USA > Ohio > Portage County > History of Portage County, Ohio > Part 23
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Near Kent certain layers of the Conglomerate have been found, which are white enough to serve for the manufacture of glass. The coloring matter of the rock is usually iron, and it here contains much less than usual.
The best sections of the Conglomerate found in the county are in Nelson, where its entire thickness is shown-175 feet-and it forms bold escarpments, which constitute the western boundary of the valley of Grand River. These escarpments are known as the Nelson Ledges. They afford the most picturesque scenery to be found in the county, and are noted places of resort for the inhabitants of the surrounding region. In the extreme northeastern corner of the county an island of the Conglomerate has been cut off by erosion from the main plateau. Though less bold in its outline, it has the same topographical character and relation as Little Mountain, in Lake County.
At the base of the Nelson Ledges the Cuyahoga shale is imperfectly exposed. This is the upper member of the Waverly formation, and will be found fully described in the reports on Cuyahoga, Summit, and Trumbull Counties. A few years since quite an excitement was raised by the reported discovery of gold at the Nelson Ledges. As is usual in such cases, stock com- panies were formed, and many dreams of wealth were indulged in by those who obtained shares of the stock. It is hardly necessary to say that these dreams have passed like "the baseless fabric of a vision." The excitement was caused by the discovery of iron pyrites in certain beds of the Conglomer- ate-another of the innumerable examples of the mistake of "fool's gold" for true gold. A little knowledge of geology would have prevented this error, and would have taught the sufferers that gold could never be found in paying quantities in Portage County. That minute particles may sometimes be detected in the superficial gravels is very probable, since these gravels are largely made up of quartz pebbles, which are only rolled masses of the quartz veins contained in the crystalline rocks of the Canadian highlands, and which frequently carry a little gold. It is also probable that with sufficient care in searching for it, an infinitesimal quantity of gold might be detected in the Conglomerate, as the quartz pebbles it contains were doubtless derived from the same source with those to which I have already referred ; but it may be confidently predicted that the precious metal will never be obtained from either of the sources mentioned in sufficient quantity to compensate the most idle and worthless member of the community for any time he may spend in its search.
Coal Measures .- Nearly three-fourths of the surface of Portage County is underlaid by coal-measure rocks, and they once covered its entire area. From the valleys of the Mahoning and Cuyahoga they have been removed by erosion, so that in the northern part of the county they are restricted to a small island
207
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
west of the river, in Mantua, and a narrow arm which projects from Freedom northward, through Hiram, into Geauga County.
In the northern part of Portage County the Drift deposits are so thick as to hide the outcrops of the coal rocks, and it is here very difficult to trace the line along which the edge of the lowest coal seam should be found. It is probable that coal, in greater or less thickness, underlies the principal part of Hiram, the western half of Shalersville and Ravenna, and the southwestern cor- ner of Windham. The northern and southern portions of Paris, and nearly all of Charlestown, lie above the horizon of the lower coal, as do most of Palmyra, Deerfield, Brimfield and Suffield.
Along a belt running through the central part of the county, the land is high enough to carry the second and third seams of coal from the bottom. With this breadth of coal area it would at first sight seem that Portage County should produce as large an amount of coal as Trumbull, and much more than Summit, but up to the present time the coal production of the county has been exceedingly small. This arises from the fact that the margin of the lower coal (Coal No. 1) is so generally covered with Drift that it does not show itself at the surface in many localities, and also that this coal here, as in the Mahon- ing Valley, lies in detached basins of limited extent, and is entirely absent over large areas from the place where it belongs, or is so thin as to be of little value. We may expect, however, that important basins of the Briar Hill coal will be found within the limits that have been marked out. Were it not for the Drift it would be easy to follow the outcrops of the rocks, and knowing just where to explore by digging or boring, to determine the presence or absence of the coal. In the present circumstances, however, even where coal may be supposed to exist, it can only be detected by boring blindly through the Drift deposits. In many places these will doubtless be found so thick as to cut out the coal, though the surface may be considerably above the coal level. Even where the rocks which belong above the coal may be found in place, from the irregular distribution of this seam, the chances are more than equal that the result of boring will show it to be absent, or too thin to have any economic value. Since, however, the coal of this stratum is so excellent, it will be the part of wisdom for all those who own territory lying within the lines I have traced to make such explorations as may determine whether or not they are in possession of some portion of this great source of wealth. The level of Coal No. 1, in the northern half of Portage County, varies from 500 to 600 feet above the lake. The dip being toward the south, the coal sinks rapidly in that direction, and rises correspondingly toward the north. At Ravenna the place of the coal is probably not far from the level of the intersection of the Cleveland & Pittsburgh and Atlantic & Great Western Railroads, or about 500 feet above Lake Erie.
