Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1885-05-22
COAL MINES OF KENTUCKY.
Enough Coal to Last the United
States a Thousand Years.
From Laws of Kentucky

Kentucky has over thirteen thous.
and square miles of coal fields. Nine
thousand square miles is in the east.
ern part of the state, and lies in
Greenup. Carter, Rowan, Boyd,
Elliott, Lawrence, Morgan, Menifee,
Powell, Wolfe. Magoffin, johnson,
Martin, Pike, Floyd, Breathitt, Perry,
Letcher, Harlan, Leslie, Clay, Owsley,
Lee, Jackson, Laurel, Knott and Whit
ley counties.
In these counties is found some of
the finest CRATE and coke coal in the
country, and the largest era of camel
coal in North America.
The southern fields contain over
1000 square miles Of an almost mex
haustible supply Of coal, and are loca-
ted principally in Ohio, Grayson, Ed
monson, Butler, Muhlenberg, Hancock
Davies, Mclean Henderson, Web
ster, Union, Hopkins, Christian,
Crittenden and scattering in several
other counties. The quantity of coal
mined in this state for the year end
ing Dec. 81, 1884, will exceed 100000
tons or over 100000 bushels, or 20O,-
600 cart loads of twenty-five bushels,
requiring 100000 drivers. Eslimat-
ing the cart and two mules at thirty
feet in length, it would take nearly
100000 mules, or nearly four times as
many as there are in Kentucky, and
extend distance of |, 1861 miles in
a strait line, or from Louisville TO
New Orleans, and more than two
hundred miles beyond.
Nearly one hundred mines are work
ed in the state, giving employment to
about two thousand men when they
are worked by full force. With
proper facilities for getting The ccal
to market fully five thousand men
could be prolitably employed, each
on an average putting out eighty
bushels per day. 1t is possible, I'M
der favorable conditions, to mine AGO.
900 bushels daily, or more than one
half of all the coal us'd in this coun-
try, while the coal beds of this state
contain coal enough TO supply the
United States 900 years.
Coal lands in the eastern part of
the state can be bought for five dol
lars and upward per acre, and are
now being rapidly taken up. Several
new railroads have been surveyed,
and are exempt from taxes for five
years, with prospect of a paying
business and large dividends. With
the development of the agricultural
and mineral resources, land that can
be bought to-day for five dollars Der
acre will in five years double in value
and be open TO the market, and will
be in great demand.
Central City, in Muhlenlc lcrg county,
and the town of Campton, in Wolfe
county, and several other towns, are
built on top of solid beds of the finest
coal, and boys dig out the coal; and
so it is i'll many places along the line
of these new roads. 1t has oftenIbeen
said that Kentucky is fifty years be-
hind other states. In many respects
this is true, but we are living lust
now in a very progressive period, and
we predict that in the next ten years
the progress in this state in art,
manufacture, commerce, agriculture,
mechanism, and the development of
our vast beds of coal and iron ore
will exceed our most sanguine ex-
pectations and accomplish more than
all Of the developments of the last
twenty years combined.
We visited many of these localities
last fall, and our advice is, to all who
wish to make profitable investments,
investigate for yourselves. Professor
Proctor, state geologist, at Frankfort,
will supply you with all needed in
formation.