The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1928-12-31
OTTER TAIL POWER
CENERATEDBY COAL
MINED AT WILTON
Modern Workings Operated in
Turn by Current From
Electric Company
100000 TONS IS OUTPUT
IL IS Miles Of Underground
Tunnels 300 Men Toll; Cor
poration Owns Railway

lnose who see vast possibilities
IN the Ignite deposits OF the stat,
for making North Dakota in tim,
q great industrial commonwealth n.
well as an empire Of agriculture
production arc witnessing rho
pioneer adaptation Of their vision
u the operations Of the Washburr
Ignite company at Wilton.
The Wa4hburn company supple.
the fuel that operates The various
plants Of tho Otter Tail Power com
panv, i'm addition to wide sale Of liz
product for domestic uses through
cut the state. 1t is in the form Of
tueIlnG the several power plants Of
tho Otter Tail company that Wash
burn Ignite is being applied on q
large scale 10 industrial purposes.
The Washhurn companys opera
tons run tn $4,000 to 30O.0OO tons
of Ignite fuel n year. OF this
amount. 1oO2 earS were delivered tn
Inc W2Shburn power house last wear.
o"v 10 the jamestown plant. 500 to
ne Northern State power company
y Mlnot and 800 to tho Devils Lake
plant.
The Waahburn operation few
niles east Of Wilton on 2SoO
'crc tract. is in every respect a
modern mine. This is chiefly OK
'reSsed in it's Identification. Tho
Ugh line Of the Otter Tail Power
ompany brings current to the mine
md. except for supplying Steam
eat and steam power from n boiler |
nd engine house for the hoist, the !
nt're operation Of TIL, mine is con-
uctcd through the Otter Tail cur
ent. 1t requires TOO horsepower.
J case Of emergency on thu high /
nc, the mine power house is equipped
} make it's own current.
Busy Plant OH Surface
On the surface, the magnitude of
1eN mining does not show so con-
There Is a colony of IS
vellings and cluster of plant
rits built Of brick made on the
.ct, out Of tho midst Of which
ses 100 feet Of steel and corrugat
iron tlpple. From this arise
.ucous rumblings, crunching3 and
atter1ngs in muffIed symphony .
7 noise, there is the whistling hiss
steam and the hum Of wire cable
inding on big hosting drums I
This is not all Of the cacophony Of
y. BY the side of the tipple and
,wer house passes a system of !
ackage and on these tracks a loco /
olive putters back and forth to the I
compartment Of Wheeling steam. {
ovlng box cars to and from the c
pple. For Washburn coal coos to 8
}rket In box cars. instead of the c
linary open coal ca. ard a special
tice loads the cars at that, in /
had cf hand labor. a
This colony Of miners dwellings, q
+ the plant cluster OF office. pow Z
houses, stcrehouses. roundhongr. II
lt,"Souse. water t.nks, machine i
oT ;ahd livery barn. the engine G
= ne .shlftng freight cars, with 0
q clrtcus-like passonger coaches
y Heclrack, are tho surface scene
II Ye,hLce Of the miao. IS
u p Nothe zimmerman picture a
sbr~icstituses the real impress s.
llerencoal mining, one has to PISS T
wfground. where $40 men 2S y
lies. three electric "donlie~'. $50 g
cars and L. electric cutting II
s11es toll in darkness as pifvhy |,
IL coal, relieved hv tho aid IF II
~ little acetylenr miners lamps q
their caps, to break down til, liz VI
9 and move il on IS miles or mar rr
f-gauge tracks t. the shat, r.
are it is lifted to the surface, up G
lFgl the tipple, there dumped
v1weighcd and passed over biz f
= screen and finally sent clutter II
own steel chutes TO three loading re
with their waiting cars. III
lc11
~ E0nl by Electric Device ~
l.5wn in the galleries. the miners 90
Individually. driving their way ar
lssgles from the main rntrics. One e,
rator comes along with an cleo !
cutting machine and undcrc,ts -
Ignite wall. The e.sti.ng & done h h
a!' ne. endless chain with sharp Vi
IKE crooHed finger attach or
nsse Rouge into the coal same
sn1rp end of pick as tho
,kes it's continuous rounds. Or
Their part of the mechanism st;
hole of it moving for ma
the coal till an inter- in
feet wide has been rr
The WALL several inches dr.
feet back. The miner va
iong and with long be
Is higher up. in tn
OO5 planted and the ca
1t breaks on the We
"a tree that has
18th al ak breaks tito
ne saving OH the tai
If
on the other side we
made similarly til,