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NORTH CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC SURVEY
JOSEPH HYDE PRATT, DIRECTOR

BULLETIN No. 29

THE KAOLINS
OF NORTH CAROLINA

W. S. BAYLEY, Ph.D.

PROFESSOR OF GEOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

PREPARED IN COOPERATION WITH THE UNITED STATES
GEOLOGICAL, SURVEY

RALEIGH

Edwards & Broughton Printing Company
1925

\ si i t>

GEOLOGICAL BOARD

Governor Cameron Morrison, Ex-officio Chairman Raleigh

F. R. Hewitt Asheville

R. G. Lassiter Oxford

John H. Small Washington

C. C. Smoot, III North Wilkesboro

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director, Chapel Hill

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

Chapel Hill, K C, September 1, 1921.

To His Excellency, Cameron Morrison,
Governor of North Carolina.

Sir : There is herewith submitted for publication as Bulletin 29
of the publications of the North Carolina Geological and Economic
Survey a report on The Kaolins of North Carolina, by Prof. W. S.
Bayley.

When it is considered that the clay products represent nearly 50 per
cent of the value of the mineral production of the State, it will be
realized that any report treating the clays of the State will be of
interest and value to a large percentage of the mineral producers of
the State.

The work on which the present report is based was prepared in co-
operation with the United States Geological Survey.

Yours respectfully,

Joseph Hyde Pratt,

Director.

6 i 4 3

CONTENTS

Page

Preface 9

Introduction 11

Distribution of high-grade clays in North Carolina 13

Kaolins in the Mountain District 15

Pegmatite -. 15

Origin of kaolin 17

Kaolinization processes 22

Alteration of feldspar 22

Alteration of minerals other than feldspar 24

Distribution of kaolin in the veins 27

Preparation of kaolin and by-products 28

Prospecting 30

Uses of North Carolina kaolins 32

Deposits in the Mountain District 33

Kaolins from pegmatite 33

Deposits in Swain County 34

Payne and Sullivan mine 34

Harris mine 40

Hewitt mine 41

Hyde and Messer prospects 42

Everett prospect 43

Deposits in Macon County 44

Porter property 44

Johnston property 47

Cunningham prospect 49

Iotla mine 49

McGuire exploration 50

Smith prospect 52

Chalk mica mine 53

Lenoir prospect 53

Raby mica mine 54

Porter mica mine 54

Moore mica mine 54

Lyle prospect 55

Kasson mica mine 55

Billings prospect 56

Frank prospect 56

Myers, Sloan and Sanders prospects 56

Ferguson exploration 57

Rochester mica mine 60

West and Bryson prospects 60

Deposits in Jackson County 62

Hog Rock mine 62

Rhoda mine 66

Ashe and Harris prospects 69

CONTENTS

Cowan prospect 69

Hall mine 69

Long mica mine 70

Springer pit 70

Kaolin Manufacturing Company 70

Forest Hill mica mine 70

Cole and Black exploration 71

American Land and Development Company 72

Cagle Gap mica mine 73

North Carolina Mining and Manufacturing Company 73

Harris mine 74

Love prospect 74

Ross prospect 74

North Carolina Kaolin Company 75

National Abrasive Manufacturing Company 76

Wayehutta mica mine 76

Deposits in Haywood County 76

Hand Clay Company 76

Herren prospect 82

Kinsland mine 83

Sonoma prospect 84

Retreat prospect 84

Rhodarmer prospect 84

Deposit in Madison County 85

Seth Freeman prospect 85

Deposit in Henderson County 85

Valentine prospect 85

Deposits in Buncombe County 86

Dillingham prospect 86

Snider prospect 86

Deposits in Yancey County 87

Wilson mine 87

Wyatt mine 89

Job Thomas mine 89

Clay Products Company 90

Elizabeth Smith prospect 90

Thomas exploration 92

Young prospect 92

Deposits near Burnsville 94

Deposits in Mitchell County 94

Spruce Pine mine 94

Sparks mine 98

Penland mine 100

Firescald property 105

Snow Creek deposit 105

Flukin Ridge prospect and mine 105

Howell prospect 106

Benner mica mine 107

American Mica and Mining Company 107

McKinney prospects 107

CONTENTS I

Tolley mica mine 108

Wiseman prospect 109

Reserve in Yancey and Mitchell Counties 109

Deposits in Avery County 110

Ollis prospect 110

Wiseman prospect 110

Deposits in Ashe County Ill

South Hardin mica mine Ill

Jesse Bare property Ill

Ellers and Jones deposit 112

Kaolins in the Piedmont Plateau 112

Kaolins from pegmatite and granite 113

Deposit in Rutherford County 113

Isinglass Hill mica mine 113

Deposits in Cleveland County 114

Green mica mine 114

Tom Baxter mica mine 114

Deposit in Gaston County 115

J. A. Smith property 115

Deposit in Lincoln County 117

Piedmont tin mine 117

Kaolins from schistose rocks 118

Deposit in Catawba County 119

Ervin deposit 119

Deposit in Iredell County 119

Cashion and Furches deposit 119

Deposit in Richmond County 121

Steele exploration 121

Deposits in Montgomery County 125

Unnamed deposit : 125

Eames prospect 126

Overton deposit 127

Kaolin Resources 128

Miscellaneous Clays — Sedimentary 129

White Clay 129

Gerhardt deposit 129

Stoneware Clays 130

Rhodes deposit 130

Lineberger and Todd deposit 130

Mills deposit 131

Bennett prospect 131

Shelton deposit 132

Wyatt deposit 132

Pyrophyllite prospect 132

ILLUSTRATIONS

Plates Facing Page

Plate I. Panoramic view of north cut in Hand Clay Company's mine,

Woodrow :. 77

Plate II. Map of Western North Carolina showing locations of kaolin

deposits described in text 133

Figuees Page

1. Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Bryson 35

2. Open Pit, No. 1. Payne and Sullivan Mine, near Bryson 36

3. Sketch illustrating relations of kaolin and country rock, north

wall of tunnel. Pit No. 2, Payne and Sullivan Mine 37

4. Sketch showing relations of kaolin and mica schist at end of

cross-cut near Pit No. 2, Payne and Sullivan Mine 38

5. Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Franklin 44

6. East wall of Gurney Clay Company's Pit, showing inclusions

of rock in kaolin, near Franklin.. 45

7. Sketch map of borings on Ferguson property, near Franklin 58

8. Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Dillsboro 62

9. Sketch illustrating relations of kaolin and rock at the Herren

pit, near Waynesville. A. Vertical wall. B. Cross-section.... 83

10. Sketch map of kaolin deposits in portions of Mitchell, Yancey,

and Avery counties 93

11. Map of borings at Penland Mine, Penland.- 101

12. Map of borings on Firescald property, near Penland 104

13. Longtitudinal section of kaolin deposit on Smith property, near

Bessemer City 116

14. Sketch showing relations of kaolin and schist in Cashion and

Furches deposit, near Statesville 120

PREFACE

There have been two previous reports published by the Survey re-
lating to kaolins of North Carolina; (1) Bulletin 13, on The Clays
of North Carolina, by Prof. Heinrich Ries, which gives a short
description of the kaolins*; and (2) in Economic Paper 34 on the
Mining Industry, which gives a description of the feldspar and kaolin
deposits, by Prof. A. S. Watts, f The present report has been pre-
pared by Prof. W. S. Bayley of the University of Illinois and is
intended to bring together such information as the Survey has been
able to obtain relating to the kaolins of the State, including descrip-
tion of deposits that are being operated, and prospects, particularly
those that give indication of containing commercial quantities of kaolin.
The deposits have been sampled and the kaolins tested as to their
ceramic value.

The field work on which the present report is based was done dur-
ing the summer of 1918, covering a period of about four weeks. Dur-
ing this time all the productive mines in the State were visited and
samples of their crude and washed products were sent to the clay-
testing plant of the U. S. Bureau of Mines at Columbus, Ohio, for
examination. The results of the tests are incorporated in the report.
Explorations of high grade clays that had not hitherto been examined
were also visited, and, in those cases in which the material looked
promising, were also sampled and the samples sent to Columbus for
testing. Many other prospects were likewise visited, but since they
had already been tested and described by Professor Watts in his report
on the Mining and Treatment of Feldspar and Kaolin in the Southern
Appalachian Region^ their material was not sampled for further test-
ing. However, for the sake of completeness these prospects are again
described in the following pages and the results of the tests made by
Professor Watts are reprinted.

*Bull. 13, N. C. G. & E. S., 18S7, pp. 5C-7C.

tEconomic Paper 34, N. C. G. & E. S., 1914, pp. 183-2S6.

JU. S. Bureau of Mines, Bull. 53, Washington, 1913.

10 PKEFACE

The author wishes to acknowledge his indebtedness to the operators
of the kaolin mines and the owners of the undeveloped prospects for
their courtesy to him during the field season, to Professor Watts for
his help during the writing of the paper, and to Mr. P. T. Stull,
Director of the Experiment Station at Columbus, for the painstaking
care with which he has followed up the tests and communicated their
results.

Professor Watts's bulletin has been drawn on for a great deal of
information, due credit for which is acknowledged in the text.

The long delay in publishing the report was due to press of work
during the war and scarcity of labor for carrying out the tests after
its conclusion.

Joseph Hyde Pkatt,

Director.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

By W. S. Bayley, Ph.D.

INTRODUCTION

The term, clay, is applied to natural deposits of earthy materials
that are plastic when wet, and which, if heated to redness, or higher,
become hard and rock-like.1 Clays consist mainly of small particles of
many kinds of minerals, mixed with colloidal material which may be
of either organic or inorganic origin.

With reference to origin, they may be residual or transported. The
former are produced by the decomposition of rocks, and the removal
of the soluble products of their decomposition. The insoluble products
that are left behind, if they are of the proper kinds, constitute the
clay. Residual clays are in the places where they were formed. They
are closely related to the rocks with which they are associated, both
in composition and in shape of outcrop. They contain particles of
those constituents of the parent rocks which did not suffer alteration
during the clay-making process, and occupy, in general, the same
shaped areas as those of the rocks on which they lie.

Transported clays are those whose components have been moved
from their place of origin and deposited elsewhere, through the agency
of water, ice or the air. The most common transporting agency is
water in the form of streams. The clay material may be deposited
along the sides or in the bottoms of creeks or rivers or it may be carried
into lakes, bays or the sea and deposited on their bottoms. These are
the sedimentary clays. All sedimentary clays are stratified and most
of them exhibit other structural features, the characters of which de-
pend upon the conditions under which they were deposited. Those de-
posited in lakes, bays and seas are in broad, thin lenses or beds, con-
forming in general with the slopes of the bottoms on which they were
laid down. They are interstratified with layers of sand, pebbles, shell-
rock and perhaps of other substances.

The clays deposited on the sides of rivers cover their flood plains
or occur in terraces. Because they were deposited in flowing water
the finest sediments cannot settle, except in protected spots. Conse-

^ies, H., Clays, Their occurrence, properties and uses. 2d edition, John Wiley & Sons, N. Y., p. 1,
1914.

12 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

quently most terrace clays are more or less sandy. Moreover, since
the material gathered by a stream comes from various sources, many
of which may not yield clay-making minerals, the sedimentary clays
of this type are very varied in character, and they may possess almost
any color.

The finest clay particles may be carried out to sea where they may
be deposited in quiet water. If the sources of such clays furnish
kaolinite unmixed with dark fibrous or flaky materials the resulting
clay beds will consist of white clay of uniform character and often of
great purity. Pure, white sedimentary clays are not known to occur
in commercial quantities in North Carolina, though they are abundant
in South Carolina. Sedimentary clays are not related to the rocks on
which they lie either in composition, or in the shapes of their deposits.

Since the sedimentary clays are not discussed in this report their
further characterization is not necessary.

Ries groups clays as follows :

A. Residual clays.

I. Kaolins or china clays (white-burning).

(a) Veins, derived from pegmatites.

(b) Blanket deposits, derived from igneous or meta-

morphic rocks occupying broad areas.
II. Red-burning residual clays.

B. Colluvial clays; deposits formed by wash from A.

C. Transported clays.

I. Deposited in water (mechanical sediments).

(a) Marine clays or shales.

1. Ball clays (white-burning).

2. Fire clays (buff -burning).

3. Impure clays.

(b) Lacustrine clays.

(d) Estuarine clays.
II. Glacial clays.

III. Wind-formed deposits.
IV. Chemical deposits.

High-grade clays include those that are white-burning and, in ad-
dition, those plastic white clays that may be used satisfactorily in their
unburned condition for certain purposes, such as the filling of paper

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 13

and cardboard. Practically all the high grade clays in North Carolina
are residual, i.e., they are kaolins or china clays, in the sense in which
these terms are employed by Ries. There are also a few white sedi-
mentary clays known, but their value has not yet been determined.
Only one of this class is referred to, though several others are described
that may upon further study be found to belong with it.

DISTRIBUTION OF HIGH-GRADE CLAYS IN
NORTH CAROLINA

The kaolins of North Carolina are limited in their occurrence to
that portion of the State west of a line running along the east side
of Warren County and southwest to the State line near Rockingham
(see map, PI. II). This is the "fall line." The clays east of this
line are not like the kaolins nor can they be used for the same pur-
poses as these. They are all transported, and except in one known
instance are of low grade. They are not discussed in this report. That
portion of the State west of the "fall line" is separable mainly into
two physiographic divisions — the Piedmont Plateau to the east and
the Appalachian Mountain area to the west. The line dividing these
is at the base of the Blue Ridge, passing diagonally through the State
from the west side of Surry County southwest to the center of Polk
County. A small area of the Coastal Plain, which lies east of the "fall
line," covers parts of Richmond, Anson and Montgomery counties, but
this is somewhat broken by outliers of the Piedmont Plateau.

The mountain area is characterized by strong relief, due mainly to
the differences in rate of weathering of the rocks exposed to the action
of the atmosphere. Its topography consists of mountain chains and
broad plateaus and deep, narrow intervening valleys.

Between the mountains are the plateaus to which the surface has
been reduced by long weathering and denudation, and it is on the
slopes just above these surfaces where the weathering has been deepest,
that the best deposits of kaolin occur. The areas immediately border-
ing the main streams have been reduced to nearly level plains. These
plains have been cut into by the rivers and now stand from 100 to
300 feet above the present streams. On their surfaces the rocks are
deeply decomposed and where they contained feldspathic rocks these
are deeply changed to kaolin. Unfortunately, however, most of these
deposits have been buried under debris of many kinds and are now
beyond the reach of observation.

14 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

On the Piedmont Plateau the topography is less emphatic than that
in the mountain division. The country is rolling, with low, rounded
hills separated by broad, shallow valleys. All the rocks are deeply
decayed, but the slopes are so low that much of the product of decay
has been left upon them. Materials from different sources have inter-
mingled, and the entire surface is covered with a deep mantle of mixed
detritus that obscures the narrow belts of kaolin that result from the
decomposition of pegmatite dikes. Where feldspathic granites or other
feldspathic rocks occur over large areas these may give rise to deposits
of kaolin (the "blanket deposits" of Ries) that are so large, that by
their very massiveness they may reveal themselves on the surface. Be-
cause of its striking appearance, the kaolin, even when much mixed
with other materials, may be recognized, and, because it may migrate
down slopes, in many cases it may appear to cover a very much
larger area than the deposit beneath. The deposits of this type are
usually not as good as those made from pegmatites because the rocks
from which they originated usually contained a good deal of material
that did not become kaolinized, and, consequently, the resulting decom-
posed product is not as pure a kaolin as that produced from the more
purely feldspathic pegmatites. There are a few kaolin deposits known
to exist on the plateau areas in North Carolina but the most promising
ones are in the mountain area.

No reference has been made to the possibility of the occurrence of
clays along the river courses. In North Carolina as in all other regions
the rivers have brought down much of the decayed products of the
rocks in their upper courses and ha\e spread them along their banks.
Since many of the rivers in this State now through districts in which
there is much kaolin they have brought down large quantities of this
substance and have deposited it mingled with other substances on their
flood plains. Much of this deposit is clay, but since it contains many
ingredients besides kaolinite, it is an impure clay which is not avail-
able for the purposes for which the purer kaolin is employed, and con-
sequently it is referred to only incidentally in these pages. Much of
it may be employed in the manufacture of stoneware but most of it
is too impure even for this purpose.

High-grade clays of North Carolina may for convenience be sep-
arated into (1) those occurring in the mountain district, (2) those
occurring in the Piedmont Plateau. Only those in the mountain dis-
trict have been developed in a commercial way.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 15

KAOLINS IN THE MOUNTAIN DISTRICT

The kaolins of the mountain districts are all, so far as known, resid-
ual products resulting from the decay of pegmatites that are so
abundant as dikes cutting the schistose rocks and granites which con-
stitute the surface rocks of these districts. The dikes are of differ-
ent widths and lengths. They are not continuous for long distances and
consequently have the character of very narrow lenses. They often
lie with their long directions parallel to the schistosity of the rocks
with which they are associated, and which in turn is parallel to the
trend of the mountain ridges in their vicinity. Since most of the
ridges run in a general northeast direction, most of the dikes also
trend in this direction. In a few cases the dikes cut across the struc-
ture of the schists ; but in these cases the cross-cutting dikes are usually
offshoots of main dikes that follow the schistosity. The largest deposits
of kaolin are as a rule the results of the decomposition of the larger
dikes, and therefore have a northeast trend. The cross-cutting dikes
are smaller than those running parallel to the structure of the schists
and have grven rise to smaller deposits of kaolin.

Pegmatite

The relations of the pegmatites to the neighboring rocks are so
well described by Sterrett1 that we may quote his description almost
without modification. After stating that the pegmatites of North Caro-
lina occur mainly in the Roan gneiss, which is a series of hornblendic
gneisses and schists, and in the Carolina gneiss which is nonhornblendic,
he says :

Pegmatites occur in irregular masses, streaks, lenses, augen, or balls,
some of them having no visible connection with other pegmatite bodies.
They range from a fraction of an inch up to many yards in thickness. . . .
Horses, or inclusions of wall rock, are common in pegmatite. Some of them
are in the form of bands or sheets parallel to the walls, and the schistosity
of these bands is also parallel to the walls. They range from an inch or
two up to several feet in thickness, and their length may be many times
their width. Elsewhere they occur as irregularly shaped masses, from a
few inches up to several feet thick. ... In some places the horses are
partly pegmatized by streaks of pegmatite ramifying through them and by
the development of considerable feldspar and quartz through their mass.
In such places no sharp line can be drawn between the pegmatite and the
original horse.

1Sterrett, Douglas B., Mica deposits of North Carolina. N. C. Geol. & Econ. Survey Economic
Paper No. 23, p. 37, 1911, and U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 430, p. 601, 1910.

16 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Pegmatite is closely allied to granite in composition. As in granite, the
essential constituents are feldspar and quartz, with more or less mica and
other accessory minerals. Though hornblende is rather a common mineral
in granite, it is less so in pegmatite. Orthoclase and microcline are the
most common varieties of feldspar found in pegmatite. In many places,
however, a variety of plagioclase, either albite or oligoclase, makes up part
or all of the feldspar component. The feldspar occurs in masses and rough
crystals, some of them with a diameter of several feet.

Quartz assumes various forms and positions in the pegmatite. In many
places it bears much the same relation to the feldspar and mica as in
granite, the three minerals being thoroughly mixed with one another; but
the individual grains are many times larger than in ordinary granite. Not
uncommonly the quartz and feldspar assume a graphic granite texture in
a portion of the pegmatite. Another common feature is the occurrence of
large separate masses of quartz occupying various positions in the pegma-
tite. Such quartz masses may be irregular in form and but little influenced
by the shape of the pegmatite or inclosing wall. Many of them, however,
lie in bands or sheets parallel to the walls. There may be one or more
of these quartz bands constituting varying proportions of the pegmatite.
Their thickness ranges from a fraction of an inch up to six or more feet.
Many of them are lenticular in shape, the length varying from four or five
to twenty or more times the thickness. In numerous places these quartz
streaks or veins are persistent through the whole length of the pegmatite
exposed. Some inclose feldspar or mica bodies; others do not. The quartz
of these segregations is massive and generally granular, though locally
crystallized. If crystallized, it may be translucent or clear and of a dark,
smoky or light color. It is generally rather -pure and does not contain
feldspar or mica in appreciable quantity.

Muscovite is the common mica of pegmatite. Biotite occurs in moderate
quantity in a few deposits, and in smaller amounts in many others.

The mica occupies various positions in the pegmatite. Where the rock
has a typical granitic texture the mica may be found evenly distributed
through it. More commonly the larger crystals will be found either in
clusters at intervals through the "vein" in places connected by streaks of
small crystals, or collected along one or both walls of the pegmatite, with
some of the crystals partly embedded in the wall rock. Where there is a
quartz streak within the pegmatite, the mica occurs on either or both sides
of it. The mica may be partly embedded in the quartz or be scattered
through the remaining portion of the pegmatite, which generally is com-
posed largely of feldspar. . . .

The quartz may occur as equidimensional grains uniformly distrib-
uted through the dike or it may be intergrown with the feldspar form-
ing a "graphic granite." Further, it may be found as large, separate,
irregular masses free from mica and feldspar, occupying almost any
position in the dike. In the kaolin mines these constitute the greater
part of the "rock" or "horses" so frequently encountered in mining.
Finally, the quartz may lie in bands or sheets parallel to the dike

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 17

walls. These may be extremely thin or they may be six feet or more
in width. They may be long lenses or they may be persistent through-
out the entire portion of the dike exposed. They sometimes enclose
a little feldspar or mica, but usually do not do so. Watts1 declares
that some of the dikes may represent a series of intrusions and pub-
lishes a diagrammatic sketch of one which he calls typical, that shows
bands of quartz near the two walls, and within these bands of mineral-
bearing pegmatite, bands of richly feldspathic pegmatites and a center
of massive feldspar, with lenses of quartz along its sides. The writer
has had no opportunity of seeing any of these. The dikes he has seen
are nearly uniform in structure throughout.

The other minerals frequently accompanying the dikes are garnet,
beryl, tourmaline and other rarer compounds.

Origin of Kaolin

The kaolin, which so frequently grades into partly decomposed, but
easily recognizable, pegmatite as to leave no doubt that the two are
parts of the same geological mass, presents in the field the same tex-
tures as the pegmatites from which it was derived. In some places
the crude clay consists of a structureless mass of kaolinite surrounding
irregularly round quartz grains of the same shapes as those in the
granular pegmatites. In other places the quartzes are sharp-edged and
wedge-shaped, like the particles of this mineral in graphic granite and
the structure of the mass is exactly like that of undecomposed coarse
graphic granite. Lenses of mica and micaceous decomposition products
occupy the same relations to the kaolin and quartz as do muscovite
and biotite in ordinary pegmatites. These relations indicate clearly that
the kaolin occupies the place of the feldspar in the pegmatite — a con-
clusion that is established as correct by the fact that much of the feld-
spar in many dikes, especially at moderate depths, is white and opaque
and very unlike pink or yellowish translucent variety in fresh dikes.
The opacity and whiteness is due to the presence of a small quantity
of kaolin in the otherwise unaltered feldspar. As the quantity of kaolin
increases, the characters of feldspar disappear and a uniform mass of
kaolin results. Often this retains the cleavage of the feldspar from
which it was derived, but otherwise its character is entirely different.

Analyses of fresh and altered feldspars show clearly the nature of
the change.

•Watts, A. S., Bur. of Mines Bull, 53. p. 14, 1913.
2

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

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THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 19

No. 1 was a sample of fresh microcline. Wo. 2 was a milk-white
orthoclase taken from beneath a kaolin deposit. It contained about
3 per cent kaolinite. No. 3 was taken from nearer the surface than
No. 2. It contained 8 per cent kaolinite. No. 4 was taken from the
east side of a dike where the material was partially protected by a
layer of quartz. It contained 23 per cent kaolinite.

Analyses of the crude kaolins differ from those of the semi-kaolinized
feldspars mainly in the relative proportions of their constituents.
There is often more Si02 shown in the analyses of the kaolins, but
this is easily accounted for by the presence of quartz in the pegmatite.
"With the loss of K20 and Na20 there is a gain of A1203 and H20,
and the change is progressive. The final stage in the process is shown
in the analyses of the refined kaolins. Nearly all the quartz has been
washed out, and what is left is mainly the result of the alteration of
feldspar — a mixture of substances that approaches in composition that
of the mineral kaolinite, which is unquestionably the largest component
of the mixture.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

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THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 21

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HMM^iOSDNOOoioHNraii llitDS CO oi d H N M

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

Kaolinization Processes

Alteration of feldspars. Kaolin produced from feldspar is formed
in three ways1; (1) by the action upon it of hot ascending gas and
solutions containing fluorine, born and perhaps other active reagents;
(2) by the action of water upon feldspathic rocks underlying swamps
or moors, where the rocks are subjected to the action of the substances
dissolved in the swamp water, especially C02 and organic acids; (3) by
the action of percolating ground water traveling downward from the
surface and carrying with it dissolved C02 and organic matter. The
kaolins of the mountain districts of North Carolina are believed2 to
have originated as the result of the third process, i.e., they were pro-
duced by the weathering of feldspathic dikes. Deposits of the first
type are not known within the State. Those of the second type may
be represented by the occurrences at Bessemer City (p. 115), Bostic's
Mills (p. 121) and Statesville (p. 119) where the crude clay covers wide
areas rather than long, narrow areas as in the mountain districts.

Orthoclase when it changes to kaolin loses Si02 and K20 and adds
Ho0 in the following amounts:

Si02

AI2O3

K20

H2O

Total

64.86
43.24

18.29

16.85
16.85

100

60.09

Adds

6.36

6.45

21.62

18.29

6.36

46.27

or in chemical symbols: 2KAlSi308— 4 Si02— K20+2H20=
H4Al2Si209.

The alteration of orthoclase may be effected by pure water, with the
production of potash, colloidal aluminous silicates, colloidal silica and
kaolinite.3 Upon hydrolysis by water the feldspar yields KOH and
an unstable silicate which easily parts with some of its silica and is
converted into kaolinite, thus :

:OJSi308+H20=KOH+HAlSi308.

2 HAlSi308+H20=H4Al2Si209+4 Si02.

The process is hastened by the addition of H2S04 or C02. When
C02 is present, as it always is in freshly fallen rain, and in water that

^Stremme, H., Handbueh der Mineralchemie. Theodor SteinkopfT, Dresden und Leipzig, Bd. II.
pp. 130-134, 1914.

2W. S. Bayley, Kaolin in North Carolina, with a brief note on hydromica, Econ. Geol. Vol. XV,
p. 236, 1920.

^Cameron, F. K., and Bell, J. M., Bur. Soils, U. S. Dept. Agri. Bull. 30, 1905.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 23

has passed through decomposing organic matter, the process may be
indicated by the equation:

2 KAlSi308+2 H20+C02=H4Al2Si209+K2C03+4 SiOo.

The colloids exist as gels in the mixture of kaolinite, quartz, feldspar
and other undecomposed remnants of the original rocks that constitute
the crude clay.

Ashley1 has shown that the plasticity of clay depends upon the pres-
ence of colloids. Variations in the plasticity of clays that look alike
are due in large measure to the proportions of their components that
are in colloidal form. Consequently the ordinary chemical analysis of
a clay is of very little value as indicating the quality of its plasticity.

A high percentage of A1203 may be suggestive of high plasticity
since it may indicate the presence of colloidal aluminous silicates, but
if other colloids than this are present the content of A1203 is not par-
ticularly significant. Even a comparatively low aluminous clay may
be markedly plastic if colloidal silica or organic colloids are present
in large quantity.

Since orthoclase or microcline treated with a solution of C02 is
slowly decomposed and K20 is dissolved from it in excess of its pro-
portion in the undecomposed mineral, it is clear that by long continued
action of carbonic acid all the K20 may be extracted, since the potas-
sium may combine with the free acid, forming K2C03 which is drained
off. The Si02 formed during weathering separates partly, at least,
as a colloid which is soluble in the alkaline solution of K2C03, and
thus may be drawn off from the mass of decomposition products leav-
ing the insoluble kaolinite and remnants of the unaltered minerals
behind. Thus the kaolin is proportionately enriched, by the filling
with kaolinite of the spaces left by the removal of the silica and the
mass loses its porosity and becomes compact. Even though some of
the K20 may combine with some of the silica to form a soluble potas-
sium silicate, or a colloidal potassium silicate compound, the same en-
riching process will take place, since the soluble silicate will drain off
and the colloid will either be decomposed by the excess of C02 or, if
undecomposed, will deposit in the pores between the kaolin flakes and
will thus tend to compact the kaolin and render it more plastic.

