USA > Ohio > Wayne County > History of Wayne county, Ohio, from the days of the pioneers and the first settlers to the present time > Part 9
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Niagara Group.
Overlying the Clinton formation is the Niagara group, which includes the celebrated limestone rock, over which the Niagara river pours its floods at the cataract. It consists of two sections, one of limestone, the other of shale, of about equal proportions, each at the falls being about 80 feet in vertical thickness. It is an extensive formation, and conspicuous in most of the Western States. It underlies Chicago, extends into Michigan, Canada, New York and Tennessee, and it is a prominent formation of Ohio, especially so in connection with the Cincinnati anticlinal.
Salina Group.
This formation derives the name Salina from the salt found in it, so extensively manufactured at Syracuse, New York. It is not so universal as the Niagara, upon which it reposes. It is com- posed of marls and shales, with some impure limestone and gyp- sum. In Northern Ohio it rests immediately on the Niagara, and contains the gypsum of Sandusky .*
Helderberg Group.
This group is so named on account of its forming a considera- ble portion of the Helderberg mountain south of Albany, New York, where it attains a thickness of 200 feet. It is chiefly made up of earthy limestones, though in several distinct strata. Its
*Geological Survey of Ohio, vol. I, page 63.
104
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
lower member is celebrated as being a water-line formation, and which is quite extensive in Ohio, where it is a surface rock, and has beeome a source of much profit to those engaged in its com- merce, especially in Sandusky county, where it is extensively worked and attains a thickness of 100 feet. This is the strata from whence comes the hydraulic cement, so largely used. The water-line group does not outcrop in Eastern Ohio, but seems to be confined to the western and southern portions of the State. This formation extends from New York into New Jersey, Pennsyl- vania, Maryland and Virginia, where it is said to attain a thickness of 300 feet, on the Potomac river. It continues westward from Ohio into Indiana and comes out to view in the State of Illinois.
DEVONIAN SYSTEM.
The rocks of this system are composed of quartzose sand- stones, marls and conglomerates ; and in the countries of Europe where heavily charged with iron, or, rather, peroxide of iron, it imparts to them a dull red color, and hence are called "old red sandstone," which Hugh Miller has made famous by the discovery of fossil fishes in them. The name is derived from that of Devon- shire, England, where this strata is very extensive. The formation is exposed in South Wales, England and Scotland, where they have long been known as the "old red sandstone," In Devon- shire and Cornwall the rocks are slates and limestone. *
The Devonian formations of North America are of vast extent, estimated at 15,000 feet in vertical thickness. The rocks of the Devonian age underlie a large part of New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New England, Maine, West Virginia and Ohio, and are extensive in Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and have been recently discovered in Utah and Nevada.
The Oriskany Sandstone.
This formation, formerly considered as belonging to the upper
* I Vol., Wonders of Geology, page 204.
105,
GEOLOGY.
Silurian, is now classed with the Devonian series. It is not well defined in this State, though its equivalent is considered to be existing in a number of localities. It is represented in Sandusky county, also at West Liberty, in Logan county, on the peninsula west of Marblehead, in Ottawa, and at Sylvania, in Lucas county, and in many other localities, ranging from three to ten feet in thickness. The rock is soft and white, and capable of being used in the manufacture of glass. Considerable quantities of this stone have been taken from the Sylvania bed, transported to Pittsburg, and successfully used in the manufacture of glass.
Corniferous Limestone.
The corniferous limestone is separated into the upper and lower, and is exposed in the quarries at Bellevue and in other places. The upper is buff colored, coarse grained magnesian lime- stone, and containing beds of chert. The lower is a bluish gray, crystalline hard stone, usually fossiliferous-strikingly so in some instances. The outcrops of this formation form two separate belts, one on each side of the Cincinnati axis. The eastern belt crosses the State from the lake to the Ohio river. It also extends to Columbus, where it is extensively quarried, and of which the State House is constructed.
Hamilton Group.
This group consists of the Marcellus shale, the Hamilton proper and the Genesee shale, with the Moscow shale, the Tully and encrinal limestones, and in New York State attains the thick- ness of more than 1,000 feet, but greatly diminishes to the west. In Central Ohio the bed overlying the corniferous, and correspond- ing with those above mentioned, is the Huron shale, a bituminous mass about 300 feet in thickness. Resting upon this formation is the Waverly group, consisting of fine-grained sandstones and shales 500 feet in thickness; and upon the Waverly reposes the carboniferous conglomerate.
106
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
Portage and Chemung Group.
