The Elk Mountain pilot., 1923-06-21

and brackish water members of the Mesa verd.
are in this member at least seven relatively tbe
there other beds in it indicated at H. Ieet al
the presence of clinker. that have not hss u.crop
hence their thickness is not known One II opened.
Juanita coal is II to % feet thick; and at ~ q as III
prospect there is thickness of 42 feet of co 'ino
ttaly single bed. one bench of which is d f u pia
The statement has been made that the cos t = thst
on the North Fork of the Gunnison proper fronting
Mississippi River with coal for all purposes s Of s
requiring coke anthracite, for many wear ep' 'hs
In places in the Crested Butte distric. :.
southeast from the town of Crested Butte Tho atd a
crop rises rapidly in the side of Gibson Ride 'oa M out
ward the northwest it ascends attitudes Of and ana
ten thousand feet in Anthracite Mesa and nsi a
thousand feet in Oh-beJoyful- -Gulch and neary eea
thousand five hundred feet in Baxter Basin VII elea
outcrop reaches maximum altitude of ele
dred feet higher than the town of Crested Butte f
Although the coal-bearing rocks outcron :;
mountain slopes where the harder layers are ~ ss
exposed the coal beds and soft shale assost5
them are seldom to be seen at the outcro s Mt
they the exposed thickness of the co % "hss
always be accepted as representing the undistnrhJ
where the rocks are exposed well enonsb - Butte s f
satisfactorily the number and thickness of ali H.
beds. VIC coy
bearing rocks very poor but the number of coal h
well the thickness and character of the coal =.
was driven the mountain side at the level o. 0
Creek The lowest bed of coal is foot thick and
Higher in the section and separated from the lowest
by hundred and fifty feet of sedimentary rocks
coal bed three feet inches thick fory-fve ~.
higher there is third vein of coal foot SIX inch
thick The coal is described being in part bitumr~
and in part emi-anthracite Old coke evens are T NJ
be Ohio Creek the mouth of the old unus
1t is quite impossible to determine without exenSr
and costly prospecting to what extent the coal beds
derlie Mt Carbon, but it is probable that any coal sr
tending under the laccoth is of very little commera
value for it have been greatly disturbed during M
intrusion of the igneeous rock.
In 1920 Gunnison County produced 620632 tons NJ
coal and in 1921, 4S4,614 tons. With all the wonde1
fields here this county ranked seventh in production nj
the State of Colorado; and there ABS acres N
coal land in this county
During the the coal from Gunnison County VI.
shipped far east Lincolr Neb, and other points M
the central west.
Most of the coal from around hereis well adapted r
cooking and heating stoves and that FROM the Badv,
field makes the beautiful CRATE fires possible n
conceive The Crested Butte bituminous rated as ON,
Of the very best steam producing Goals The anthrac,
produced from the Smith Hill and Peanut mines si
to have been shipped far south the City of Mexico
and as far west as Los Angeles
In lSS3 six hundred of superior anthracite wr
mined at Ruby and sold for home consumption at seven
Such is the part which nature has played TO mah
Of which have yet but little conception, have bee.
scarcely touched The coal is not only good-t is aa
very best: and there would be embarrassment wen
this placed by Pennsylvania coal Someday there viii
be great industry here 1t is only question Of tim
until Gunnison will he to the Rocky Mauntans whit
Pittsburgh is to the Alleghanies.