In many veins there are places where the kaolin appears as a uni-
formly compact mass almost entirely free from quartz or undecomposed
feldspar. It may be that these represent places where the pegmatite
was composed entirely of feldspar or where the quartz was so fine
grained that it is not noticeable in the residual mass. However, since

lAshley, H. E., U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 388. pp. 9-11, 59, 1909.

24 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

a mass of orthoclase produces only 52 per cent of its weight or 61
per cent of its volume of kaolinite, while a given mass of the compact
clay often contains 90 per cent of kaolinite, it is plain that the silica
which always accompanies the production of kaolinite from feldspar must
have been removed in solution and the remaining kaolin compacted or
there must have been an enrichment of the kaolin mass by the migration
into it of kaolin material from other portions of the vein.

Few deposits contain on the average more than 40 per cent of kaolin,
even where all the feldspar has been decomposed. In most cases the
feldspars in pegmatites are associated with quartz, mica, hornblende
and to a less extent with beryl, garnet, tourmaline and other still rarer
minerals. All of these with the exception of quartz decay with greater
or less rapidity and some of them, as, for instance hornblende, may
yield a hydrous aluminous silicate and colloidal silica. Thus the con-
stituents of the original pegmatite may contribute to the kaolin decom-
position products that may affect it in a favorable or an unfavorable way
depending upon the nature of the substances and the conditions under
which they were decomposed.

Under the conditions favorable to the production of kaolinite from
orthoclase, albite, if present, forms compounds analogous to those pro-
duced from orthoclase. Where the process has continued to completion
the result is the same as in the case of orthoclase and microcline and
the albite has no deleterious effect upon the product., Where the proc-
ess is less complete grains of albite may remain undecomposed, with
the result that the kaolin may contain notable quantities of feldspathic
sand.

Alteration of minerals other than feldspar. The quartz of the orig-
inal pegmatite suffers little change in the weathering process. In many-
cases it remains in the kaolin as distinct grains of the same shapes and
sizes as those in the pegmatite. In other cases, however, the residual
grains are more or less rounded. Their sharp edges are smoothed off
and their surfaces may have become pitted as though they had suffered
some solution. Indeed, it is probable that they have in all cases under-
gone solution to some extent, though perhaps only in exceptional cases
is the solution marked. In the latter cases the quartz has a pebbly
appearance and the crude kaolin may look very much like a conglom-
erate composed of water-worn pebbles in a fine-grained sediment. The
solution may be due to the action of the alkaline carbonates produced
during the weathering of the feldspar, since it is a well-known fact,
that quartz is appreciably dissolved by alkalies. If the quartz in the
original rock was in fine grains some of it may be completely dissolved
but much of it may, nevertheless, remain as grit or sand in the kaolin.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 25

Beryl changes to mica and to kaolin. If it changes to mica it is
apt to form fine scales which are difficult to separate from the scaly
kaolinite flakes and thus may injure the refined product.

Biotite, hornblende, tourmaline and any other ferriferous minerals
that may be present may be altered to a number of compounds among
which may be chlorite or other hydrated micaceous minerals, limonite
or other ferruginous hydroxides, or to a ferruginous carbonate. In
the presence of abundant oxygen the hydroxides are apt to form; and
these stain the kaolin with a brown or yellow color. In the absence
of much oxygen ferrous carbonates are produced. As these are soluble
in carbonated water they may be drained from the deposit and carried
off. Thus, near the surface where the percolating water was furnished
with abundant oxygen, staining by iron salts is rather common, whereas
with depth the stains decrease, except where crevices furnish canals
along which the water may flow readily, and at groundwater level the
kaolin is practically free from stains. The chlorite and other micaceous
decomposition products may form dark nests in the midst of the clay.
They are objectionable because of the difficulty of separating them in
the refining process. Their fine scales are apt to float off and be
carried into the settling vats where the kaolin is collected. The most
objectionable components of the kaolin are the decomposition products
of the garnets. When these are decomposed they, give rise to chlorite
and other micaceous products that are often colored reddish brown by
iron hydroxides or other iron compounds. The heaviest particles may
be separated from the kaolin in the washing process, but some of the
lightest material floats over with the slip and is distributed through the
refined kaolin, often impairing its value to a serious degree. In the
clay-bank the presence of the decomposed garnets is revealed by the
presence of little circular brown spots. Where the spots are few the
clay containing them may be removed by hand-sorting before the crude
material is sent to the washer. Where abundant there is no recourse
for the miner but the abandonment of that part of the mine in which
they occur.

The muscovite changes so slowly that it may be picked by hand
from the kaolin, and much of it is so slightly altered that it may be
placed on the market as sheet, punch or ground mica, depending upon
the dimensions of the plates.

Near the surface, however, in many places the mica is more or less
altered and at some localities it has lost its characteristic features. It
has become opaque and brittle and has assumed the color and luster
of beaten tin and is often stained red by iron hydroxides. Even when

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

bleached by hydrochloric acid it remains opaque except on thin edges
where it is translucent. Under the microscope, between crossed nicols,
the altered mica is discovered to be much less strongly doubly refract-
ing than fresh muscovite. Plates thin enough to be transparent have
no effect on the sensitive tint, and give no axial figure. Thicker ones,
that are yellow and translucent, produce a slight modification of the
sensitive tint and give a faint uniaxial optical figure that is negative.
Fairly thick plates are dark reddish yellow and nearly opaque. These
exhibit colors between crossed nicols and give fairly distinct axial
figures. Flakes viewed at right angles to the cleavage, extinguish
parallel to their cleavage and show bright colors between crossed nicols.

Under high magnification the very thin plates show no distinctive
features. They are very light yellow and apparently homogeneous
except for the presence of a few tiny transparent or translucent par-
ticles. The plates that are thick enough to be nearly opaque are
dark reddish yellow and appear to contain numerous small flakes and
particles of various kinds, but it is probable that these are deposits in
the cleavages of the mica rather than within the mica itself.

It is impossible to decide whether the altered mass is a definite
mineral or not, but it appears more probable to the writer that it is
an aggregate of tiny decomposition products embedded in a matrix
containing a residual of muscovite. It appears to be one of the "hydro-
micas" that are so frequently described as occurring in clays.

An analysis of a particularly good specimen from the Herren prop-
erty at Waynesville, yielded Mr. George Steiger of the U. S. Geological
Survey, the following result :

SiC-2

AI2O3

Fe203

FeO

MgO

CaO

Na20

K2O

H2O

Ti02

Moist

40.79

29.98

8.07

2.48

2.71

.45

.38

3.47

9.34

1.28

1.20

100.15

Attempts to indicate this by a chemical formula are unsatisfactory,
as the result is so complex that it is difficult to consider it as represent-
ing any single mineral. If the material is regarded as a mixture, its
mineral composition, calculated from the analysis on the assumption
that the Fe203 is in limonite, the Ti02 in rutile and FeO in a fer-
ruginous serpentine, may be :

Kaolinite 43.34

Muscovite 34.04

Serpentine 11.41

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

Quartz, or some other form of Si02 1.08

Limonite 8.90

Rutile 1.28

100.05

It is certain that the source of the limonite is outside the original
mica, and it is probable that some of the kaolinite has also originated
elsewhere and has migrated into the cleavage cracks in the altered
mineral. Consequently, the figures given do not represent the compo-
sition of a "hydromica" that has resulted solely from the alteration of
muscovite. They, however, indicate the probable composition of most
of the hydromica occurring in kaolin and show that this substance
differs from muscovite in the presence of much less K20, and possibly
A1203, and of much more H20. Most of the original muscovite has
broken down into kaolinite and minerals closely related to serpentine,
and most of its K20 has been carried off in solution.

Distribution of kaolin in the veins. As kaolinization progresses down-
ward from the exposed surface the completeness of the process becomes
less and less as depth from the surface increases until the proportion
of undecomposed material becomes so great that deeper mining is im-
practicable. Although at this depth the feldspar is partly kaolinized,
the quantity of undecomposed feldspar in the mass is so great that
a crowbar cannot be forced into it without the aid of hammer blows.
The quantity of kaolin in the mass is there so small that it will not
carry the increased cost of preparing it for market.

The depth at which this occurs varies in different dikes but in those
well up on slopes the depth at which profitable mining is no longer
possible is at about 95 feet from the exposed surface. The purer kaolin
is at about water level and above this kaolinization is practically com-
plete. When the water level is reached in mining the kaolin becomes
so plastic that it is difficult to maintain the shafts, and for this and
other reasons the mining operations become so expensive that the shaft
has to be abandoned unless some method of drainage can be perfected.
In consequence of this fact deposits high up on slopes are apt to be
minable to greater depths than those at their bases or on plains, since
in these latter situations the water level is nearer the surface. Usually
the best kaolin in any deposit is found at about the level of the ground
water. Below this level the completeness of the kaolinization rapidly
diminishes with depth and in many cases a few feet below the water
level the dike material has been protected from alteration to such an

28 THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

extent that the dike might be used as a source of feldspar. Possibly
another illustration of protection is the fact that in general a dike is
richer in kaolin near its foot wall than near its hanging. This sug-
gests alteration by downward percolating water. The hanging wall,
especially if composed of schists, protects to some extent against the
downward flowing water, whereas at the foot wall the water flow is
more abundant.

While it is true that the completeness of kaolinization of the feld-
spar in the different parts of any given dike are as stated, nevertheless
it is also true that other conditions affect the thoroughness of its altera-
tion. Fresh feldspar and completely kaolinized feldspar occur at the
same elevation and near each other in neighboring dikes. Watts1 calls
attention to the fact that at Penland, a dike in an advanced stage of
kaolinization was being worked for kaolin a few years ago and 50
yards distant another containing fresh feldspar was being worked for this
mineral. In this case, however, he states "the kaolin deposit is not well
defined and appears to have been disturbed by a slide, whereas the
fresh feldspar is in a well defined dike." It is not apparent why the
kaolin at Penland is regarded as a slide. A sketch map of the occurrence
is given in Fig. 11 on page 101. However, in one of the shafts from
which kaolin was taken a distinct dike of pegmatite about two feet wide
may be seen cutting diagonally through the kaolin and the material of
this dike is practically unchanged. In this case the feldspar of the
small dike is microcline and not orthoclase. Evidently the microcline
resisted decomposition more successfully than the orthoclase and is
therefore nearly intact. It is probable that some of the contrasts in
the degree of alteration of neighboring dikes may be due to differences
in the character of their feldspar.

Preparation of Kaolin and By-Products

A thorough system of washing should remove all the objectionable
constituents from the crude kaolin and yield a refined product of a
nearly constant composition. The latter condition is more easily
reached than the former. In the case of one mine the product was
maintained at a constant standard during at least five years, as indi-
cated by the figures below which show the limits of variation in the
shipments of refined kaolin between the years 1890 and 1895. The
analyses2 were made by ~N. P. Pratt on material dried at 212 degrees F.

Watts, A. S., Bur. of Mines Bull. 53, p. 17, 1913.
2Furnished by Harris Kaolin Co., Dillsboro.

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAKOLINA

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203 FeO

CaO

MgO

K2O Na20

H2O

46.47
46.47

38.82
38.14

.89
.36

.28
.50

.25
.09

.75
.64

13.34
13.61

The removal of objectionable constituents1 is not so well accom-
plished. Quartz and small quantities of feldspar are nearly always
present in the refined kaolin and sometimes a large proportion of the
more objectionable components. It is probable that washing alone, no
matter how carefully done, will never succeed in removing all of the
iron hydroxides, since some of these are colloidal in character, but a
more careful washing than is now practiced- in the State would unques-
tionably remove more of the heavy iron-stained particles and much of
the quartz that now finds its way into the refined product. Analyses2
of the crude and washed kaolins from the Springer pit, near Webster,
give some idea of the improvements effected by washing an unusually
good crude clay.

Si02

A1203

Fe203

FeO

CaO

MgO

Alk.

H20

Moist

Total

62.40

45.78

26.51
36.46

1.14

.28

1.08

.57
.50

.01
.04

.98
.25

8.80
13.40

.25
2.05

100.66

Washed

99 .84

The crude material contained 15.61 per cent quartz and 18.91 per
cent feldspar and the washed material 6.60 per cent of the two com-
ponents.

Most pegmatite dikes consist in large part of quartz so that the
average quantity of kaolinite in their decomposed portions is usually
much less than 40 per cent, and in most cases is so low that the de-
posits are not workable throughout with profit. However, there are
richer pockets scattered through the dike mass and it is upon these
that the miner depends for his commercial success. He necessarily
passes by the poorer portions and removes the richer ones.

In some of the deposits there is a great deal of quartz which is in
such fine grains that it passes the sand wheels used to remove the coarse
components from the crude kaolin. This may pass into the mica
trough and settle. If not mixed with much mica it may be used in
scouring soaps and other cleansers. It is not sharp enough for sand-

JSee Plate I, for arrangement of washing plant.
2Ries, H., N. C. Geol. Survey Bull. No. 13, p. 62, 1897.

30 THE KAOLIXS OF XOETH CABOL1XA

paper and rarely pure enough for use in glass making. In a few in-
stances the coarser quartz, when fairly uniform in size, has been used
for roofing, but with what success is not known.

Much of the mica that was present in the original pegmatites has
remained unaltered during the kaolinization of the feldspar and now
occurs embedded in the crude clay. That which is in large flakes
or aggregates of flakes is in many cases easily separable from the
kaolin by hand and if clean and uniform in structure, it may be put
on the market as "sheet mica" or "punch mica," depending upon its
size. Indeed, some of the mines are now producing mica of this kind.
Since in any case it must be removed from the mine and separated
from the kaolin, the small, additional expense required to save and sort
it is warranted by the price at which it can be sold. In some pegma-
tites the mica is in very fine scales. Moreover, some of the coarser
mica found in most dikes is so severely pounded and torn in the
processes of refining the crude clay that it is shredded into fine par-
ticles. The quantity of fine mica that passes the sand wheels is often
very great. Much of it drops to the bottom in the mica troughs but
the fine scales float out in the slip that goes to the settling tanks. By
placing screens of the proper mesh in the sluice carrying the slip most
of this mica might be saved and sold as "ground mica." At the Spruce-
pine Mine an excellent grade of ground mica is now being saved at
very little cost.

Prospecting:

All the deposits of kaolin now being operated within the State are
on the slopes of hills in the mountain district, but unquestionably good
deposits exist also in less exposed situations. That these have not been
explored is due to a number of conditions, among them the fact that
they are not so easily detected because usually covered by waste from
the slopes. On slopes the debris produced by weathering is removed
almost as rapidly as it is formed, and the white kaolin is exposed to
view. At the base of slopes the narrow kaolin masses are covered by
creep or wash from the overhanging hills and are frequently nearly
completely obscured.

In some places on flats or low slopes, where the kaolin cannot be
seen, its existence beneath the soil may be inferred from the presence
of large fragments or boulders of quartz on the surface. The boulders
result from the decomposition of coarse pegmatites, as there are no
other rocks in this portion of the State that yield large quartz boulders
upon weathering. Consequently the presence of quartz boulders sug-

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 31

gests decomposed pegmatites, and since the decomposition of pegmatites
often produces kaolin, it follows that the presence of the boulders on
the surface usually indicates the presence of kaolin beneath the surface.

After the existence of kaolin has been determined it is desirable to
ascertain its extent before undertaking any serious development to
prove its value. This is done with an auger welded to a section of
steel pipe long enough to enable the operator to penetrate the deposit
at least 30 feet. The auger holes should be sunk at intervals of about
15 feet in a series of lines at right angles to one another until enough
area has been covered to establish definitely the width of the deposit
and its general direction. Care should be taken to make sure that its
actual limits have been reached before abandoning the cross-boring.
It must be remembered that quartz horses are common in many of
the deposits, and that they will stop the auger as effectually as wall
rock. Before abandoning the cross-boring a large enough number of
holes should be sunk to rock to establish the fact that the limit of the
deposit has been reached in that direction. After proving the width
of the dike, holes should be bored along its length through a distance
that will leave no doubt as to its magnitude. These should be closely
spaced along the borders of the deposit, but may be more widely spaced
within its borders.

After having determined that the size of the deposit is sufficient to
warrant working, provided the quality of the kaolin seems satisfactory, it
is necessary to obtain as nearly as possible an average sample for study.
This is best done by driving a tunnel from the face of a slope into the
deposit and cross-cutting, care being taken to grade the tunnel so that
it will readily drain. Samples should be taken from the entire length
of the walls of both tunnel and cross-cut, omitting only those portions
occupied by horses so large that they would have to be left during
mining. With this exception, all horses should be sampled as well as
the pure kaolin, so that the sample may represent a fairly complete
section of the walls throughout the entire extent of the mass that
would be removed in mining. The sample thus obtained should be
added to by the results of horizontal borings at definite intervals into
the walls on both sides of the tunnel and cross-cut and by vertical
borings into the overhead and foot. The samples should be preserved
in bags and with each bag there should go a record explaining exactly
how the sample was obtained and from what part of the deposit it
was taken. This is important, as different portions of a deposit often
yield materials with different properties, and it may be desirable to
know something of the probable proportions in which they exist.

32 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Watts1 calls attention to several precautions which must be borne
in mind in attempting to estimate the value of a deposit. He notes that
in vertical boring the auger usually cuts the deposit obliquely, since
most dikes have a distinct dip, and therefore may strike a narrow
band of undesirable material, which, because of its loose texture and
brittleness, may furnish fragments that may make the band seem
wider than it really is. Care must be taken in lifting the auger that
it may not tear off pieces of such a band, invalidating the sample.
When boring from the surface he found it advisable to use a larger
bit for penetrating the overburden and then to pack the sides of the
hole with the aid of a smooth, round pole before boring into the kaolin,
in order to prevent particles of the overlying clay or sand from fall-
ing into the sample and contaminating it.

After the several samples have been collected, one or more general
samples should be made up by mixing the individual samples in their
proper proportions and these general samples should be subjected to
the tests that have been prescribed for determining the value of a
kaolin for the purposes for which kaolins are used. A chemical analysis
is not necessary, but a burning test is essential in case the kaolin is to
be used in making whiteware of any kind.

Uses of North Carolina Kaolins

The kaolins of North Carolina are used in making china, semi-
porcelain and porcelain, mosaic and other tile and in the manufacture
of spark plugs and glass-melting pots.

Their principal use is in the mix for burning into the various
grades of china and other whiteware. It constitutes from 2% per cent
to 15 per cent of the mix, the other ingredients usually being English
ball and china clay, Florida kaolin, and often clays from other domes-
tic sources. Some potters describe it as very satisfactory when not
introduced into the mix in large quantity. Others declare that its
use is objectionable in the manufacture of fine ware, but that if better
cleaned it would be the equal of any English clay. In some instances
it contains too much grit ; in others it is contaminated with particles of
yellow material, which appear as tiny black specks in the finished
ware. In a few cases it is apparently slowly replacing imported clay;
in others its use is gradually being abandoned. One of the largest
users reports that in the practice at his kilns it burns to a greenish
body marred by black dots, and that as the demand for perfect ware

Watts, A. S., Bureau of Mines Bui!. 53, p. 20-21, 1913.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 33

is pressing he is compelled to diminish the quantity he has been using
and is substituting for it English china clay. In one case, however,
satisfactory ware is being produced from a mix containing only Amer-
ican clays. In this North Carolina kaolin constitutes about 20 per
cent of the mix.

It is evident that while in the practice of some potters the kaolin
from this State gives satisfactory results, in most cases it is not en-
tirely satisfactory and consequently is used sparingly. It may be that
with a change in the formulas at some of the potteries the quantity of
North Carolina kaolin that could be introduced into the mix might
be considerably increased. Nevertheless, a more certain means of ex-
tending its use would be to change the method of washing the crude
clay sufficiently to assure the removal of all the grit and other in-
gredients that are so objectionable to the potters.

One of the most promising uses of kaolin is in the manufacture of
glass-melting pots. So far as is known commercial tests of the ap-
plicability of North Carolina kaolins to this purpose have not been
successful. Certain of the kaolins, however, have been used in making
porcelain pots for optical glass, but this of course is a special use.1

DEPOSITS IN THE MOUNTAIN DISTRICT
Kaolins from Pegmatite

All the deposits of kaolin in North Carolina now being worked are
in the mountain district and all of them are residuals from pegmatites.
Besides these there are many other similar deposits which are not be-
ing worked. Some of them are too small for profitable exploitation;
others, though large, are not favorably situated with respect to rail-
roads; others are owned by parties who are prevented from develop-
ing them by lack of financial means and others are being held in re-
serve by the owners of the present active plants. There are also other
deposits, some of which are promising, that have not been brought
to the attention of the public and many others the extent of which is
not known because they have never been explored. All that are known
are discussed. Many of them have been examined, but many others
have not been seen. The facts concerning these are gleaned from earlier
reports, to which reference is made in each case. The locations of all
of them are indicated on the accompanying map (PI. II) by figures,
identical with those prefixed to the names of the deposits in the text.

'A. V. Bleininger. Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper No. 144, pp. 47-51, 1020.

34 THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

The active mines of the State are eight in number, located in Hay-
wood, Jackson, Mitchell and Yancey counties. There are three others
now inactive, but partly equipped for operation in Swain, Haywood
and Mitchell counties and a score or more of promising deposits that
might possibly be developed into producing properties under favor-
able conditions.

Deposits in Swain County

Swain County contains no operating mines, though four have been
operative in the past. Of these three have been permanently abandoned.
The fourth is temporarily closed. Besides there are other deposits
that have been described.

(b) Payne and Sullivan Mine Xear Bryson

J. H. Sullivan, Asheville, X. C.

The Payne and Sullivan Mine is four miles southwest of Bryson
near Yalaka Creek (see Pig. 1). The openings are a short distance
from those formerly worked by the Carolina Clay Company at the
head of Buckner Branch. The Carolina Clay Company's deposit was
worked out some years ago but other dikes of kaolinized pegmatite
have long been known to exist in the neighborhood and it is on one of
these the Payne and Sullivan Mine has been opened. At the old mine
the dike is reported1 to have b.een 16 feet wide. It strikes N*. 15° E.
and dips 75° S.E. It was rich in kaolin near the foot wall, but be-
came progressively poorer toward the hanging near which the dike
material was nearly all sand. There were pockets of garnet-colored
sand in the kaolin and streaks of wall rock. A sample taken from
across the entire width of the dike yielded 22 per cent of kaolin with
a refractory value of 1,650° C.

The Payne and Sullivan Mine is further south on the top of a steep
slope. The mine has been closed down for several years. The build-
ings of the washing plant are still standing in fairly good repair but
all the machinery has been removed. It is stated by one of the present
owners that the former lessees, who built the plant, operated the mine
but a short time. They took out material that yielded about 250 tons
of washed kaolin, of which they shipped 100 tons. The remaining
150 tons is still in the storage sheds. When the mine was worked water
was pumped 320 feet. The crude clay was trammed 300 feet from the
mouth of the pit and sent down a chute to the refining plant at the
bottom of the slope. The refined kaolin was hauled in wagons to a
private road known as the Yalaka Railroad, and there loaded on stan-

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 124.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

dard cars. When the mine is reopened it is intended to send the crude
material from the old pit to the plant by a flume, to join the various
new openings by a tramway already partly constructed and to sluice
their product with that of the old opening.

Abandoned mine

Prospect Direction of strike Strike and dip
of bed of bed

Fig. 1. Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Bryson, N. C.
Lower case letters refer to abandoned mines.
Figures refer to prospects and explorations.
Letters and figures correspond to those in the text and on Plate II.

There are at present two main openings on the property and a
number of shafts, tunnels and test pits, nearly all of which expose
excellent clay. The old pit is known as No. 1. A newer pit about

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

half a mile further northeast is No. 2. Wherever exposed the clay
appears to be in a dike that strikes about N. 20° E., or rather a series
of ramifying dikes with a general northeasterly trend. In pit No. 1
the width of the deposit is 40 or 45 feet, in pit No. 2 about 20 feet
and in a shaft and tunnel 375 feet south of pit No. 2 the maximum
width of clear kaolin is six feet.

Fig. 2. Open pit, No. 1. Payne and Sullivan Mine, near Bryson. Looking southwest. The
width of the pit represents approximately the width of the kaolinized dike that
has been removed.

Pit No. 1, which is 190 feet long and 40 feet wide, is an open cut
along the strike of the dike. Its southeast wall is granite. Its contact
with the kaolin is vertical so far as it has been uncovered. The north-
west wall is in kaolin crossed by narrow horses of quartz and feldspar,
but its east 50 feet is an intermixture of small streaks of clay in an
undecomposed mass of quartz and feldspar. The opening consists of
a terrace at its southwest end and along the west end of the north
side about 40 feet above the bottom of the pit. The kaolin has been

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

worked out to the bottom of the pit by open cut methods to a depth
of about 65 feet from the original surface, and at the time the mine
was abandoned material was being removed from the terrace with the
aid of two shafts. At the. west end of the terrace is a cliff 40 feet
high (see Fig. 2), that is pierced by a tunnel. Both cliff and tunnel
expose kaolin traversed by many vertical streaks of quartz one inch
wide.

The clay occurring in this pit is dense and white. It is contaminated
by little masses of partially decomposed feldspar, grains of quartz,
soft crystals of partially decomposed muscovite and hard, black streaks
of what is believed to be psilomelane or some other hard manganese
oxide or hydroxide.

Pit Wo. 2 is a small open cut across a thoroughly kaolinized dike,
about 26 feet wide, exposing a surface of pure white clay. (See Figs. 2
and 3). A tunnel has been driven into the face of the dike extending
back about 30 feet along its strike. Just beyond the end of the tun-
nel the dike ends in the face of a steep slope which cuts it off. In
the tunnel the relations of the dike to the country rock are well shown.
On its north wall the pegmatite sends irregular tongues into the granite

Fig. 3. Sketch illustrating relations of kaolin and country rock, north wall of tunnel. Pit No. 2, Pay:
and Sullivan Mine.

and gneiss as illustrated in Figure 4, and on the south wall the same
relations are shown in a less marked degree. Indeed, everywhere on
the property the rock streaks occurring in the kaolin appear to be
masses between tongues of kaolinized pegmatite..

The crude clay of pit No. 2 is like that of pit No. 1 but it con-
tains more coarse quartz in sharp fragments and very little sand and
mica. In some places in the tunnel it possesses a distinct graphic struc-

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

ture. The quantity of clay in sight in this pit is estimated to be
sufficient to yield 1,000 tons of washed kaolin. In this estimate no
account has been taken of the amount of crude clay in the extension
of the dike southwest of the pit, since its length in this direction has
not been explored.

Kaolin

ill

Fig.

Sketch showing relations of kaolin and mica schist at end of cross-cut near pit No. 2, Payn
and Sullivan Mine.

Between pits No. 1 and No. 2 are many smaller openings, some of
which have exposed excellent white, almost porcelain-like clay, con-
taining as visible impurities only an occasional coarse mica flake and
a few sand particles. A boring in the bottom of the most promising
shaft penetrated 39 feet of this kind of clay.

Watts collected a sample representing the full width of the dike in
pit No. 1, which yielded to laboratory washing methods 22 per cent
of kaolin with a refractory value of 1,650° C. and a color of grade 5.1
Its shrinkage2 was 3.8 per cent when dried at 110° C. and its total
shrinkage 10.2 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The tensile strength
of briquettes dried at 110° was eight pounds per square inch.

Substituted for English China clay in the standard porcelain mixture
and fired at 1,350° C. the result had a color described as of grade 5, a
translucency of .65 and the transmitted light was yellow. The absorption
of the fired mass was 2.2 per cent. Briquettes dried at 110° C. shrank

xThe color of the kaolin is its color after firing at 1350° C. It was checked against the standard Eng-
lish china clay referred to below. This was given a color value of grade 5, and lighter shades were
valued as grades 4 to 1, the latter being the whitest.

^Shrinkage was determined by Watts (p. 55) by making wedges of the material to be tested and
measuring them before and after drying and after firing; or by measuring before and after drying
and after firing impressions made upon them by a die.

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

2.4 per cent; when fired at 1,350° C. the shrinkage was 13.5 per cent.
The color remained unchanged under the raw lead and, fritted glazes.1
The U. S. Bureau of Mines tested samples from pit JNo. 1 (No. 2.04)
and pit No. 2 (No. 2.05). The result of these tests were as follows:

Screen Tests

Clay

20M*

20.65M

65-100M

100-200M

Thru 200M

2.04
2.05

0.53
1.16

36.56
32.31

7.85
9.43

12.40
15.07

42.64
42.01

*20M, 20-65M, etc. refer to the screens used.

Moisture Present

2.04=4.91%
2 .05=3 .56%

Water of Plasticity and Drying Shrinkage

Clay No.