This series of formations consist of sedimentary rocks named from localities where they exist. They are composed of shales and sandstone in the State of New York, and are 2,000 feet in thickness. The upper and coarser portions of these rocks have a thickness in Western New York and Pennsylvania from 1,000 to 1, 500 feet. In Ohio the Portage and Chemung rocks form the lake shore as far west as the mouth of the Vermillion river, and are called in this State the Erie shale. The lower portion of the strata is called the Huron shale, and extends in a belt of outcrop from the mouth of the Huron river to the mouth of the Scioto, and there attains a thickness of about 330 feet. The Huron shale is known as the Black shale, and is well exposed in the banks of the Scioto and the Ohio near Portsmouth, on the Big Walnut east of Columbus, Worthington, and on the banks of the Huron. It is of a bituminous character, and doubtless the source of the oil and gases in Ohio, and supposed to supply all the oil to the wells on Oil creek, in Pennsylvania. It is noted for the fossil fishes it con- tains, some of them being the largest discovered.
Erie Shale.
This formation in this State is greenish and bluish argilla- ceous shales, and from the Pennsylvania line to Avon, the strata thins out rapidly to the west, and disappears south and west of the Vermillion river. The strata is well exposed in the cliff on the lake shore in the vicinity of Cleveland, and consists of gray and blue shale, very soft and fine, and containing veins of silvery sand- stone, and masses of argillaceous iron ore.
West of Cleveland the Erie shale consists of two groups of strata, the upper being nearly 100 feet in thickness, consisting of the above described shales with thin bands of sandstone, which are used for flagging. The lower portion consists of blue and green shale, with a thin strata of iron ore. The two are seen in the cliffs on the lake shore between the Rock river and the Cuyahoga.
107
GEOLOGY.
CARBONIFEROUS SYSTEM.
This series of strata rests upon the Devonian system, and owing to the valuable minerals it contains, is the most noted for- mation in Ohio. It is the highest order of strata in ascent of the geological scale, which is owing to the missing section of strata in the State.
This system consists of three subdivisions-the coal measure above, the conglomerate in the middle, and the lower carbonifer- ous, sub-carboniferous Waverly group below.
The lowest member of the system is the Cleveland shale, a black bituminous strata of about 54 feet in thickness at the mouth of the Cuyahoga river, but on the Vermillion river from 60 to 80 feet of the strata is exposed. At Bedford, in the gorge, it has been cut through by the stream to the depth of 21 feet. It is the lowest member of the Waverly group, and contains from 15 to 20 per cent. of bituminous matter, and is supposed to be the source of the petroleum found in Trumbull, Lorain and Medina counties.
This group consists of this shale, Bedford shale, Berea grit and Cuyahoga shale, the series being about 500 feet in thickness, though on the Ohio river it is more massive, the sandstone there being 640 feet in thickness .*
The Bedford Shale.
This shale rests upon the Cleveland, and immediately underlies the Berea grit. It is of a red color, and about 75 feet thick. It is well exposed at Elyria, in Lorain county, on the Black river, also at Amherst.
The Berea Grit.
This rock is an important member of the Waverly group. It is in two sections (the upper and lower), the former being thin layers, used for flagging ; the latter being massive, and extensively quarried and used for building purposes and for grindstones, the
*Dana's Manual of Geology, p. 295.
108
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
celebrated Berea grindstones so popular in Wayne county being taken from these quarries. The aggregate of the layers of the up- per strata is about 20 feet, and of the lower about 30 feet. This formation extends from Lake Erie south through Ohio, and un- derlies a large portion of the State.
It is the rock penetrated by the oil wells at Grafton, Liverpool and Mecca, and extends into the oil regions of Pennsylvania, though there it is less massive.
The Cuyahoga Shale.
This formation is the upper member of the Waverly group, and reposes on the Berea grit. It is from 150 to 250 feet in thick- ness, and consists of a gray argillaceous shale, with thin flag and sandstone, its outcrop defining a belt extending from Berea through to the valley of the Cuyahoga, and constituting the banks of that river southward as far as the Falls, which it forms.
Resting on the Cuyahoga shale is the lower carboniferous lime- stone, known as the Chester limestone, about 20 feet in thickness.
Overlying this strata is the conglomerate formation, of 100 feet in thickness, composed of pebbles, coarse sand and gravel. It is of irregular character, and follows the coal measure throughout the State.
The Coal Measure.
