this amount practically ten per cent was produced from Vermilion County; hence, although this group of clays is called "Low Grade," it is a fact that they are of more importance to a community than clays of higher grades and value per ton.
Referring to the classification, and having eliminated from consideration all of the so-called "High Grade Clays," because there are none available in this territory, modern practice, as applied to the location of clay plants, forces us to confine the discussion of this subject, as connected with Vermilion County, to "Vitrifying Clays" for the following reasons :
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
Slip-Clays and Fullers Earth are of comparitively slight value, and so far have not been found in this district.
Prior to 1890 practically all of the "Low Grade Clays" wares, such as brick, sewer pipe, terra cotta, etc., more especially brick, were made from Gumbo, Loes or Brick Clays. These being of late geological formation (Quaternary or Tertiary periods), the deposits are not uniform in quality, or of very great depth, hence the plants were of necessity small and scattered over a wide area.
Since the discovery, however, of the utility of the "Vitrifying Clays," con- sisting mostly of the shales and under-clays of the carboniferous period, a great change has been made in the industry. Because of the uniformity of these de- posits, and of their great depth, enormous supplies of raw material are avail- able close to the plants. Capital has, therefore, been able to concentrate and instead of a number of scattered, horse-power brick-yards, we find large plants, equpped with the best of appliances, using steam shovels for digging their ma- terial, and with all of the modern labor and fuel saving devices, as recommended by the best engineering practice.
Hence, although it is true that the Loes, Gumbo and Brick Clays are still being used to some extent, particularly in the Cook County region, it is still a fact that the product manufactured from them is very inferior, and it is doubt- ful if the modern Ceramist would recommend the investment of capital in a plant to work any thing except the "Vitrifying Clays" of the Carboniferous period, consisting of the shales above and the clays beneath the coal strata.
In considering, therefore, the Clays of Vermilion County, we can safely con- fine the discussion to the coal measure or caboniferous materials, and hence the geological section becomes of prime importance :
SKETCH OF GEOLOGICAL SECTION.
No. 1, Glacial deposits up to 200 feet, not workable.
No. 2, Workable shale 5 to 100 feet.
No. 3, No. 7 coal, 18 inches to 7 feet.
No. 4, A. Under-clay, not workable, 3 to 10 feet.
No. 5, Shale with lime-stone layers in places, 10 to 25 feet.
No. 6, No. 6 coal, I to 12 feet.
No. 7, B. Under-clay, not workable, 3 to 10 feet.
No. 8, Sand-stones and shale, 3 to 25 feet.
No. 9, Sandy shale, 20 to 40 feet.
No. 10, Blue argillacious shale, 200 feet.
GEOLOGICAL SECTION APPLYING TO VERMILION COUNTY, ILLINOIS.
Of the above No. I is of no interest to the clay industry, as it consists al- most entirely of gravels, sands, hardpans, and the kind of materials which could not possibly be worked into any clay products. In every instance No. I forms the stripping, which must be gotten rid of before any of the underlying materials can be worked.
In many instances, where Nos. 2 and 9 are available in the low grounds. bottoms and second-bottoms they are covered with a very heavy deposit of No.
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
I, and in no place in the county are any of the workable strata free from a more or less extensive over-burden of this glacial drift.
No. 2 is a plastic, blue, argillacious, red burning, shale, vitrifying at about 1,950 degrees F., with a very slight range between the point of vitrification and the point of fusion, making it a very dangerous shale to work. This stratum is valuable only for common building brick, and is being extensively used for this purpose by the Western Brick Company, at Danville, who are manufac- turing upwards of 250,000 daily.
At the particular point where this Company is producing, it varies from 20 to 35 feet in thickness, and it is very unusual to find it exceeling 50 feet in depth, except in and around Glenburn, where it attains its maximum of about 100 feet, including from 15 to 25 feet of solid sand-stone, which forms the top of the deposit.
The bottom 35 to 40 feet of this shale analyzes as follows:
ANALYSIS OF NO. 2.
Si O2
. 54.38
Al2 O3
21.61
Fe2 Og
7.55
Ca O
1.30
Mg O
2.34
Na2 O
2.24
K2 O
0.79
Moisture at 100° C ..
1.70
Loss on ignition, combined, H2 O and CO2. 7.84
99.75
Although this analysis compares favorably with some of the best paving brick shales of the country, yet the infusible sillica particles seem to be very fine in texture, making the burned clay body too brittle for this class of clay prod- ucts, and the range in temperature between the point of vitrification and the point of fusion being so small, renders this shale practically useless for sewer pipe, or any of the kindred wares.