Water of Plasticity
per cent

Volume Drying Shrinkage
per cent

2.04
2.05

41.63

43.84

20.13
21.56

xThe standard porcelain mixture consists of 20 per cent standard feldspar, 30 per cent standard
quartz and 50 percent of English china clay, having the composition:

SiO-2

AI2O3

Fe20-3

CaO

MgO

K2O

Na20

Ti02

Total

46.86

38.10

.30

.46

.48

1.18

.30

.00

100.10

This kaolin has a refractory value of 1690° C. and burns to a porous white mass at 1350° C.

The standard porcelian mixture becomes vitreous white at 1.310° C. Its color after burning is of
grade 5 and its translucency is .65. The shrinkage on drying at 110° C is 3 per cent and upon firing at
1,319° C. is 12.6 per cent additional. The total shrinkage 1.310° C. is thus 15.6 per cent.

In determining translucency, wedges of the parcelain mixture were "fired to the maturing tempera-
tures of the standard feldspar and tested by determination of the maximum thickness, expressed in
centimeters, at which can be detected a No. 20 wire on tha face of the trial next the lamp (16 candle
power) with the lamp three inches distant from th3 trial." (Watts: Bureau of Mines Bull. 53, pp. 55-56.)

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Per Cent Volume Shrinkage When Fired to Different Temperatures

Clay No.

1170° C

1210° C

1250° C

1290° C

1330° C

1350° C

2.04

17.27
14.25

25.09
25.99

33.33

37.26
40.06

48.35

2.05

42.42

Per Cent Apparent Porosity When Fired to Different Temperatures

Clay No.

1170° C

1210° C

1250° C

1290° C

1330° C

1350° C

2.04

39.64
36.69

34.64
29.04

24.20

20.45

7.88

20.55

2.05

3.02

Color When Fired

2 .04 Good white
2 .05 Good white

Softening Temperatures

Clay No.

Cone.

0 Cent.

° Fah.

2.04
2.05

34
34

1740
1740

3164
3164

The other two mines in Swain County ihat were formerly worked
but which are now abandoned wrere the Harris Mine near Bryson and
the Hewitt Mine near Almond. Both are reported to have been worked
out and there is no present prospect of their being reopened.

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N\ C.
The Harris Mine was two and one-half miles north of Bryson, on
the east flank of Sharptop Mountain. It was in a dike 40 to 60 feet
wide in which were many bands of wall rock. The strike of the dike is
X. 20° E., and is crossed by faults at intervals of about 150 feet. It
is irregularly kaolinized, and in some places is stained yellow. In

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 41

1911 this deposit had been worked to a depth greater than 35 feet,
yielding a clay that when washed produced 22 per cent of white kaolin.
In 1913, it had been about worked out, and the plant had been aban-
doned.

A similar deposit1 was opened about one mile southwest, but was
abandoned after a few months work and a new opening was made
three miles farther northwest near Deep Creek. The refractory value
of the washed kaolin was given by Watts as above 1,730° C. Its color
when fired was grade 3. (See footnote, p. 39). Dried at 110° C. it
shrank 4 per cent, and fired at 1,350° C. its total shrinkage was 12.8
per cent. The tensile strength of the material dried at 110° was 14
pounds per square inch.

The standard porcelain mixture made with this kaolin when fired
at 1,350° C. had a color of grade 3, a translucency of .63 and the trans-
mitted light was cream colored. Its absorption was 3.3 per cent. The
mixture dried at 110° shrank 2.8 per cent, and fired at 1,350° its
shrinkage was 11.8 per cent. The color was unaffected by the raw
lead and fritted glazes.

(a) Hewitt Mine Near Almond

F. K. Hewitt, Asheville, 1ST. C.
The Hewitt Mine2 at different times during its activity operated a
number of openings in a belt running north and south at a distance
of about two miles east of Almond on the Murphy Branch of the
Southern Railway. Keith has noted that the pegmatite which gave
rise to the kaolin occurs as small, round masses in graywackes and
schists of the Great Smoky Conglomerate formation which is Cam-
brian in age. This is unusual since in all other cases of kaolinized peg-
matite the wall rocks are gneisses and schists of pre-Cambrian age.
Six deposits were mapped. The mine at the time of Keith's visit was
working the deposits two and one-half miles southeast of Almond on
the east side of the road between this village and Needmore. The clay
was being taken from the top and the southern slope of a small ridge.
Test pits and a short tunnel proved its extent for about 450 feet in a
north-south direction. About a mile further north is another kaolin

iWatts, A. S., L. c, pp. 109 and 125.

*Keith, Arthur. U. S. Geol. Survey, Geol. Atlas, Nantahala folio, (No. 143), p. 8, 1007

42 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

deposit and one-fourth mile west still a third one. Other deposits have
been opened up by test pits two miles southwest and one and three-
fourths miles northeast of the Hewitt Mine. At the last indicated
locality there are two separate veins and the kaolin in them is at least
50 feet deep. Later the deposit1 on the west side of the road was
opened. This was abandoned a few years ago and the entire plant
has been closed. At this place a dike 20 to 30 feet wide, striking
north and dipping 75° E. had been removed for a distance of 275 feet
and to a depth of 40 to 60 feet. The pegmatitic material was incom-
pletely kaolinized.

The crude kaolin from this deposit had a refined kaolin content of 20
per cent. The refined product was slightly off color.2 Its refractory value
was 1,650° C. The shrinkage of the kaolin in drying at 110° C. was 3.6 per
cent, and upon firing at 1,350°, 8.7 per cent. The tensile strength of
briquettes dried at 110° was six pounds per square inch.

The porcelain mixture fired at 1,350° was of grade 6 color, was
yellow by transmitted light, possessed a translucency of .66 and an
absorption of 1.9 per cent. The drying shrinkage was 2 per cent and
firing shrinkage 13.2 per cent. The color of the porcelain was not
affected by the raw lead and fritted glazes.

2, 3. Hyde and Messer Prospects Near Almond

Two other openings in the neighborhood of the Hewitt Mine are
referred to by Watts as the Hyde and the Messer prospects.

The Hyde prospect is two and one-fourth miles north of east of
Almond and one-fourth mile north of the Little Tennessee River. It
may be the locality referred to by Keith as being one and three-fourths
miles northeast of the Hewitt Mine. The deposit is in the form
of an expanded lens covering an area of one and one-half to two acres.
It was opened by five test holes and two tunnels, in one of which a
width of twenty feet of kaolin was exposed. The lens is apparently
pockety. It possesses no uniform dip, but is very irregular. The crude
material3 taken from the tunnel yielded 19 per cent of kaolin, which
had a refractory value of 1,670° C. and a color, when fired, as of
grade 6. The washed kaolin dried at 110° C. showed a shrinkage of

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 119.

2This is described by Watts as of grade 6. (See foot-note p. 39),

*Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 119.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 43

4.2 per cent and fired at 1,350° C. a shrinkage of 8.8 per cent. The
tensile strength of the material dried at 110° was eight pounds per
square inch.

A porcelain mixture with this kaolin, fired at 1,350° C. is grade 6
color. The resulting porcelain has a translucency of .64 and an ab-
sorption of 2.2 per cent. By transmitted light it is yellow. "When
dried at 110° C. the mixture shrinks 2.1 per cent, and when fired at
1,350° C, 8.8 per cent. The color is unaffected by the raw lead and
fritted glazes.

The Messer prospect is two miles south of east of Almond, and one-
half mile south of the Little Tennessee River at an elevation of 200
feet above the river. A dike is cut by two tunnels on opposite sides
of a knoll and 25 feet below its crest. This dike appears to have a
north strike and the dip where exposed is vertical. Mr. "Watts2 states
that the kaolin is of fair quality, but it contains many narrow streaks
of stained material.

Everett Prospect Near Bryson

The only other tested deposit3 in the county is the Everett prospect
near Land Creek, two miles northwest of Bryson. This deposit is in
a dike, perhaps nine feet wide, of semi-kaolinized material in which
are some large quartz masses. The material yielded 28 per cent kaolin
of grade 3 color and possessing refractory value above 1,730° C. When
dried at 110° C. it shrank 4.3 per cent and when fired at 1,350° C,
12.6 per cent. The tensile strength of the material dried at 110° was
15 pounds to the square inch.

A porcelian mixture fired at 1,350° C. was grade 3 color. Its trans-
lucency was .65 and the absorption 4.7 per cent. By transmitted light
it was cream colored. Dried at 110° C. mixture shrank 3 per cent
and when fired at 1,350° C, 12.2 per cent. The Color of the fired mass
was unaffected by the raw lead and fritted glazes.

Deposits in Macon County

There are no clay operations in Macon County during the present
time. Formerly two mines, near Eranklin, were active producers, but
for various reasons they have been closed within the past few years.
One is still equipped for refining kaolin. The plant of the other has

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 120.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 125.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

been completely destroyed. There are, however, a number of promis-
ing prospects (Fig. 5) in the northeast quarter of the county, but
their only outlet to the market is via the Tallulah Falls Railway of
the Southern Railway system, which is roundabout.

Mine

Fig. 5.

Prospect Direction of strike

r of bed

Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Franklin.
Capital letters refer to active mines.
Lower case letters refer to abandoned mines.
Figures refer to prospects and explorations.
Letters and figures correspond to those on Plate II.

Dip and strike
r of bed

(d) Porter Property Near Franklin

J. A. Porter, Franklin, K C.
The Porter property was formerly worked by the Gurney Clay Com-
pany as the Gurney Mine. It is situated four miles northwest of
Franklin and three miles east of Burningtown on Iotla Creek. The
snape of the pit, which has an average width of about 35 feet and is
400 feet long, indicates that the deposit is a narrow lens, but since
the width varies widely it is evident that the kaolin was pockety.
Watts,1 in describing the mine when in operation, states that "the

lWatts, A. 8., L. c, p. 133.

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAKOLINA

kaolinized dike forms an expanded lens averaging about 200 feet in
width and 300 feet in length already proven. . . . The lens con-
sists of bands varying in kaolin content," but by mining the entire
width of the dike a uniform product was obtained. At first mining
was by shafts, some of which were 100 feet deep, but this proved so
expensive that the open cut method was resorted to. The mine was
worked about four years, producing about 250 tons of merchantable
kaolin monthly. It was abandoned in 1914 not because of lack of

Fig. G. East wall of Gurney Clay Company's pit, near Franklin. Showing inclusions of
country rock in kaolin.

material but in consequence of the lack of demand for kaolin in that
year and because a red stain was developing in the output, which was
caused by decomposed biotite, that it was found impossible to separate
from the clay in mining and which necessarily had to be removed by
hand-picking at a cost which was as great as the cost of mining. The
time required for sorting limited the output of the plant to 250 tons

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

monthly, though its capacity was 500 tons.1 Mr. Gurney believes he
now has a method for eliminating the stained clay, which should enable
the deposit to be operated successfully.

It is not possible to study the relations of the clay to the rock in
the pit at present because its walls are covered by wash. It can be
seen, however, that there are several branching dikes. There are indi-"
cations that the kaolin is crossed by horses of partly decomposed feld-
spar and coarse quartz, and where the walls are exposed there are
small veins of kaolin in the country rock and seemingly fragments of
rock in the clay. (Fig. 6.) The fragments are probably portions
of the country rock that had been surrounded by pegmatitic material.
Muscovite bunches are common in the kaolin in many parts of the
mine. In some parts it was so abundant that it was saved as a by-
product. Biotite is also present but in smaller quantity. It is usually
associated with quartz. That much quartz was mined with the clay
is indicated by the fact that the waste heaps consist mainly of large
fragments of the mineral. The overburden was not over ten feet in
thickness anywhere. Its average thickness was about six feet. Accord-
ing to Watts the yield of the deposit was almost 30 per cent of kaolin.

The crude clay was white. As mined it contained a great deal of
mica and quartz and much of it" was stained red. Mr. Watts reports
that kaolin washed from the crude clay taken from the richer pockets
to have the following composition:

SiC-2

AI2O3

Fe2Os

CaO

MgO

Na20

K20

Ti02

H2O

Total

44.00

40.79

.11

.07

.55

14.72

100.24

The crude clay was washed and pressed in a plant a few hundred
yards from the pit and when dried was hauled by teams to Franklin.
It was sold under the name "Iotla brand" and was used by many
of the potters in the Ohio Valley.

The buildings of the washing plant are still in good repair but
some of the machinery has been removed.

According to Watts the kaolin washed from samples collected by
himself, had a refractory value above 1,730° C. Its color after firing
was grade 1 and its tensile strength when dried at 110° C. was 27.5
pounds per square inch. Air-dried briquettes at 110° C. suffered a shrink-
age of 5.4 per cent, and upon firing at 1,350° C. a shrinkage of 11.9
per cent.

'Communicated by Mr. J. W. Gurney in letter dated Aug. 14, 1918.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 47

A porcelain mixture made with this kaolin when fired at 1,350° C.
was grade 1 in color. It possessed a translucency of .72 and the ab-
sorption was 6.5 per cent. The light transmitted through it was cream-
white. The shrinkage at 110° C. was 3.2 per cent and at 1,350° C.
was 12.4 per cent. Under the glazes used the color was not affected.

(e) Johnston Property Near Franklin

W. E. Johnston, Sylvester, Ga.

The Johnston property was formerly worked by the Southern Clay
Company. It was operated only two years when the lease was sur-
rendered, the plant dismantled and the company dissolved. One of
the causes of the abandonment of the mine was the difficulty of handling
the water. There were a number of openings on the northeast flank
of Tremont Mountain, the principal one being about one mile north-
west of Franklin postoffice.

At present little can be seen on the surface. Most of the workings
have fallen in and covered their walls. About half a mile back of
the main workings mica is now being taken from some of the old shafts
and tunnels and they have been cleaned out. Three of the openings
expose kaolin for a breadth of about ten feet, but much of this is badly
stained near the surface. With increased depth, however, the staining
diminishes and at 25 feet underground the clay is uniformly white.
It contains many bunches of large mica plates which, as has been
stated, are now being removed for sale.

The main workings consist of an open pit 400 feet long and 50 feet
wide and a shaft 125 feet deep to water. The walls of the pit are
nearly vertical and its trend is a little north of east. The crude clay
contained some coarse quartz and a great deal of fine mica, beside
clumps of large plates, like those that are being mined further to the
northeast. This was saved and sold. The fine mica was separated
during the process of washing the clay and was thrown aside. Large
dump heaps on the site of the old plant are composed almost exclusively
of fine white mica scales which might possibly have been saved and
sold as ground mica.

It is reported by Mr. Johnston that about 4,000 tons of refined clay
were sold and that it was used in the manufacture of whiteware and tile.

Mr. "Watts1 visited the mine just before the plant was abandoned.
He reports that the main pit was on a well-defined pegmatite dike 16
to 20 feet wide, striking K 90° E. and dipping 70° S. The wall
rock is gneiss and was divided through its middle by another quartz

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 142.

THE KAOLINS OF XOKTH CAROLINA

band. It contained small pockets of dark red sand and isolated pieces
of weathered biotite surrounded by zones of stained clay three or four
inches thick. Watts thinks the cost of mining was unnecessarily high
because all material was removed by shafts. The overburden varied
from 5 to 25 feet. The shafts were sunk vertically on the deposit,
passing through the belt of quartz, and reaching the clay by cross-cuts.

For a depth of 25 feet the kaolin was of a high grade. Lenses of
feldspathic sand appeared at about this level, but below this to a
depth of about 80 feet "the kaolin content of the dike is in excess of
what would be expected from the kaolinization of average pegmatite,
and approaches very closely the theoretical maximum from the de-
composition of feldspar." Below the 80-foot level semi-kaolinized feld-
spar began to appear and at the 100-foot level nearly pure fresh ortho-
clase occurred. The deposit was reasonably uniform for about 120
feet along its strike, but it disappeared almost completely on the east
slope of the hill. A second dike is parallel to the first one and 30
yards south of it, but the kaolin in it is so stained as to be unmarket-
able. A number of other deposits scattered over the property are too
small to be of value.

The greatest difficulty in the mining of the clay was due to the
great quantity of water encountered in the shafts. At 60 feet in depth
the removal of the water became a "considerable problem'' and at the
depth of 100 feet about half the time of operation was spent in hoist-
ing the water to the surface in buckets. Xo attempt seems to have
been made to get rid of the water in any other way than by bailing.

The crude clay taken from the main dike yielded by washing 40
per cent of white kaolin with the composition:

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

TiCh

H2O

Total

46.67

39.07

.11

.25

.02

13.22

99.45

The refractory value of the washed kaolin was above 1,730° and
its color was grade 1. Dried at 110° C, its tensile strength was 25
pounds per square inch, its shrinkage 4 per cent, and when fired at
1,350° C, 11 per cent.

The standard mixture with this kaolin, fired at 1,350° C, was pure
white. Its translucency was .93 and its absorption 7 per cent. The
transmitted light was white. Its shrinkage at 110° C. was 3.4 per
cent, and when fired at 1,350° C. was 9.9 per cent. Its color remained
unaltered under glazes.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 49

9. Cunningham Prospect Near Franklin

C. C. Cunningham, Franklin, "N. C.
Across a valley from the east end of the Johnston property, where
the main dike of kaolin is reported to have disappeared (see above),
the dike reappears on the property of Mr. C. C. Cunningham, where
it was worked through a number of shafts and pits as a source of
mica. One shaft 25 feet deep penetrated 10 feet of overburden and
15 feet of clay. A boring in its bottom went through 35 feet more of
similar clay. Two other shafts 25 feet deep and a third 60 feet deep
also exposed clay all the way under the overburden. It is thought
that the depth of the kaolinization increases toward the east. Mr.
Cunningham reports that borings and test pits outline a dike 22 feet
wide and at least 1,500 feet long. It strikes a little north of east and
dips about vertical. There is a great deal of mica in the clay and
considerable quartz. It is possible that the kaolin and mica might be
mined together.

(/) Iotla Mine Near Franklin

Chapman and Gudger, Asheville, U". C.

The Iotla Mine, or the Franklin Kaolin and Mica Company's mine,
is four and one-fourth miles north of Franklin on the west side of
Little Tennessee River, at Iotla Bridge. The place is now abandoned.
It was originally worked for mica and later for kaolin. Watts,1 in
his description of the mine shortly after it was abandoned, states that
the development consisted of 10 tunnels and 12 shafts, some of the
latter of which are 120 feet deep. The dike had been mined for 550
feet in length and for a width that varied between 10 and 100 feet.
Although layers of sugar quartz bordered the kaolin and a streak
ran through the center of the dike, the crude clay contained very little
quartz. A sample taken by Watts from one of the shafts yielded 42
per cent of white kaolin of excellent quality.

It is probable that when the property was worked for kaolin it
was not on a very large scale as there is no evidence that any large
quantity of material was ever removed from the ground. Moreover,
all the dumps consist almost exclusively of mica. The most accessible
part of the mine at present is a tunnel 150 feet long at the base of
the hill, near the river. It is nearly all the way in a white clay, cut
here and there by rock horses and crossed by numerous streaks of
muscovite crystals and groups of crystals. The clay surrounding the
mica crystals contains a comparatively small amount of quartz sand

iWatts. A. S., L. c, p. 133.
4

50 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

and abundant tiny white mica flakes. Farther up on the hill-slope
are six or seven other tunnels and a shaft in clay, and near the top
of the hill is a large tunnel through clay, mica and quartz. It is
reported by men who have worked on the property that mica was
much more plentiful near the top of the hill than lower down, and
that the quality of the kaolin was better at the lower levels.

From the large number of pits and shafts scattered over the prop-
erty it would seem natural to infer that there are present numerous
small dikes of pegmatite and many small pockets of kaolin. Some of the
largest appear to be promising.

The sample collected by Watts from the only shaft that was open
at the time of his visit was carefully washed and tested. Its color
was grade 1 and its refractory value above 1,730° C. Wlien dried at
110° C. its shrinkage was 5.2 per cent and when fired at 1,350° C.
was 12.4 per cent. The tensile strength of the material dried at 110°
C. was 24 pounds per square inch.

When made up into the standard porcelain mixture and fired at
1,350° C. the translucency was .72, the absorption 6.2 per cent and
color of grade 1. The transmitted light was cream- white. When the
mixture was dried at 110° it shrank 5.2 per cent and when fired at
1,350° C, 12.8 per cent. The color was not changed under the usual
glazes.

Of the many other deposits known to exist in Macon County only a
few have been prospected in a way to furnish any idea of their value.
Most of them were originally opened as mica mines and, as is com-
monly the case in this situation, the value of the kaolin was com-
pletely disregarded. Moreover, most of them are so far from the
railroad that the expense of marketing their product would be pro-
hibitive, unless several of them in the same neighborhood should de-
velop into much larger deposits than now seems probable.

5. McGuire Exploration ]^"ear Franklin

W. B. McGuire, Franklin, K C.

The two localities that appear to offer the best prospects are the
McGuire and the Ferguson explorations.

The McGuire exploration is about three and one-half miles west
of Franklin on the southwest slope of Tremont Mountain. The de-
posit is on a dike 18 feet wide that strikes northeast and dips SO
degrees southeast. Mr. J. H. Pratt made an examination of the prop-
erty in 1915 and reported that at various places over an area of about
two miles a number of openings have exposed kaolin, but only at a
few places in commercial quantities. The most important of these are

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 51

two tunnels. One, 72 feet long, runs N". 40° E., penetrates kaolin
for 22 feet and then enters country rock. At the contact of the kaolin
and country rock a drift extends E. 10° S. for a distance of 15 feet.
The original pegmatite has been almost completely kaolinized; the
only unaltered rock observed in the dike is a little feldspar associated
with a band of quartz. In the kaolin is a little scattered mica and
an occasional nest of "decomposed garnet." A second tunnel 200 yards
S. 50° E. from the first one starts at the contact of the dike and the
country rock and follows the hanging wall for 108 feet. At a point
56 feet from the mouth of the tunnel is a cross-cut running N". 30° E.
crossing the dike which is 18 feet wide. The kaolin cut by the cross-
cut is like that cut by the drift from the first tunnel. Assuming that
the deposit is continuous between the two tunnels and that kaoliniza-
tion has extended to a depth of 100 feet, Pratt estimates 18,000 tons
of washed kaolin present, provided the yield is 30 per cent of the
crude clay.

About 900 feet in a direction S. 60° E. from the tunnel is a shaft
20 feet deep, that cuts 12 feet of kaolin like that in the tunnels. To
the east and the west of the shaft are exposures of kaolinized material
for a distance of one and one-fourth miles, but only at one point is it
exposed in promising quantity. This is at a tunnel in the woods west
of the shaft. It is cut into a hill 120 feet, and at this point it en-
countered the foot wall of a dike which was again exposed in a shaft
30 feet or more above the tunnel. At the extreme western end of the
property a shaft on the top of a little hill rising 60 feet above a creek
struck clay at a depth of 30 feet. Another shaft 86 feet from this
one struck clay at the same elevation and several small pits exposed
it in other places. These indicate the presence of a mass of kaolin
about 100 feet broad. Its other dimensions were not disclosed. Some
of the kaolin is stained by iron oxide but otherwise it is good.

Mr. McGuire reports considerable boring on the property since
Pratt's visit, but he cannot give details as to the results.

Mr. Watts1 sampled the material in the dikes, and found that in a
washing test it yielded 42 per cent of a cream-colored kaolin, which
analyzed :

Si02

AI2O3

Fe20s

CaO

MgO

Na20

KjO

TiO-2

H:0

Total

46.35

39.00

.30

.00

.50

14.00

100.51

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 137.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Mr. Lillibridge, of the American Encaustic Tiling Company, for
whom some of the boring was done, states in a letter to the writer
that the kaolin is of a sufficiently high standard to meet the require-
ments of wall-tile manufacturers.

The kaolin can be economically mined as there is a good supply of
water for all purposes, and a down grade to a good road.

Its color was grade 3 and its refractory value above 1,730° C. The
tensile strength of the material dried at 110° C. was 27.5 pounds per
square inch, and its shrinkage 5.7 per cent. When fired at 1,350° C.
it shrank 10.5 per cent.

The standard porcelain mixture made up with this kaolin shrank
3.2 per cent when dried at 110° C. When fired at 1,350° C. its shrink-
age was 14.2 per cent. The translucency of the burned batch was .72,
its absorption 5.4 per cent and its color grade 3. The light transmitted
through it was cream-colored. The usual glazes did not affect its color.

Most of the remaining deposits known to exist in Macon County
have been described by Watts. They have nearly all been explored
sufficiently to uncover unquestionable kaolin in reasonable quantities,
but none have been worked.

1. Smith Prospect ^ear Franklin

The Smith prospect1 on Little Tellico Creek, nine miles northwest
of Franklin, is a completely kaolinized dike exposed by a 40-foot
tunnel and an open pit. Where opened, the dike is 75 feet above
the creek. It is nearly 200 feet wide, but is interrupted by several
horses of wall rock, so that the width of the pegmatite is only about
50 feet. Its strike is northeast, and its dip 80° northwest. The ma-
terial sampled yielded 39 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value
of 1,670° C, and a composition as follows:

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

Ti02

H2O

Total

48 05

37.69

.31

.02

.91

12.55

99.53

The color of the washed kaolin was of grade 4. The tensile strength
of the material dried at 110° C. was 20.5 pounds per square inch and
its shrinkage 6.8 per cent. When fired at 1,350° C. the total shrink-
age was 12 per cent.

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 141.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The porcelain mixture made up with this Kaolin showed a shrinkage of
3.2 per cent when dried at 110° C, and 12.4 per cent when fired at
1,350° C. The burned porcelain showed a translucency of .71 and
transmitted cream-colored light. The absorption was 4 per cent and
color of grade 4. The color remained unaltered under the raw lead
and fritted glazes.

6. Chalk Mica Mine Near Burningtown

Watts describes the Chalk Mica Mine1 as being six miles northwest
of Franklin and two miles north of the Franklin-Burningtown road,
but on the map accompanying the Watts report it is placed three and
three-fourths miles northwest of Franklin and one-fourth mile south
of the road named. The deposit is said to strike N". 30° E. and to
dip vertical. It has been proven for 50 yards by a tunnel, which ex-
poses excellent kaolin, and by an open cut in a sandy kaolin. A sample
averaged from the two exposed portions gave 35 per cent of kaolin
with a refractory value above 1,730° C. Its color was of grade 3, and
its tensile strength when dried at 110° C. was 15.5 pounds per square
inch. Its shrinkage at 110° C. was 5.7 per cent and at 1,350° C was
13.7 per cent.

The porcelain mixture of which this kaolin is a component showed
a shrinkage of 3 per cent when dried at 110° C. and 14.8 per cent
when fired at 1,350° C. The fired mass had a translucency of .65 and
transmitted cream-colored light. Its color was grade 3, and its absorption
6 per cent. With both the raw lead and fritted glazes the porcelain
assumed a pale green tint.

4. Lenoir Prospect Wear Franklin

The Lenoir prospect2 is three and three-fourths miles south of west of
Franklin, near the Franklin-Andrews road. A dike 20 feet wide is
exposed on the slope of a hill by two tunnels. Its strike is west and
dip vertical. Its material is crossed by small streaks of iron-stained
sands and is penetrated by narrow seams of feldspathic substance, and
it contains small pockets of micaceous minerals. A sample yielded
38 per cent of white kaolin with a refractory value above 1,730° C.
Its tensile strength at 110° C. was 20 pounds per square inch. Its
shrinkage at the same temperature was 6.4 per cent and at 1,350°,
14.9 per cent. When fired its color was of grade 1.

When introduced into the standard porcelain mixture the shrinkage
of this was 3.6 per cent when dried at 110° C, and 11.6 per cent

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 132.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 136.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

when fired at 1,350° C. The translucency of the fired mixture was
.67, its color of grade 1 and its absorption 7.1 per cent. The trans-
mitted light was cream-colored. Under the raw lead and fritted glazes
the color was unchanged.

7. Eaby Mica Mine Near Franklin

The Eaby Mica Mine1 is two and one-half miles northwest of Frank-
lin, on the northeast slope of Tremont Mountain. The dike with its
stringers has an aggregate width of about 300 feet. It strikes X. 10° E.
The stringers average about 15 feet wide. They hare been explored
for a distance of 500 feet by tunnels. Other dikes have been prospected
one-fourth mile to the northwest, one-fourth mile to the northeast, and
one-fourth mile to the east. A sample of the material from the first
deposit yielded 45 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value above
1,730° C. Its composition was:

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

K20

Ti02

H20

Total

46.90

38.60

.25

.26

.39

13.80

100.23

The color of the washed kaolin was of grade 3 when fired at 1,350° C.
When dried at 110° its tensile strength was 21.5 pounds per square inch,
and its shrinkage 6.25 per cent. Fired at 1,350° C. the shrinkage
was 13.5 per cent.

