The Iola register., 1902-01-17
NyNgSS{ Nss|N
GEOLOGY OF
lola and VICINITY


40, 600 brick daily. Their plant No.
Just south of town has daily capa-
city of 60, 600. Near the latter is the
plant of the Star Brick Company with
capacity of $4,000.
In southeastern Kansas there are
10 brick plants using natural gas fuel,
and three in the coal belt. All OF
these are running night and day and
cannot keep up with orders. New
plants are being constructed and in a
short time Kansas will be well TO the
front rank as a brick producing
state" The lola brick yards are
equipped with the best of modern
machinery ard manufacture building
brick, dry pressed brick, repress
brick, in pleasing and durable shades
of color. They are shipped to Kan
sas City, Arkansas, Oklahoma and
various cities of Kansas.
ZINC SHELTERS
For many years the zinc smelling
industry of the Southern Mississippi
valley centered in the Kansas coal
district of Pittsburg and Girard. In
1896 smelter was built at lola by the
Robert Lanyon's Sons Co., of Pitts
burg. a thousand retorts were soon
installed and the experiment tried of
using natural gas for fuel. The work
was so successful that the smelters
we're removed to the gas belt and new
companies organized so that the in
dustry now centers at lola and Cher
ryvale. Kansas has now become the
leading zinc spelter state of the Union
going from second rank to first.
The process of treatment of the zinc
ores is briefly as follows: After the
sulphur is removed by roasting, the
fine ore is placed in clay retorts which
are cylinders of fire clay four feet
long and eight inches in diameter
closed at one end. These fit in open
. ings in the walls of the furnace will
the open ends flush with the walls, ant
are arranged ia rows forming block
When coal was used for fuel 224 re
5 torts we're placed in a block, while
) with gas about 600 can be placed IL
= one block. When charged with ore, ;
! condenser. conical fire clay vesse
about u inches long and six inches il
e diameter at the larger and two inche
D at the smaller end is so placed tha
, the larger end just enters the open en'
5 of the retort.
r AS the ore mixed with powdere'
: coke is heated the zinc is driven off a
r heavy vapor which forms in drops OF
d the inside of the condenser from whicl
S the metal is tapped in long ladle
@ about three times in "a hours. Th
@ molten metal is emptied into travel
s ing kettle and poured into mould
about 9xl9xl4 inches making .
). pound plate known as speltcr.
d The zinc works make their own re
81 torts and condensers out of good fir
d clay mixed with one-third its weight c
f. fragments of old retorts pulverizec
: The materials are mixed in pug mi
g with water and then passed through
/, moulding machine and afterward
ic dried in heated room for some weeks
)f They are finally fired in a small fal
y mace for twelve hours. The condenser
lie are made in hand moulds as needed.
d AT the present time at Gas Cit
r. there are three smelters, Prime Yves
,,,st IL q pat fTtl
he Cherokee-Lanyon with three block
10 A. b. Cockerill smelter with thrt
90 blocks.
s. At Lanyonville the Lanyon Zir
Co., has a smelter of five blocks and
"a zinc rolling mil! nearing completion
ty At lola is the Nicholson smelter
re five blocks, the VIM. Lanyon smelt
he of three blocks, the two smelters
20 the Lanyon Zinc Co., of twelve block
n This gives a total of about 20, 900 r
ee torts giving daily capacity of ov
20 300 tons requiring nearly TOO tons
ck ore.
SULPHURIC ACID WORKS.
g. The new plant of the Standard Ac
or Company will probably be in acti
n, operation in the next thirty days al
W. is located just east of the town. T
ao zinc ore is roasted in mechanical co
IA tinuous roasters composed of sew
,,s row muffle kiln capable of rOastiI
4 sufficient to run three block (1e
80 pass into fue where the dust is {
he posted, and the sulphur gas passes
Nh a square condensing tower forty-ni
'on feet high, and the heat OF the gas
mead IN COMMONWEALTH the weaker aoi