The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1901-12-27
NATURAL GAS.

NATURAL GAS.
Inc natural gas field ~ Indiana covers
about $3.50 square miles In the eastern
central part ~ the state. IL Is IN. mo.,
extensive natural gas field tn the world.
baackforc. Delaware. Grant and Madison
are the principal g-as-produclng counties
The gas field extends also over parts ~
Jay. Howard Hamilton. Randolph. Upton.
Wells. Adams. Rush and Shelby counties.
In the cornifer0uz formation 81 the vest
en- part ~ the state gas has been struck
at L~oogootee. Martin county. and Peters
burg. Pike county. In paying quantities
and al other points I'm that formation ia
other parts y the state. but not in paw
ing quantities. Natural ga. and petro-
lsum nave a common origin. All the
higher anffclines in the main gas field
In which the porous Trenton limestone
occurs have been tapped for gas. and
while the stored reservoirs have not b.
come exhausted the demand upon them
from tn. local factories and pipe lines 10
Chicago and Indiana towns has been 50
great during the past fifteen years that
the natural rock pressure % - pounds
has steadily decreased until II Is now
but Ia pounds. According TO the state
gas supervisor the natural producing gas
field has contracted from It's original
area ~ -Ss square miles To l.3a square
miles. the salt water having IN numerous
places encroachsd upon the gas and risen
10 higher levels in the s~yncltnes. pre-
venting a uniform pressure which for
merly prevailed. There are large areas
I'm the producing field ret untouched
which piping companies and maaufactEr-
ing corporations have kept In reserve
and while the ma xinum production Of
natural gas production in the state has
been reached and IL Is now on the de-
cline. Indiana will still have more natural
gas for many years IN come than any
other state In the union
Some Gas History.
Natural ga. was discovered in Indiana
in isss. The gas belt. which Is now a
network Of factory towns. where the
greatest glass works in the world are To-
Gated and also some Of the largest steel
plants. and WHERE all classes 81 manufac-
lures are represented. wrs then purely
an agricultural region. without factories
OF any kind except a few small saw
mills. -four mills and brick yards MANY
single manufacturing plants. costing ur-
ward Of a million dollars each are on
sites which were corn fields or COW Das-
lures sixteen years ago Anderson then
was a small county seat. supported by
the farming interest. EiwOOi and Alex
andria were railroad crossings. without
the title OF villages The taxable proper
" OF MEG4SIn county the year AUAlD0AIS
The discover OF natural gas was ap-
praised at less IN ylO.cs.vn- Ten years
later the appraisement Of taxable prop
erty had Increased to 81 ss.0n The pop
ulation OF the county which before the
discovery Of gas was - 81. mad Increased
to -e.<-O in 1870 Madison IL the typical
county OF the gas belt Delaware. Grant
and Blackfcrd have done almost as well
In manufacture increase Of wealth and
-
inferred that Indiana was not in a high
state Of prosperity al the time OF the
discovery OF natural gas or tina. the state
did not then contain an Intelligent. pres
porous and ccnteufed population Nor Is
II true that agriculture was the sole re-
source Of the state. AT that inr .nuiana
had had a large percentage Of its popu-
iation engaged for many yeas In the
exploitation 81 the greatest tract ~ hard
wood timber ever found in snt world.
laundering and the wood manufacturing
industry had been one % the greatest re-
sources Of the state and hack in the
seventies the product IT the forest ex-
ceeded the agricultural product OF the
state Indianapolis. Evansville. Fl.
Wayne. South Bend and T>rre Haute were
wen then great Industrial centersL South
Bend was then. as IL i now. the center
OF the wagon and plo~ manufacturing
industry Of the United States. and New
Albany had the largest plate glass works
Fl Wayne had the largest car wheel
foundry in the world. Michigan city led
in the cooyPrage business Of the country.
Evansville was the center Of the largest
hardwood market 81 the world The
value Of the natural gas consumed In In
diana from 1876 to 1901 II estimated by
tine United States geological survey at
si..n.ar the first two years. G.oco.c0o each
FOR the years 1855. 1859 and isSo. ss.go.Oo
for 1891: $4,000 for 1890. G.50.0S zach for
the years 1871. 1894 and ls>5 and a little
over G.cs.0D annually since Up 10 ten
wear. axo the timber Of the state manu-
featured and exported yielded more than
SIS. 0c. co a year for twenty to thirty years
hack. However. m the destruction of
timber had been carried on af such a
rarid rac. tina natural gas counties had
their supply exhausted At the time or the
discovery 81 natural gas the discovery Of
natural gas cane at the proper time 20
replace the timber industry which was
about 10 dwfndle down and totally dis
aupear. especially in the gas belt regions
Tre river counties. which at one time
uere m. principal manufacturing coun-
ts.s az tho state. having lost population
80 a sirne after the exhaustion OF the
timber resources. r. an indication what
would have prevailed generally through
~. the central regions q the state
4 nMTtnK TUE AArA MF"atN - T
had no., been discovered However.
~. coal fields would have been
more rarldIy developed and the centers
~ glass and steel manufacturing wcui1
he in the coal regions In the we>tern
part " the state instead ~ IN the east
central part. IL would have required.
perhaps. twenty years longer 20
realize the existing Industrial conditions
~ IRE state. with the assurance 81 per-
manent fuel supplies In petroleum and
coal the manufacturing industries % In
diana ran be considered on a permanent
Foundation regardless of the duration OF
the natural gas supply.
Future o. Gas Supply.
Authorities conflict a. to the probable
duration OF the gas supply. That II -
= stored product. which II being drawn
urcn IN immense volume they all agree
hut n n impossible to estimate Inc
amount stored In the Trenton rock. al
though the volume drawn therefrom can
be approximately estimated Natural