Excerpts From
Annual Bulletin on Mineral Resources of Kansas, For 1903.
Including a Report Upon Lead
and Zinc, Coal, Oil, Gas,
Clay Products, Gypsum, Hydraulic and Portland Cements,
Building Stone, and Salt.
by Erasmus Haworth, State Geologist.
The University Geological Survey of Kansas
Publication distributed from the University, at Lawrence,
Kansas
June, 1904.
Contents.
| Page. | ||
| Letter of Transmission | 4 | |
| Introduction | 5 | |
| Table I. General Summary of Annual Production for 1903. | 9 | |
| VII. Building and Other Stone | 45 | |
| Table XVIII. Showing Annual Production of Stone | 45 | |
Dr. Frank Strong, Chancellor of the University of Kansas:
Dear Sir - I have the honor to submit to you herewith my annual report for the year 1903 on the mineral resources of Kansas, which will constitute the sixth annual bulletin of this series. It affords me great pleasure to state that the mining and metallurgical interests of the state during the year 1903 were by far the most prosperous ever known, the total aggregate of business done being more than twenty per cent. greater than in any previous year. This great increase is due, principally, to a general increase in production, and in a much lesser degree to an increase in prices.
Yours most respectfully,
Erasmus Haworth,
State Geologist
Department of Geology and Mineralogy,
University Kansas, June, 1904.
During the calendar year 1903 the mining and metallurgical industries of Kansas were by far the most prosperous of any year in the state's history. A general summary of production is given in table I, which shows a total valuation of $27,154,007.85. This is nearly five millions greater than for the year 1902, which, in turn, was the largest the state had yet produced. The increase is, therefore, more than twenty per cent., a remarkably good showing.
For the first time in years, no interest has been manifested in mining or smelting gold or silver. All the reported discoveries have proved to be failures, and no new discoveries were made. It is true some mining operations were carried on in Smith county during the early part of the year, as was mentioned in this report of 1902, but early in the spring such work was discontinued, and nothing more has been done in this line anywhere else in the state. Also, the only smelter making an attempt at gold and silver extraction, one of the zinc smelters at Iola, has abandoned the enterprise as unprofitable. The plant of the erstwhile gold and silver refining company at Argentine has been torn down and removed, leaving no operations of any kind anywhere in the state bearing on gold and silver production. For this reason the subject is dropped from the table of contents of this year's report.
Lead and zinc mining was conducted in about the same way it was for 1902, the output being slightly reduced, and the total valuation for the same falling a little below the figures for the previous year. A larger amount of spelter, however, was smelted on Kansas soil, a larger amount of natural gas for zinc smelting having been used than ever before. Coal mining witnessed a great increase, the amount reaching nearly 6,000,000 tons. Also, the market price of coal was the highest known for many years, so that the total valuation of coal reached almost $10,000,000. The only new developments were in the Cretaceous coal of Jewell county, where two new mines were in operation during the entire winter of 1903-'04.
The most remarkable increase in production and mining activity was witnessed in the oil fields and gas fields of the south-eastern part of the state. Up to 1902 the total production of oil rarely reached 100,000 barrels per annum. In 1902 it was more than 300,000 barrels, while in 1903 it was more than 1,000,000 barrels, with the production increasing at a remarkably rapid rate. The developments during the year resulted in a surprisingly great expansion of productive territory. It reached west into Chautauqua and Woodson counties, north into Allen and Miami counties, and the individual areas everywhere were greatly extended.
The manufacture of different kinds of products from clay was greatly increased. All the brick factories were operated on a larger scale than ever before, and quite a number of new enterprises, such as the pressed-brick plant at Iola, the roofing-tile factory at Coffeyville, the pottery factory at Coffeyville, and others, gave a greater increase in variety of production than was made in any one previous year.
The production of plaster from gypsum is less than for the previous year, and prices were maintained about the same. The gypsum-earth deposits of the state are almost exhausted, so that the mills are operated principally on rock gypsum. No new hydraulic cement factories have been established, the only ones in the state being the two at Fort Scott, as has been the case for a number of years. The Portland cement industry was greatly expanded by the erection of a new plant at Iola by the Kansas Portland Cement Company. This plant was built during the year 1903, and at first was expected to begin operations in the early autumn. A longer time was occupied in its construction than had been contemplated, and the year was almost gone before the actual manufacture of cement was begun. The Iola Portland cement factory was in successful operation during the entire year.
The stone industry was conducted about as it has been in years past. The largest quarries in the state are in the vicinity of Cottonwood Falls, where the Cottonwood limestone is extensively quarried and shipped to all points in the western part of the Mississippi valley. Other quarries were operated on the same Cottonwood limestone, both north and south of Cottonwood Falls, particularly to the north at Eskridge, Manhattan, Frankfort, and similar places. The railroads consumed an unusually large amount of crushed stone for ballast, as there was a great activity in road-bed improvement throughout the state.
Salt-making was likewise very active. The largest production comes from Hutchinson, where evaporated salt is produced on a large scale. In addition, the plants at Anthony, Kingman, Sterling and Kanopolis were operated almost constantly. A new plant was built at Ellsworth for making evaporated salt, which began operations about the first of the year.
Table I. Showing Value of Each of the Mineral Products of
Kansas for 1903,
and Since Industry Began.
Table XVIII. Showing Value of Building Stone Produced in
Kansas From 1888 to 1903.
Figures for 1880 to 1896, inclusive, are taken from the
reports
of the United States Geological Survey.
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