The shrinkage of the porcelain mixture made with this kaolin was
2.2 per cent at 110° C, and 13.2 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The
translucency was .71, the absorption 6 per cent and the color of grade 3.
The transmitted light was cream-colored. Under both the raw lead and
fritted glazes the body color was pale green.

8. Poster Mica Mine Xear Franklin

The Porter Mica Mine,2 one and one-half miles south of west of
Franklin, is an old one abandoned some time ago. The dumps contain
kaolin of fair quality, but no record of the dimensions of the deposit
is obtainable.

10. Moore Mica Mine Xear Franklin

The Moore Mica Mine3 is one mile north of Franklin, about 80 feet

above the Little Tennessee River. It was opened by two tunnels and

two shafts that do not cut the main dike. One shaft exposes an over-

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 139.
nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 138.
3\Vatts, A. S., L. c, p. 138.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 55

burden of 20 feet and 9 feet of kaolin that is very free from impurities
and low in quartz. A part of the dike, however, is not completely
kaolinized. Its strike is K 40° E. and its dip 85° KW. The sample
contained 34 per cent of white kaolin, with a refractory value above
1,730° C. When dried at 110° C. the tensile strength of this kaolin is
28 pounds per square inch and its shrinkage 7 per cent. When fired
at 1,350° C, its color was of grade 1 and its total shrinkage 15.7 per cent.
The porcelain mixture with this kaolin shrank 3 per cent at 110°
and 12 per cent at 1,350° C. The color of the fired mixture was of grade

I, its translucency was .64, and its absorption 7.6 per cent. The trans-
mitted light was cream-white. Under raw lead and fritted glazes the
color Avas pale green.

II. Lyle Prospect Near Franklin
The Lyle prospect1 is one and one-half miles northeast of Franklin,

near the Dillsboro road. It is on a dike 15 feet wide that strikes north-
east and dips 75° northwest. It has been opened for a depth of only
10 feet, exposing a great variation in kaolinization. The material col-
lected from the least weathered portion of the deposit yielded 26 per
cent of cream-colored kaolin of a refractory value 1,690° C. Its color
when fired was grade 3. Its shrinkage at 110° C. was 5.2 per cent and
when fired at 1,350° C, 15.8 per cent. The tensile strength of the
kaolin dried at 110° C. was 16 pounds per square inch.

When made into the standard porcelain mixture the shrinkage at
110° C. was 3.3 per cent and when fired at 1,350° C, 12.8 per cent. The
fired mass had a color of grade 3, a translucency of .67, and absorp-
tion of 3.1 per cent. Its transmitted light was cream-colored. The raw
lead and fritted glazes produced no change in color.

12. Kasson Mica Mine Near Franklin

At the Kasson Mica Mine2 two miles northeast of Franklin is a
dike with many stringers from 6 to 16 feet in width that have been
worked for mica. The main dike strikes N". 40° E. and dips 75°
N.W. to 80° S.E. Where exposed the pegmatite is thoroughly kaolin-
ized and much kaolin is on the dumps. The kaolin is badly
iron-stained from altered biotite and it contains pockets of garnet-
colored sand. A sample taken from the dumps, when washed, yielded
41 per cent of pink kaolin with a refractory value above 1,730° C.
It is possible that by careful selection a better colored product might
be obtained. Enormous quantities of what was once high-grade kaolin

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 137.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 135.

56 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

now lie on the dumps ruined by mixture with fragments of wall rock.
When dried at 110° C. the shrinkage of the sample collected by Watts
was 4.7 per cent, and when fired at 1,350° C, 14.1 per cent. The
tensile strength of the dried material was 18 pounds per square inch.

When introduced into the porcelain mixture and dried at 110 z C.
the shrinkage was 3.2 per cent, and when fired at 1,350° C, 13.3 per
cent. The fired product had a translucency of .71, an absorption of
5.6 per cent and a color of grade 3. The transmitted light was cream-
colored. Under the usual glazes the tint assumed was a very pale green.

13. Billings Prospect Near Franklin

D. M. Billings, Franklin, X. C.

A few hundred yards northeast of the Kasson Mine is a tunnel on
land belonging to Mr. D. M. Billings of Franklin. It was originally
dug for mica, but is reported to have penetrated good kaolin. The
tunnel has caved so that it is impossible to enter it. The dump at
its mouth consists of rock fragments and books of mica, but no kaolin.
It is possible that this is one of the outlying openings of the Kasson
Mine.

15. Frank Prospect Near Dean
At the Frank prospect1, three miles northeast of Franklin, near

Dean, a dike of kaolinized pegmatite strikes west. It varies from 12
to 15 feet in width. It has been opened by shafts and a tunnel.
The material exposed is sandy, but it yields 31 per cent of a white
kaolin, of a refractory value above 1,730° C. The color of this, when
fired, was of grade 3 and its tensile strength when dried at 110° C.
was 18 pounds per square inch. Dried at 110° C. it shrank 5.4 per
cent, and fired at 1,350° C. its shrinkage was 15.1 per cent.

The porcelain mixture made up with this kaolin shrank 3 per cent
when dried at 110° C. and 13.2 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The
fired product possessed a translucency of .63 and an absorption of 4.9
per cent and a color of grade 3. The transmitted light was cream-
colored. Under the raw lead and fritted glazes the body assumed a
pale green tint.

16, 17, 18. Myers, Sloan and Sanders Prospects Near Franklin
The Myers prospect2 is two and three-fourths miles north of Franklin

and one-half mile southwest of the Sloan deposit. It is opened by
small pits for a distance of 25 feet. The maximum width of the de-

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 132.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 138.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

posit is 12 feet, but it has been penetrated only five feet in depth and
consequently the character of the kaolin could not be determined.

The Sloan prospect is about midway between the Myers and Sanders
prospects, about three miles north of Franklin. The deposit developed
by a single open cut 50 feet above the Little Tennessee River is eight
to ten feet wide, strikes northeast and dips 80° northwest. The dike
is completely kaolinized, but it contains much fine quartz, a narrow
quartz band along its hanging wall and much stained mica near its
foot wall. A sample1 yielded 30 per cent of kaolin wTith a refractory
value above 1,730° C.

The Sanders prospect2 is three and three-fourths miles north of
Franklin and one-half mile northeast of the Sloan prospect. The
dike exposed here when Watts visited the property strikes north 20°
west and its visible kaolinized portion was about 20 feet wide. It
was clearly defined by quartz bands along its walls, and by seams of
partly decomposed pegmatite 8 to 15 feet wide. (See also descrip-
tion of Ferguson property, below.) It had been opened by a tunnel
120 feet long from which was taken a sample, which when washed
yielded 29 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value above 1,730° C.

Mr. Watts reports the kaolins from the Sloan and Sanders prop-
erties and the porcelain mixtures containing them to have the follow-
ing properties :

Kaolins

Color, after firing

Tensile strength at 110° C, per square inch...

Shrinkage at 110° C

Total shrinkage when fired at 1350° C

Porcelain Mixtures

Shrinkage at 110° C

Total shrinkage when fired at 1350° C

Translucency of fired mass

Absorption of fired mass

Color of fired mass

Color of transmitted light through fired mass
Color under raw-lead and fritted glazes

Sanders

Sloan

Grade 3

14 lbs.

22 lbs.

4.5%

6.4%

13 .8%

15.2%

3.4%

3.2%

13 .5%

12 .3%

.69

5.3%

7.1%

Grade 3

Cream

Pale green

14. Ferguson Exploration Near Franklin

J. W. Ferguson, Waynesville, N". 0.

The Ferguson property is about four miles northeast of Franklin,

near Watauga Creek. The property, which is probably the same as

the Sanders prospect, has been explored by a tunnel running

Watts, A. S.f L. c, P. 141.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 140.

58 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

northeast into the side of a ridge. The tunnel cut 95 feet of kaolin
in which is a 20-foot horse of partially altered feldspar and streaks
of quartz. ^N"ear the end of the tunnel is a cross-cut about 50 feet
long, all in excellent clay. That on the northwest side of the tunnel
contains considerable coarse mica that is probably merchantable. There
is also a little feldspar that might also prove of value. Xear the end
of the tunnel is a shaft 14 feet deep and in the bottom of this a boring
20 feet deep to hard rock. Since the mouth of the tunnel is 45 feet
below the top of the ridge it is safe to assume the depth of the kaolin-
ization to be 70 feet.

A sketch showing the distribution of tire borings with reference to
the tunnel is given in Figure 7. It is evident that they do not outline

NO.I2

NO.M-

Nall °2o'

22'

The figures showing feet indicate depths
into day

Dotted lines represent horizontal borings
O 50 100 Feet

Fig. 7. Sketch map of borings on Ferguson property, near Franklin.

the deposit. On the assumption that it has been proven for a length
of 200 feet, a width of 48 feet and a depth of 60 feet, and that 25
per cent of the kaolin in the crude material is recoverable, the amount
of refined kaolin obtainable from the deposit is about 6,500 tons.

The kaolin in the tunnel is snow-white and free from grit and visible
impurities of all kinds, except the large flakes of mica already referred
to. That on the old dump at the mouth of the tunnel is slightly stained.

Since the deposit Avhere exposed is near the top of a slope 70 feet
above its base, mining would be comparatively easy. Abundant water
is available near by. It could be pumped to the top of the ridge and
used for sluicing the crude clay to a washer situated in the valley 70
feet below.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Samples of the crude kaolin (2.06) were tested by the U. S. Bureau
of Mines. The results of these tests were as follows:

Screen Tests

Clay No.

20M*

20-65M

65-100M

100-200M

Thru 200M

2.06

0.85

17.48

7.27

11.03

63.36

'20M, 20-65M, etc. refer to the screens used.

Moisture Present
2.06—3.31%

Water of Plasticity and Drying Shrinkage

Clay No.

Water of Plasticity Per Cent

Volume Drying Shrinkage Per Cent

2.06

39.03

22.58

Per Cent Apparent Porosity When Fired to Different Temperatures

Clay No.

1170° C

1210° C

1250° C

1290° C

1330° C

1350° C

2.06

65.68

31.72

3.02

Per Cent Volume Shrinkage When Fired to Different Temperatures

Clay No.

1170° C

1210° C

1250° C

1290° C

1330° C

1350° C

2.06

32.12

25.24

48.63

Color When Fired
Clay No. 2.06 Fair white

Softening Temperatures

Clay No.

Cone

0 Cent.

0 Fah.

2.06

33J i

1730

3146

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

19. Eochester Mica Mine Xear Franklin
The Eochester Mica Mine1 is on Lisle Knob, five miles north of

Franklin. It is 150 feet east and 25 feet above the fresh pegmatite
worked by the Lisle Knob Mica Mine. The Eochester dike is thoroughly
decomposed to a high-grade kaolin containing many small iron garnets.
It strikes K 10° E. and dips 80° I.I.; is five to ten feet wide and
is uniform in character. It is exposed about 60 feet below the crest
of the mountain by a tunnel for 40 feet along its strike. A care-
fully selected sample contained 44 per cent of kaolin with a refractory
value above 1,730° C. Its color after firing was of grade 2 and its
tensile strength when dried at 110° C. was 24 pounds per square inch.
Its shrinkage at 110° C. was 6.2 per cent and during firing at 1,350° C.
was 13.8 per cent.

The porcelain mixture with this kaolin shrank 2.6 per cent at 110°
C. and 13 per cent at 1,350° C. The translucency of the fired product
was .70, its color of grade 2 and its absorption 5.8 per cent. The
transmitted light was cream-colored. With the glazes the color changed
to a very pale green.

20, 21. West and Bryson Prospects Near West's Mill
The West prospect2 is one-fourth mile southeast of West's Mill, on

a dike about 25 feet wide that strikes west and dips 80° south. The
deposit is opened by two tunnels, 25 and 45 feet below the crest of
the hill through which the dike cuts. The West prospect is on the
east slope of the hill and the Bryson prospect on its west slope, 75
feet below the crest. At the Bryson locality the dike is said to strike
northwest and to dip vertically, but Mr. Watts states that it is un-
doubtedly the same dike as that exposed on the West property. At
the West prospect the pegmatite is not completely kaolinized. A sam-
ple taken from it yielded 29 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value
of 1,730° C. The composition of the washed material was:

SiC-2

AI2O3

FezOs

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

TiC-2

H2O

Total

48.92

36 .37

.37

.11

.29

.02

12.70

98.78

The Bryson prospect3 is just west of the West prospect near West's
Mill. The deposit is on a dike 15 feet wide, that may be the exten-

HVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 140.
nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 145.
■nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 131.

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

sion of that at the West prospect.1 It is opened by a tunnel 120 feet
long at a level 50 feet lower than the opening at the West prospect.
The material is well kaolinized, yielding 38 per cent of kaolin with a
refractory value above 1,730° C.

The character of the kaolin washed from samples obtained from
these two properties is recorded by Watts as follows :

Kaolins
Color, after firing

Tensile strength per square inch when dried at 110° C

Shrinkage at 110° C

Shrinkage when fired at 1350° C

Porcelain Mixtures

Shrinkage at 110° C

Shrinkage at 1350° C._

Color at 1350° C

Translucency after firing at 1350° C

Absorption after firing at 1350° C.

Color by transmitted light after firing at 1350° C

Color under raw-lead and fritted glazes

Bryson

West

Grade 2

Grade 3

28 lbs.

24 lbs.

6.6%

7.0%

17.3%

18. 0%

3.4%

3.6%

14 .0%

14.2%

Grade 2

Grade 3

.68

.66

4.5%

4.3%

cream

pale green

An occurrence of kaolin near West's Mill is referred to also by
Ries.2 It is not known whether it is identical with one of the two
described by Watts from the same vicinity or not. It is mentioned
as being on the land of George Brindel. The kaolin is stated to be
of remarkable whiteness and to burn to a pure white color. It is very
fine-grained, free from grit and shows a few scattered white mica scales.
It began to fuse at 2,300° F. (1,260° C.) and vitrified at 2,600° F.
(1,427° C).

The crude kaolin had the composition shown in I and the soluble
clay substance was calculated to have that shown in II. The propor-
tions of clay substance, quartz and feldspar present in the crude ma-
terial were estimated to be 83.39: 14.98: 1.58.

Si02

AI2O3

Fe20-3

CaO

MgO

Na20 K2O

TiO-2

H2O

Total

53.10
45.41

33.06
39.56

1.18
.86

.38
.45

.08
.09

.83
.03

11.32
13.58

99.95

100.00

xIn his description of the West prospect Mr. Watts states that the strike of the dike on the Bryson
property is N. W. and its dip vertical; but in his account of the Bryson prospect he states that it "has
the same strike as that on the West prospect," which is stated to be west.

2Ries, H., N. C. Geol. Survey Bull., No. 13, p. 62, 1897.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Deposits in Jackson County

Jackson County has long been a center of kaolin production. The
oldest mines in the State are located near Webster and one of them is
still active. At present only two are being worked. Two other de-
posits are being held in reserve after having been pretty thoroughly
explored. Four others have been operated at some time in the past,
but are now abandoned. A dozen other deposits have been examined, but
most of them are too small for commercial exploitation or are too far
from railroad lines to be readily accessible.

The locations of all the deposits known are shown on the map, Fig. 8.

Contour interval 500 feet
Datcun is 7nean sea. level

EXPLANATION

-X

Strike
of bed

Strike and
dip

Mine

Abandoned
mine

Prospect

Washing plant
of Roda mine

Fig. 8. Sketch map of kaolin deposits near Dillsboro.
Capital letters refer to active mines.
Lower case letters refer to abandoned mines.
Figures refer to prospects and explorations.
Letters and figures correspond to those in Plate II.

A. Hog Rock Mine Near Webster

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N". 0.

The Hog Rock Mine is about four miles southeast of Dillsboro,

near Harris on Little Savannah Creek, Jackson County. It is the

oldest mine in the State, having been operated continuously for 30 years.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 63

The deposit is well up on the slope of a hill which has haen reduced
by open-cut work to three terraces above the valley level, on the
upper two of which mining is going on. The deposit is a series of
pockets of rich kaolin separated by narrow lenses and streaks of quartz
and by layers of gneiss. In the aggregate, so far as it has been de-
veloped it is 900 feet long and 250 feet wide at its broadest, diminish-
ing at one place to 100 feet in width and again widening to 200 feet.
It is cut diagonally by a spur of quartz-mica rock 400 feet long and
30 feet wide. West of this there are other deposits 15 to 20 feet wide
separated from the larger deposit by several hundred feet of gneiss.
Still further west a new deposit about 300 feet long and 100 wide has
recently been opened. It is separated from those to the east by 250
to 300 yards of gneiss and is apparently entirely independent of them.

The depth to which kaolinization has progressed differs markedly
in different parts of the mine. The maximum depth at which mining
has gone is 125 feet from the original surface. This depth has been
reached partly by open cuts and partly by shaft. Because of the
pockety character of the deposit a reasonable estimate of the reserve
is impossible.

The walls of the deposit are not well exposed. They appear to be
decomposed Carolina gneiss. The quartz-mica rock that penetrates
the large deposit is mainly a mass of quartz streaked with little tongues
of pegmatite containing pockets of decomposed feldspar, clumps of
mica, small masses of limonitic material that may have come from
hornblende or tourmaline and nodules of soft brown and black flaky
limonite, and of oxides of manganese.

The deposits at this place evidently represent a large dike and several
smaller parallel ones trending about northeast and dipping nearly
vertical. The dikes are irregular in width and the feldspar and quartz,
in the main one at least, is irregularly distributed.

The crude clay is distinctly cream-colored when first mined but it
becomes darker when dried out and exposed to the air. This darken-
ing is apparently due to the oxidation of some iron compound. Be-
sides kaolin the clay contains a great deal of fine white mica and
fine sand, a little decomposed feldspar, occasional reddish yellow stains
and a few concretionary nodules of mixtures of limonite and psilome-
lane or wad. These nodules are usually small but many of them have
diameters of about an inch. They are readily separable from the
kaolin in the refining process, consequently manganese is rarely re-
ported in analyses of the commercial product. The material from
different pockets differs in character but a uniform product is main-

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

tained by careful mixing. The greatest variation in the composition
of shipments made between 1890 and 1894 is represented by the follow-
ing figures:

S1O2

AI2O3

Fe203 FeO

CaO

MgO

K2O NaaO

H2O

.00

.68

.53

.22

.16

.14

.27

Three analyses of the washed kaolin from this mine are available.
They represent the production in 1890, 1896 and 1912.

SiO-2

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

Ti02

H20

45.86
46.47
46.95

40.75

38.82
37.73

1.39
.89
.15

.45

.28
tr

.09
.25
tr

2.83

9.01
13.34
13.99

.75
.18 1 .60

.05

Total

100.38
100.80
99.65

1. Ries, H.t N. C. Geol. Survey Bull. 13, p. 61, 1897.

2. A portion of the iron is in the form of FeO. Analysis furnished by Harris Kaolin Co.

3. Watts, A. S., Bureau of Mines Bull. 53, p. 131, 1913. Washed in laboratory.

The crude kaolin passes through agitators, sand wheels, the usual
tanks and screens, is pressed and dried and is hauled by horse tram
four miles on a narrow guage road to a siding at Dillsboro on the
Murphy Branch of the Southern Railway.1

The output of the plant is about 2,500 tons annually. The kiln is
provided with 3,000 feet of 2-inch pipe and the drying sheds have a
storage capacity of from 600 to 700 tons.

The Hog Rock kaolin is well known to nearly all the whiteware
potters of the middle west. It has been used by them in the manufac-
ture of china and porcelain. It has also been employed in making
tile, and is now being tested for use in glass-melting pots. For some
years it has constituted a part of the mix from which is made the
binder in carborundum wheels.

Samples of the crude kaolin and of the porcelain mixture tested by
the U. S. Bureau of Mines gave results as follows :

xFor details of mining and refining methods see Watts, L. c, p. 129, and for a description of the mine
in 1896 and of the character of the kaolin then produced, see: Ries, H., N. C. Geol. Survey, Bull. 13,
p. 59, 1897.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Kaolin

When subjected to the screen test:

38.60% was left on the 20 mesh screen.
7.08% was left on the 65 mesh screen.

.65% was left on the 100 mesh screen.
5.80% was left on the 200 mesh screen.
47.87% passed through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is white, short and sandy. It dries well, but the corners of bars tear.
The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 44.78%.
The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 20.92%.
The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 7.49%.
The moisture factor on a dry basis is 1 . 10. %
The deformation temperature is cone 333^.

When burned at
The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 37.1%

No. of bars tested 3

The volume shrinkage
terms of dry clay is _ .
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is

No. of bars tested 3

Color Good

white

1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C.

37.0%
6

"36.81%
3

30.92%

Good
white

Very
good
white

1410°C.

24.9%
3

16.0% 18.9% 17.88% 24.07% 30.7%

11.5%
3

Very
good
white

Porcelain Mixture

The mixture makes poor bars and works poorly in jig.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry mixture is 30.81%.

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry mixture is 16 . 99 %.

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 6.02%.

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 224.1.

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 25.7% 25.88% 20.61% 2.49% .02%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry volume is __ 15% 16.38% 19.22% 39.57%, 32.15%

The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 12.13%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The modulus of rupture in

lbs. per sq. in. is 2988 3135 3405 6582 4576

Color White, very Same as White, very Same as

slightly tinted at 1190° slightly gray at 1370°

with cartridge-
buff

66 THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

B. Rhoda Mine Near Webster

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, "N. C.

The Rhoda Mine is in Jackson County about seven and one-half
miles southeast of Dillsboro and five miles southeast of Webster on
the south side of the Tuckasegee River opposite the mouth of Cany
Fork. The plant in which the clay is filtered and pressed is on the
south side of the river, one mile east of Webster. The washer is near
the mine.

In his report on this mine Watts1 declares that the dike which gave
rise to the kaolin "cuts diagonally a low ridge and has a northeasterly
strike. A broad band of sugar quartz follows the south wall which is
very crooked. The extent of the dike has been proven more or less
by test pits, but the chief exposure is by a long tunnel driven from
the west slope of the hill. This tunnel passes through a broad band
of low-grade pegmatite material into a band having a low quartz con-
tent," where a shaft was sunk. An average sample from the shaft
contained 26 per cent of kaolin. Since Mr. Watts's visit the mine has
been sufficiently developed to show two dikes, 20 and 40 feet wide,
separated by 40 feet of rock. The deposit is pockety and the character
of the clay in the different pockets varies somewhat. There are at
present (1918) five active shafts, the products from which are mingled
in the flume going to the washers so that the washed kaolin is an
average of the whole. In this way the mine's output is kept approx-
imately uniform. It is estimated that the crude kaolin yields about
25 per cent of refined product. The depth of the workable clay is
about 50 feet on the lower slopes of the ridge and more that 100 feet
on its upper slopes.- The estimated reserve is about 10,000 tons in that
portion of the deposit that has been developed, but it is plain that
its entire extent has not yet been explored.

The crude kaolin is white and somewhat sandy. It contains some
fine mica, some sand, a few tiny black specks, large fragments of
quartz and partly decomposed feldspar and a few large flakes of mus-
covite. Near the wall of the western vein are many black streaks
of a decomposed mineral; and near the surface red clay streaks and
bunches and streaks of soft black manganese compounds spoil the
kaolin, but the main mass of the clay is free from stain and dark
streaks. Running through the mass, however, are veins of mica imbed-
ded in red clay. Much of the mica is stained and therefore useless, but
seven or eight tons of rough material are separated monthly and put on

Watts, A. S., Bur. of Mines Bull. 53, p. 156, 1913.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

the market as cut and scrap mica. It is noticeable that the better mica
and the better clay are found together and that where the mica is
poor the kaolin also is apt to be inferior.

An analysis of the washed kaolin as furnished in 1917 yielded1 :

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

.17

K2O

Ign

Total

46.41

38.46

.07

.00

.07

.42

14.40

100 .00

The crude clay is carried to the washer by a flume. The slip is
pumped to a pipe which carries it to a flume, through which it flows
by gravity to a tank on the top of a hill, then by gravity syphon to
the top of another hill one and one-half miles distant and finally by
another flume three miles to the settling tanks at the plant on the
river. After being pressed it is carried by motor trucks three miles
to a siding of the Southern Railway at Sylva. The mine and plant
are operated by electricity generated by water power. The capacity
of the plant is about 2,000 tons of refined clay annually, with the
average amount of labor available. Under pressure it might be in-
creased about 25 per cent. The kiln is supplied with 5,200 feet of
2-inch pipe and provision is at hand for the storage of 600 tons of
refined kaolin.2

The users of the Rhoda kaolin are the same as those of the Hog
Rock product. Indeed, the kaolin of either mine is often substituted
for that of the other.

The results of tests of the crude and washed kaolin and of the cor-
responding porcelain mixtures as reported by the Clay Testing Station
of the Bureau of Mines are:

Kaolin

The refined kaolin furnished by the plants is gritty. It dries well, but the corners
of bars tear slightly. That washed from the crude kaolin dries well and makes
good bars.

When subjected to the screen test: Crude Refined

There was left on the 20 mesh screen 21.82% .00%

65 mesh screen 9.56% .00%

100 mesh screen ___ 1.20% .00%

200 mesh screen 4.43% 1.75%

There passed through the 200 mesh screen 62 . 99 % 98 . 25 %

Plasticity Fair Fair

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay was_ 41.57% 46.51%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay was_ . _ 23 . 47 % 23 . 23 %

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 8.53% 8.44%

The moisture factor on a dry basis is 1.61% 1 . 658%

burnished by Harris Kaolin Co., analyst: N. B. Pratt.

*In a letter to Mr. A. S. Watts dated Jan. 20, 1921, Mr. S. W. Enloe of the Harris Kaolin Co., states
that the Rhoda Mine has now been abandoned.

68 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The deformation temperature is cone 34 35

The porosity in terms of burned volume when burned at

1190°is 34.6 % 37.2 %

1250° 34.6 % 35.8 %

1310° 32.2 % 36.4 %

1370° 28.21% 33.4 %

1410° 21.6 % 23.6 %

The volune shrinkage in terms of dry clay when burned at

1190°C. is . 18.29% 20.6 %

1250°C 20.9 % 21.6 %

1310°C 22.14% 21.6 %

1370°C 25.33% 25.94%

1410°C 30.5 % 33.1 %

The corresponding linear shrinkage at 1410°C. is 11.42% 12.54%

The tests on porosity and volume shrinkage are based on three bars at each

temperature.

The color of the burned bars was good white in all cases, in a few instances showing

a silvery luster in consequence of the presence of small mica flakes.

Porcelain Mixture
with crude kaolin

The mixture is gritty. It works fairly well in mold and jig, and dries fairly well.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry mixture is 31.85%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry volume is 19.88%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 7. 13%

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 299 . 9

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 26.3 % 25.82% 21.31% 11.88% .05%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry volume is _. 15,8 % 19.42% 18.83% 26.58% 31.64%
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 11.91%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The modulus of rupture in

lbs. per sq. in. is 2334 2886 3610 3873 7260

Color Good Good Very good white

white white

with refined kaolin

The mixture is short. It makes fair bars, but its jiggering is rather hard. It
dries well.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry mixture is 30. 74%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry mixture is^ 17.84%

The corresponding linear shrinkage is__ 6.34%

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 264 . 3

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 24.1 % 23.51% 15.56% 7.03% .0%

No. of bars tested 3 2 3 3 1

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry volume is 14.9% 18.99% 22.92% 27.57% 32.2%
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 12.15%

No. of bars tested 3 2 2 3 3

The modulus of rupture in

lbs. per sq. in. is 2771 3679 3630 6765 6463

Color Very Same as at 1190° White White

good
whitje

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 69

28, 30. Ashe and Harris Prospects Near Webster

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N. G.

Two other deposits near Webster have been tested by boring but
have not otherwise been explored. One, known as the Ashe property,
is about five miles southeast of Dillsboro, in the gap in the mountain
about one mile west of Painter. There is nothing known definitely
about the deposit except that it was once opened by a pit on a vein
reported to be about 15 feet wide. Borings indicated that the area
underlain by kaolin is 200 feet by 21 feet and that the deposit contains
about 10,000 tons of refined product.

The other explored deposit is about one-half mile south of the plant
of the Rhoda Mine on the south side of a hill. The productive area
is 400 feet by 50 feet in extent. It contains about 15,000 tons of kaolin
like that at the Hog Rock Mine.

The remaining deposits that have been reported as existing in the
vicinity of Webster have not been explored. They have been discovered
during explorations for mica or have been opened by single test pits or
tunnels.1

27. Cowan Prospect Near Webster

The Cowan prospect2 consists of a test hole one-half mile southeast
of Webster and just west of the old nickel-refining plant. It exposes
some high-grade kaolin. The extent of the deposit, however, cannot
be determined because of the heavy overburden that covers all the
rocks in this vicinity.

