The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-02-29
IN underground wealth
The State Of Washington Is Rich in
This Respect.
MANY KINDS OF COAL VEINS
Statement Of Resources Which Explains
Why That Favored Commonwealth
Is Sometimes Called tho Penn.
sylvania Of tho West.

Is Sometimes Called tho Penn.
sylvania Of tho West.
At the request of Mr.. ]. +. Richmond.
II. h. Corey, of Seattle, Superintendent
OF the Oregon Improvement company's
mines, located a few miles out of Sc
attle-at New Castle and Franklin-and
perhaps the best informed man in the
state on the subject of mining, has pre-.
pared for The Tribune the following
paper on the coal resources of Western
Washington. II will be read with es-
pecial interest In Pennsylvania. Writes
Mr.. Corey:
This is a subject that would make a
large column If one were to go into a
detailed statement, from the fact that
the conditions are so varied and they
cover so many fields, each section to it
self. The coal regions are divided into
four districts. viz: "a The Skagit-
Whatcom. (2) King county, go Pierce
county and (D Lewis county.
The Skngit. WhntcOm.
This field Is in the northern part of
the state, and contains four seams of
high grade bituminous coal and one or
two Ignite seams. The coal is found
to be ''pockety," the seams pinching to
nothing or thickening to abnormal size.
Beneath the seams Is found clay
schist and slate. The lower strata is
found richest in carbon and low in
moisture; the higher ones losing the
carbon. becoming a fine grade of loco
motive coal and in some cases produce
ing an Al grade of coke.
The dip is from so degrees to vertical.
the area Is about 800 square miles.
The principal districts are found in
the region of the Skagit river, Lake
Whatcom and the Noosack river. There
are seams under development near
Hamilton, Jennings and Blue Cannon.
1t was in this region that coal was first
found In the state, and mined for the
Hudson Bay company over thirty years
ago. The region also contains a fine
belt of iron ore and quarries of sand
stone. The production in 1892 was 3d.
4l5 tons from this region.
King County.
This Is the largest and most devel.
oped field in the state. There Is an
area of l2O square miles of very nigh
grade Ignite and 800 square miles of
bituminous coal. These grades of coal
no doubt belong to the cretaceous
epoch. the Ignite being the upper and
the bituminous the lower. The bitum!n-
ouo lltS Ill W tIt lSHeouS
agencies, which by their heat have
driven off volatile gases, leaving u
higher grade of coal.
At Gilman there are five seams OF
Ignite with a dip Of $50 and an aver
age wall of 3 to ~ feet. In 1892 the
production from these was 103, 600 tons.
At New Castle, four miles west of Gil.
man, the mine has been in operation
for twenty-five years. The average
thickness Of the seams Is ten to twelve
feet. with forty-five degree dip. In
1892 the production was 10000 tons.
At Black Diamond there are five
seams, the average thickness of which
Ia two and One-half to seven and one
half feet, with a dip of twelve degrees
to forty degrees. The output in 1892
was 10000 tons In this vicinity is also
found the Franklin mines, with an out
put Of 5000 tons: the Alto, with $4,000:
the Kaugley, with $4,000; the Denny,
with 1900 tons. and the Cedar Noun
tain, with $4,000 tons. Great difficulty
Is encountered by the drift carried over
King county by the glacial epoch of the
Quarternary period, which is found to
a depth of 300 feet.
Pierce County.
This Is a small field in area but rich
In the thickness and number of its
seams. The field extends from the
South Prairie mines south about 26
miles to Pittsburg, and the measures
are from 10000 to $4,000 feet wide. One
hundred square miles would include the
whole field, which is very difficult of
access, especially in the southern por-
tions. Under development in this field
is the Carbanado mine with an output
in 49, of $4,000 tons; the Wilkeson. o.
,.i.
and the Acme with 5000 tons.
This field runs to the Cascade range,
In and about Mount Rainier. and at such
q time as we commence to make our
own pig iron and Smelt our own ores, it
will prove of great value to the Pacific
coast. the coal being of first-class BIZ
luminous, with excellent coking quail
ties.
Lewis County.
This sectiap contains three grades of
coal: Anthracite. ~ square miles BIZ
luminous. PIG square miles, Ignite, $50
square miles. There are a number of
seams in these fields with an average
thickness of two to fifteen feet The
Ignite Of this section is poor and the
anthracite is not much developed on
account of the inability to transport it
from the mine. There are two mines
In operation in Lewis county. the Bu-
coda. output in 1892, 10000 tons; Cen
tralia. output $500 tons.
In Cawlitz county. there are also two,
the Castle Rock and Kelso, with an
output in '92 of $50 and 1000 tons re-
spectively.
These Goals of Western Washington
are brought into competition with Eng
lish. Australian and Vancouver Islands
Goals.
The grand total output in 1892 was
S4O,965 tons. These figures are, of
course, three years old and i'm conse-
guence not exact for the present time.
No geological survey has ever been
taken of the state. in fact, the noun
famous country. the heavy timber and
underground, the wash deposits, COM
pletely Obliterata the strata mud ,naI.o