The Saint Paul globe., 1898-11-14
BAKING POWDER WILD
IMMENSE DEPOSITS OF SODA ARE
DISCOVERED IN WYOMING
MOUNTAINS
NATURAL SODA FOUNTAIN
Green River spouts Up More Soda
Water Than All the Fountains in
81. Paul ON an August Day
More Than Twenty Soda Lakes
Prof. knights Investigations-
MOrmOns First 10 Use the Soda.

! LARAMIE, Wyo.. Nov. 10.-Out of her
4 surprising exhibit of natural coda at
the Trans-Mississlppi exposition at
Omaha, Wyoming expects soon TO take
a front rank among the wealth pro-
ducing states Of the Union as a soda
/ producer. The great block OF natural
coda that Wyoming placed in the
! mines and mining building at Omaha
/ was the astonishment of thousands OF
people. 1t has been the means of
/ bringing soda experts from different
parts Of the United States into Wyo-
ming TO investigate the extent and
richness OF the states deposits. with a
/ view 10 erecting huge allzaH works
along the margins of her great soda
( lakes.
Wyoming has the most extensive
| soda deposits In the world. The peo-
/ pie of the big Western state believe
they have enough natural soda in their
soda lakes 10 make all the soda bis
cults OF the world for the next two
centuries and then throw in for good
measure sufficient sal soon and soda
lye 10 cleanse all the tribes OF earth"
during the two centuries they are feed
ing on the Wyoming biscuits and still
/ have plenty of soda left to make win
/ dow glass for the United States for
generations to come They believe that
1 within the near future Wyoming will
| really be furnishing the bulk of the
worlds output of soda
TWENTY SODA LAKES.
Wyoming is thought to have more
ttnn twenty soda lakes Of commercial
Importance. These lakes are widely
! scattered throughout the state and are
invariably found in depressions Most
or these depressions have an inlet. but
no outlet; hence the opinion OF geolo-
glsts that the soda came In with the
spring water and leached out. the
water cooperating. thus leaving In
! some instances beds of soda more than
hfty feet in depth and hundreds Of
| acres in surface dimension.
The surface of these lakes, through
the actlon OF the sun and air, has been
lncrusted over with a powdered soda
/ closely resembling great patches OF
pure snow. On examining them with
pick one might well imagine that he
| were on lake Of ice upon which a
light snow had fallen. for the soda be.
meath is a transparent crystal closely
resembling ice.
KNIGHTS INVESTIGATIONS.
Frof Wilbur c. Knight. of the chair
OF geology Of the Wyoming state uni
versity here at Laramie. has done per.
| haps more than any other Westernet
to ascertain the chemical richness of
the Wyoming soda deposits. SPEAKING
OF Wyoming's inland seas Of soda Prof
| knight said:
Large companies are now being or.
ganized In the East TO establish alkali
works in Wyoming. These companies
are being backed by big capital in New
/ York, Chicago and elsewhere: and while
| England and Germany until recent
years have produced the greater part
fLf IL
common salt we hone soon to replace
the imported product with our Wyom-
ing soda.
From my Investigations OF the soda
/ deposits OF the state. / believe IL safe
20 say that there are at least 40, 900 600
cubic feet of soda already in sight
! When we consider what DEVELOPMENT
work may bring forth, the soda beds OF
| wyoming assume enormous proper.
| lions. In the immediate vicinity OF
| these deposits are excellent beds OF
sand and limestone. and also an abund-
ance OF fuel I'm the form OF coal. which
insures the people OF Wyoming that
these soda lakes viii be used in max.
ing glass, soap, baking soda and sal
soda. Ii has already been demonstrated
that the Wyoming soda makes a first.
class window or plate glass. There IA
| little doubt that plants will also soon
be erected for the manufacture of ths
ordinary soda compounds. such as
sodium carbonate, or baking soda, and
soda lye, used IN making hard soap.
| There Is absolutely no reason whv
this natural soda cannot be converted
into other soda compounds that are
| more valuable than the sulphate and
! sold, at least in competition, with the
Eastern or Imported product made
| from salt"
MoRMoNs FIRST USE TT.
The Mormons were the first TO make
a practical use OF the Wyoming soda.
/ They discovered the carbonate of soda
on the Sweetwhter river in Central
| Wyoming, and for years annually
made trips across the sage brush des-
ert in freight wagons, a distance of
more than 500 miles. to return 10 Salt
Lake with sufficient soda TO do their
| cooking ana washing for the year.
These immense soda deposits hive
| since been used extensively by the in
habitants Of Wyoming and the adjoin-
ing states.
In the Sweetwater valley in Natrona
county, the soda lakes have been d.
! Vided into three groups according 10
their ownership. as follows: The Nor
/ gan deposits the Du Pont deposits and
/ the Wyoming Syndicate Improvement
| comrhny's deposits. The Morgan de-
/ posits are nearly pure sulphate OF
soda The Du Pont deposits are a
mixture OF carbonate and sulrghate OF
soda. In this group IS one lake that
contains practically so per cent carho-
I nate Of sOdn. The group owned bv
the Wyoming Syndicate Improvement
company is composed OF carbonate and
I soiphate te Of soda, similar 10 the Du
| Pont group.
Taking these deposits as a whole. the
soda is found In solid forma ton. and
1 varies In thickness from few inches
/ 70 fifteen and twenty feet. and IN sur
I face area from few 10 more than 100
/ acres. Nine lakes have been discov-
| cred IN N2trono county.
4 small plant was erected a few
I years ago at the properties OF the
/ Wyoming Syndicate Improvement
/ company, but at the time OF it's erec-
! ton the company anticipated the con-
struction Of the extension OF the Chi
cago & Northwestern railroad iron,
] Casper, Wye, up the Sweetwater val
ley, IN which event the road would
have passed the company's property.
! The road was not built and on ac-
count OF the wagon lhHl of sixty miles
/ II was found Impractical 10 operate the
plant
A few miles east OF Casper e The
I GIN soda deposit. This is a very large
lake. and is practically pure suIphate
] OF soda.
Carbon county has numerous small
i soda lakes and one that is quite large
4 This Is one located about twenty-five
miles northwest OF Rawlins The soda
from al OF the Carbon county deposits
/ has been found 10 be almost pure SUI
/ phate.
In Albany county there are three
/ groups OF sulphate of soda, as follows.
4 The Rock creek group. lying about
/ twelve miles northwest OF Rock creek.
the Union Pacific group, thirteen miles
southwest ot Laramie. and the Downey
/ group. TWENTY-FIVE miles soIrth hwnsf nf