24. Hall Mine Near Webster

The Hall Mine3 was one-half mile west of Webster on a low ridge

south of the Tuckasegee River. It is on a dike with several stringers

varying in width from 10 to 20 feet. The dike strikes N. 40° E.

and dips vertical. It is opened by a tunnel 60 feet long that follows

its strike and by a shaft 20 feet deep.

Samples taken from across the tunnel yielded 24 per cent kaolin with

a refractory value above 1,730° C. Its color after firing was grade 4.

Its tensile strength at 110° C was 18 pounds per square inch and its

shrinkage 4.9 per cent. When fired at 1,350° its shrinkage was 12.4

per cent.

The shrinkage of the porcelain mixture with this kaolin was 3.1

per cent at 110° C. and 13 per cent at 1,350° C. The fired mass had

xln January 1921 the Harris Kaolin Co. was opening a new deposit about one-half mile X. of the
Hog Rock Mne. It extent at that time had not been fully determined.
2Watts, A. S., Bur of Mines Bull. 53, p. 159, 1913.
*Wat?s, A. S., L. c, p. 159.

70 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

a translucency of .68, an absorption of 4.6 per cent, and a color of
grade 4, and this color remained unchanged under the glazes. The color
of the transmitted light was cream.

31. Long Mica Mine K"ear Webster

The Long Mica Mine1 is four miles southeast of Webster, near the
mouth of Wayehutta Creek. Two tunnels and an open cut expose an
irregular pegmatite dike that strikes N. 70° E. Its width is 10 to
20 feet, but it is interrupted by inclusions of the wall rock. A sample
taken from the richer part of the dike gave 35 per cent kaolin with a
refractory value above 1,730° CL Its color after firing was of grade 2.
Its tensile strength at 110° C. was 20 pounds to the square inch, and its
shrinkage 4.1 per cent. When fired at 1,350° C. its shrinkage was
11.2 per cent.

When introduced into the standard porcelain mixture the shrinkage
of the mass was 3 per cent at 110° C. and 13.8 per cent at 1,350° C.
The color of the fired mass was of grade 2, its translucency .69, and
its absorption 6 per cent. Under the glazes used the color became a
very pale green.

(i) Springer Pit Near Webster

The Springer pit was being operated in 1896, but was evidently
abandoned shortly thereafter. A drift had been run into the side of
a hill one-half mile northeast of Webster on the land of William Buch-
anan. This cut a vein of kaolin 25 feet wide striking ZKT. 15° W.
About 50 tons of crude material had been removed at the time the
prospect was visited by Ries. The clay contained coarse fragments
of quartz and feldspar, but was otherwise free from impurities. Its
analysis yielded 66.14 per cent clay, 15.61 per cent quartz and 18.91
per cent feldspar. The washed kaolin analyzed 45.78 per cent SiOo ;
36.46 per cent A1203 ; 1.36 per cent iron oxides; 13.40 per cent H20;
and .79 per cent other substances, besides 2.05 per cent moisture. It
was white and began to fuse at 2,350° F. (1,288° C). Analyses of
the crude and washed kaolin are given by Ries.2

The Kaolin Manufacturing Company, also, had a mine3 near Webster
which was operating in 1900, but it was soon thereafter abandoned.

29. Forest Hill Mica Mine Near Cullowhee

The Forest Hill Mica Mine4 is one and one-half miles southwest

of Cullowhee on a dike with a northeast strike and a vertical dip. It

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 159.

*Ries, H., N. C. Geol. Survey Bull. 13, N. C. p. 61, 1897.

»Pratt, J. H., The Mining Industry in N. C. during 1900. N. C. Geol. Survey Ec. Paper 4, p. 28, 1901 .

«Watts, A. 8., L. o., p. 155 and 116.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

varies from eight to ten feet in width and is accompanied by many
thick stringers. Another dike is exposed by a pit 100 yards further
northwest and a natural exposure of kaolin occurs one and one-half
miles south, near Speedwell. The dike first referred to is opened by
numerous tunnels driven in the search for mica. It exhibits various
stages of kaolinization, but its material is free from impurities with
the exception of a little quartz.

A sample yielded 31 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value of
1,730° C. The composition of this kaolin and that of the feldspar
with which it is associated, which is probably similar to that from
which the kaolin was derived, are as follows:

SiO-2

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

TiO-2

H2O

Total

Kaolin

49.20
63.35

37.58
20.07

.17
.15

tr
.03

tr
tr

.13
1.11

.47
13.70

tr
tr

12.53
.90

100.08

Feldspar

99.31

The feldspar consists of 81.8 per cent orthoclase, 9.5 per cent albite,
8.2 per cent kaolinite and .5 per cent quartz.

The shrinkage of this kaolin when dried at 110° C. was 4 per cent
and its tensile strength 16 pounds per square inch. When fired at
1,350° C. its color was grade 2, and its total shrinkage 9.7 per cent.

When used in the porcelain mixture this shrank 1.4 per cent at
110° C. and 11.6 per cent at 1,350° C. The color of the fired mass was
grade 3, its translucency .73, and its absorption 5.5 per cent. Under the
glazes used it assumed a very pale green tint.

22. Cole and Black Exploration Near Birdtown

A. B. Cole, Bryson, K C.

The Cole and Black prospect is about seven miles northeast of
Bryson and three-quarters mile southeast of Birdtown, about one-half
mile east of the Oconalufty River and the Appalachian Railway along
its side. The location has been prospected by a series of test pits and
several shafts.

The most important opening is a shaft 12 feet in diameter and 27
feet deep, at the bottom of which is a boring of equal depth. The
upper 12 feet of the shaft are in clay overburden and a mass of dark
schist (probably a micaceous, hornblende gneiss) folded into a syn-
cline that can be traced east for some distance forming a capping above
the kaolin and separating it from the clay overburden on the surface.
Below the capping the kaolin is continuous to the depth reached by
the auger. The kaolin is on the whole very white, but it is streaked

72 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

by yellow and red stains near the top. Further down it is said to
be free from stains, but only its upper part can now be seen. It
contains coarse quartz fragments and is crossed by comparatively
large horses of the same mineral. Sand and black mica are also
present in it but not in large quantities. The strike of the bot-
tom of the syncline is 1ST. 20° E. and this is also the strike of the
kaolin deposit indicated by the lines of pits. Where wall rock can
be seen its dip is southeast at a high angle. Three other shafts and
a tunnel mark the extension of the dike for at least 300 feet along its
strike.

A little farther to the west is another series of openings, consisting
of several test pits and two shafts, 20 feet deep and 57 feet deep. The
walls of these are not visible but on their dumps is considerable sandy
kaolin mixed with quartz and black mica. The deposit marked by
this series of openings is parallel to the more easterly one and is evi-
dently on an independent dike.

Although very little definite information can be gathered from the
prospecting, it has proven a great quantity of kaolin. It, however, has
not shown that the kaolin is in deposits large enough to be of com-
mercial importance. It may exist in a number of small pockets. If
systematic borings around the first shaft described above should out-
line a reasonably large deposit it might be worked economically by
tramming 500 yards, sluicing to a washer placed a little below the
mine and sluicing by gravity to a settling plant on the river 400 yards
distant. It would be necessary to pump water about 200 feet to the
mine and to flush the sluice leading to the washer.

(g) American Land and Development Co. ]NTear Dillsboro

In the Mining Industry for 1903 a deposit was reported1 as in the
process of development by the American Land and Development Com-
pany, at Barkers Creek on the Murphy Branch of the Southern Rail-
way. Cross-cuts, pits and shafts had uncovered material of good quality
and in considerable quantity. The analysis of a sample by I\ E. Hunt
gave Si02=44.66; Al2O3=39.90; Ee203=tr; Alk=.68 and H20=
14.28. Total, 99.52. The Encaustic Tiling Company, of Zanesville,
Ohio, tested a small quantity and declared it to be satisfactory for tile
and whiteware. Evidently the place was abandoned, for Watts,2 ten
years later, maps a kaolinized pegmatite three-fourths mile east of
Barkers Creek that apparently trends east-west. Xorth of this 200
yards is a lense of pegmatite that had been penetrated by a tunnel.

iPratt, J. H., The Min. Indus, of N. C. during 1903, p. 60, 1904.
nVatts, A. S., Bur. of Mines Bull. 53, p. 128, 1913.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 73

It is exposed in a semi-circular area five feet in diameter and is cov-
ered by an arch of gneiss. An abandoned mica mine in which is kaolin-
ized material was also noted at a point one-fourth mile northwest of
Barkers Creek. These various occurrences were then known as the
Allison prospect. No opinion of the quantity of kaolin present was
hazarded.

23. Cagle Gap Mica Mine Near Dillsboro

The Cagle Gap Mica Mine,1 one mile southwest of Dillsboro, in
a pit alongside the road opened a 15-foot dike striking N. 20° E.
The central eight feet of the dike is poorly kaolinized, but near the
walls is good sandy material that yielded 21 per cent kaolin with a
refractory value over 1,730° C. Its color after firing was grade 4.
Its tensile strength at 110° C. was 16 pounds per square inch and its
shrinkage 5.8 per cent. At 1,350° C. the shrinkage was 13.3 per cent.
The porcelain mixture made up with it shrank 2.8 per cent when
dried at 110° C. and 12.6 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The trans-
lucency of the fired mass was .65, its color of grade 4 and its absorp-
tion 5.4 per cent. The color was unaltered under the raw lead and
fritted glazes.

(h) North Carolina Mining and Manufacturing Co. Near Sylva
The North Carolina Mining and Manufacturing Company was op-
erating near Sylva prior to 1901. Ries2 describes the mine as being
two miles south of Sylva on the mountain slope on a dike striking
about N. 45° E. and from eight to ten feet wide. The walls are a
decomposed gneiss. Even as early as 1896 a 50-foot shaft had been
sunk on it and drifts from this had been run in both directions along
the vein. That running to the east was 150 feet long with two offsets
of 16 feet each; that toward the west was short. The clay
was very fine-grained and white. Its analysis is quoted on p. 201.
Watts,3 writing about 15 years later, after the location had been aban-
doned, states that the development comprised two openings on a dike
8 to 18 feet wide. There is a surface cut of 200 feet about 20 feet
deep, and on the new surface thus made are five shafts of unknown
depth from which mica was taken. Samples taken from the only
portion of the vein now exposed gave 26 per cent of white kaolin, with
a refractory value above 1,730° C.

In the neighborhood of Beta there are several openings from which
kaolin has been taken. In only one case, however, has any been shipped.

iWatts, A S., L. c, p. 129.

2Ries, H., N. C. Geol. Survey Bull. 13, p. 58, 1S97.

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 156.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

(/) Harris Mine Beta

This is an old opening on the south side of the railroad about one-
half mile west of Beta Station, from which a few years ago the Harris
Clay Company obtained a few hundred tons of marketable kaolin.
The place, however, was not operated long.

26. Love Prospect Xear Beta

Another opening, known as the Love prospect,1 was on a low isolated
hill on the north side of the railroad about a mile east of Beta. There
are a number of test holes on the hill but they are now filled so that
the extent of the deposit cannot be determined. From the character
of the material on their dumps it is inferred that the kaolin is of fair
quality.

25. Ross Prospect Beta

The most promising prospect near Beta is about one-half mile
southwest of the railroad station on the west slope of the hill south
of the railroad. It is now known as the Ross prospect, but is probably
the same as the Buchanan prospect described by Watts.2 The principal
openings are about 400 feet above Scott Creek. They comprise a num-
ber of test pits near the top of the ridge extending in a northeast direc-
tion, and several tunnels and shafts below these on its west slope. Only
one of the tunnels is now open to inspection. This is more than 200
feet long, with a right angled turn about 125 feet from its mouth.
Watts reports that it is believed that there are at this place several
dikes varying in width from 10 to 18 feet, striking N*. 40° E. and
dipping 80° IsT.W. Of the two principal dikes, the upper one has been
opened by a few test pits and the lower one, one-eighth mile further
west, by shafts 25 feet deep and by two tunnels. The material of
both dikes contains lenses of garnet-colored sand mixed with altered
biotite. Samples taken from the lower dike yielded 40 per cent kaolin,
with a refractory value above 1,730° C. Its analysis gave:

SiOa

AI2O3

Fe20-3

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

H2O

Total

46 .30

39.06

.20

.11

.60

13.77

100.08

Inspection of the main tunnel shows walls of white clay crossed
by many bands of quartzose pegmatite three to four feet wide run-
ning in all directions. The pegmatite is pretty thoroughly decom-

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 123.
*Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 154.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 75

posed but its content of quartz is so high that much barren rock would
have to be removed in mining. In most places the kaolin contains
considerable quartz and mica, but some of the masses between the
bands of pegmatite consist of nearly solid, dense kaolin. At 200 feet
from the mouth of the tunnel is a pit that was not crossed, but the
walls beyond exhibited what appeared to be wide clean exposures of
clay.

Samples taken from the best pockets differ from those presenting
the average of the walls, exclusive of the pegmatite veins, only in that
the better samples are almost free from mica and coarse grains of
quartz. The average sample is lumpy, while the selected samples are
nearly uniform in structure. Both are gritty but the grit in the better
sample is so fine as to be scarcely visible, while that in the average
sample consists of quartz grains with diameters of one-eighth to one-
fourth inch. Moreover, they are aggregated into little groups with
mica flakes, forming lumps. Since the cracks between the grains are
badly stained by iron compounds that have infiltrated and oxidized,
the crushing of the lumps seriously discolors the clay. The better
sample is pure white when first taken, but upon standing in a dry
atmosphere it turns pinkish or pinkish yellow, possibly through the
oxidation of iron salts. The sample contains no visible impurities
except tiny grains of sand.

The kaolin washed by Watts from the sample collected by him was
grade 3 in color after firing. Its tensile strength when dried at 110° C.
was 28.5 pounds per square inch, and its shrinkage 5.4 per cent. Its
total shrinkage at 1,350° C. was 13.9 per cent.

When introduced into the porcelain mixture this shrank 3 per cent
when dried at 110° C. and 13.1 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The
translucency of the fired mass was .64, its color was grade 3 and its
absorption 5.3 per cent. Under the glazes the color assumed a pale
green tint.

North Carolina Kaolin Company Near Addie

In the Mining Industry of North Carolina for 1901 mention is made
of the mine of the North Carolina Kaolin Company,1 near Addie, which
was in operation during 1900 and 1901 but no information is given
as to its exact location nor the quantity or quality of the kaolin in
its deposit.

iPratt, J. H., N. C. Geol. Survey Ec. Paper 4, p. 28, 1901, and 6, p. 85, 1902.

76 THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

National Abeasive Manufacturing Company Near Hall

In the same report1 for 1900 and again for 1901 reference is made
to a kaolin deposit near Hall which had at that time been developed
to a slight extent by the National Abrasive Manufacturing Co. It
is stated that the clay is of good quality and gives indications of oc-
curring in large quantity.

32. Wayehutta Mica Mine Near Willets

The Wayehutta Mica Mine2 was on the northwest slope of Black
Mountain, three miles south of "Willets. An irregular dike strikes
N. 70° E. with a variable dip. It is 50 feet wide and has a 10-foot
horse of wall-rock near its center, and a massive quartz band along its
south wall. It is opened by four tunnels of which one penetrates kaolin.
The crude material sampled contained 33 per cent kaolin with a refrac-
tory value above 1,730° C. and a color of grade 2, after firing. Dried
at 110° C. it shrank 4.6 per cent and had a tensile strength of 12.5
pounds per square inch. When fired at 1,350° C. it shrank 12.3 per
cent.

The porcelain mixture containing this kaolin shrank 3.6 per cent
when dried at 110° C. and 12.6 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The
fired mass had a translucency of .64, a color of grade 2, and its ab-
sorption was 7.1 per cent. No change of color was noticeable under
the glazes used.

Deposits in Haywood County

There is one active mine in this county and a number of deposits
that have been explored to a slight extent, but not sufficiently to war-
rant a statement as to their commercial importance.

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N. C
The Hand Clay Company's deposit is about one mile southeast of
Woodrow on the Pigeon River Division of the Tennessee and North
Carolina Railroad, a short branch connecting with the Murphy Branch
of the Southern Railway system. Woodrow is six miles south of West
Canton, and the plant is connected with the railroad at Woodrow by
a narrow gauge tram using cars drawn by mules. The deposit was
formerly worked by the Hand Clay Company, with headquarters at
Canton, N. C, but the Harris Kaolin Company has recently purchased
the entire interests of the former company and is now operating both
mine and plant.

iPratt, J. H., N. C. Geol. Survey Ec. Paper 4, p. 29, 1901, and 6, p. 86, 1902.
•Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 160.

iLliWItlllillilii'lHiil

c
U

-r

-a

-
—

£1

-8

-^~

l-l

—

78 THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

The deposit is well up on a hill slope affording a convenient grade
for the sluicing of the crude material to the refining and compressing
plant in the valley. It is being worked (in 1918) by two open cuts
20 feet deep and 90 feet wide and by two shafts of which one (in
March, 1919) was 92 feet deep and still in workable clay. Explora-
tions consisting of 39 borings distributed over an area 450 feet long
and 120 feet wide indicate a workable deposit at least 450 feet by 90
feet with an overburden of not more than five feet. Two tunnels,
55 and 125 feet long cutting across the deposit show a fairly uniform
character of clay, broken here and there by streaks of quartz. The
thickness of the deposit is not known as the augers penetrated to depths
of only 30 feet but most of the holes bottomed in hard clay. The
present workings show a thickness of at least 90 feet of workable ma-
terial. If we assume the average thickness to be 60 feet, the quantity
of crude clay available for extraction is 90,000 cubic yards or 135,000
tons. If 20 per cent is saved as refined kaolin the reserve is about
27,000 tons. If the average depth of the workable clay is assumed
to be 90 feet, the calculated reserve rises to 40,000 tons.1 In making
this estimate no allowance has been made for the presence of a horse
of flint that shows in the two pits and on the map of explorations
(PI. I). This may disappear with depth or it, may expand; at present
there is no means of inferring its underground extension, though recent
shaft work in the south pit indicates that it is "playing out."

The walls of the deposit are not clearly defined, because excessive
weathering has broken down the rock so that its character is not now
recognizable. Keith,2 in the Pisgah Folio, maps the country rock as
Carolina gneiss, which is in accord with the heavily micaceous weather-
ing products in the overburden. The clay deposit is evidently a dike
striking about northeast and dipping about 85° southeast. In general
it was pretty uniform in composition, but in one place, at least, it
was crossed by a mass of quartz which now appears as a horse in the
kaolin. (See PI. I.)

The crude clay is white and finely granular and free from coarse
quartz. It contains an abundance of quartz sand and is discolored
here and there by small brownish yellow stains similar to those seen
on the sides of cleavage cracks in semi-kaolinized feldspar. In addi-
tion there are present numerous very small flakes of white mica and

Work accomplished since the Harris Kaolin Company came into the possession of the property-
makes it seem probable that the reserve is much greater than this, but how much greater is not
known. The deposit extends northeast beyond the HaDd Company's line, whicn crosses the north-
east end of the present pit, and in this extension is probably a large additional reserve.

*Keith, Arthur, U. S. Geol. Survey Folio 147, 1907.

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

small crystals and large groups of crystals of the same mineral. In-
spection indicates that the yellow stains are most frequent in the
neighborhood of the mica plates and especially around the larger
crystals and groups of crystals and in the cleavage cracks between
their plates where infiltration has carried iron compounds and deposited
them. The mica itself within the kaolin appears to be almost wholly
unchanged except comparatively near the surface where it has be-
come red and opaque and has lost its elasticity. Even when bleached
by treatment with strong hydrochloric acid it remains opaque except
on thin edges where it is apparently only slightly doubly refracting,
if not entirely isotropic. It has lost completely its homogeneity and
has been changed to an aggregate of tiny transparent or translucent
particles which in the mass appear white and opaque, as if they were
kaolinite. They are, however, so lacking in definite characteristics
that their nature has not been determined (compare pp. 25-27). When
examined under the microscope there are seen to be present in the
kaolin also numerous particles of partially kaolinized feldspar, small
plates of reddish yellow decomposed muscovite, flakes of a brown pleo-
chroic mica, that may be biotite, little aggregates of brown-stained
kaolinite, and a few highly refracting grains that may be zircon.
Some of the biotite flakes contain slender black needles, like the rutile
needles frequently seen in the biotite of igneous rocks.

The washed clay as put upon the market consists mainly of kaolinite
material in flakes and granules, considerable quartz in irregular grains,
a small quantity of kaolinized feldspar, an occasional frayed flake of
muscovite, and many fibers of the same material, and here and there
a little plate of slightly pleochroic brown mica. The greater part of
the kaolinite particles measure about .01 to .03 millimeter in diameter,
but they are often grouped together into clumps with diameters of
six or eight times as great as the diameters of the individual grains.
However, between these grains are others of smaller size, their average
diameter being about .004 millimeter. The quartz, mica and feldspar
are usually in much larger grains, often measuring .06 to .08 millimeter.
A few of the clumps of kaolin are stained yellowish brown and also
some of the feldspar.

An analysis of a selected sample of the crude clay gave the result
shown in I. In II the analysis is calculated to 100 per cent of the
dry material. In III is the analysis of a specimen of the washed
kaolin, and in IV this is calculated to 100 per cent of the dry sample.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203 FeO

CaO

MgO

NazO

K2O

P2O5

Ign.

Moist

Total

37.92

28.75

.02

.00

.05

.04

9.68

23.50

100 .00 «

49.58

37.53

.02

.00

.06

.05

12.66

100 .00

III

46.41

37.76

.70

.00

.09

.17

.55

.04

13 .46

1.10

100.282

46.80

38.07

.71

.00

.09

.17

.55

.04

13 .57

100 .00

In analysis I it is clear that some one of the constituents was de-
termined by difference, and therefore, if there is an error in the anal-
ysis it is not discoverable. On the assumption that all the alkalies
are in mica and that the figure for combined water (ignition) is .5 per
cent too low, the mineral composition of the selected crude clay is
as in line A below. The calculated mineral composition of the washed
clay is shown in B.

Kaolinite

Quartz

Mica

Limonite

Serpentine

Water

Total

A
B

93.39
92.80

5.44
2.06

1.01
3.72

.02
.71

.14

.19

.48

100 .00
100 .00 3

During the winter of 1918-19 alterations made in the plant resulted
in a slight betterment of the refined product. A complete analysis of
the improved product is not available, but determinations of the silica
and combined water, made by Mr. J. M. Lindgren of the University of
Illinois, yielded 46.70 per cent Si02 and 13.72 per cent combined
water. These figures indicate that there was effected a slight increase
in the quantity of kaolinite in the refined kaolin and a notable decrease
in the quantity of quartz present. A microscopic examination of re-
cently refined material confirms this inference. The newly refined
material is only slightly gritty. A very little quartz is visible under
the microscope and this is in extremely small grains. There are oc-
casional rutile particles present and a few shreds of hydromica. The
kaolinite, which naturally makes up the greater part of the mass, is
in small plates, a few larger, irregular groups of plates and a fair
number of worm-like aggregates. The material is much more uniform
in grain than that refined before the changes were made — the large
grains of quartz, mica and feldspar that were present in the earlier
product (p. 79) being almost entirely absent from the recent product.

iAnalvst: N. P. Pratt. Atlanta Ga. Aug. 1917. Furnished by Harris Kaolin Co.

2Analyst: Geo. Steiger. U. S. Geol. Survey. July 14, 1919. Sample obtained from kiln, August 1918

including .04% P2O5.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 81

The plant which is near the mine is well equipped with the usual
washing and filtering apparatus. Its production during the past
few years has been at the rate of 2,400 tons of refined kaolin annually;
but with abundant labor it is thought the output might be doubled.
Changes made in the plant during the winter (1918-19) may reduce
its capacity to a slight extent, but the quality of the output has been
improved. These changes consist in the lengthening of the mica
troughs to 700 feet and the replacement of 100-mesh sieves by six
others of 130-mesh. The kaolin is heated by 8,782 feet of 2-inch pipe
and storage space is provided for six cars of dry kaolin.

The clay from this mine has been used in making china, porcelain
and other types of whiteware. It is introduced into mixtures of im-
ported and other domestic clays to the extent of 2% to 15 per cent.
Letters from the Bureau of Standards under dates of December 5,
1917, and March 6, 1918, declared it to be of good grade for pottery
purposes. When burned to cone 8 the material was still a very excel-
lent white. The sample submitted was fine, as much as 94.61 per
cent passing the 300-mesh sieve. When introduced in the proportion
of 28 per cent into a porcelain mixture and fired in the biscuit to
cone 8 and in the glost to cone 4 a vitrified body of "a very satisfac-
tory white resulted."

The results of tests recently made by the Clay-testing Station of
the Bureau of Mines upon the washed kaolin and the corresponding
porcelain mixture were :

Kaolin
When subjected to the screen test:

.0 was left on the 20 mesh screen.

.02% was left on the 65 mesh screen.

.04% was left on the 100 mesh screen.

.60% was left on the 200 mesh screen.
99.34% passed through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is white. It is not very plastic, but makes good bars.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 47. 5 %

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 28. 91%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 10.. 75%

The moisture factor on a dry basis is 1.56%

The deformation temperature is cone 34.

82 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 39.4% 39.4% 37.67% 31.4% 27.2%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry clay is__'__ 17.1 % 19.3 % 19.66% 27.3 % 31.0 %
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 11.63%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

Color Very Same as at 1190°

good
white

Porcelain Mixture

The porcelain mixture shows little plasticity, is hard to mold and jiggers with
difficultly. It dries well.

The quantity of temperir g water in terms of dry mixture is 33. 41%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry mixture is 20:96%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 7. 54%

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 231 .9

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410?C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 27.4% 25.43% 22.89% 4.97% .05%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry volume is __ 16.1 % 19.72% 17.79% 30.48% 32.42%
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is * 12.27%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The modulus of rupture in

lbs. per sq. in. is 2359 3937 3115 , 4316 6680

Color Very As at 1190° White White White

good
white

There are no other kaolin deposits in Haywood County that are
more than prospects. Of these, however, there are five, three of which
are southwest of Canton and the other two near Waynesville.

33. Herren Prospect ISTear Hazlewood

J. P. Herren, Waynesville, N". C.
One of the two deposits near Waynesville is wTell up toward the top of a
spur at the southwest end of Lickstone Mountain, on the property of
J. P. Herren of Waynesville, about four and one-half miles south of
this city and three and one-half miles southeast of Hazlewood. There
are several openings on the property, but they are now filled with
debris and difficult to study. The largest was so made that it furnishes
a vertical section 12 feet long that originally exposed a surface 12 feet
high of which 7 feet was kaolin. The lower portion of the section
is now covered by fallen material. That part now visible shows an

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

almost horizontal contact between mica schist and a very quartzose
stained kaolin that exhibits the structure of a pegmatite. It is cut
by little quartz stringers and contains masses of decomposed black
mica, flakes of decomposed white mica and sharp-edged fragments of
quartz. (See sketch, Fig. 9.) Other openings a few hundred yards
south of this show the same cap rock and the same kind of kaolin.
At a distance of about 12 feet from the foot of the cliff in the larger

J21

A B

Fig. 9. Sketch illustrating relations of kaolin and rock at the Herren pit.

A. Vertical wall. a. Schist

B. Cross-section. b. Kaolin

pit is an exposure of mica schist which is apparently the foot wall
of the dike. If this is so both foot and hanging are very flat, and
their contacts with the dike are very irregular. When the pit was
opened a little mica was taken from near the foot wall. No kaolin
was mined nor were any tests of its quality made. Samples obtained
from that portion of the vein now exposed would give no fair idea of
its value. (See also pp. 25-27.)

The deposit is not very near the railroad but there is abundant water
in the vicinity for sluicing.

35. Kinsland Mine Near Clyde

The other prospect near Waynesville, the Kinsland Mine, is evi-
dently an old mica mine.1 It is nine miles northeast of Waynesville,
just beyond the bridge over Pigeon River. It was opened by a num-
ber of shafts and tunnels on a dike 75 feet wide divided by several
lenses of only partly decomposed pegmatite. The masses of kaolin
between these are from six to eight feet wide and they have a high
quartz content. The dike strikes K. 40° E.

A sample collected by Watts from one of the shafts gave 27 per
cent of kaolin with a refractory value of 1,670° C. Its analysis yielded:

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

BaO

Na20

K2O

Ti02

H2O

Total

50.64

35.57

.25

.07

.08

1.70

.03

11.90

100.24

iWatts, A. S.. Bur. of Mines Bull. 53, p. 153, 1913.

