East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1862-12-16
EAST SAGINAW, MICHIGAN, DECEMBER 16, 1862

existence Of b. me better and stronger
than any other yet found in any quan.
tity in the United States, other compa
nies soon sprung up. Within the year
after the East Saginaw Company com
menccd operations it was followed by
the Saginaw City Manufacturing Com
pany, the Bay City Company, the Ports.
mouth Company, and two or three at
Car.olton, until before the list day of
December, 1861, there were no less than
eight different companies in successful
operation, with eighteen blocks.
Of course the first step to manufac.
turing is boring a well, though some
companies in operation have thus tar
obviated the necessity for this by buy.
ing the brine at some neightoring we'll
and transferring il to their watts The
price pai,! is five To six cents for each
barrel of salt. The first we'll sunk by
the East Saginaw Company was 669 #
deep, where brine WAS found of 90 dc
grees in strength. subsequently,, it WAS
continued "a feet deeper, and a second
we'll was afterwards sunk by tho same
company To depth OF 800 feet The
wells for the most part vary from $40 To
$50 feet, the most of them running from
$50 tn $50 feet in depth. At Portsmounth
aud Bay City, the sallferous rock has
been found at less depth than at points
further up the river, The dip of the rock
being toward East Saginaw and Salna.
The wells toward the mouth of the river
have been but 500 to 600 feet in depth.
Their brine has not been so strong as
those nearer the centre of the basin, hut
still it is stronger by several degrees
than the Onondaga briae, and mannfac
lures an excellent article of salt. One
of the wells at Salzburg, opposite Ports
mouth, has been continued down to
greater depth than any We'll on the river,
and most excellent quality of brine oh
tanned, which, by the salometcr, stool
at 100 degrees 1t is proposed by
number of the com panies in this vicinity
t. bore their wells to corresponding
depth this winter. All of the wells thus
far bored are upon the immediate banks
of the river. There are now twenty-five
wells in operation, and nineteen more
boring.
BORING.
The wells are bored upon contract, by
men who make it their bu .iness. Prices
vary from 81 so to So 90 per foot, in.
cluding the putting in of the tubing,
which goos through the everything earth,
until IL pcuetrotcs the rock. This il
necessary for the double purpose of
keeping out the fresh water so far as
possible, and to prevent the earth from
caving in. Some wells are contracted
to be bored at $4,000, providing the
depth be not above stipulated number
of feet, usually 1000 or 1900. The
drilling is done altogether by steam pow.
er, the process being the same as that
followed at the salt wells in ohio and
Virginia. One of the heaviest contrac
tors now in the valley is the same who
bored the famous artesan well at Co.
lumbus, Ohio. The Saginaw wells range
from 81 to 5 inches in diameter.
STRENGTH OF THE BRINE.
The briue will average 90 degrees in
strength. This is far stronger than any
from which salt is regularly manufac
turei in the United States, aad, if we
mistake not, is quito 90 degreos stronger
than the Onondaga brine That obtain.
ed at the wells near the mouth Of the
river, as before stated, is not so strong,
while that at Saginaw and Salina runs
up to and above 90 >. The strongest
yet found is at Salzburg, where the sa.
lometer stood at 1909 but this was
through to the second saliferous rock;
the next strongest well is that of +.
Rust & Co at Salina, which stands at
96o That of Curtis Il King, at Salina,
stands at 94o, and that of John +.
Rust & Co., at the same place, at 90 ,.
The brine is just as pure and strong,
and exhibits as little signs Of diminution
as it did the first day it was struck, two
Years and more ago. As matter Of
interest we subjoin the following figures
of the strength of the water at different
depths in boring the first well of the
East Saginaw Company: AT 20 feet |
degree; l02 feet, 2 degrees; 2il feet,
ID degrees; 4S7 feet, 70 degrees; 5I6
fest, 40 degrees; 53l feet, "A degrees;
$50 feet, 90 degrees; 500 feet, 64 dc.
grees; COG feet. So degrees; 639 feet,
80 degrees. Some of the wells over.
flowed when first bored, but not suf.
hciently fast to be used, and putnps are
universally employed. The brine is not
ouly more highly imprcgnated with ss.
line particles than the Onondaga brine,
but it is freer from sulphato of lime
(plaster), which makes 1t much easier
aud better 10 boil, as it does not injure
the kettles so much AT Syracuse the
deposit of plaster upon the kettles is so
great that it is necessary tn employ picks
to remove it, whiIo at Saginaw the de
posts upon the kettles are nearly all
pure salt 50 20 parts in 1907, and sol.
uble, so that the mere introduction of
fresh water 10 sufficient to cleanse the
kettles.
PROCESS OF MANUFAcTUAE,
Kettles are almost universally used
as at Syracuse, many of those in use be-
ing Of Syracuse make. though Of late a
kettle manufactured IN Detroit is much
used, being considered better article