The coal measure is the next series of formations, and is 1,200 feet in thickness, and contains the various coal strata of the State. It is confined to the eastern portion of the State, extending from Lake Erie, east of Cleveland, down the valleys of Tuscarawas, Killbuck and Muskingum to the Ohio river, being largely devel- oped in counties west of the Muskingum. It is a part, or an ex- tension of the Allegheny coal fields, but owing to the uplift of the Cincinnati arch, it is confined within the limits described. With the exception of the drift, the coal measure is the highest member of the geological series of Ohio, and constitutes the upper division
109
GEOLOGY.
of the carboniferous system. It rests on the easterly slope of the anticlinal axis, and dips toward the south-east. This measure, as regards depth of strata, is on an inclined plane from Lake Erie to the Ohio river, where it is 1, 200 feet thick, but crops out at Lake Erie. The structure of the coal basin is by no means of system- atic order, nor is the dip uniform -the coal in many instances resting in troughs in a general way parallel with the axis of the main basin, and not unfrequently resting in small basins, as if the coal matter had been deposited in ponds and lakes. This is pe- culiarly so in Western Pennsylvania and in Eastern Ohio. The ir- regularity of the coal basin very clearly indicates that it has been disturbed by some internal force before the deposition of the coal matter, if not, in fact, the whole carboniferous series. The dis- turbance, no doubt, was that which produced the elevation of the Blue Ridge, and when the parallelism of the coal seams was de- stroyed, and which was, doubtless, before the Alleghenies were elevated, as it is a well known geological fact that the Alleghenies proper were beneath the sea until after the close of the carbonif. erous age.
The coal strata is but a minor part of the mass of material form- ing the coal measure, the other elements of the carboniferous sys- tem being sandstone, shale, limestone, clay, fire-clay and iron ore.
In geological order, the coal strata overlie the conglomerate and the fire-clay, and almost universally fire-clay is found immedi- ately under the coal; but in some instances patches of conglome- rate have been found above the coal. It is noteworthy, however, that the conglomerate is, to a measurable extent, irregular, and frequently absent, in the coal measure; but when present its proper location is beneath the coal, and when wanting the coal rests upon the fire-clay and the Waverly formation.
In Ohio there are from six to eight workable seams of coal above the Waverly, interstratified with sandstone, shales, fire-clay and iron ore, forming a mass in vertical thickness of about 400 feet ; the coal seams in the lower coal measure being numbered
IIO
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
from one to seven, commencing with the lowest, and correspond- ing with the lower coal measure of Pennsylvania.
QUATERNARY SYSTEM.
Crowning the coal measure are the deposits of the drift period, consisting of sand, gravel, clay and bowlders, the productions of the glacial eras, all of which have been transported from their original localities, and which, as a mass, constitute the surface of the greater portion of the State.
III
GEOLOGY.
CHAPTER VII.
GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE OF THE COUNTY.
THE geological structure of Wayne county is similar to that ot those adjoining ; yet it differs materially in some of its features, espe- cially in regard to glacial action upon its surface, and the peculiar character of the coal measure within its limits. The surface of the soil by no means indicates the situation of strata underlying the drift, which, with few exceptions, is spread out over the entire surface, and consists of clays, sands, gravels, pebbles, quartz and bowlders, some of the latter being very massive, weighing many tons. The great mass of the bowlders are of igneous character, mostly gran- ites, and have been transported to this locality from beyond the northern lakes. The whole surface of the county plainly shows. that the drift and bowlders were deposited by the agency of water, and it is generally understood that the deposition was made during the Glacial Era, or the Age of Ice.
One peculiarity about the geological structure of this county, and indeed of the State, is the missing chapter in its history,* in consequence of which the drift rests immediately upon the carbo- niferous system.
CARBONIFEROUS SYSTEM.
The coal measure of this county is confined chiefly to the east- ern portion of it, extending over parts of Canaan and Milton, and larger portions of Chippewa, Baughman, East Union and Salt creek, all of Sugar creek and Paint, and small portions of Greene,
* Geological Survey of Ohio, Vol. I, page 79.
I12
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
Franklin and Clinton townships. Underlying its western outcrop, when existing, is the sub-carboniferous conglomerate, which rests upon the Waverly formation. The conglomerate, however, is irregular and frequently wanting, in which case the coal strata rests upon the Waverly. Westward of the coal measure the sur- face rock is, as a usual thing, of the Waverly formation.
The coal strata, like the conglomerate, is also sometimes irreg- ular, and seems to have been formed in detached bodies, and often found in troughs and basins, sand rocks often intervening, cutting out the coal formation. This is peculiarly the case in Chippewa and Baughman Townships, where mines, considered to be very valuable at first, were soon exhausted and abandoned. The general dip of the coal formation is to the south-east, though it differs in consequence of the greatness or the smallness of the body of coal.