84 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The color of the washed kaolin, after firing, was grade 5. Its shrink-
age at 110° C. was 4.4 per cent and its tensile strength 8 pounds per
square inch. When fired at 1,350° C. the shrinkage was 9.8 per cent.

Introduced into the porcelain mixture the shrinkage of this was
1 per cent at 110° C. and 13.6 per cent at 1,350° C. The translucency
of the fired mass was .76, its color grade 5 and its absorption 2.6 per
cent. Under the glazes used its color showed no change.

The three prospects that have been described as being in the neigh-
borhood of Canton were developed to such a slight extent that their
exact locations cannot now be identified.

36. Sonoma Prospect Xear \Voodrow
The Sonoma1 prospect has already been referred to in the descrip-
tion of the Hand Mine. In 1907 it consisted of a single pit 15 feet
deep on the top of a ridge three-fourths mile south of Sonoma. The
kaolin exposed by the pit was white and very little surface-stained.
It was mixed with a moderate amount of fine quartz and a little mica.
The size of the deposit was not determined, but it was thought to have
a northerly strike.

34. Retreat Prospect Xear \Yoodrow

Another prospect, of which nothing further was ever reported, was
on Flora Creek, about one-half mile from its mouth where it enters
the west fork of Pigeon River, near Retreat.2 Here in 1907 the kaolin
had been exposed by three small pits on opposite sides of a little ridge.
Two of the pits are in a north-south line directly across the foliation
of the associated gneiss. This was taken to indicate that the strike
of the deposit is in that direction for a distance of at least 200 feet.
The kaolin, like that at Sonoma was mixed with quartz and a little
mica, and was of a clear white color.

37. Rhodarmer Prospect Xear Canton
A third prospect3 in this neighborhood is referred to several times in

the reports on the mining industry of Xorth Carolina as being two
miles southwest of Canton on the land of J. B. Rhodarmer, but its more
exact location is not recorded. The kaolin is reported to be of good
quality and apparently in quantity, since it has been penetrated by
a shaft to a depth of 18 feet.

iKeith, Arthur, L. c, p. 7, 1907.
zKeith, Arthur, L. c, p. 7, 1907.
aPratt, J. H., N. C. Geol. Survey Econ. Paper 6, p. 86, 190?

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 85

Deposit in Madison County

39. Seth Freeman Prospect Near Marshall

In Madison County but one prospect is recorded. This is the Seth
Freeman prospect1 on a dike 100 feet wide on Trail Branch of Sandy-
Mush Creek, four miles south of Marshall. The strike is N". 40° E.
and dip 20° S.E. The dike consists of alternate layers of semi-kaolin-
ized pegmatite and wall rock.

A sample that had the appearance of fine white sand contained 37
per cent kaolin. Watts1 classes it as semi-kaolinized feldspar.

Deposit in Henderson County

38. Valentine Prospect Near Etowah

G. H. Valentine, Hendersonville, 1ST. C.

Mr. G. H. Valentine reports a deposit of kaolin close to the west
bank of French Broad Biver, in Henderson County, one and one-
fourth miles north of Etowah. It is known to be from 50 to 75 feet
wide and more that 10 feet deep, but its length has not been deter-
mined. Several small excavations have been made in it, and the grade
for the public highway cuts it. Most of the clay is white, but in some
places it is pink or salmon colored. The deposit is a few hundred
yards from the river, and about 50 feet above it, and is near a moun-
tain brook that might furnish all the water needed in mining. Con-
nection with Etowah on the Toxaway Branch of the Southern Bail-
way is by a road two miles long which is used for heavy hauling by
trucks to within a distance of one-fourth mile from the deposit.

The sample furnished by Mr. Valentine is a white gritty powder,
that becomes only slightly sticky when moistened with a little water.
When shaken with water the mass rapidly separates into a sediment
and a thin fluid of a very pale gray, almost white color. The sediment
consists of small sharp-edged transparent quartz grains and larger
masses of grains that are cemented by kaolinite, particles of material
stained by limonite and a few fragments of other substances some of
which are organic. The unwashed powder is composed of comparatively
few small kaolinite flakes, fragments of rosettes and worm-like aggre-
gates of the same mineral, many clear, colorless quartz fragments,
flakes and groups of grains and a few particles that may be partially
kaolinized feldspar. A few of the quartz grains are large, measuring
about .3 millimeters in their longest dimensions, but the diameters of
most are between .05 and .07 millimeters.

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 113.

86 THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA

The sample is mainly a fine quartz sand with a comparatively small
proportion of kaolinite. "Whether it is residual or sedimentary in
origin cannot be determined from its appearance. If sedimentary, its
components have not been carried far, since the quartz grains show
little or no evidence of rounding. The material is in an area under-
lain by Henderson granite which "upon complete decay . . . pro-
duces a yellowish or reddish clay, which is frequently leached out
nearly white. This is mixed with sand and fragments of rock on the
mountain sides and is of no great depth."1 It is possible that material
of this kind partly assorted by water would result in a product re-
sembling the sample, which is very much like the samples from Rich-
mond and Montgomery counties in this State and from near Abbe-
ville in South Carolina.

Deposits in Buncombe County

Only two deposits of kaolin have been explored in this county, and
neither has shown promise of being of commercial value.

41. Dillingham Prospect !N"ear Jupiter

Mrs. A. B. Dillingham, Weaverville, X. C.

On the Dillingham property, four and one-half miles northwest of

Weaverville and about two miles south of Jupiter, on Flat Creek, is

a deposit of kaolin the character of which is not known. The deposit

is now covered by soil and the land above it is under cultivation.

40. Snider Prospect JSTear Asheville

A second deposit is reported by Watts2 as existing on the north bank
of the Prench Broad River, about three and one-half miles northwest
of Asheville. It is known as the Snider prospect. It% consists of a
dike eight to ten feet wide broken by several horses of rock. It strikes
X. 30° E. and dips 75° S.E. The clay is sandy and it carries a large
quantity of fine white mica, but since it is exposed to a depth of only
16 feet the sample probably does not represent the true character of
the deposit. Other dikes in the vicinity indicate the presence of other
deposits.

The crude clay yields 9 per cent of fine mica and 24 per cent of
white kaolin, of a refractory value above 1,730° C. The color of the
fired kaolin is of grade 3. Its tensile strength when dried at 110°
C. was 24 pounds per square inch. Its shrinkage at 110° C. was 4.2 per
cent, and at 1,350° C, 14 per cent.

iKeith, A., U. S. Geol. Survey Folio No. 147 ^Pisgah), p. 4, 1907.
"Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 120.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 87

The shrinkage of the porcelain mixture made with this kaolin was
3 per cent at 110° C. and 12.8 per cent at 1,350° C. The fired mass
had a translucency of .67, a color of grade 3 and an absorption of
4.8 per cent. Raw lead and fritted glazes do not affect its tint.

Deposits in Yancey County

The kaolin openings in Yancey County consist of two operating
mines, several promising explorations and a number of slightly de-
veloped explorations. The working mines (in 1918) were the Wilson
and Wyatt mines near Micaville. The Job Thomas Mine on the north
slope of Chestnut Mountain was operating in 1918 but it was aban-
doned early in 1919. The crude kaolin from the first two mines was
shipped from the settling plant at Lamonti on the Black Mountain
Railroad. That of the Job Thomas Mine was shipped from the plant
at Intermont on the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad.

The locations of all the known deposits in this county are shown in
Figure 10.

In 1920 preparations were being made by the Harris Kaolin Com-
pany to develop a new property near Lindsay.

D. "Wilson Mine Near Micaville

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, "N. C.

The Wilson Mine is one mile southwest of Micaville and the settling
plant one mile northeast of the same village. The mine is operating
two open cuts on the same deposit, with one shaft in each. Watts1
states that the dike on which the mine is opened varies in width be-
tween 30 and 100 feet and that it has been proven for a distance of
about 700 feet by numerous shafts and tunnels. A sample obtained
from a tunnel yielded him 28 per cent of kaolin.

There is nothing of special geological interest to be seen in the
present pits. The overburden is the usual red clay and its thickness
is only from three to eight feet. Except for the thin veneer of over-
burden around its top the walls of the pit are almost entirely in kaolin.
At one place rock shows for a few feet but otherwise only white clay
is visible. From the present development it appears probable that the
deposit varies in width between 18 and 75 feet and that the merchant-
able kaolin is from 30 to 50 feet deep. Its strike is 1ST. 60° E. and its
dip about 85° S.E.

The kaolin is very light cream-colored. It contains fine flakes of
white mica, sand, quartz fragments and a little biotite that prevents

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 147.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

the separation of the fine white mica as a commercial product. On
the other hand there are many streaks and isolated clumps of coarse
white mica scattered through the mass, and from these are saved about
$100 worth of sheet and punch mica monthly. An analysis of the
washed kaolin made in 1914, when the mine was first opened, gave
the results1 in line I. In line II the same result is calculated on the
of material dried at 212° F.

Si02

AI2O3

Fe20-3 FeO

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

42.69
46.53

36.62
39.91

.10
.11

.00
.00

.09
.09

Loss on Ign.

12.28
13.38

Moist

8.22

Total

100 .00
100.02

The Wilson clay has been used with success in the manufacture of
china and semi-vitreous porcelain of all types. About 15 per cent
usually goes into the mix with six or seven other clays in the manu- ■
facture of semi-vitreous ware and a little less in that used in the manu-
facture of table china, the major portion of the mix being English
china and English ball clays, aside, of course, from flint and spar.

The crude clay is trammed to the washer, which is situated about
300 feet from the mouth of the pits, and at a little lower level. After
emerging from the washer the slip passes through three sets of sieves
of 90, 100 and 110 meshes and is sluiced one and one-fourth miles to
the settling plant at Lamonti on the Black Mountain Railroad. Both
plant and washer are run by electric power generated at the plant.
The capacity of the plant is about 400 tons monthly, but this is rarely
reached because of scarcity of labor. The capacity of the kiln is two
cars and there is storage for 30 cars of dry kaolin.

At the time of his visit, when the mine was little more than a
prospect, "Watts collected a sample from the best developed tunnel on
the property. This kaolin when washed had a refractory value above
1,730° C. Its color, when fired, was grade 2. Its tensile strength,
after drying at 110° C. was 24 pounds per square inch and its shrink-
age at 110° C. was 4.2 per cent. When fired at 1,350° C. it shrank 13.2
per cent.

Introduced into the porcelain mixture this shrank 3.2 per cent at
110° C. and 13.6 per cent at 1,350° C. The color of the fired mass
was grade 2, its translucency .72 and its absorption 4.3 per cent.
Under the glazes used it exhibited a very pale green tint.

Analysis made by N. P. Pratt. Courtesy of Harris Kaolin Company.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 89

E. Wyatt Mine Near Micaville

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N. C.

The Wyatt Mine is a new opening about one mile northeast of
Micaville. It is across the stream from the Lamonti plant where the
output of the mine will be prepared for shipment.

In September, 1918, the mine consisted of several openings on the
side of a hill about 600 feet south of the Lamonti plant and about
100 feet above it. Toward the east end of the property are two veins
separated by 50 feet of rock. About 600 feet southwest of the eastern
opening, which is a shallow pit, the two veins unite and form a single
one 70 feet wide. In a tunnel a short distance south of the pit a
width of 35 feet of kaolin is exposed. It contains streaks of mica and
of red-stained material and is intersected by a nearly horizontal horse
of red clay. At the end of the tunnel the kaolin fingers out in thin
stringers, but 34 feet beyond there is more kaolin which is said to
be 22 feet wide. According to Mr. Hise, the superintendent of the
property, these two veins unite 300 feet southwest of the tunnel into
a single wider vein. He states that the system of veins can be followed
1,100 feet. The kaolin is covered by four feet of overburden and the
average depth of the workable clay, as revealM by borings, is 42 feet.
In some places the depth to hard rock is 60 feet.

Only about 10 carloads of clay had been washed to September, 1918,
but preparations were being made for systematic operation. The washer
is on the hill near the mine. The slip is sluiced down to the plant
at Lamonti where* it is mixed with that from the Wilson Mine. The
mixed kaolin is to be the standard commercial product.1

F. Job Thomas Mine Near Toecane

Intermont China Clay Company, Toecane, 1ST. C.

The Job Thomas Mine has been worked since 1914 by the Inter-
mont China Clay Company, the postoffice address of which is Erwin,
Tenn., or Toecane, "N. C. The mine is three and one-half miles south-
west of Toecane on the north side of Chestnut Mountain. The de-
posits are pockety and therefore difficult to work, so that it is pro-
posed to abandon the mine as soon as a new source of clay is developed.2

The crude clay is of the same general character as that of the
Wilson Mine. It is light cream-colored and contains the usual sand,

In a letter to Mr. Watts, written in January, 1921, by Mr. B.B. Royal, Superintendent of operations
for the Harris Kaolin Company at Sprucepine, the Wyatt Mine is referred to as only a pocket of
white clay that was operated for one year.

2The mine was abandoned early in 1919, and a new mine was opened on Flukin Ridge.

90 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

fine mica and red streaks that are found in all the crude kaolin of
this district. The overburden consists of from three to eight feet of
red clay.

The washer is near the mine. After passing through the usual
troughs and screens the slip flows by gravity in a flume two and one-
half miles to the compressing plant at Intermont, on the railroad
three miles south of Toecane. Here it passes through six sets of 100-
mesh screens to the settling tanks, and thence through the kiln and
presses to the cars on a short spur of the Carolina, Clinchfield and
Ohio Railway. The capacity of the plant is 400 tons of refined kaolin
monthly. The storage capacity of the sheds is 30 cars and the capac-
ity of the kiln two cars.

The kaolin from the Job Thomas mine has been used in the manu-
facture of china. In a few cases it is mixed with other domestic kaolins
but more commonly with Florida and English china clays and English
and domestic ball clays, especially in the mix used for making porce-
lain.

(h) Clay Products Company Near Toecane

Formerly the Clay Products Company operated a pit about 100
yards from the Job T^temas Mine. It was probably on a parallel
dike. The deposit was small and pockety. A tunnel traversing it
exposed good kaolin, intersected, however, by many schist streaks.
The place was never suificiently developed to prove its value. It was
worked a year, producing about 40 tons of refined kaolin that had
been washed by hand, and was then abandoned.

Several other prospects in Yancey County are promising as sources
of kaolin and a few others are known to exist but have not been
thoroughly tested, so that it is not possible to give any safe estimate
of their importance.

42. Elizabeth Smith Prospect Near Burnsville

Miss M. P. Smith, Asheville, F. C.
Perhaps the most promising prospect is that on the property of
Misses E. E. and M. P. Smith of Asheville, N. C, and Mrs. George
R. Calvert of New York. The deposit is situated one and one-half
miles east of Burnsville, alongside the Black Mountain Railroad. It
was formerly worked for mica, during the search for which numerous
holes were dug and a shaft 40 feet deep was sunk. The shaft cut three
or four feet of overburden and 35 feet of kaolin. It was abandoned
because of caving. A tunnel 100 feet long also exposed kaolin. There
is abundant water available for use of a mine and washing plant.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Watts1 in his description of the deposit states that it is on a dike
25 to 35 feet in width, striking !N*. 20° E. and dipping irregularly.
The kaolin incloses lenses of semi-kaolinized material but on the whole
the dike is well kaolinized. Tunnels connected by a cross-cut expose
nearly the entire width of the dike, six feet of well kaolinized pegmatite
adjoining its west wall, nine feet of semi-kaolinized material towards
its center and 20 feet of kaolin adjoining its east wall. Test pits indi-
cate that the dike may extend about half a mile.

Samples taken from the tunnel gave 44 per cent of washed kaolin
of a very light cream-color and a refractory value of 1,730° C. An
analysis of this gave :

SiO-2

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

BaO

Na20

K2O

TiO-2

H2O

Total

45.95

39.20

.05

.03

.50

13.10

98.83

The samples seen by the writer are pure white and contain very
little grit. Large lumps break with a distinct cleavage and thus indi-
cate that the part of the dike from which they came was an almost
pure aggregate of coarse-grained feldspar. Close inspection reveals
a few grains of quartz sand, an occasional flake of fine mica and a
rare minute spot of some yellow earthy material. Under the micro-
scope the largest quartz grains seen had diameters of .1 to .15 millimeter.
The mica is in very tiny flakes and shreds, with diameters of not more
than .025 millimeter. A few stained kaolin clumps and the usual tiny
flakes of this mineral were the only constituents noted. The
sample is an especially pure kaolin.

Offers have been made to mine the kaolin on a royalty basis,
but the amount of royalty tendered was not attractive enough to the
owners to warrant them in signing a contract. If the property is
worked muscovite may be produced as a by-product.

Watts reports the samples collected by him to have had a refrac-
tory value above 1,730° C. Bars dried at 110° C. had a tensile
strength of 29.5 pounds per square inch and a shrinkage of 4.4 per
cent. Fired at 1,350° C. the shrinkage was 12.9 per cent.

The standard porcelain mixture with this kaolin as a component
had a shrinkage of 3.4 per cent when dried at 110° C. and of 14 per cent
when fired at 1,350° C. The resulting porcelain had a translucency of

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 127.

92 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

.70 and the transmitted light was cream-colored. Tested under the
fritted and raw lead glazes it had a very pale green tint.

43. Thomas Exploration Near Micaville

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, X. C.

The Thomas prospect is a deposit that is being held in reserve by
the Harris Kaolin Company. It has been tested by tunnels and shafts,
but has not yet been exploited. It is expected that the clay will be
refined at the Lamonti plant. The deposit is about one and one-half
miles north of Micaville and about one mile northwest of Lamonti.
The dike in which the deposit exists strikes ~N. 45° E. Watts1 states
that at the time of his visit, there had been driven a tunnel along its
strike, at the end of which a shaft had been sunk. Both tunnel and
shaft had exposed good kaolin. It was not then possible to determine
the width, of the dike nor to estimate the size of the deposit. Since
that time the place has been more thoroughly explored, revealing two
dikes 60 and 175 feet wide and at least 1,000 feet long. The various
shafts and tunnels on the property have uncovered good kaolin con-
taining a little sand and white and black mica and crossed by streaks
of red mica, which is apparently of the proper size and in sufficient
quantity to be of commercial importance at greater depths. The de-
posits are also penetrated by horses of rock. The overburden varies
in thickness from 4 to 12 feet. If half of the clay can be removed
the yield of the deposit in refined kaolin may be 50,000 tons.

The kaolin is thought to be of the same quality as that at the
Wilson Mine. A flume line from the property to Lamonti has already
been surveyed and electric line poles are up but not strung. Water
will be pumped from a creek to the mine, 150 feet higher, and the
slip will flow to the plant by gravity all the way.

If the property is worked muscovite may be produced as a by-
product.

50. Young Prospect Near Boonford

Another promising deposit is the Young prospect2 three-fourths mile
west of Boonford on a dike 30 feet wide, divided in the middle by a
4-foot horse of wall rock. The dike strikes N.E. and dips 85° S.
Only a very short distance has been explored along its strike. The
portion of the dike northwest of the horse is more profoundly decom-
posed than its southeast portion. The material is free from impuri-
ties "except for a very small amount of garnets and occurring in small

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 147.
•Watts, A. 8., L. c, p. 123.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

pockets." Samples taken from the walls of a tunnel yielded 22 per
cent of kaolin having a refractory value of above 1,730° C. Its color,
after firing, was of grade 2. When dried at 110° C. its shrinkage

was 4.8 per cent and its tensile strength 22 pounds per square inch.
Fired at 1,350° C. its shrinkage was 12.6 per cent.

The porcelain mixture made with this kaolin when dried at 110° C.
had a shrinkage of 4 per cent and when fired at 1,350° C. a shrink-

94 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

age of 12.4 per cent. The fired mass had a translucency of .76, a
color of grade 2 and an absorption of 6 per cent. Its color was un-
changed under the raw lead and fritted glazes.

Deposits Near Burnsville. Of the two1 remaining deposits one is
one-half mile northeast of Burnsville and the other two and, one-half
miles east of the same village on the south side of the road to Micaville.
Both are old mica mines, on the dumps of which kaolin can be seen.
Nothing has been learned of the sizes of the deposits.

Deposits in Mitchell County

In Mitchell County there are at present three producing mines;
others have been productive at some time in the past. One deposit is
being held in reserve for future operation. One other has been ex-
plored sufficiently to establish its value and a dozen others are at
present only prospects. (For locations see Fig. 10.)

The producing mines are the Sparks and Sprucepine at Sprucepine,
and the Flukin Ridge near Toecane. The Snow Creek deposit near
Wing is held in reserve.

The Penland Mine, formerly operated by the Harris Clay Company,
on the property of Colonel Bailey at Penland is temporarily abandoned.

The Bailey deposit on the Firescald property at Penland has been
prospected with promising results.

Gr. Sprucepine Mine Sprucepine

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, 1ST. C.

The present openings of the Sprucepine Mine are situated on the
slope of a hill about three-fourths mile southeast of Sprucepine Station
on the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad, near the mouth of
Beaver Creek. The settling tanks and pressing plant are on the rail-
road near the station.

The deposits now being operated were first opened in 1916. Before
that time the product was obtained from a deposit situated two and
three-fourths miles north of Sprucepine near the head of Beaver Creek
and was sluiced to the plant on the railroad. The old mine2 was on
a large lens of kaolinized material that had a general trend toward
the northwest. Where worked the dike is about 120 feet wide, but
its northeast part for a width of 50 to 70 feet was much richer in

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 126 and 127.
2Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 150.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

kaolin than the southwest part. A stringer 25 feet east of the lens
has a width of 20 feet and a strike nearly north. The mine was
worked to a depth of 75 feet when it was abandoned because no longer
profitable.

When washed the crude material yielded 24 per cent of cream-colored
kaolin and about 2% per cent of fine mica, of which 35 per cent was
finer than 100-mesh. The kaolin had a refractory value of over
1,730° C. Its composition is shown in I. In II is the result of an
analysis made by N. P. Pratt1 in 1911. In the sample was 5.4 per
cent of mica and free silica.

Total

Si02

AI2O3

Fe20-3

CaO

MgO

Na20

K2O

TiO-2

H2O

45.20

38.45

.45

.00

.65

14.80

45.56

38.65

.41

.05

.08

.55

.80

.10

13.90

99.55
100.10

The present mine consists of two openings about 500 feet apart.
The one to the west (No. 1) has been worked two years and the
eastern one (No. 2) since March, 1918. No. 1 opening has been op-
erated by open cut to a depth of 30 feet, and by shafts to a further
depth of 55 feet. At this depth dynamite is used to loosen the material
and beyond this depth it is unprofitable to mine. The kaolin from
this opening is light cream-colored. The overburden composed of red
clay and broken rock is from six to ten feet thick. The crude kaolin
contains the usual impurities, i.e., quartz, mica, black lumps of man-
ganese oxides and here and there small masses of stained clay. The
dike in which it occurs is believed to strike about north, but its walls
are not clearly enough revealed to warrant a definite opinion.

In No. 2 pit two shafts were down 30 feet in August, 1918. Both
were so wet that pumping was necessary to keep them in condition
to be worked. The kaolin obtained from this pit differs from the
product of No. 1 in being white instead of cream-colored. It, however,
contains the same impurities as the latter but in somewhat different
forms. The quartz is in sand grains and also in little round frag-
ments, like pebbles. The appearance of their surfaces suggest that
they have been corroded. The mica is in very fine flakes. In the
washing of the kaolin the mica is separated from the slip by 100-mesh
sieves. About 1,000 pounds are saved daily and sold as ground mica

1Furnished by the Harris Kaolin Company.

96 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

to rubber roofing manufacturers. The other impurities are nodules
of soft black material probably manganese oxides, and streaks of yel-
low clay.

The deposit at this place is probably large. It has not yet been
sufficiently developed to uncover distinct walls, nor is it known how
deep kaolinization has proceeded. The kaolin, however, is cut by
horses of red clay, some of which are 15 feet wide. These probably
represent decomposed rock, which may pass into well-defined rock at
greater depths than have thus far been reached. Borings around the
open pit in which the shafts are situated have shown nothing but kaolin
and streaks of yellow or red clay.

The crude clay is cleaned in washers situated near the pits and the
resulting slips are sluiced in a common trough to the settling, drying
and filtering plant on the railroad. They are thoroughly intermingled
before they reach the settling tanks and in this way a uniform product
is assured.

Steam power is used at the mine and washers and electricity at the
plant. At present the electricity is generated by coal, but it is pur-
posed to build a dam in the Toe River to furnish power with which
to produce current for this mine and the Sparks Mine, which is under
the same control and for the plants at both mines.

The present capacity of the mine and plant is about 5,500 tons an-
nually, with abundance of labor, but this output is not always reached.
With the completion of the dam it may be possible to install labor-
saving appliances, in which case the output may be increased. The
kiln is furnished with 5,700 feet of 2-inch steam pipe. The storage
capacity of the sheds is 1,000 tons.

The users of the Sprucepine kaolin include most of the potters who
use also the kaolin from the Hog Rock and Rhoda mines near Webster.
In the manufacture of china and whiteware a mixture is made with
imported clays and clays from Florida or Tennessee or with clays
from both these sources. The Sprucepine kaolin is a favorite among
most of the potters who use it. Some of them employ it to the extent
of 15 per cent of the total mix and are contemplating increasing the
quantity used in order to decrease the amount of imported clay now
employed, while others report that they are gradually substituting for
it some of the domestic clays from other sources. One potter declares
that he uses no imported clay but makes his mix entirely of domestic
material. The Sprucepine kaolin is also used in the mix of domestic
clays employed in making spark plug and other types of porcelain.
Some of the most important manufacturers prefer it to foreign clay

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

for these purposes, whereas others declare that they could not use it
alone for semi-vitreous porcelain, as it would shrink badly. However,
practically the whole output of the mine goes to whiteware and elec-
trical porcelain factories.

Tests of the mixed crude products from the two pits and of the
mixed washed product, and of the corresponding porcelain mixtures
were made by the U. S. Bureau of Mines, with the results tabulated
below.

Kaolin

The washed kaolin is reported to be very gritty, to be short and to make poor bars.
That from the crude sample was sandy and possessed little strength. The corners
of bars tear.
When subjected to the screen test: Crude Washed

there was left on the 20 mesh screen 21. 58% not

65 mesh screen 17.39% tested

100 mesh screen 1.16%

200 mesh screen 57 . 95%

there passed through the 200 mesh screen 1.95%

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay was 36 . 69 % 43.8 %

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay was 16.01% 14. 11%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 5.65% 4. 94%

The moisture factor on a dry basis is 1 .317%.

The deformation temperature is cone 32.5 32

The porosity in terms of burned volume when

burned at 1190°C. is 35.7 % (3) 45.95% (3)

1250°C 37.2 % (3) 46.3 % (6)

1310°C 36.02% (3) 44.87% (3)

1370°C 30.04% (3) 40..82% (3)

1410°C._ 18.7 % (3) 29.1 % (3)

The volume shrinkage in terms of dry clay when

burned at 1190°C. is 14.7 % (3) 10.7 % (3)

1250°C.___, 15.8 % (3) 10.1 % (5)

1310°C 16.5 % (2) 14.0 % (3)

1370°C 23.25% (3) 22.26% (3)

1410°C 27.6 % (3) 24.5 % (2)

The corresponding linear shrinkage at 1410°C. is___ 10.21% 8.94%

The tests on porosity and volume shrinkage were made on the number of bars as

indicated in parentheses.

The color of the burned bars made from material washed from the crude sample
was silvery white at all temperatures. That of the bars made from the kaolin
washed at the plant was very light buff at all temperatures but 1410°, at which it
was ivory yellow.

Porcelain Mixture

The mixture made with the washed kaolin is short and slippery. It molds with
difficulty.

Mixed Mixed

Crude Washed

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry mixture is 26 . 36% 31 . 36%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry mixture is 12 . 01% 15 . 92%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 4.17% 5.61%

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 245 92 . 1

The porosity in terms of burned volume when

burned at 1190°C. is 23.2% (3) 27.0 % (3)

1250°C 18.49% (3) 18.44% (3)

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

1310°C 10.17% (2) 15.75% (3)

1370°C 1.33% (3) 7.43% (3)

1410°C. .04% (3) .09% (3)

The volume shrinkage in terms of dry volume when

burned at 1190°C. is 11.67% (3) 15.6% (3)

1250°C 23.01% (3) 21.95% (3)

1310°C 28.53% (2) 20.0 % (2)

1370°C 28.57% (3) 30.58% (3)

1410°C 41.5 % (3) 31.57% (3)

The corresponding linear shrinkage at 1410°C. is 16.4 % 11.88%

The figures in parentheses show the number of bars tested.

