The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1913-01-02
MONTANA DEPOSITS
OF PHOSPHATE RICH
THEIR DISCOVERY MAY HAVE
CONSIDERABLE BEARING ON
FARMING IN THE WEST.

! From outcrops of phosphate rock in
the Garnet rangs, six miles north OF
Garrison, Mont. may be seen, 35 miles
away, immense volumes of smoke
pouring out of the smelter stacks at
Acknowledged quantities of sui
phurous acid escaping into the at
mospherc At times this acid laden
smoke clouds the whole Deer Lodge
valley The great economic import
ance of this situation lies in the fact
that phosphate rock is quickly rem
dered available as plant food by dis
solution in sulphuric acid. The COM
bination of immense deposits of phos-
phate rock and a practically unlimited
and readily accessible supply of sui
phuric acid may have considerable
bearing on the agricultural progress
of the west in years to come. If not in
deed at present.
This deposit of phosphate near Gar
rison is one of the three discovered in
Montana In 1911 by J. T. Pardee of
the United States Geological Survey
The others are at Phillipsburg on the
south slope of Flagstaff Hill and half
q mile east of Elliston, north of Little
Blackfoot river. Rock phosphate was
also discovered in the same year by r.
w. Stone of the Geological Survey,
about two miles east of Cardwell,
Mont on the Northern Pacific rail
way. at the summit of the cliffy slope
rising to the west from Jefferson
river.
These discoveries were merely Incl
dental to the prosecution of other geo.
logic work, so that the deposits We're
not studied in any great detail. Enough
was learned, however, to make certain
that they are commercially valuable
and of the same type as tho phosphate
found by II. S. Gale also of the federal
and that of the extensive Idaho-Wyo-
ming field. The deposits discovered by
Mr.. Pardee lies from 60 to 20 miles
north and that by Mr. Stone, 40 miles
northeast of Melrose, hence they may
be said to extend the limits of the
known phosphate field for those dis
tances.
At the point near Garrison the phos-
phate bed is eight feet thick and more
than four feet Of it is shown by analy-
SEES to be high grade material. AT nei-
their Phillipsburg nor Elliston was the
thickness of the bed determined, but
the outcrops show that in each place
1t Is at least foot thick and the dis
tribution of float indicates that it Is
probably more, about the same as In
the Garnet range. At Cardwell il
probably exceeds two feet in thickness
Although detailed work on which to
base tonnage estimate has not yet
been done, it is apparent from the ex-
aminations made that in the Garnet
range at least, a large amount of
phosphate is present. For instance,
$4,000 tons would be the content of an
acre underlain by a flat bed of phos-
plate four feet thick. Where the phos-
phate bed is steeply tilted as it COM
monty is in this region, the amount
beneath an acre is much greater.
The phosphate deposits at both Phil
lipsburg and Ellston are near the
tracks of the Northern Pacific railway;
that at Cardwell lies near the Chicago,
Milwaukee & Puget Sound and Nor
thern Pacific railways; and that north
Of Garrison is readily accessible by
two wagon roads, one going directly
north from that place. the other up the
valley of Warm Spring creek, The
creek route is one that offers no I'M
usual difficulties for the construction
of railroad that would with a haul
of about six miles place the phosphate
on the main line of two trunk rail-
roads
These discoveries are described
chiefly in bulletin 53O-H, "Phosphates
in Idaho and Montana" by A. r.
Schultz. r. w. Richards and J. r. Par
dee. just issued by the United States
Geological Survey, copy Of which
may be obtained free on application to
a. -lt,oo&o. W. r.