Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-04-01
LABOR BUREAU.
Annual Report Of Com
missioner 7. J. Lyons.
Interesting Chapte on the
Mineral Resources Of Maine
From Information Gathered and
Arranged BY Bureau.


| j. Lyons OF Vinalhaven, commissioner
Of labor and industrial statistics,
which was recently filed with the
governor and council, contains a sec
ton on the mineral resources of Maine,
| as follows:
I'm compliance with the law, we
have gathered information in regard
| to the mineral resources of the State,
but have decided to give only a gen.
eral writeup the present year and to
| go more into detail in a future report
The law also contemplates the collec-
ton and arrangement of a cabinet of
minerals at the State capitol, and
| doubtless when the work of rebuild
ing the State House has been COM
| pleted. accommodations will be pro-
vided for such cabinet, but until
this is done it is useless to attempt
to make the collection of minerals, as
under present conditions there is no
place to store them.
GRANITE.
| "Perhaps the most valuable of our
minerals is granite. 1t is found at
many points along the entire sea
| coast, upon numerous islands and eX-
tends well into the Interior so it is
found in every county in the State
Whole districts are undcrlaid with it
and many Of our mountains seem to
be built UP with layer upon layer of
this valuable building stone AS to
the available quantity. Maine has the
worlds supply for all the coming ages.
The report of this department for
1902 contained an article describing at
| length o nita ri,
ing a list of the different quarries
of the output of Maine granite was
$2.217,795. The industry gives en-
| ployment to about $500 men on the
| average.
LIME
! Limestone has been found widely
| scattered over the State but the quar-
| rying and burning of lime has been
confined principally to the towns of
Camden. RoCkland, Rockport, Thorn
aston and Warren. in Knox county.
| although small quantities have at
times been manufactured in other
| sections. According to the census of
manufactures of 1905, the capital in
vested in the lime business in Maine
was sl,927.003; the number Of men en-
ployed, 633; total wages paid, 1896 6S7:
value of product, Sits. 500 Next to
| granite. lime is the most important
mineral product of the State.
SLATE.
The work Of quarrying and manu-
| featuring roofing slate in Maine was
commenced August 10, 1874 at Brown
| Vile and the work has been continu-
| ously carried on since that time
| There is great belt of slate extend
ing from the Kennebec river at Car
| ratunk nearly to the Penobscot river.
,, distance of so miles. Quarries have
been opened and operated on this belt
ct Brownville. Blanchard. Monsoon,
Williamsburg and several other places
in PiScataquis county. but to the
quarries now in operation are confined
to the towns named. and the quality
of the slate produced is equal to any
in the world. The veins crop out in
nearly every township along this belt.
and it has been found at various
points further north.
CLAY.
For many years brickinaking has
been extensively carried on in Maine,
anu III earlier times large quantities
were shipped to Boston and other sea-
port cities. Plastic blue clay suitable
for their manufacture and generally
sand in the vicinity, are found in
abundance along the coast and in the
river valleys of the State, SO that as
far as the raw material is concerned
their manufacture may be indefinitely
expanded. Drain tile is also manu-
featured quite extensively. The total
value OF brick and tile manufactured
in the state in 1905 was s420,111.
"Feidspar has been found in Tops
ham. Auburn. Hebron, Perry. Phipps-
burg. Rumford. Paris and other
towns. In Topsham quarry has
been operated for about 40 years and
large quantities have been ground and
shipped to New Jersey, where it enters
into the manufacture Or pottery.
ut is also auarried at Auburn.
Georgetown and perhaps to some ex-
tent in other places. Early in De-
cember of the present year there ap-
peared newspaper account of the I'M
covering of a very rich deposit of field
spar in the town of Hebron.