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. when

burned at 1190°C. is 2037

1250°C . 4015 3412

1310°C 4238 3917

1370°C 7735 5845

1410°C 6442 5074

Color, when burned at. _._ 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C,

Mixed crude Good White Fair Gray Gray

white tinged white

with

light

buff

Mixed washed Pale Light Light Pale Pale

ocherous buff buff olive olive

salmon gray buff

H. Sparks Mine Xear Penland

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, X. C.

The Sparks Mine is on the Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad about
two miles northwest of Sprucepine and about midway between this
village and Penland.

The deposit is on the slope of a hill several hundred feet above the
compressing plant which is at the foot of the hill on the railroad.
The mine was opened in the early part of 1914 and has been operat-
ing ever since. The main vein strikes about north. It is about 100
feet wide and is known to extend 1,000 feet north and south. A spur
branches from the main vein to the northeast. This varies in width be-
tween 65 and 75 feet and is several hundred feet long. Another vein, 47
feet west of the main vein and parallel to it is 30 feet wTide.

The mine is worked in the usual way by open cut and shafts. Tn
August, 1918, there wrere being operated two shafts about 20 feet deep.
Others, from 45 to 50 feet deep, had been abandoned because of water
and the hardness of the rock at their bottoms. The overburden of
red clay and rock fragments is from six to ten feet thick.

The crude kaolin is white and coarse. It contains abundant rounded
quartz fragments, bunches of white and dark mica, quartz stringers
and much sand. On the walls of the shafts can be seen coarse quartz,
quartz stringers and dark and light mica flakes in bunches forming

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 99

streaks through the clay and abundant smaller plates of white mica
scattered indiscriminately through the purer kaolin. Much of the
darker mica is evidently badly decomposed, and some may itself be
partially decomposed muscovite. A great deal of the white mica is
fresh and in plates large enough to be of commercial value. This
is separated from the kaolin by hand and sold as punch and sheet stock.

The users of the Sparks kaolin (usually known as Penland kaolin
because billed from this station) are the same as those of the Spruce-
pine product, the kaolin from both mines being practically the same
in character., (See pp. 94-97.) The potters of whiteware and semi-porce-
lain employing it in mixtures report that as furnished to them in
carload lots, it burns to a very white body. It is used in proportions
of 10 to 16 per cent in the dry mix. It is also said to stand a very
high fire and to be entirely satisfactory for the purpose to which it is
put. The tile manufacturers employ it with New Jersey ball clay,
flint and feldspar, and since a uniform quality has been furnished,
through the method of mixing the products from different pockets,
it has given such good results that it has in some factories replaced
completely the imported kaolin.

The capacity of the mine and plant is about 5,500 tons annually, but
scarcity of labor has prevented this figure being reached during the
past few years. The kiln is provided with 5,400 feet of 2-inch pipe.
Storage capacity is provided for 600 tons.

The washed kaolin taken from the shipping stock of the plant and
the porcelain mixture made with it were tested by the U. S. Bureau
of Mines. The results of the tests are tabulated below.

Kaolin
When subjected to the screen test:

0 was left on the 20 mesh screen.
0 was left on the 65 mesh screen.
0 was left on the 100 mesh screen.
2.92% was left on the 200 mesh screen.
97.08% passed through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is sandy and short. It dries well without cracking, but bars made
from it tear at the corners.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 44. 48%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 20.20%

The moisture factor on a dry basis is .352%

The deformation temperature is cone 32.

100 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 1370°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 39.6 % 39.7 % 37.97% 35.52% 28.5 %

No. of bars tested 3-3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry clay is.. 18.1 % 18.4 % 20.3 % 24.98% 28.0 %
No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

Color Clear White Good Good Good

white tinged white white white

with
light buff

Porcelain Mixture

The porcelain mixture is short and sandy. It worked poorly in mold and jigger,
and bars made of it tear on edges and crack badly.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of the dry mixture is 28. 5 %

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of the dry mixture is 16. 57%

The modulus of rupture in lbs. per sq. in. is 221 .9

When burned at 1190°C. 1250°C. 1310°C. 137G°C. 1410°C.

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 26.2 % 25.01% 20.01% 5.0.8% .4 %

No. of bars tested 3 2 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry volume is 15.5 % 19.63% 18.95% 29.84% 31.4 %
No. of bars tested 3 2 3 3 3

The modulus of rupture in

lbs. per sq. in. is 2582 3282 3357 6804 5236

Color White White White Light Light

tinged pearly pearly

with grav grav

light
buff

(I) Penland Mine Xear Penland

Col. I. H. Bailey, Bakersville, X. C.

The Bailey property between Bear Creek and Toe River contains
two distinct areas underlain by kaolin in the neighborhood of Pen-
land on the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad. One of these
was formerly operated as the Penland Mine by the Harris Clay Com-
pany of Dillsboro. This is on the railroad about half a mile east of Pen-
land Station. It was abandoned a few years ago. The other is three-
fourths mile northeast of Penland and about three-fourths mile from the
old Penland Mine. This is known as the Firescald property or the
"New deposit."

The western area, comprising the old Penland Mine was worked by
the Harris Clay Company for eleven years and previous to this by
the C. J. Edgar Company. The area covers 21 acres. The openings
from which the clay was taken are on a hill slope about 70 feet above
the railroad. The washers were near the pits and the compressing
plant at the railroad. The deposit was worked by open cut to a depth
of 30 feet and by shafts to a further depth of 60 feet and for a
maximum length of 400 feet. At the depth of about 60 feet the rock

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

101

became so hard that it had to be dynamited before it could be raised.
The overburden was of the usual character and of a very moderate
thickness — about six to eight feet.

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!/Sj3e '3-£0 /0-Z3™
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0££> PEN LAND MINE

EXPLANATION

• Boring in kaolin
6 -28 First number indicates thick-
ness of overburden; second num-
ber indicates depth in kao/in

R Rock at surface

Boring in rock,
mainly schiat

+ Boring in pegmatite
and pegmatite sand

w Stopped i n water

. Line showing
extent of clay

. Line showing limit
of calculations

300 Feet

Fig. 11. Map of borings at Penland Mine, Penland.

Although no definite wall can be seen, Watts1 states that at the
time of his visit the southeast wall was well defined, but on the north-
west side of the deposit "the dike material grades gradually into a

"Watts, A'. S., U. S. Bur. Mines Bull. 53, p. 148, 1913.

102 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

hard, granite-like rock producing little or no kaolin." On the map
furnished by Mr. B. B. Westphalen, engineer of the Bailey Lumber
Company, owner of the mineral rights, the strike of the eastern wall
of the worked deposit varies between northwest and north and the
general trend of its greater length is north, turning to the east at its
northern end. (See sketch map, Fig 11.) The maximum width of
the opening from which kaolin was taken is about 200 feet but this
space was not all occupied by clay. As a matter of fact the clay is
traversed by several small horses of micaceous schist, and toward the
north the deposit is separated into two parts by a central horse of
the same schist with a width of about 80 feet. Moreover, the east
wall of the pit is the west side of another horse, or at any rate of a
strip of schist which separates the worked deposit from another one
that has not been opened, but which has been bored sufficiently thor-
oughly to prove that it occupies a large area. Whether the different
deposits are united and represent parts of a single great, branching
pegmatite dike, divided by inclusions of rock, or whether they are on
independent dikes has not yet been disclosed by the mining operations.
"Watts, referring to the worked deposit only, described it as occurring
in the form of an expanded lens striking !N". 25° E. He states that
the original pegmatite was very fine-grained and that much of the
kaolin retains its structure, as kaolinization has not been sufficiently
thorough to destroy it.

On the side of one of the shafts still open are to be seen several
small dikes of pegmatite cutting through the clay. They not only
retain their structure, but apparently have escaped kaolinization to
such an extent that their feldspathic component is still recognizable
as fresh microcline. One of these consists of quartz and a partially
decomposed feldspar with only here and there a flake of muscovite.
It is three feet wide, and dips 45° southeast.

The character of the kaolin from the old Penland Mine was very
much like that from the Sparks Mine. The crude clay, however, con-
tained a larger proportion of coarse rounded quartz fragments and
pieces of partially kaolinized feldspar and about a like proportion of.
mica. The refined kaolin was used, apparently with satisfaction, by a
number of whiteware and china potteries and by makers of vitrified
tile in the Ohio River Valley. It was often substituted for the clay
of the Sprucepine and Sparks mines. Like the kaolin of these mines
it was not used alone, but in mixtures with Florida, Tennessee and
English china clays.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 103

Samples of the crude kaolin taken by Watts from the workings
yielded 22 per cent of kaolin with a refractory value of 1,730° C. Its
color was of grade 4 when burned at 1,350° C. Its shrinkage when
dried at 110° C. was 3.4 per cent and its tensile strength was 12 pounds
per square inch. When fired at 1,350° C. its shrinkage was 11.6 per
cent.

When made up into a porcelain mixture the shrinkage of the mass
at 110° C. was 3.2 per cent, and when fired at 1,350° O. was 13 per cent.
The fired material had a translucency of .62, a color of grade 4 and
an absorption of 5 per cent. Under the raw lead and fritted glazes
the color was changed to a pale green.

Northeast of the old Penland openings and separated from them by
a thin wall of rock is the area referred to above as having been ex-
plored by borings that cover about four and two-thirds acres. The
borings are in lines running northeast and northwest and at intervals
of about 50 feet. The overburden averages in thickness not more than
seven or eight feet and the depth of the clay penetrated varies from
20 to 45 feet. On the assumption that the average thickness of the
clay is 30 feet and that the average yield of commercial kaolin is
about 20 per cent of the crude tonnage the productive capacity of the
bored area is about 70,000 tons of refined clay. It is probable, how-
ever, that the thickness of the kaolinized material is greater than 30
feet and it is possible that the yield of merchantable kaolin from the
crude clay might run higher than 20 per cent.

52. Firescald Property Near Penland

Col. I. H. Bailey, Bakersville, N. C.
The "New deposit" on the Firescald property is three-fourths mile
northeast of the old Penland Mine. It has been tested by boring over
about 15 acres by 200 holes at irregular intervals. The reserve on
this area is estimated to be about 250,000 tons of commercial clay, on
the assumption that the whole area is occupied by kaolin, that the
thickness of the deposit is 30 feet and that the crude kaolin will yield
20 per cent of the refined product. A sketch map of the distribution
of the borings and thickness of overburden and clay disclosed by them
is reproduced in Figure 12. The original was furnished by the owners
of the property.

104

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The material from the borings on the Firescald area has been tested
by several potters and other parties and has been reported as being

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matite

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P„ Pegmatite

EXPLANATION

Limits of area underla
by kaolin

r Boring in rock,
0 mainly schist

p Boring in pegmatite an
x pegmatite sand

• Boring in kaolin
S-20 First number /nd/cates th/cJrness of
overburden; second number /hd/oates
depth f'n fcao//r?

1 00 Feet

Fig. 12. Map of borings on Firescald property, near Penland.

similar to the Hog Rock kaolin, but of course it has not been tried
on a commercial scale.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 105

Wo properties in Mitchell County other than those described above
have ever been worked for kaolin on a commercial scale. There have,
however, been many workings for mica and in some of these con-
siderable kaolin of good quality has been encountered. Besides there
have been a few explored for kaolin alone.

51. Snow Creek Deposit Wear Wing

Harris Kaolin Company, Dillsboro, N". C.
On Snow Creek, about one and one-half miles north of Wing post-
office and about two miles north of Phillip Station on the Carolina,
Clinchfield and Ohio Kailway, is said to be a deposit of kaolin in a
dike striking a little east of north and dipping about 75° northwest.
It has been tested by a shaft which penetrates excellent kaolin to a
depth of 35 feet, and by borings at intervals of 20 feet. Most of the
borings go to a depth of 40 feet in clay. The Harris Kaolin Company,
owners of the mineral rights, declare that the deposit is at least 300
feet by 150 feet, and the clay is much like that at Sprucepine. The
estimated reserve calculated on the basis of a 20 per cent yield is
about 20,000 tons of refined kaolin. The slip could easily be delivered
at the railroad by a flume.

46. Flukin Kidge Prospect and Mine Wear Toecane

The Flukin Ridge Mine was opened in the early part of 1919, after
the writer's visit to the locality. The deposit consists of a series of
openings that were originally made in the search for mica. They are
on the top of Flukin Ridge, a northwest spur from Burns Mountain,
two and one-fourth miles southwest of Bakersville, and about one and
one-half miles east of the plant of the Intermont China Clay Com-
pany on the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railroad at Intermont,
about two miles south of Toecane, with which it may readily be con-
nected by a flume. Watts1 describes the area as containing a large number
of dikes of partially decomposed pegmatite striking 1ST, 50° E. and dip-
ping 65° S.E. He states that tunnels and shafts had been dug over
an area one-half mile long and one-eighth mile wide, and that "at one
point a considerable quantity of fine white kaolin is encountered. There
are, however, occasional streaks of fresh feldspar and on all sides of
the lens there is semi-kaolinized material; these facts justify the as-
sumption that the kaolin is merely an isolated lens and would not
justify the equipment of an extensive outfit for handling it, although

Watts, A. S., L. c, pp. 108 and 121.

106 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

the presence in the neighborhood of other isolated kaolin deposits
would justify the sinking of shafts and the removal of this kaolin
to a central washing plant."

In 1915 the place was explored for kaolin by extending old tunnels
and by boring. At the time of the writer's visit the shafts were in-
accessible and the tunnels were accessible for only short distances from
their openings. The borings are not mapped. It is, however, reported
by representatives of the Intermont China Clay Company that the
borings indicate a vein 200 feet wide, including a few horses of rock,
and 900 feet long. Near its southwest end a rock wedge penetrates
it and splits it into, two parts the dimensions of which are not known.
The best clay is said to be near the foot wall where it is white, dense
and free from streaks of mica. Elsewhere there are streaks of mica
and quartz which increase toward the hanging wall. In one of the
shafts put down near the center of the deposit fair to good kaolin
shows in the walls to a depth of 72 feet, and a boring made in its
bottom penetrates 11 feet more of good clay. A cross-cut 46 feet from
the bottom of the shaft toward the hanging wall is also all in kaolin.
It is estimated that the quantity of refined clay that the deposit will
yield is about 75,000 tons. It is proposed to sluice the slip to the
settling plant at Intermont, on the railroad. The length of the flume
necessary for this would have to be about three and one-half miles.

A sample was taken from the walls of a tunnel, near the hanging
wall of the dike where the clay is much interrupted by mica streaks.
It is probable that if the deposit is worked mica may be obtained as
a by-product.1

The other properties in this vicinity that might contribute to a
washer on a flume line between Elukin Ridge and Intermont are the
old Benner Mica Mine, the Sink-hole Ridge prospect and the P. H.
Howell prospect. The first two are on Sink-hole Ridge, three miles
southwest of Bakersville and about three-fourths mile southwest of
Flukin Ridge. Neither of these places was seen. Watts, however,
visited them and describes what he saw.

44. Howell Prospect Near Toecane

The Howell deposit2 is on a dike occupying the crest of a ridge three

miles south of Toecane. Its strike is N. 45° E. and its dip 80° N.W.

iThe property was taken over by the Harris Kaolin Company in June, 1919, and opened at the
old shaft referred to above. A washer, operated by electricity, has been erected on the site. The
crude kaolin, which is quite sandy, is passed under two sand wheels and through 300 feet of mica
troughs and then is fiurned to the settling plant at Intermont on the railroad, where it is pressed.
The yield is from 17 to 20 tons daily of No. 2 product. After operating it about a year and a half
the company is now (February, 1921,) expecting to abandon the site.

nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 157.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 107

The width of the dike varies from 8 to 18 feet. Its kaoliiiization is
on the whole well advanced, but there are present some only partly de-
composed lenses. The wall rock is a brown gneiss.

A sample taken from across the dike yielded 31 per cent of kaolin
of a refractory value of 1,710° C, and a color, when fired, of grade 2.
When dried at 110° C. its tensile strength was 17 pounds per square
inch, and its shrinkage 3 per cent, and when fired at 1,350° was 12.7
per cent.

The porcelain mixture with this kaolin as a component shrank 3.4
per cent when heated to 110° C. and 13.1 per cent when fired at
1,350° C. The fired mass had a color of grade 2. Its translucency
was .69 and its absorption 5.9 per cent. Under the raw lead and
fritted glazes the color became a very pale green.

45. Benner Mica Mine Near Toecane

The Benner Mica Mine1 is on a broad dike composed mainly of
semi-kaolinized material. To the northwest, however, a portion of
the dike has been isolated from the remaining part by a broad band
of rock, and on this portion four shafts have been sunk in a good
plastic kaolin. It is reported by those who had worked in the shafts
that the width of the deposit was only a few feet and that its length
was not known to be greater than a few rods. The strike of the
dike is K 60° E. and its dip 75° S.E.

47. American Mica and Mining Company Near Baker sville
The American Mica and Mining Company opened a mine for mica

on the brow of a hill one mile south of Bakersville and two and one-
half miles southeast of Toecane.2 It is in an isolated lens of kaolinized
pegmatite 12 feet wide striking northeast. A shaft 300 yards farther
to the southwest exposes five or six feet of clay. Otherwise the de-
posit has not been developed. Borings show no dike material between
the openings. The clay is of good quality, but is evidently in too
small quantity to be of value.

48, 49. McKinney Prospects Near Bakersville

The Aaron McKinney prospect3 is on a dike three-fourths mile
northeast of Bakersville and three miles east of Toecane. The dike
is 30 feet wide, but is divided by two horses of rock six or eight feet
thick. The dike is known to extend 300 feet in a northeast direction
and to dip nearly vertical. This is thoroughly kaolinized, but it con-

iWatts, A. S., L. c, pp. 117 and 121.
'Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 121.
*Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 122.

108

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

tains many small pockets of stained mica. The deposit has been
opened by three tunnels and several test pits. From these a sample
was taken which yielded 32 per cent of nearly pure white kaolin, with
a refractory value above 1,730° C.

The continuation of this dike was opened as a mica mine by Johnson
McKinney, but the shafts are now closed and the character of the
kaolin at this point is not known.

The washed kaolin from the Aaron McKinney property had a color
of grade 2 when fired. Upon drying at 110° C. it shrank 4.4 per
cent, and upon firing at 1,350° C, 12.9 per cent. The tensile strength
of the dried material was 28 pounds per square inch.

When made up into a porcelain mixture the shrinkage of the mass
was 2.8 per cent at 110° C. and 10.6 per cent when fired at 1,350° C.
The fired mass had a color of grade 2. Its translucency was .61 and
its absorption 4.25 per cent. Under the glazes the color became a
pronounced green.

53. Tolley Mica Mine 2s"ear Sprucepine

Two other deposits near Sprucepine might possibly at some future
time supply material to the plant at this place. One of these, the
Tolley Mica Mine,1 is on the north side of the Sprucepine-Micaville
road, one mile west of Sprucepine. It consists of a dike 25 to 35
feet wide, with numerous stringers. It has been proven for 300 feet
and is opened by a shaft, said to be 45 feet deep, and a drift 32 feet
long from the 20-foot level.

The material of the dike appears to be uniform in character through-
out. It is white but sandy. The crude clay yielded 30 per cent of
kaolin with a refractory value above 1,730° C.
An analysis of the washed product gave :

Si02

AI2O3

FeaOs

CaO

MgO

BaO

NasO

K2O

TiC-2

H2O

Total

46.35

38.80

fcr

.03

.41

14.00

99.84

The color of the washed kaolin, after firing, was of grade 2. When
dried at 110° C. its shrinkage was 5.4 per cent and its tensile strength
8 pounds to the square inch. When fired at 1,350° the shrinkage was
10.9 per cent.

The porcelain mixture including the kaolin had a shrinkage of 3.4
per cent at 110° C. and 14 per cent at 1,350° C. The translucency of

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 152.

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAKOLINA 109

the fired mass was .71, its color of grade 2 and its absorption 7.3 per
cent. Under the glazes used the mass acquired a very pale green tint.

54. Wiseman Pkospect Near Sprucepine

The other deposit that has been described1 as occurring near Spruce-
pine is two miles southeast of the village on a partly kaolinized dike
striking northeast and dipping nearly vertical. "The half adjoining
the southeast wall is incompletely kaolinized, but kaolinization of the
northwest half is well advanced." The entire deposit, however, is
sandy. Adjoining the dike on the southeast is a narrow belt of coarse
granite-pegmatite which is apparently unaltered.

The material from the northwest part of the dike yielded 21 per cent of
white kaolin, with a refractory value of 1,730° C. The color of the washed
kaolin is described by Watts as of grade 2. When dried at 110° C. its
tensile strength was 17 pounds to the square inch and its shrinkage was
3.2 per cent. When fired at 1,350° C. the total shrinkage was 11.9 per
cent.

The porcelain mixture with this kaolin as an ingredient, when
dried at 110° C. shrank 3.8 per cent and when fired at 1,350° C, 13 per
cent. The translucency of the fired mass was .76, its absorption 3.7
per cent. Its color is unaltered by the glazes used.

ReserYes in Yancey and Mitchell Counties

An estimate of the quantity of available kaolin present in the known
deposits of Mitchell, Yancey and neighboring counties is of little value.
Undoubtedly there is a large quantity of crude kaolin in the ground.
The unknown factor relates to its distribution. It cannot be deter-
mined from the slight development of most of the deposits how much
of the material can be mined with profit, even under the most favor-
able condition, since the dimensions of the individual deposits are not
known. In the case of the deposits that are now being exploited and
of those that have been explored by boring, it may be estimated that
the reserve is over 400,000 ■ tons of commercial kaolin. This is a
much lower figure than that arrived at by the owners of some of the
kaolin properties in this area, but in their estimates it has been as-
sumed that all the kaolin in the ground can be removed, which is not
the case.

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 153.

110 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Deposits in Ayery County

Only two deposits have been described from Avery County, and
neither is known to be important. Both are near Spear which is on
the North Toe River, about eight miles north of Sprucepine. Even
if they prove to be large they are too far from transportation lines
to be of value at the present time.

55. Ollis Prospect Xear Spear
The Ollis prospect1 is three-fourths mile northeast of Ingalls and

about three miles a little east of south of Spear and Plumtree. Its
nearest shipping points would be Pineola, six miles to the northeast,
and Sprucepine, six and one-half miles to the southwest. The deposit
occurs in a broad lens of pegmatite which has been proven for a width
of 100 feet and a length of 750 feet along a ridge. Its strike is west
and dip 80° south. The material, which is exposed by numerous
shafts and tunnels, yielded 36 per cent of kaolin with a refractory
value above 1,730° C. and a color, after firing, which "Watts describes
as of grade 5. The washed kaolin shrank 4.6 per cent when dried at
110° C. and in this condition had a tensile strength of 17 pounds per
square inch. The shrinkage when fired at 1,350° C. was 9.6 per cent.
The standard porcelain mixture containing this kaolin showed a
shrinkage of 3.6 per cent at 110° C. and 12.2 per cent at 1,350° C.
The translucency of the fired mass was .68, its absorption 3.6 per cent
and its color of grade 5. This color was unchanged under the raw lead
and fritted glazes.

56. Wiseman Prospect Xear Spear
The other deposit, at the Wiseman prospect,2 is on Port Creek, a

branch of Three-mile Creek. It is about two and one-half miles south-
east of Spear and Plumtree and about five miles west of Pineola, its
nearest potential shipping point.

Tunnels and shafts expose a dike 20 feet wide in some places and
in others a series of stringer dikes only a few feet wide. The general
strike of the main dike is "N. 40° E. The material, which varies in
its degree of kaolinization, is remarkably free from impurities. It
yielded 37 per cent of a very white kaolin with a refractory value
above 1,730° C. When dried at 110° C. it shrank 7.4 per cent, and
when fired at 1,350° C. 17.4 per cent. The color of the fired kaolin
was of grade 1. Its tensile strength after drying was 17.5 pounds
per square inch.

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 151.
nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 153.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 111

The porcelain mixture containing this kaolin shrank 4.4 per cent
when dried at 110° C. and 14.4 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The
color of the fired mass was of grade 1, its translucency .72, and its
absorption 8.3 per cent. The glazes used did not affect the color.

Deposits in Ashe County

60. South Hardin Mica Mine Near Beaver Creek
Watts has referred to the South Hardin Mica Mine,1 one and one-
fourth miles southwest of Beaver Creek as a prospective source of
kaolin. The mine was on a dike from six to ten feet wide, striking
N". 40° E. and dipping 60° S.E. In the open cut, shafts and tunnel
from which the mica was taken is much kaolinized feldspar, but none
of it was sufficiently decomposed to be plastic, although it is reported
that in the old shafts, now entirely closed by slides, a good grade of
plastic kaolin was exposed.

61. Jesse Bare Property Near Jefferson
Another deposit in this county is known only by its samples. It is

on the property of Jesse Bare, Sr., near the mouth of Dog Creek, four
and one-half miles east of Jefferson. It has been opened by two
trenches two feet deep in solid clay. One trench is ten feet long and
two and one-half feet wide, and the other six feet long and four feet
wide. The overburden is three feet thick. Mr. Bare writes that the
deposit is on top of a flat, smooth ridge, and that it occupies about
an acre, to judge by the distribution of the lumps turned up in plowing.
The sample sent is in very hard white granular porous masses that
absorb a great quantity of water without disintegrating. Careful ex-
amining with a hand lens reveals many transparent colorless quartz
grains in a white structureless cement. Here and there a larger quartz
grain is embedded in the mass and a few little groups of stained grains.
When shaken with water and allowed to stand for a few minutes a
sediment settles that consists almost exclusively of grains of quartz
and a white opaque material which is taken to be kaolinized feldspar
because the particles are bounded by planes, which appear to be the
result of cleavage. K~o other constituents are observable when the
crushed kaolin is viewed under the microscope. The quartz grains,
which are jagged in outline, vary from .3 to .15 millimeter in diameter.
They are comparatively few as compared with the grains of kaolinized
feldspar. These are almost nonpolarizing. They are often straight-

Watts, A. S., L. c, p. 123.

112 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

edged, but occasional grains are subangular. The smallest particles
are kaolin plates. They are not very abundant. An occasional wisp
of muscovite is noted, but only very rarely.

From the appearance of the material in the hand specimen and under
the microscope it is inferred that it is an incompletely kaolinized, very
feldspathic pegmatite. Even after being shaken with water for a
long time it is only partially disintegrated. Professor Parmelee, after
examining the sample, reports that it does not seem to be practicable
to treat it by the ordinary washing process.

66. Ellers and Jones Deposit Xear Bina

The Ellers and Jones deposit is near the top of a hill about three-
fourths mile north of Bina and one-fourth mile east of the Virginia-
Carolina Railroad. It is only partially developed by a number of
short trenches and small pits, none of which expose the entire width
of the vein. The maximum width uncovered by any trench is seven
feet. The vein has been traced for about 100 yards, but surface signs
indicate a much greater length.

The kaolin at the surface is a pale creamy white. It is uniform in
character and nearly free from grit. It was originally a pegmatite
cutting schists parallel to their foliation. It will wash easily and yield
a large proportion of refined product.

KAOLINS IN THE PIEDMONT PLATEAU

Although all of the kaolin deposits of North Carolina that are
now being exploited are in the mountain district, nevertheless there
are known to be others in the Piedmont Plateau that may prove to
be of commercial importance when they have been thoroughly explored.
A few are the result of the alteration of pegmatites. These are similar
to the deposits in the mountain district. Others have apparently re-
sulted from the alteration of granites, of schistose feldspathic rocks
or of slates. Those derived from slates are of no great importance
from the point of view of this report. While some of them may be
employed for some of the purposes for which kaolins are usually
used, most of them are so impure that they will not burn white. They
are referred to in the following pages only when their description is
necessary to complete the discussion of certain properties on which
white-burning kaolins occur.

The residual kaolins derived from granites and schistose feldspathic
rocks are usually less compact than those derived from pegmatites.
They are generally fine-grained, powdery and very quartzose. They
rarely contain large fragments of quartz, or large pieces of partially

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

113

kaolinized feldspar. They cover comparatively broad areas and when
derived from schists they often occur as layers between layers of very im-
pure clay or of only slightly decomposed rocks. The dips of the layers
may be high or low, depending upon the attitude of the series of rocks of
which they are a part. If the original rock layer was thick the thickness
of the kaolin will depend upon the depth to which kaolinization has
proceeded. If the original layer was thin the resulting kaolin layer
must also be thin. In prospecting it is important to determine the
thickness of deposits of this kind by actual test or by calculations
based upon observations of dip.

The processes by which the granites and feldspathic schists were
changed to kaolin were the same as affected the pegmatites, and there-
fore, they need no special discussion. See p. — .)