The under-clay, No. 4, designated at "A," although of sufficient depth, is of exceedingly poor quality, is not refractory, and is impregnated with lime nodules, which of course would make it impractical for any purpose.
The No. 5 deposit is a dark, slaty shale, and forms the roof for the exten- sive mining operations of No. 6 coal. In nearly every instance this shale is mixed with layers of from two to twelve inches of limestone.
No. 7 is an under-clay, designated as "B." Although some better than No. 4, it is not sufficiently refractory to make it valuable for any fire-resisting ware, and has neither the strength nor color requisite for the manufacture of sewer pipe, light-colored brick, or for any of the products in which under-clays are usually used. Concretions of lime are often prevalent, making it a dangerous material for any purpose.
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
In almost every instance the first 20 feet of material under No. 7 deposit contains hard, bulky sandstone, too gritty to be worked in with the underlying shale, and with not sufficient weather-resisting properties to make it valuable as a building stone.
Quite a considerable quantity of this stratum has been quarried southeast of Danville and used for building stone, with, however, but indifferent results. The first action of the weather is to harden it, as is usual in sandstone, but after repeated freezing and thawing, disintegration commences.
The analysis of this sandstone is as follows :
ANALYSIS OF SANDSTONE NO. 8.
Si O2
68.24
Al2 O3
9.66
Fe2 O3
5.58
Ca O
5.50
Mg O
2.27
Loss on ignition
9.30
100.55
No. 9 is the most valuable, general purpose shale in the entire coal measures accessible in Vermilion County, but unfortunately, because of its location in the geological section, it is seldom found accessible, except with extraordinary heavy stripping, or by mining.
The analysis of the above is as follows :
ANALYSIS OF NO. 9.
Si O2 .60.24
Al2 O3
23.29
Fe2 O3
5.13
Ca O
1.50
Mg O
2.09
Loss on ignition, combined, H2 O and CO2 7.42
99.67
The infusible silica particles are of rough, sharp grain, the material vitrifies at about 2,050 degrees F., and there is a wide range between this and the point of fusion, making it a safe shale to work, and producing very tough, dense- textured ware, standing high rattler tests, and is in every way a desirable ma- terial. This stratum is red burning under oxidizing conditions, but will burn to good, dark color when reducing atmosphere is used in the kiln.
This deposit is being worked extensively by the Danville Brick Company in the manufacture of superior grade of paving brick, and has been worked for some years by the Selley Brick Company, located at Danville, Illinois, which plant has recently been purchased by the Western Brick Company, who are
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
enlarging and improving it, with the idea of manufacturing dark colored, low grade facing brick.
Bearing in mind the fact that only "Low Grade Clays" exist in the county, and that their accessibility and proximity to market are the determining factors of their utility, the geographical distribution of these clays over the county, with respect to the surface, will be of paramount interest.
The provisional geological map of Illinois of 1907 shows the entire county as being in the coal measure, or carboniferous belt. This may be true, and yet the clay deposits be so covered up by glacial drift as to be inaccessible, except by mining, which process of procuring raw material is, for most "Low Grade Clay" products, impracticable.
. Only in portions of Danville, Catlin, Georgetown and Oakwood townships do conditions exist favorable to the finding of clays of modern utility, accessible from the surface, as practically all of the balance of the county is level prairie, and the coal measures are covered by heavy glacial drift.
Summarizing, therefore, we find that:
Ist. The geological formation of Vermilion County is unfavorable to the discovery of any clays other than those suitable for the manufacture of "Low Grade" products.
2d. The area in which valuable materials are likely to be found accessible, without mining, is very small compared with the total area of the county, and is limited to portions of Danville, Catlin, Georgetown and Oakwood townships.
3d. Referring to the geological section, No. 2 material (shale above No. 7 coal), and the No. 9 material (shale under No. 6 coal) alone can be utilized, all of the under-clays being non-refractory and more or less impregnated with limestone nodules.
4th. Even in the townships in which the carboniferous formation occurs close to the surface, there is little probability of finding desirable strata ex- posed, without a heavy over-burden of alluvial or glacial drift.
*
Prior to the year 1888 only the surface or the alluvial clays of the county had been worked, and those only in a small way in the manufacture of com- mon "Low Grade" building brick and drain tile.
About the year above mentioned the Grape Creek Coal Company built a plant near Grape Creek, southeast of Danville, and opened deposit No. 5 of the geological section, or the shale between Nos. 6 and 7 coals.
This was operated intermittently under the active management of Dr. Joseph Fairhall until 1895, when it was definitely abandoned. Although some very good ware in both building and paving brick were produced, the material was not very satisfactory, and the limestone layers, prevalent in this stratum, caused some trouble.
