The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-07-20
Indiana KaOlin,


Dr. Charles D. Pearson of this city has de-
veloped valuable mine of kaoin in the south
west corner of Lawrence county, on Beaver
creek, two miles from Huron, on the Ohio &
Mississippi road, which promises to be rich
addition to the mineral resources of the State
Three large exploratory tunnels have been
drifted and shored up with timbers, and fourth
is in progress. Much time and money has been
spent in prospecting, but the result justifies it,
for as good bed Of pure white kaolin has been
found as exists in the world. Analyses by Mr.
John Hurry show AZ to A per cent. of silica, Sc
to 81 of alumina, and Ia to II Of moisture. One
portion of it has 5 per cent. of oxide of cobalt
used in the arts for coloring glass, etc. Fine
veins have been struck five feet thick, giving a.
snow-white, massive variety made up of micro
scropc, pearly scales. This slakes to a pure
white powder, without grit. sand or uncom-
bined silica. This kind of kaolin is invaluable
for making a pure paper alum" for sizing
writing papers. 1t is treated with sulphuric
acd the pure alumina is taken up, making a
porous alum which is unexcelled for paper size
So fine are these white clays that they have been
used to aduterate various more expensive but
similar appearing substances; the finest grades
of encaustic tiles are also made from these claws
The Indiana kaolin is held by competent ex-
perts to be not excelled for purity of COMPOST.
ton and clear white color by the famous kaolins
of Europe. Among these are the pure beds of
Limoges on the Seine $50 miles south of Paris
These have been worked In the famous govern.
ment potteries since 176S, and is the material of
which the famous Limoges and Sevres wares are
made. Pure kaolins are worth from $40 to $50
a ton, for paper size and fine porcelain. All that
is needed to make Indiana kaolin a source of
productive industry is to develop it and use It.
and this can be done in the West-in St Louis
Chicago Cincinnati or Indianapols-qui as
we'll as in Philadelphia, and the cost of freight
and handling be saved
The Lawrence county kaolins have been over
looked among our mineral resources. The great
mineral wealth Of Indiana is in block coal and
oolitic limestone for export, to say nothing of
common Goals and limestones. The State has
also abundant building and glass sands. and
road gravels, brick and tile clays. Of the latter,
the northern central States are covered by a
sheet from fifty to 200 feet thick, the result of
the rotting of the feldspar rocks-granite,
gneiss and porphyry to the north of us-the
clay and sand of which have been removed and
deposited by glacial action. If these clays con-
tain no iron, as at Milwaukee, the resulting
cream colored brick is made; if they contain,
as most do. the carbonate of iron this is changed
by burning to the red oxide of iron, and so our
Western brick built cities are naturally painted
red"
But the common blue and bowlder clay is
nearly one half sand; not so with :he kaoiin of
Indiana. This replaces the Archimedes limestone
lying under the milestone grit of the coal meas
ures in few pockets as precious as the gold
which has been found in Brown county, the
chance gift of the glacier, and of which $40, 900
has been PANIED out, aud much Of it mads into