The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1908-02-29
Duraneo-Gallup Coal FIELD.

The Durango-Gallup coal field in.
cludes an area of $500 square miles
900 of which lie in Colorado an. rbe
remainder in New Mexico. TAs field
extends from the latitude of Durango
Colorado on the north TO that of Sal.
Lake, seventy miles south of Gal!ur
New Mexico, on the south; its western
limit is the Arizona New Mexico stat,
line, and its eastern passes near
Chama, Elvada, and the Sierra Nac.-
miento in longitude loo degrees, forry.
five minutes. Ia Plata and Montezg-
ma counties, Colorado. and San Juan.
Rio Arriba and Mckinley countie.,
New Mexico are comprised within its
boundaries.
A conservative estimate of the total
tonnage of coal in this area. based ul
a workable thickness of six feet %,
coal underlying the field, is said to be
10000 600, 900 short tons. II is prob
able however, that ten feet would
more nearly approximate the ayerage.
thickness of workable coal beds.
The earliest development of the coal
resources of this field, outside OF small
workings to supply limited domestic
demand, began with the advent Of the
railroads. In the vicinity of Gallup.
where the greatest development h4-
taken place, mining began late in lSSl,
or early in 1882, at about the time ths
Atlantic and Pacific railroad fAtchl
son. Topeka and Santa Fe) reached
Gallup from the East. The Denvp-
and Rio Grande railroad reach,.
Durango in 1881. but it was late in HI
eighties before any great activity M
coal mining began in the northern
part of the field. The Rio Grand
Southern railway was built north
westward from Durango in 1892. TIL
production of the field in 1906 amount
ed to more than $40 600 short tons
valued at approximately l,165, 900.
reconnaissance survey OF the
western part of this field-that IS. that
part lying west of longitude l67 do
grees thirty minutes-was made in the
autumn OF 1906 by Millard X Shalet
one of the biologists of the United
States Geological Survey. A prelmiu-
AIRY report on this work has just been
published by the Survey in bulletin
No. BIG. which forms Part II OF ''Con-
tributions to Economic Geology, 1906
and treats of the related subjects, coal.
Ignite. and peat. A more detailed de
scription of the entire field is in prep
Lration. In the area discussed by Mr
Shaler Durango and Mancos, in Colu-
iiNt' anu 'aitul'r IN ->t'N -hCAiNV. Ill "
the only important towns.
The coal beds IN this field lie at
various horizons. The Goals have
bright luster and are clean to handle
When freshly mined they are harj
but brittle and break badly with
handling. thus producing a high per
centage of fine coal. In the create
part of the area this fine coal or slaci
is waste. as the Goals. except those In
the Durango district do not coke. In
the Gallup district this waste amount
to nearly twenty per cent. of the run
of-mine coal In the vicinity of DE-,
range. however, the fine coal is cokeA
and the product is used in the smelters
of the region. Throughout the field
the Goals are very satisfactory for
steam production and domestic pur-
poses. Analyses made at the United
States Geological Survey fuel-testins
plant at St. Louis of samples OF Goa
collected during 1905 by various mem
bers of the Survey in different Goa
fields of the West. indicate that the
high grade bituminous Goals of the Du
range region are as good as the best
hituminous Goals in any other of these
western fields. The Laramie coal OF
the Durango-La Plata region has
higher fuel value than any other
Goals of that age in the West except
those of the Grand river and Book
Cliffs fields of Colorado and eastern
Utah.
The development of this coal field is
entirely dependent upon railway faci-
tiles. There are good markets for coal
and coke which could be economically
reached from any part of the field If
railway connections were established
and freight rates We're rendered more
reasonable by competition. Railways
with light grades to which the coal
beds of the area would be easily acces
sible, could be constructed almost any
where through the field
Conditions for cheap mining are
favorable, so far as topography is con
cerned. In the northern. western,
and southe IN parts of the field timber
suitable for mining purposes is at
hand. but the country in the vicinity
of Rio Chaco is barren of forests. In
the interior of the field water in
quantity can undoubtedly be obtained
al moderate depths by boring. as 4
already been proved in the Gallur
district, where an abundant supply OF
artesian water has been obtained at
depth of about 1000 feet. In the
northern part of the field the streams
carry an abundant supply OF water
throughout the year.
Bulletin No. 316, from which the
above is distracted, may be obtained
free OF charge by applying to the
Director of the United States Geolog-
ical Survey at Washington, d. C.
Drainage Tunnel Contract.