Coal No. 1 has been opened, and is now quite extensively mined in Pal- myra. It here exhibits the same general features, both as regards thickness and quality, as the coal of the neighboring counties of Mahoning and Trum- bull. The coal mining of Palmyra is principally done by the Western Reserve Coal Company, to a member of which company, Mr. W. B. Wilson, of Palmyra, I am indebted for much valuable information concerning the opera- tions of his own company, and in regard to other developments of coal made in this township. The coal mined by the Western Reserve Coal Company is reached by a shaft which is eighty-one feet deep to the coal, or ninety-five feet from the tip. It is reported that in sinking the shaft eighteen feet of earth was first passed through, and then sixty-three feet of rock, mainly shale, in which were two strata of "kidney" ore. The coal varies from two to four
.
208
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
feet in thickness, being thickest in a " swamp " which runs northwest and southeast in a tortuous course. On each side of this crooked basin the coal rises and thins, and is worked to the thickness of two feet. The company is taking ont about 4,000 tons per annum, selling it at the mine at $3.00 per ton. The coal is of excellent quality, being very free from sulphur, and containing little ash. It is a block coal, finely laminated with charcoal seams, and is not surpassed in quality by any coal in the State outside of the Mahoning Valley. According to our barometric measurements by a single line of observations, the center of Palmyra is 120 feet above Ravenna Station, or 650 feet above Lake Erie. The tip of the coal company's shaft is 430 feet above Lake Erie, and the coal 335 feet above the lake. Owing to the variability of the barometer, these figures can not be relied upon as absolutely correct. The Western Reserve Coal Company has 200 acres of coal land in the eastern part of Palmyra, on the center road. How large a part of those 200 acres is underlaid by coal of workable thickness has not yet been ascertained. Other companies have been making explorations in this neighborhood, and report about 200 acres of good coal land in addition to that before mentioned.
In the northwestern part of the township some 300 acres of coal property are said to have been tested, and the coal is reported to be from three to four feet in thickness. Coal has also been found in the northeastern and south- western parts of the township. We thus have good reason for believing that a somewhat extensive basin, or series of basins, of the Briar Hill coal exists in and about Palmyra, but years of exploration will be required before it will be known what the connection, limits and value of this coal field are.
From the shaft in Palmyra the coal extends west and south to an unknown distance, and possibly reaches under much of the central and southern parts of the county. Since the place of Coal No. 1 is from 200 to 250 feet below the surface over a considerable part of the higher land, it is apparent that most of the boring yet done has formed no test of its presence or absence.
In the valley of the Mahoning, in Deerfield, an outcrop of coal may be seen which was supposed by Mr. Read, who examined it, to be the Briar Hill coal. It is, however, only about a foot in thickness, and it is probable that it is the next seam above. A boring of limited depth would decide the ques- tion. In Brimfield and Suffield there is a large amount of territory which deserves more careful exploration than it has yet received. Here the land rises to 150 feet above the level of the coal, but the surface is generally occu- pied by Drift. Little is known of the nature of the underlying rocks, but from the relation which this district holds to the coal basins of Tallmadge and Springfield, in Summit County, there is a great probability that sooner or later good deposits of coal will be found here. It should be borne in mind, however, that from the circumstances which I have fully explained in the report on the geology of Summit, the lower coal is oftener absent than present in the place where it belongs, and it is, therefore, to be expected that a large part of the trials which may be made here will result in disappointment.
At Limaville, on the southern line of the county, Coal No. 1 has been struck in borings by Dr. J. A. Dales, at the depth of about 170 feet, or less than 350 feet above the lake. According to the reports by Dr. Dales, the coal has here a thickness of over four feet. Analyses prove that it has the purity and physical character of the Mahoning Valley coal. Should a consid. erable area in this vicinity be found to be underlaid by Coal No. 1, it would be difficult to exaggerate the importance it would assume among the wealth- producing elements of the county, and it is sincerely to be hoped that the examinations begun here will be carried through the townships lying north, until this important question shall be definitely settled.