This plant was the pioneer in the working of the coal measure clays of this county, and it was mainly because it proved the possibilities of these that all succeeding enterprises were located.
In 1891 J. G. Shea opened No. 2, being the shale above the No. 7 coal, and No. 9, being the shale below No. 6 coal, directly west of Danville. This plant, very much improved and enlarged, is now being operated by the Dan-
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
ville Brick Company, and is now using No. 9 almost exclusively. It is equipped with all modern machinery, kilns, etc., including an extraordinary heavy steam shovel, and is manufacturing about twenty millions yearly of ten-pound paving blocks of excellent quality, testing favorably with the acknowledged best of the country.
In 1900 the plant of the Western Brick Company was built about two miles and a half west of Danville, and stratum No. 2, or the shale immediately overlying the No. 7 coal, was opened and has been almost exclusively used ever since.
This company is forced to remove an over-burden of from 15 to 20 feet of glacial drift before reaching workable material, which is accomplished by hydraulic process, or the washing of the stripping down an inclined plane. As part compensation for this, however, a considerable quantity of No. 7 coal, six feet in thickness, is uncovered; the shale almost down to the coal being work- able.
This is in every way a modern plant, using steam shovels and the best of equipment throughout ; mines all its own coal, operates 58 kilns, and produces upward of seventy-five million yearly of vitrified and impervious red and brown building brick, of which quite a considerable portion is used for facing pur- poses.
The clay industries of the county at the present writing represent an in- vestment of considerably over a million dollars, give steady employment to over five hundred men, and disburse an annual payroll somewhat in excess of $350,000.
CHAPTER XXV.
MANUFACTURING INTERESTS.
Notwithstanding the evident advantages to be found for factories in cheap coal and ready means of transportation, Vermilion County is not the manufacturing center it should be. It is rather an agricultural and mining community. There have been attempts made to locate factories but they have in more cases failed than have met with success. In Hoopeston, the manu- facturing interests are such as are needed to help out the canning in- dustries. There is one exception to this in the horse shoe nail factory. Many factories in Danville, have either gone out of business or moved away. A mention of the names of some of these may, perhaps recall their possibilities. The Wrought Iron Wagon Works, the Garland Tile factory, The Great Western Machine and Engine shops, the carriage shops of D. Force and William White- hill, the organ factory of J. Miller and son, and the Morris Burley & Co., manufactory of fine furniture. The William Stewart general foundry and machine shop has a successor in the Danville Foundry and Machine Co., of 520 Junction ave. The Holmes Bros. conduct a large machine shop where every- thing in the way of machinery can be made from the parts of an automobile, traction engine, and mine and mill machinery, to automatic bell ringers for loco- motives, shaker screens, weigh hoppers, smoke stacks and car lifts. Their pro- ducts are shipped to all parts of the country, a complete set of milling machinery being, within the last year, shipped to a number of South American mines. This extensive business started in Danville under the firm name of Baker & Holmes, thirty years ago, in a small building near the Wabash railroad, by Robert Holmes and P. T. Baker. Mr. Baker withdrew from the firm in 1890, and Sherman and Grant Holmes entered the firm and the present name was assumed. Later the business was moved to the corner of Hazel and North streets and Holmes Bros. offered "everything on wheels" to the public The business has grown famously, they taking on the sale of automobiles, being the first in the county to deal in these machines.
The Western Brick Co. was erected nine years ago, being opened in 1900. When first started, the capacity of the plant was 150,000 bricks per day, but the improvements have been made, until now the output of this factory is 250,000 bricks per day. This is the largest brick plant in the world. The company owns about 350 acres of land, all of which is underlaid with coal and shale.
297
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
both quite necessary to modern brick-making. The surface covering of the shale is removed by hydraulic pressure. The shale is then removed by a huge steam shovel, with a capacity of many yards, the shale is then loaded in small dump cars and hauled to the plant, some distance away, by miniature locomotives, two of which are used in hauling the train loads of shale to the plant and the third used in the hauling of coal from the company's mines, after the shale has been removed. The shale is first crushed, then by a number of very expensive machines, it is reduced to a powder. This powder is subjected to a certain treatment, after which it is then mixed with water and given to the brick-making machinery. Four large brick-machines are constantly in operation, manufactur- ing a variety of products, more than thirty different shades and varieties being turned out at this plant. The plant has never ceased operation since starting, and gives yearly employment to 300 men. The Western Brick Company make a specialty of medium priced vitrified facing brick and produce over thirty shades and varieties, ranging in color from a bright cherry red to black. This is one of the principle factories of Danville. The Danville Brick Co. is a local enterprise which ran perhaps a half dozen years and about four years ago was given material help by the fact of four men taking hold of it and pushing it to its fullest capacity. Its capacity was increased from 16,000 blocks to 60,000 per day. These are the large sized paving bricks, which, if computed in regular brick size, would be a little more than 120,000 per day. The closing of the mines had very little effect on this company. The Danville Brick plant is located in a peculiar depression, where the best grade of shale is to be found. The shale from which the big paving blocks are made is taken from below the first vein (No. 7) of coal, that shale being more flinty, much harder and at the same time more like cement than the upper shale, of which the product of most companies is made. This lower strata of shale is very thick and compact and heavy shooting is necessary to loosen it. It was because of this that the company petitioned the city council to declare the plant outside the city limits. When completed, the blocks weigh eleven pounds, or there abouts. Two grades of paving blocks are handled by this company, first and second class bricks. Only first class bricks are sent out for paving streets; the seconds are used for house foundations.
