The Van Buren press., 1902-04-19
The Southwestern Coal Field.

the three districts of Indian Territory,
Arkansas and north Texas, 1t is dis
cussed by Mr.. Joseph A. Taft in part iii
of the twenty second annual report OF
the United States geological survey,
now In press.
The Indian Territory coal field is
directly connected with the Kansas coal
field on the north, and the Arkansas
field on the east. The northern part
and the extreme western part are unde-
vcloped and little known. The field In
cludes u small part of eastern Okla
homa, the western part of the Cherokee,
the whole'of the Creek the northeastern
corner of the Chickasaw and the north
ern third of the Choctaw nation, and
has an area of approximately 20, 900
square miles. There are seven beds OF
coal in the Indian Territory coal field
thick enough to be commercially work
able, besides others which may be
locally of workable thickness.
The Hartsh0rne Goals lie In the south
ern part of the field, eastward from near
Wilburton, in two beds between four
and five feet thick. The coal makes
good coke. The Atoka coal bed, in the
Lehigh district, Is nearly four feet
thick but is not of as high grade as the
Hartshorne coal in the eastern part Of
the field. 1t is not known to occur
west of the Choctaw- Chickasaw line.
The Panama coal bed runs westward
from the state line by way of Doubleday,
Adkins, and Panama mines to point
north of Sans Bots Mountain. The PAN
ANA coal varies from three to six feet
thick.
The McAlester Goals appear in three
districts in the southern part of this
field, The first is between the vicinity
Of Wilburton and the Arkansas state
line, the second between Hartshorne
and the vicinity of McAlester the third
near Savanna. This coal is mined most
extensively at Carbon, Dow, Anderson,
Krebs and McAlester, and varies In
these mines between three and four feet
In thickness. The coal is successfully
cooked and ranks as high-grade btu
minous coal. In the Savanna district
probably less than ten square miles can
be successfully mined. The coal Is here
about four feet thick and of the same
grade rs at McAlester. The Lehigh
coal bed Is extensively mined at Lehigh
and Colgate In the southwestern part of
the field and covers an area for conven-
lent mining Of approximately 35 square
miles. II Ia extensively used for loco
motive fuel. The Cavanal coal In the
southern part of the field around the
base Of Cavanal mountain is mined near
Cavanal Station and three miles west OF
Wister, where II Is about three feet
thick. IL Is also steam coal. The
Witteville Goals are In two beds OF
workable thickness In the east end Of
Cavanal mountain, each bed occupying
about sixty square miles of area. The
beds are between three and five feet
thick. The mining IL chiefly at Witte.
Vile, and the coal Is u good steam.
producing fuel.
Commercial coal mining In the Indian
began near McAlester with
the location Of the Missouri, Kansas q
Texas railroad In 1879, Mining began
At Savanna and Lehigh 10 1881. The
Frisco road, the Memphis & Choctaw
and the Kansas City Southern have
developed the coal industry Of the
Territory.
A small coal-bearing area lies south
OF Ardmore In the Chickasaw Nation,
Only one coal bed, from twenty TO forty
inches thick, Is reported, Coal was
mined and shipped from the mine
around 1900 and mining WAS then aban.
doned Recently mining has been begun
again.
The Arkansas coal field runs In the
basin OF the Arkansas river seventy-hve
miles eastward from the state line,
narrowing from fifty to twenty-five
miles, between the southern foothills Of
the Boston mountains and the northern
ridges Of the OuaChita mountains. The
two main beds OF Arkansas coal are
known IN the Huntington coal, from
three 10 six feet thick, In the western
division, and the Spadra coal, between
three and four feet thick, In the eastern
division, The mining operations are In
Sebastian, Logan, Franklin, Crawford,
johnson and Pope counties Mt Jenny
Lind, Hackett, Huntington, Montana,
Spadra and elsewhere, and the coal pro.
duced Is bituminous, semi-bituminous
and semi-anthracite, good for steam,
coking and domestic use,
Extensive mining began frat In the
eastern part of this field along the Little
Rock & Fort Smith road In Pope, John.
son and Franklin counties, With the
building Of the ", Louis & San Fran.
cisco road into the western part Of the
field In 1883 mining began In the Hunt.
ington, Hackett and Bonanza regions.
Then the Missouri Pacific and the
Memphis & Choctaw roads opened other
districta