209
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
Coals Nos. 3 and 4 .- By reference to the general section of the rocks of the county, it will be seen that at a distance from the lower coal-generally from fifty to seventy-five feet-a thin seam occurs. This has no value in this part of the State, and requires here no further notice.
From 150 to 200 feet above Coal No. 1, two other seams come in, which are sometimes of workable thickness. These we have designated as Coals No. 3 and No. 4. They are separated by a distance of thirty to fifty feet, and are usually both overlaid by limestone. Sometimes, however, one or both of the limestones are replaced by shale. These coal seams, here as elsewhere, have proved to be quite irregular in their thickness, although in a general way continuous from Portage through Summit, Stark, Wayne, Holmes, Coshocton Counties, etc., to and beyond the National Road. Both these coals may be seen in the northeastern corner of Atwater, where the north and south road crosses a small stream, and not far from the locality where so much fire-clay is dug. Here the limestone of No. 3 shows in the bed of the brook at a level of twenty feet above the railroad at Atwater, or 580 feet above Lake Erie. It is about four feet in thickness, and, as usual, has iron ore over it. The coal beneath is only a few inches thick. Some twenty feet above the limestone Coal No. 4 is seen in the road, here apparently four feet thick, but with scarcely any covering. No limestone is visible over it.
In Limestone Ridge, in Freedom, both these strata are shown. The upper one is thin, but is overlaid by limestone, which is here burned for quicklime. Coal No. 3 is seen in the road at the south end of Limestone Ridge; as usual, it is underlaid by a thick bed of fire-clay.
On the farm of Wilson Davidson, about half a mile distant from the last- named locality, this coal has been mined, though not largely, for a number of years. It is here about twenty-two inches thick. From the fact that this seam was represented as Coal No. 1 by the geologist who, when connected with the first geological survey of the State, made an examination of this region (Annual Report of 1838, p. 59), no thorough exploration has ever been made of the strata below it. Possibly such explorations would have been fruitless, as the lower seam is so frequently absent from its place; but as the true position of Coal No. 1 is at least 150 feet below Mr. Davidson's coal, it is evident that a large area in the vicinity deserves examination by deep boring. Considerable money has been spent in boring in Freedom, but, so far as I can learn, none of the wells have been carried deep enough to determine the presence or absence of the lower coal. One well bored on Limestone Ridge is reported to have furnished the following section:
FT.
IN.
Earth
14
0
Limestone ..
3
0
Shale
54
0
Coal.
1
10
Fire-clay
?
Sandrock.
30
0
Shale
10
0
In this boring the upper limestone coal was absent or so thin as not to attract notice. The lower limestone was absent, as seems to be the case gen- erally in this vicinity. The place of the lower coal was not reached by from seventy-five to one hundred feet. Another hole was bored by William Cran- nage, for Mr. George Worthington, of Cleveland, without finding the coal sought for, but was almost certainly not carried to a sufficient depth.
A well sunk near the quarries on Limestone Ridge is said to have passed through-
210
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
Limestone. FT.
Shale, with plants and thin seams of coal. 4 20 Sandrock to bottom.
Here it is evident that the place of the twenty-two-inch seam was not reached.
Half a mile northeast of Drakesburg a well showed the following strata:
Earth. Shale .
Sandrock to bottom. 26
In this well the excavation was probably begun below the limestone coals, but it did not descend to the level of the lower coal.
At Hiram Center a yellow sandrock of the Coal Measures is quarried just back of the hotel. South of the Center, about one mile, shale crops out in the road below this sandrock. Near this point, but west and on higher ground, a well on Mr. Hopkins' land gave-
Earth. FT.
9
Sandrock .. 15
Shale, with one foot of coal. 40
"Flagstone," to bottom. 3
Stratum No. 4 of this section was called by the drillers "bottom rock," but in this vicinity no proof should be accepted of having passed the place of the lower coal, except reaching the Conglomerate.
In the south part of Hiram, coal has been taken from a natural outcrop twelve to eighteen inches thick, and used by the blacksmiths. This is proba- bly Coal No. 1.
In going from Drakesburg to Garrettsville the surface descends nearly two hundred feet, passing down from a broad ridge or divide, which is a marked feature in the topography, and which stretches connectedly north into the cen- ter of Geauga County. The top of this ridge or table is above the coal level from Freedom to Burton, and more or less coal has been found in it all the way, although it is usually thin.
