The Rice belt journal., 1913-11-28
LOUISIANA HAS
SULPHUR MONOPOLY
State Also Important Oil, Gas, and
Rock Salt Producer Mineral
Production Valued at
$15,000,000.

! "
eminently in the lead of the states OF t
the Union that is, in the productlonof p
sulphur. In 1904 the Frasch process Ct
for the recovery of sulphur from beds
undertaking heavy cover OF quicksand f
was put into operation by the Union
Sulphur Co., of Sulphur City, near Lake
Charles, in Calcasieu Parish. Since Z
that time approximately 2,33O,OOO tons y
of refined sulphur have been recovered
from the Louisiana deposits. Prior to !,
1904 the only domestic source OF
sulphur in quantity in the United
States was pyrite, from which sulphur
ic acid is made direct, and-nedrly all
the sulphur used was imported from
Sicily. At the present time the do.
nestle output of refined sulphur except
from Louisiana, is negligible quantity
and the quantity and value OF the I'M
ports are insignificant compared with ,
what they were ten years ago. In lsO3
one year before the production OF
sulphur in Louisiana began to exert an
/ influence upon the market, the imports
Of SULPHUR into the United States
amounted to 1S1, ,O33 long tons, valued
at So, ,7O9 500. In 1912 the imports were
2ss27 tons valued at $5S3,974. On the
other hand the domestic production of
sulphur in 1912 exceeded by more than
las. 900 tons, or nearly so per cent, the
imports OF Sicilian sulphur in 1903 and
was more than ten times the i'm.
ports of sulphur in 1912.
While Louisiana has almost a prac'
tical monopoly in the production OF
sulphur in this country, the state is
e also an important oil producer. Two
o wears before the development OF the
), sulphur resources at Sulphur City,,
prospecting for petroleum, which had
p followed the sensational strike at Beau.
{ mont. Texas, in 1901, resulted in the
O discovery and development OF several
oil pools In the vicinity of Jennings,
: La. Since that time productive areas
. have been developed in several portions
3 of the State, and Louisiana now ranks
3 sixth among the States in the quantity
9 of oil produced and eighth in value. In
o tho first two years of oil development
3 the production was less than l,ooO,oOt
y barrels each year, but in 1904, the year
: in which the sulphur industry asserted
. Itself, the output Of petroleum approx
z mated 3,oOO,O00 barrels, and in 1905 thai
3 output was trebled. The maximum
% production of petroleum was reached il
: 1911, when 1O,72O,42O barrels, valued a
% S5.66S,S14 were reported. In 1912 th'
q quantity decreased to 9,2SS,439 barrels
G but the value increased to $7023,S27
" The larger part of this production i
. obtained from the Caddo district nea
. Shreveport, in the northwestern par
% of Louisiana and from Acadia an
N Calcasieu parishes in the southwestern
sg part of the State. The combined valrl
S of the petroleum and sulphur product
sH of Louisiana is nearly 90 per cent OF tn
e States total mineral value, so that
pc may be considered that only during tn
w last ten years has Louisiana develope
M into prominence as mineral.producin
~ State.
g Louisiana is also an important prt
~ ducer of rock salt, in which it rank
q second among the States. The sa
N mines underlie so.called islands, whic
N are really mounds rising above tf
@ marsh lands along the Gulf shore
80 Iberia Parish. The Petite AnSe mine
gS on Avery Island were operated durin
sA the Civil War, having been develope
" in small way in 1862. These mine
~ were flooded twice, and new sha
10 was sunk in 1SS9 Mining on Week
s. Island began in 1902. In the value
sS sS the total production of salt, which /
" cludes the product evaporated FRO
N brine, Louisiana ranks sixth among q
E states.
S The value of the natural gas produc
S@ in Louisiana in 1911. the development
e this resource having followed that
4N petroleum, was more than 100 per &c
Ms greater than in 1911. There is 60
TX reason to believe that Louisiana
1g lain by one Of the greatest gas fields
81 the United States, and incidentally II
SS 9 g believed that more gas is wasted in I
"a petroleum and gas fields OF louisa
~ than in any other state.
" The total mineral production
Sl louisiana in 1872 according to z.
70 Parker. of the United States Geolo
z cal Survey, was valued at S15,359, gal.
W Taken Up
&& m1., -, - NV nlaca ahO1It SeOtf