THE STRATA OF THE COAL MEASURE
Is not uniform in the several coal fields of the county. This is fully shown by Professor M. C. Reed in his Geological Report of the county, in the following instances :
J. P. Burton's Bank, Fairviewe.
Earth and gravel
13 feet.
Black shale
40
Sandstone
10 "
Black shale
3 to 4 inches.
Coal
4 to 7 feet.
On Section 26, Chippewa Township.
Earth
9 feet.
Sand rock
56 “
Gray shale
.
31
Black shale
15
Coal
432
II3
GEOLOGY.
John Adams' farm, one mile south-east from Doylestown.
Earth
14 feet.
Brown shale
18 feet.
Coarse white sandstone
22
"
Coal .
3
Conglomerate
5
Coal
5 ft. I inch.
Black shale
6 inches.
Fire-clay
2 feet.
Shaft at Chippewa Mine.
Clay and shale .
332 feet.
Sandstone
30
Clay shale
8
Iron ore
I
Clay shale
II
Sandstone
15
Gray sandstone .
4
Shale
2
Bony coal
Good coal
4
Drill hole on Hurtz's farm, Chippewa Township (shaft since sunk.)
Earth
Io ft. 6 inches. 6 " 6 "
Quicksand
Sandstone
3 feet.
Shale
14
Calcareous iron ore .
Black shale
Coal
I 22 ft. 6 in. 5 feet.
Silver Creek Mining and Railroad Company's Property.
Earth
19 feet.
Gray sandstone
6
White sandstone . 8
9
114
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
Shale
3 feet.
White sandstone
5 “
Shale
. 18 ft. 6 in.
Coal
4 ft. 6 in.
These instances of the want of uniformity can only be ac- counted for upon the hypothesis that oscillations were in progress at intervals, while the carboniferous materials were being accumu- lated in the coal basin. The depositions of yellow and blue clays, sand and gravel mounds, which frequently intervene in the coal fields, plainly demonstrate that they were produced by a turbulent tide.
There are in the county many other operated mines besides those mentioned by Professor M. C. Reed, yielding valuable coal, which differ more or less in their geological structure from those above mentioned, although their general uniformity is substantially the same, of which the following are located in Chippewa town- ship :
Chippewa Township Coal Mines.
That of Jacob Wegandt, being a stratum of coal of excellent quality, five feet thick, underlying a body of shale, sandstone and drift. Adjoining this bank is the Frase mine, operated by the Crawfords, the vein being the continuation of that of the Wygandt mine.
The Peter Frase coal bank near to the one in section 26, above referred to, is of the same order of that mine but the coal is more readily reached by drift.
That of the Holm mine is a seam of coal about four and a half feet thick, of good quality, underlying black shale, sand rock and a heavy body of drift.
The Boak bank consists of a vein of very superior hard coal, about four feet thick, underlying a high hill, and overlaid by about fifty feet of earth, sand rock and shale. It is located on the east side of Silver creek, about three and a half miles south-east of
115
GEOLOGY.
Doylestown, on lands now owned by Hon. W. R. Wilson, and operated by John Smith.
The California coal mine, one and one-half miles south of Doylestown, and operated by Cline, Siberling & Co., has a vein of good quality coal four and one-half feet thick. The top of the coal is from 80 to 100 feet below the surface of the Main street of Doylestown. The overlying strata consists of drift, sand, clay, sandstone and shale. The coal is reached by drift from the west side of the ridge under which it lies.
In the same ridge, one mile east of the California mine, is the Baysinger coal bank, also entered by drift in the west side of the ridge. The vein of this bank is four and one-half feet thick, of soft coal, which is well suited for grate and steam purposes. The overlying strata is of the same order as at the California bank.
The Franks coal mine, operated by Mr. Galehouse, is situated three miles south of Doylestown. The vein of this bank is four and one-half feet, of good quality coal, and is reached by drift in the west side of the hill. The strata above the coal consists of earth, sandstone and black shale.
Wood's coal mine is located two miles south-east of Doyles- town, and operated by the Silver Creek Mining Company. Its vein is 4₺ feet thick, and of good quality coal. This mine was opened by drift about forty years ago, and it underlies a ridge 120 feet high, of a mountainous character, which, like other hills along Silver creek, is literally covered with rocks, some of them massive. Prof. M. C. Reed, in his description of this Company's mines, sub- stantially gives the character of the strata overlying this coal bank, as well also of those of the other mines of this Company in the township. The Silver Creek Mining Company conducts the coal mining business quite extensively.