At Garrettsville the Conglomerate is fully exposed, and rises thirty feet above the depot, or 485 feet above the lake. Two miles west of Garrettsville the base of the ridge referred to is reached, and in the ravine by the roadside the following section is exposed :
Coarse sandrock, with some small pebbles FT. 30
Irregular seam of coal.
1
Shale, with bands of sandstone. 20
Black shale, with iron. 1 Sandstone to base.
The top of this section is 150 feet above the depot at Garrettsville, and the coal exposed is probably about the horizon of the thin seam, No. 2, the place of Coal No. 1 being below.
In Mantua there are many natural outcrops of coal, viz .: at the railroad cut northeast of the Corners a few inches (two to four) thick; a mile south of the Corners, on Mr. Blaine's land, sixteen inches ; one and a half miles east of the Corners, six to eight inches thick. Three wells drilled near each other in this vicinity gave-
FT.
Earth .. 4
Sandrock. 36 to 46
Black shale 20 to 40
Gray shale. 2 to 4 Coal. . 4 to 12 inches.
Sandrock (bottom not reached).
FT.
14
30
211
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
A boring was made one and a half miles south of the Corners, to the depth of 136 feet, penetrating earth, sandrock and shale, of which the thickness is not known. Coal was found six to eight inches thick.
The center of Charlestown rises to the height of 575 feet above the lake, and an outcrop of coal is visible on the King place, in the road leading to Ravenna, and about fifty feet below the Center. This is evidently the Briar Hill seam. The hill on the opposite side of the valley rises 600 feet above the lake and nearly 100 feet above the coal level, but the coal, if it exists there, is concealed. The valleys of the streams in this region are cut below the coal, and all the highlands should carry it ; but unfortunately heavy beds of Drift conceal its outcrops and make the work of exploration expensive and uncertain.
In the central part of Edinburg the land is all at least 150 feet above the coal level. This is proved, not only by barometric measurement, but by the explorations made east of the Center by Mr. G. L. Chapman. He has bored many holes in search of coal, and has found it in several. In one place a shaft was sunk with the expectation of mining it. The coal, however, was found to be very irregular in thickness, and the enterprise was not successful. In making these explorations Mr. Chapman at first supposed that the coal he found was the Briar Hill seam, but it is quite certain that the place of Coal No. 1 is at least 150 feet below the bottom of the shaft. Two beds of coal and two of limestone were passed through in some of the borings made by Mr. Chapman, all within fifty feet of the surface. The section exposed in the shaft referred to is as follows:
FT.
Surface deposits.
12}
Sandy shale.
11}
White sandrock
71
Shale, sandy above.
174
Coal No. 3.
33
Sandrock and shale.
4
Fire-clay
13
The upper limestone is said to have been found in an adjacent field.
A boring made somewhat east of the shaft, and carried to a greater depth affords a much better view of the geological sub-structure of this region. The record of this boring is as follows:
FT.
IN
Surface deposits
20
0
Shale.
4
0
Limestone.
3
6
Fire-clay
3
6
Shale.
3
6
Shaly sandstone.
8
0
Shale.
6
0
Coal.
0
4
Shale
2
0
Coal.
2
6
Shale.
7
0
Fire-clay
4
0
Shale ..
-7
6
Sandrock
54
0
Shale ..
0
Bluish sandrock
0
6
It will be noticed that in this section a bed of limestone occurs near the surface, and that the lower part of the boring was in a thick bed of sand- stone. This sandstone is the massive stratum which overlies the Briar Hill coal, sometimes coming down to it, and sometimes even cutting it out com-
212
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
pletely, but more generally resting upon a bed of shale of variable thickness. The place of Coal No. 1 is plainly below the bottom of this hole.
Since my first visit to Edinburg, Mr. Chapman has continued his explora- tions, and others have been carried on by Mr. D. W. Goss, but, so far, I believe, without very satisfactory results. The many borings made show great irregularity in the deposition of the strata here, and it is evident that this has been a region through which rapid currents of water have swept, which have cut away the coal seams and deposited sands and clays in a very unequal way. This will be evident upon an examination of the records of some of the drill- ings. A well bored one mile northeast of the Center gave-
Earth
20
Shaly sandrock.
6
White sandrock. 39
Blue shale ..
3
Fire-clay.
8
Shale, with coal streaks ..
4
Fire-clay
1
Shale.
4
Black, coaly shale.
2
Shale ...
3
Fire-clay.
2
Shale ..
37
Very hard sandrock.
8
Fire-clay
1
Shale ..
42
Fine sandrock.