There are several planing mills in Danville. The oldest perhaps is that of E. C. Lamm, or N. E. Holden. In the case of the latter the business was in- hierited from his father so that the name of Holden and the business of the lumber trade has been associated for years. The name of Lamm is as closely associated with the lumber interest however, since the older brothers of Mr. E. C. Lamm were lumber merchants, nearly, if not quite, as long ago as was Mr. John Holden. Other planing mills are the Eureka Planing Mills, located at the corner of Woodbury and Robinson streets, Frank L. Hill, Trent Bros., S. P. Swisher, and the Bolander Lumber Co.
The 'Already Box Company is another of Danville's factories, at present, This is located at the corner of Section street and Big Four tracks.
The Kelley Block and Tile Co., located at 1909 is another small factory. So also is Powers and Supple, located on N. Hazel street. The Danville Lounge and Mattress Co., located on Franklin street between North and Main, is an
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HISTORY OF VERMILION COUNTY
established business and is a factory which reflects credit on the city. The Harenden Milling Co. is located in the east part of the city and has a profitable output of good products. The Street Railway and Light company operates a gas plant, an electric light plant, street railway lines, and a central station heat- ing plant. They operate about eighteen miles of city street railway lines, all of which are either new or have been rebuilt within the last five or six years. About six miles of the lines are double tracked. The company operates eighteen cars and gives a service varying from six minutes on certain lines to twenty minutes on other lines. The cars are operated from six o'clock in the morning to mid- night, and handle about ten thousand cash and transfer passengers per day. The electric lighting plant covers practically every part of the city with lines which carry lights equal to about 65,000 sixteen candle power lamps. The signs which the merchants of Danville have installed, and which are run by this com- pany, are a great attraction, and add much to the appearance of the city. There are about 25,000 miles of gas mains in Danville which furnishes gas to all the more thickly settled parts of the city both for lighting and cooking purposes. About three miles of steam heat furnishes the business and adjacent residences with steam to take the place of other fuel. The power house of this great sys- tem has 5.000 horse power installed in boilers and about 6,000 horse power in- stalled in engines and generators, all of which are worked to their full capacity. This plant furnishes power to the interurban line to a point within about fifteen miles of Decatur. The Headley Glass Company, and the Sweet Window Glass Company both promised much as factories, but did not meet expectations. The same can be said to a greater extent of the Danville Car Co., located at Tilton. An extensive plant came to Danville in 1904. It was the Regeler Smelting works. This plant was the outgrowth of the factory of the same nature under the man- agement of the father of these men and with which they, had been associated before coming to Danville. The firm bought several hundred acres of land and the coal under even a greater extent. This plant is one of unusual interest and is one for any community to view with pride. Another plant of value to the city of Danville is the Illinois Printing Co. It is a stock company and manufac- tures a high grade of blank books as well as does other work generally found in such an establishment.
CHAPTER XXVI. EARLY MERCHANTS.
INDIAN TRADERS-FIRST MERCHANTS-GURDON S. HUBBARD -- BECKWITH & CLYMAN -FIRST MERCHANTS IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE COUNTY.
The first mercantile ventures made in Vermilion County were those with the Indians. It is impossible to get the exact date of the first trading with the Indians, since there is no record of such transactions, and the memory of any living man is of little worth, because there is no man alive today who could possibly know of this time. All such transactions antedate the experience of the grandfathers of the man of active life in Vermilion County now.
There is no known fact by which this date can be estimated. The vague statements of early writers give the assurance of these traders but put no time of their trading at this point. The tales told to Col. Vance and Gurdon Hub- bard by the Indians in the 'twenties were of the white men who bought their furs, but they did not make an effort to locate the time of the trade, or if they did, no record was kept of it.
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