Simmons' shaft, one of the Silver Creek Mining Company's banks, is 75 feet deep, and located three miles south-east of Doyles- town. Its vein is between 4 and 5 feet thick, but is pretty well exhausted. The shaft is on the west side of the hill.
Muter's bank, just opened, has a vein of good quality coal
116
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
nearly 5 feet thick, which is reached by a shaft 70 feet deep. This bank belongs to the Silver Creek Mining Company, and is situated on George Lance's farm, under a level surface, about two miles north-east of Doylestown, and is a part of a large body of coal underlying about 150 acres of good, smooth farm land, owned by George Lance, Jacob Hammer and Widow Muter.
The coal of this township is located in its northern, eastern and central parts north of the Chippewa creek, and in sections 35 and 36, and parts of sections 25 and 26, south of this stream, so far as at present actually known ; but there are evidently large bodies of coal in the Chippewa coal fields yet undiscovered-the want of dis- covery being caused by the deceptive character of the surface of the territory overlying it-the coal north of the Chippewa, as a general rule, only being looked for under the rocky ridges. Recently, however, as in the case of the above farms, it was found underlying smooth lands several miles distant from the Chippewa ridges, where it was formerly least expected. In other instances, where the surface indicated coal deposits, it was found to be absent, the drill coming in contact with hard sand rock, "horse- back," which so frequently divide the coal basins, and often dis- place the coal. The Chippewa coal is bituminous, of the best quality, and of the same vein as that of Briar Hill, in Mahoning county.
Milton Township Coal Measure.
The coal measure of this township is confined to all of sections 1, 2, 3, 10, II and 12 of its northern part, which is an extension of a small basin of coal in Medina county, and about one-half of section 36 of its south-east corner, on the line of the Atlantic and Great Western railroad, and west of the northern extension of the coal measure of Chippewa township, although the space of a mile intervenes between these two basins.
Greene Township Coal Measure.
The coal measure of Greene township is very limited, extend-
117
GEOLOGY.
ing over the south-east quarter of section 25, and about two-thirds of the north-east quarter of section 36; also a small portion of the southern part of sections 33 and 34.
Coal Mines of Baughman Township.
In this township are the following coal mines: The Burton bank, located on the land owned by J. P. Burton, of Massillon, is situated near the Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne and Chicago railway track, on the north-east quarter of section 28, about one-half mile south- west of Fairview. The operator, Mr. Jerome B. Zerby, has aban- doned the shaft near the quarter section line dividing Jacob E. Wenger's land from Mr. Burton's farm, on account of the flooding of the mine, and has entered the mine by drift, about one-eighth of a mile north-west from the shaft. Here the vein is 5} feet thick, of good quality bituminous coal, which is reached at the depth of 35 feet from the surface, the overlying strata in the de- scent being about as follows :
Earth and gravel
18 feet.
Hard gray shaly sandstone
2
Loose sandstone, sand and gravel
3
Black shaly sandstone
II
Black shale
I foot.
Coal
.
5 feet.
This opening, or mine, is located about one-eighth of a mile north-west of the Burton shaft, minutely described by Professor M. C. Reed.
About one-fourth of a mile south-east of the Burton drift bank is the shaft coal mine of Jacob E. Wenger, located on the south-east quarter of section 28, and about three-fourths of a mile south-west from Fairview. The coal seam is 42 feet thick, of good quality of bituminous, and underlies a large area of land, and is reached at the depth of about 38 feet from the surface in the de- scent, in the following order of strata :
Earth and gravel
20 feet.
118
HISTORY OF WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO.
Hard gray shaly sandstone
2 feet.
Hard black sand rock
15 "
Black shale
I foot.
Coal . 4₺ feet.
Underlying the coal is one and one-half feet of black shale, which overlies hard black sand rock.
The John Spindler mine, which was opened by him about twenty-five years ago, and which is the oldest bank of that vicinity, is located in the south part of the north-west quarter of section 27, about one-half mile south-east of Fairview, on the farm of Mr. John Spindler. The vein is four feet thick, of first quality of bitu- minous coal, and is reached by drift, 200 feet from the entrance, on the east side of the hill. The overlying strata in the descent from the surface to the coal is earth and gravel, gray shaly sand- stone three and one-half feet thick, hard black sand rock and black sandy shale. This mine is operated by John Spindler and C. Keffer.
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