24
Sandrock ..
3+
Soft shale.
3
Fine, bluish sandrock.
45
Gray shale .. 50
Shale and sandrock. 381
Bluish-gray shale. 21
It is evident that this boring has gone far into the Waverly, and it reveals the fact that the Conglomerate is here absent. This is somewhat surprising, as in the valley of the Mahoning, only a few miles distant, it is fully 100 feet in thickness.
Another well, one-half mile east of the last, gave-
FT.
Earth.
1
Soft sandstone.
13
White sandstone.
24
Stratified iron ore ..
6
Sandrock and shale.
4
Fire-clay.
3
Shale ..
3
Fire-clay
2
Dark shale. 13
This was evidently not deep enough to afford a satisfactory test.
A third well, in the north part of the township, east of the Center road, gave:
FT.
IN.
Yellow clay.
10
0
Blue clay.
40
0
Sandrock. 41
0
Sandy shale ..
4
0
Flint," very hard. 12
0
6
Sandy shale. .
6
Fine sandrock. 26
0
This, also, was probably not deep enough.
An instructive section is furnished by a well three-quarters of a mile east of the Center; this is:
FT.
Lucretia Rudolph Garfield
215
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
FT.
IN.
Earth.
10
0
Shelly rock.
10
0
Sandrock.
40
0
Clay .
0
4
"Sulphurous"
sandrock .
0
8
Clay ...
0
3
Shaly coal.
0
9
Coal, good.
0
6
Shale ..
0
7
Coal, poor
0
11
Black shale
1
6
This hole certainly did not reach near the horizon of the block coal, but is carried to about the place of the bottom of the shaft, and shows the mixed character of the deposits in even a greater degree than the shaft section.
Mr. Goss has sent me sections of three wells bored south of the Center to the depths respectively of 1262, 88 and 78 feet. They show alternations of shale, sandstone and fire-clay, with a little coal, but do not reach to the place of Coal No. 1.
These explorations indicate that the upper coals are not likely to be found in any valuable development in the township of Edinburg. It is to be hoped, however, that under this broad and elevated table-land the lower coal will be somewhere found of workable thickness.
Passing south from Edinburg the land continues high, and the surface nowhere comes nearer than 150 feet to Coal No. 1; while in some instances it rises to such a height that the coal must be from 200 to 250 feet beneath.
In Atwater much boring has been done, and coal found, which has been opened both by shaft and adit. The explorations made here were undertaken on the supposition that the coal, of which outcrops had been known, was the Briar Hill seam. This was, however, an error, and there can be no question that it is Coal No. 4. The place of Coal No. 1 is far below the bottom of the Atwater shaft, and probably below the bottom of the deepest well bored in the vicinity. The coal mined at Atwater is of good thickness-from four to five feet-but it exhibits the usual characteristics of the limestone seams, being of irregular thickness and variable quality. It is a serviceable fuel for the generation of steam, and is a pleasant grate-coal, but from the quantity of sulphur it contains is not well adapted to the manufacture of iron. The following analyses of this coal, made at the School of Mines by Mr. W. P. Jenney, will indicate very fairly its composition. No. 1, upper bench; No. 2, lower bench:
Water ..
3.27
3,03
Volatile combustible matter
26.06
26.42
Fixed carbon.
64.50
62.50
Sulphur.
1.52
2.20
Ash.
4.65
5.72
Totals
100.00
99.97
No. 1.
No. 2.
At the shaft of the Atwater Coal Company the coal is from four to five feet in thickness, in two benches, separated by a bony parting. It is overlaid by black shale, which contains many discoid shells (Discina). In the shale above is considerable granular iron ore, but not of very good quality. The shale is succeeded by sandstone, as in all this region. The coal is opened by an adit, half a mile east, on lower ground.
On John Hines' farm, one and a half miles southeast from Atwater Cen- ter, a shaft has been sunk to Coal No. 4, passing through-1, surface clay; 2, sandstone; 3, black and gray shale; 4, black shale; 5, coal. Coal is here four
216
HISTORY OF PORTAGE COUNTY.
feet six inches in thickness, and, according to barometer, lies twenty-six feet below Atwater Station, or 534 feet above Lake Erie.
About half a mile east the same coal is struck at a depth of eleven feet, on the farm of Michael Strong. It here lies ten feet higher than at Hines', while the surface falls off rapidly toward the east. The thickness of the coal is the same as at Hines' farm.
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