Besides the kaolins there as known also to be a few deposits of sedi-
mentary clays in the Piedmont area, but they are not white-burning
and consequently cannot be employed for the purposes for which kaolins
are used.

Kaolins from Pegmatite and Granite

The only kaolin deposits in the Piedmont Plateau that are believed
to be derived from pegmatite are in a few old mica mines that have
been abandoned, with the exception of one in a tin mine near Lincoln-
ton and a small deposit at Bessemer City. Only that at Bessemer City
was visited. A deposit that is believed to have come from granite
is also at Bessemer City.

Deposits in Rutherford County

57. Isinglass Hill Mica Mine Near Bntherfordton

Only one deposit in Rutherford County was reported by Watts1
as of possible importance. This is at the Isinglass Hill Mica Mine
three miles north of Rutherfordton, where a dike 6 to 50 feet wide
has been proven for a distance of one-fourth mile and to a depth of
20 feet along the crest of a low ridge three miles north of Rutherford-
ton. It strikes K 20° E. and dips 80° N.W. Its hanging wall is
more thoroughly kaolinized than its foot wall, the dike being divided
in the middle by a band of sugar quartz one to three feet wide. The
clay contains sharp particles of smoky quartz, a few crystals of garnet,
and nodules of asbolite or wad.

iWatts, A. S., L. c, pp. 148, 114.

114 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

Material from the west portion of the dike gave 42 per cent of
kaolin with a refractory value of 1,730° C, and a color, after firing,
of grade 5. When dried at 110° C. its tensile strength was 8 pounds
per square inch, and its shrinkage 2.8 per cent. "When fired at
1,350° the shrinkage was 11.3 per cent.

Made up into the porcelain mixture the shrinkage was 2.2 per cent
upon drying at 110° C. and 12.4 per cent when fired at 1,350° C.
The fired mass had a translucency of .64 and an absorption of 8.8 per
cent. Its color was of grade 3, and was unaltered under the raw lead
and fritted glazes.

Deposits in Cleveland County

From Cleveland County two mica mines have been reported, in both
of which is considerable kaolin, but not certainly in sufficient quantity
to be of commercial value.

58. Green Mica Mine ]^"ear Shelby
The Green Mica Mine,1 seven miles northwest of 'Shelby, was worked

for mica in 1870 and again in a small way later. The old shafts in-
dicate the existence of a 12-foot wide dike with numerous parallel
stringers striking about ]ST. 70° E. and dipping 75° ~N.W. It is re-
ported that much excellent kaolin was exposed in the shafts, but none
was seen, as the workings have all collapsed.

59. Tom Baxter Mica Mine 'Neav Fallston
The Tom Baxter Mica Mine,2 three miles southeast of Fallston and

four miles northwest of Waco, is an old mica mine that was explored
by shafts over an area about 40 feet long. The dike on which the
work was done can be traced for about 200 feet in a general N", 60°
E. direction. Its width is reported to be almost 100 feet. The shaft
dumps show considerable very fine kaolin. The workmen formerly
employed at the mine state "that at about 30 feet they found kaolin
practically free from quartz, and in one shaft reached a depth of 47
feet, but the dike material was so soft and caved so badly that the
mine was abandoned."

Samples taken from exposed portions of the dike gave 49 per cent
of white kaolin with a refractory value above 1,730° C. This kaolin
showed a shrinkage of 4.4 per cent at 110° C, and when dried at this
temperature its tensile strength was 8 pounds per square inch. When
fired at 1,350° C. it possessed a color of grade 2 and a shrinkage of 12.2
per cent.

iWatts, A. S., L. c, p. 150.
Watts, A. S„ L. c, p. 149.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 115

The porcelain mixture made up with this kaolin shrank 1.6 per
cent when dried at 110° C. and 10.8 per cent when fired at 1,350° C.
The fired mass had a translucency of .73. Its absorption was 8.1 per
cent and its color of grade 2. This color was unaffected by the glazes
used.

Deposits in Gaston County

62, 63. J. A. Smith Property Bessemer City

In Gaston County the only deposits of clay that have been examined
are those on the property of Mr. J. A. Smith, Bessemer City. Two
openings are inside the city limits. One of these is a shaft 30 feet
deep near the railroad station. It is now boarded up, but the walls
can be seen to be in white clay underlying an overburden of about
seven feet of red clay. The sample, which it is said by Mr. Smith,
was taken from the side of this shaft 18 feet from the surface, is a
white kaolin that dried into a powdery mass. It contains some sand,
a little mica and the usual black streaks. A boring in the bottom of the
shaft went down 12 feet further, all in clay. Wells in the vicinity of the
shaft all passed through similar clay. Several carloads of material were
shipped from these openings, two of which went to a tile manufacturer
who made from it a cream-colored translucent product.

About 1,800 feet northeast of the shaft is another opening which is
now partially filled. It is a pit showing on its wall a 16-foot band
of kaolin which is said to be separated from another band 10 feet
wide by a horse of red clay. Mr. Smith declares that he has borings
which indicate the existence of a belt of clay 300 feet wide inter-
rupted by horses of clay. The west wall of the visible deposit is ap-
parently a decomposed gneiss as are also the horses of clay. Other
walls are not visible. A short distance from this pit borings are re-
ported to have been made that outlined a dike 160 feet wide with
walls on both sides. Nearly all the holes that penetrated kaolin showed
it to extend to a depth of at least 35 feet. The structure of the clay
in the pit suggests a residual deposit. It is crossed by little quartz
veins and by streaks of yellow stain. Mr. Smith believes he has
proven a series of dikes from 10 to 200 feet wide striking N". 22° E.
and dipping vertically. There is no reason to doubt this conclusion
though no evidence was at hand to confirm it.

Another deposit, one and one-half miles northeast of the city near
Long Creek, is of an entirely different character. It is exposed in a
long gully from 10 to 30 feet deep. At the upper end of the gully
its floor is over numerous large granite boulders. Further south these
become friable and beyond, where the gully becomes deeper, they are

116 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

partially disintegrated and covered with a layer of clay. Still further
south the gully is deep and clay extends to its bottom. The granite
ends in a steep slope over which a little wet-weather stream cascades
(Fig. 13). About 100 feet down stream from the last boulder is an
exposure of schist which is separated from the granite by a deep de-
posit of white clay. In the bottom of the gully and in its walls at
this place some of the kaolin seems to be sedimentary, but on the
whole it presents the texture of the granite, i.e., it contains quartz
grains of the same sizes and shapes of those in the granite, a few
streaks of black earthy substance that may be some decomposed fer-
ruginous mineral such as biotite, augite or hornblende. The com-
ponents are arranged like those of the granite, the feldspar of the
rock being replaced by kaolin in the clay. The conditions suggest
a concentration of kaolin at the base of a granite slope by the wash-
ing of the decomposition products of the granite into a depression
between granite and schist. The deeper kaolinization of the granite
at this point, and the consequent development of the steep slope is
probably due to the presence here of the contact surface between granite
and schist. Plainly the greater part of the kaolin is a residual de-
posit, which is the result of the decomposition of granite. Where seen
there is an overburden of from six to seven feet of red clay.

A sample of the clay was taken from a hole on the east side of the
bottom of the gully and from a strip of its west wall 25 feet long.
It is a plastic white kaolin containing grains of quartz, feldspar, white
mica, a few specks of black earth and a few yellow streaks.

^ 200 feet

Fig. 13. Longitudinal section of kaolin deposit on Smith property, near Bessemer City.

There is unquestionably a large quantity of kaolin in the neighbor-
hood of this locality, but it is probably irregularly distributed.
Whether it is capable of being worked economically cannot be deter-
mined without a pretty thorough exploration. Water is abundant for
washing and the locality is only one and one-half miles from the
Atlanta Branch of the Southern Railway on a road that could easily
be put in excellent condition for trucking.

THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

117

Samples from the shaft (A), near the railroad station at Bessemer
City and from the gully one and one-half miles northeast of the
city (B) were submitted to the Mining Experiment Station of the
Bureau of Mines at Columbus for testing. The sample from the shaft
was furnished by Mr. Smith.

The report on the two samples is as follows:

When subjected to the screen test: A B

there was left on the 20 mesh screen 2.220% 44.56%

there was left on the 65 mesh screen .932% 11.66 %

there was left on the 100 mesh screen .932% 3.65%

there was left on the 200 mesh screen 8.840% 13.07%

passed through the 200 mesh screen 87 . 080% 27 . 06 %

Quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay 40 . 52 % 34 . 49 %

Volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay 4.17 % 13. 10 %

Calculated corresponding linear shrinkage 1.41 % 4. 57 %

The moisture factor on a dry basis is .299% .585%

The deformation temperature is cone 30 cone 32

Sample A white. It possesses little or no plasticity. It is dusty when dry, and
bars made from it chip easily. It lacks clay substance and contains much mica.

Sample B is white and fairly plastic. It contains a good deal of mica, but its dry
strength is fair.
When burned at the tem-
peratures 1190° 1250° 1310° 1370° 1410°

The porosity of A in terms

of burned volume is __ 45.3 % 49.22% 46.41% 28.4 % 18.1 %

No. of bars tested 3 3 2 3 3
The volume shrinkage in

terms of dry clay is 5.1 % 7.58% 13.7 % 29.8 % 36.6 %

The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 14.1%

No. of bars tested 2 3 3 3 3

The color is White White White White White

The porosity of B in terms

of burned volume is_. 41.9 % 44.2 % 42.02% 27.9 % 25.1 %

No. of bars tested 3 5 3 3 3
The volume shrinkage

in terms of dry clay is ___ 12.2 % 12.71% 16.63% 21.8 % 25.7 %
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 9. 45%

No. of bars tested 3 5 3 3 3

The color is White White Light Light Light

ivory ivory ivory

yellow yellow yellow

Deposits in Lincoln County

64. Piedmont Tin Mine JNear Lincolnton

At the old Piedmont Tin Mine of the U. S. Tin Company,, two and
one-half miles southeast of Lincolnton the dikes carrying the cas-
siterite are fairly well kaolinized. These dikes occur1 in a belt strik-
ing K 20° E. and dipping 80° I.¥.

iGraton, L. C, U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 293, pp. 42 and 51, 1906.

THE KAOLINS OF XOETH CAKOLIXA

The dike rock is a coarse-grained pegmatite composed mainly of
quartz, several feldspars, museovite, a colorless somewhat brittle mica
that may he margarite and grains of cassiterite. Between the com-
ponents are films of iron hydroxides that produce an orange-red stain.
All the dike material is more or less kaolinized with the formation
of a reddish yellow sandy product in which there are numerous
plates of colorless mica, grains of quartz and crystals of cassiterite.
"Where the original material was nearly pure feldspar the resulting
kaolin consists of kaolinite, small scales of mica, a very little quartz
sand and a few crystals of cassiterite.

Watts1 declares that all the dikes contain some good kaolin and that
the material in the one known as the "Jake vein" is fairly free from
stain. When washed the crude clay from this vein yielded 26 per
cent of kaolin, with the composition :

Si02

AI2O3'

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Xa20

K2O

Ti02

H:0

Tctal

4S .50

37.35

.85

.32

1.02

12.00

100.04

Since the decomposed pegmatite is washed to obtain the tin ore it
is possible that it might prove profitable to save the washings and
separate the kaolin.

The refractory value of the kaolin washed from the sample col-
lected by Watts was 1,710° C. When dried at 110° C. its tensile strength
was 16.5 pounds to the square inch and its shrinkage 4.4 per cent.
When fired at 1,350° C. its color was of grade 5 and its shrinkage
8.1 per cent.

The porcelain mixture made with it shrank 2.2 per cent at 110° C.
and 13 per cent when fired at 1,350° C. The translucency of the fired
mass was .78, its absorption 3.5 per cent and color of grade 5, and this
color was not affected by the raw lead and fritted glazes.

Kaolins from Schistose Books

Only a few deposits of the white powdery kaolin believed to be
derived from schistose rocks have been examined by the writer. Sam-
ples of others which were not visited were furnished by the owners
of the properties on which the deposits occur. The deposit near Troy
was not visited nor were any samples from it seen. But from the
descriptions of it given by Bies there is no doubt that it is like some

nVatts, A. S., L. c, p. 146.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 119

of the deposits that are referred to below. Consequently Ries's de-
scription is abstracted (p. 125), in the belief that it furnishes an idea
of the character of the material in these other deposits.

Deposit in Catawba County

65. Ervin Deposit Near Catawba

In Catawba County, on the State Central Highway, three miles east
of Catawba village, on the property of E. A. Ervin is a deposit of
white powdery clay that has been used locally as whitewash. The clay
appears for a couple of hundred yards down the bottom of a stream.
Up stream it is reported to be about 30 feet wide. At the lower end
the color gradually changes to blue and dark gray.

The sample taken from the upstream end of the deposit is very much
like the material from Mr. Valentine's deposit in Henderson County
(p. 85). It is a very fine-grained gritty powder composed of spicules
and irregular sharp-edged quartz particles rarely over .02 millimeter in
their largest diameter and numerous small flakes and fragments of ag-
gregates of flakes of kaolinite. There are occasional quartz grains
measuring .1 millimeter, but they are extremely rare. If sedimentary
its components have traveled a very short distance, as many of the
quartz spicules are extremely slender.

Deposit in Iredell County

67. Cashion and Furches Deposit Near Statesville

H. V. Eurches, Statesville, N". C.

Only one deposit has been reported in Iredell County. This is along
the Charlotte Branch of the Southern Railway one mile south of States-
ville on land belonging to Messrs. J. T. Cashion and H. V. Eurches.
The property is undeveloped, but cuts on the railway and on the high-
way one-fourth mile west of the railroad expose a white kaolin.

On the east side of the railroad right-of-way a section of about 160
feet is exposed and between this and the track are a couple of shallow
pits. The section is in alternating schists and kaolin. At its north
end a width of 20 feet of kaolin is shown, followed to the south by
20 feet of quartz, 110 feet of kaolin and finally schists. (See Eig. 14.)
The schists are alternating mica schists and quartz-feldspar schists full
of garnets. These are interlayered with what appear to be sheared
pegmatites. The feldspar in all the schists is kaolinized and one layer
between slightly decomposed mica schists consists of a well-defined

120 THE KAOLINS OF NOKTH CAROLINA

kaolin. The strike of the schist series is IN". 10° W. and its dip 75° E.
East of the railroad schists outcrop here and there, but in a well dug
500 yards east of the rails clay was struck at about 12 feet.

E.
.Quartz,. k-,.„i:„ cu;c4-

^^P^g

50 Feet

Fig. 14. Sketch illustrating relations of kaolin and schists at Cashion and Furches deposit, near
Statesville.

The clay exposed in the cut north of the schists is very sandy. Tt
contains in addition to the sand tiny flakes of dark and light mica,
little masses of soft black material that may be a manganese oxide and
little yellow spots that may represent decomposed garnets. The kaolin
has an ill-defined structure parallel to the structure of the schists to
the south and is crossed by vertical, or nearly vertical, veins of quartz.
Most of these are narrow but at the north end of the cut one is 20
feet wide. The schist mass, as one passes north in the cut, appears
to disintegrate gradually, changing to layers of red brown clay and
white clay, with the white clay becoming more abundant toward the
north as though the clay-producing layers became thicker in that
direction. Pits near the track show a cleaner and whiter clay than
that in the cut. It was from one of these pits that the sample was
taken.

It is probable that the clay represents a thick layer in the schist
series, but whether it was a feldspathic schist or a sheared pegmatite
running parallel to the foliation of the schists was not determined.
Nor is the thickness of the kaolin known. It has already been stated
that kaolin exists in a road cut about one-fourth mile west of the
railroad. Near this place a well was dug passing into white clay at
a depth of six feet and continuing in it for 55 feet. Between the well
and the railroad are no exposures and no explorations so that it is
impossible to determine whether a single layer is continuous through
this distance or whether there are several layers separated by schists
that are not kaolinized. The distribution of the kaolin is rather wide-
spread. If its origin is as suggested it must occur on the surface in
belts striking about north.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 121

The kaolin from a pit at the railroad is white and pulverulent.
It contains a comparatively few fragments of quartz, a good deal of
sand, very small masses of soft brown clay, an occasional mica flake
and a few specks of a soft black substance.

The characteristics of the crude kaolin as reported by the Mining
Experiment Station of the Bureau of Mines at Columbus, Ohio, are
given below :

When subjected to the screen test:

14.2 % is left on the 20 mesh screen.

25.56% is left on the 65 mesh screen.
6.55% is left on the 100 mesh screen.

18. 14% is left on the 200 mesh screen.

34.55% passes through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is white and fairly plastic. It is rather short but is moldable.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 41. 92%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 17. 5 %

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 6.2 %

When burned at 1190° 1250° 1310° 1370° 1410°

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 46.9 % 40.5 % 44.9 % 36.5 % 34.6 %

No. of bars tested 3 3 5 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of the dry clay is. 9.4 % 16.2 % 11.2 % 18.3 % 23.6 %
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 8.58%

No. of bars tested 3 3 6 3 3

Color White White White White

The moisture factor on a dry basis is 1 .79.
The deformation temperature is cone 33.

Deposits in Richmond County

71. Steele Exploration Rear Ellerbe

R. L. Steele, Rockingham, N. C.
The only deposits that have been reported in Richmond County are
about two and one-half miles northwest of Ellerbe on the Norfolk and
Southern Railway near Bostic's Mills. The property on which the
clay occurs consists of 38% acres owned in fee by Robert L. Steele, Sr.,
and mineral rights on 230 additional acres. When worked a few years
ago it was operated under the name of the Steele Kaolin Works with
headquarters at Rockingham. As long ago as 1897 Ries1 referred to
openings in kaolin on the property of Mr. Steele, but none of these
openings can be identified with those seen by the writer in 1918.
However, since it is evident that the clay occurs over a fairly wide

iRies, H., N. C. Geol. Survey Bull. 13, p. 65, 1897.

122

THE KAOLIXS OF NORTH CAROLINA

area, it is probable that the conclusions of Hies with respect to the
quality of the kaolins seen by him would apply nearly as well to those
taken from the openings examined in 1918.

Ries states that the clay appears for a distance of 50 feet in a
roadside ditch one mile south of Bostic post office, and again on the
opposite side of the road at the base of a hill. Between the two is a
red clay resulting from the decomposition of a schist. Test pits sunk
east of the road disclose a fine-grained clay containing comparatively
few angular fragments and scattered stains of iron. Another series
of pits one mile further west, across a shallow valley, uncovers another
deposit of whiter material. In no case was the overburden more than
one and one-half feet thick or the kaolin less than nine feet thick.

The clay from the eastern pits (I) was a fine-grained kaolin with
a little coarse grit. It slakes slowly but completely to a fine-grained
mass. A workable paste shrank 4 per cent on drying and 9 per cent
in burning. Air-dried briquettes showed an average tensile strength
of 10 pounds per square inch. Incipient fusion began at 2,250° I\,
vitrification at 2,500° F., and viscosity at 2,700° F. The burn was
to a dense body with a pale yellow tint. A sample from another pit
(II) suffered slightly less shrinkage. The average tensile strength of
its briquettes was 13 pounds, and incipient fusion began at 2,300° T.
In other respects it was like the first sample. The kaolin from the
western pits (III) was a somewhat porous, fine-grained white clay
with comparatively little grit. In most respects it was nearly like the
material from the eastern pits.

Analyses of the crude samples (in the order described) gave:

Si02

AI2O3

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Alk

H2O

Moist.

Total

70.63

21.81

1.49

.20

.29

1.45

4.04

.08

99.99

68.15

19.99

1.86

.13

.16

2.85

4.70

.17

98.01

III

73.70

16.03

1.57

.38

.47

1.90

4.33

98.38

71.12

19.61

2.18

.17

.08

2.48

4.33

99.97

Samples I and III were washed. The first gave 40 per cent of
settlings and the second 35 per cent. The washed sample I had the
same properties as the crude sample, the analysis of which is given in
line IV. Washed sample III was pure white, but it burned to a body
with a faint yellowish tint. In all respects the washed material acted
like the crude sample, except, that its briquettes had an average tensile

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

123

strength of only 8 pounds to the square inch. The calculated mineral
composition of each of the four samples of which the analyses are
given follows :

Clay substance.

Feldspar

Quartz..

Specific gravity

47.14

54.30

49 .30

16.13

1.82

9.20

36.73

43.85

41.50

2.41

2.52

III

36.05
62.33
2.43

The openings that may be seen now are widely separated. One on
a crossroad running east from the main road north from Ellerbe is
on a dense gray, massive, sticky clay that contains lines of limonite
nodules, most of which are hollow or partly filled with red clay. Other
nodules are concretions of quartz fragments, sand grains and flakes of
mica cemented into elongate masses about one and one-half inches long
and half as thick. Since the clay, where exposed, has a horizontal
upper surface it resembles very closely a sedimentary deposit. Close
examination of the walls of the pit, however, reveals the presence
of a system of cross joints, such as appear in a sheared rock, and a
number of tiny quartz veins that intersect the clay in nearly vertical
planes. The exposure is too limited to furnish much evidence as to
the origin of the clay, but because of the vertical quartz veins and the
presence on the main road of rocks that might well be the source of
such a clay, it is believed that the gray clay is a residual deposit re-
sulting from the alteration of a sheared clay shale or slate or per-
haps a sheared volcanic rock. The hollow limonite nodules might be
explained as having been formed during the alteration of the slate
to clay and the sandy concretions as having been originally little lenses
of sand in the otherwise argillaceous rock. About 20 tons of the crude
material was washed in a home-made washer and sold as a filler for
cheap cotton goods. The unwashed clay burns gray. It probably
would make good stoneware.

On the main road, near Ellerbe, chocolate and ocher-colored clays
are exposed in the ditches. They are extremely fine-grained, very
slightly gritty and massive, but when broken apart many of the
lumps show a distinct schistosity. It is said by Mr. Steele that a
little of the yellower variety has been burned and sold as ocher.
The clays of both colors are associated with jointed rocks that may be
shales or slates as they readily fall apart into lozenge-shaped frag-
ments, some of which consist partly of yellow clay. The freshest rock

124 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

that was seen in place is presumably a pale gray clay slate, almost the
same color as the gray clay at the pit. Although distinctly slaty it
is nevertheless very soft as though a very compact clay.

It is apparent that the country about Ellerbe is underlain by slates
or sheared volcanics varying in composition, and that the different
colored clays on the road are the results of their decomposition. The
gray clay is possibly of a similar origin. It may have originated from
a less ferruginous rock than those that gave rise to the colored clays,
or during its formation the iron compounds may have been leached
out, in part forming the concretions found scattered through it. These
concretions when treated with HC1 leave residues of white kaolin of
the same shapes, as the original nodules, indicating that the nodules
were not present in the original rock, but were secreted after or dur-
ing the production of the kaolin.

West of the main road about one and one-half miles west of the
pit in the gray clay is another opening on a hill covered with quartz
boulders. No rock was seen in place. The pit has partly caved, but
in some places around its sides can be seen a very white, compact clay
which, when it dries, breaks down into, a very fine white powder that
is quite gritty. When mixed with water it becomes very pale grayish
white. The material, when examined microscopically, is seen to con-
sist mainly of small splinters, and tiny dust-like particles of quartz
with diameters of .003 to .02 millimeter and small flakes of kaolin of
about the usual size, .004 millimeter. No other constituents were noted,
except here and there a shred of decomposed mica. From the nature
of the kaolin, its similarity in physical characters (except color) to
the yellow and chocolate clays in its neighborhood, and its likeness,
to the Overton (p. 127) and Eames (p. 126) clays, it is inferred that
it is residual and that it was formed from some rock that occupied a
fairly broad area, and not from a pegmatite dike. At Candor and
Troy the original rock was probably a feldspathic volcanic. At
Ellerbe there may have been a series of volcanics or of alternating
slates and volcanics.

Mr. Steele declares that borings about 30 or 40 feet apart over 25
acres penetrated from, 0 to 35 feet of sand and clay overburden and
found underlying white and colored clays. Some borings found only
colored clay, others only white clay, and others mixtures of the two.
The holes were not located with the view of determining the areal
distribution of either kind, consequently no estimate can be made of
the quantity of the white clay available.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 125

Neither one of the pits is now being operated. The eastern pit was
worked in 1903, the clay being used mainly for cotton and paper filling.
Only a small quantity was marketed, perhaps 150 or 200 tons. It was
teamed fourteen and one-half miles to Rockingham. It could now be
hauled by truck four miles to Norman and shipped by the Norfolk-
Southern Railroad.

A sample of the white clay from the western pit was submitted to
the Bureau of Mines for testing. The results of the tests are as follows :

When subjected to the screen test:

.626% is left on the 20 mesh screen.

. 359 % is left on the 65 mesh screen.

.294% is left on the 100 mesh screen.

.681% is left on the 200 mesh screen.
98.04 % passes through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is cream colored and it molds with difficulty. Its dry strength is fair.

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 27. 95%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 2. 80%

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is . 84%

When burned at 1190° 1250° 1310° 1370° 1410°

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 1 22.9 % 24.55% 13.82% 2.8 % .8 %

The volume shrinkage in

terms of the dry clay is _ 22.8 % 22.13% 31.0 % 35.3 % 34.5 %
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 13. 2%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The moisture factor on a dry basis is .302%.
The deformation temperature is cone 23.

The surface colors of the burned bars are light buff at the lower
temperatures, olive buff at 1,370° and drab at 1,410°. The body colors
at the lower temperatures are the same as the surface colors, but in
the bar burned at 1,370° the color is pale purplish gray and in that
burned at 1,410° a pale Quaker drab.

Deposits in Montgomery County

Three deposits of white clay have been reported in Montgomery
County but none have been exploited, though one, that near Candor,
is in an old gold mine.

69. Unnamed Deposit Near Troy

The first locality in Montgomery County at which kaolin has been
reported is in the neighborhood of Troy.1 It is described by Ries
as being four miles west of Troy, and is near the Eames exploration.
No account of the method of occurrence of the material is given, but

iRies, H., N. C. Geo]. Survey Bull. 13, p. 64, li

126

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

from the description of its character it may be inferred that its oc-
currence was similar to that of the Candor and Eames deposits, to be
described later. Ries obtained two samples, one a gray kaolin and the
other a white one. The darker sample yielded 40 per cent of kaolin
upon washing. Both white and dark washed samples burned to a
buff color and neither was suitable for the manufacture of whiteware.
Since the characters of the Eames and Overton deposits are probably
the same as those of the Troy deposits an abstract of Eies's account
is given in full.

The dark washed kaolin made into a workable paste with water shrank
3 per cent in drying and an additional 10 per cent in burning. The
average tensile strength of air-dried briquettes was 9 pounds per square
inch. Incipient fusion took place at 2,100° F., vitrification at 2,300°
F., and viscosity at 2,500° F.

The white washed kaolin shrank 3 per cent in drying and 9 per cent in
burning. Air-dried briquettes showed an average tensile strength of
10 pounds per square inch. The reaction in the furnace was the
same as for the dark variety.

Analyses of the white (I) and the dark (II) kaolins are given as
follows :

SiO-2

AhOs

Fe203

CaO

MgO

Alk

H:0

Moist

Total

63.10

23 .33

2.97

.15

.09

1.90

7.65

.75

99.94

86.03

6.46

2.14

.17

.04

1.00

2.90

.53

99.27

III

90.13

4.99

1.86

.13

.01

1.03

1.93

.48

100.56

The dark washed sample contained 20.83 per cent clay substance,
2.34 per cent feldspar and 76.20 per cent quartz, and the white washed
sample 58.92 per cent clay substance, 5.81 per cent feldspar and 35.27
per cent quartz. The specific gravity of the former was 2.32 and of
the latter 2.34. The analysis of the crude dark is given in line III.

68. Eames Prospect Near Mount Gilead

P. M. Eames, Mount Gilead, JST. C.
The exploration of P. M. Eames is five miles northwest of Mount
Gilead, to the left of Lowder's Ferry road. Very little is known about
the deposit. Mr. Eames, judging by the distribution of the outcrops,
states that the clay covers about 700 acres. Only a shallow opening
two feet deep has been made in it, and it was from this that a sam-
ple was taken.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 127

The sample looks very much like that from the Iola Mine at Candor.
It is a very fine, gritty, flour-like material of a very pale grayish white
color. Mixed with water it becomes buff-gray and exhibits almost no
tendency to cohere. After washing carefully in a test tube a fine-
grained pale buff residue is left which apparently consists entirely of
quartz grains.

The crude material is made up mainly of small quartz grains, with
diameters between .02 and .04 millimeter. In addition there are a few
particles of rutile, hydromica and stained feldspar and a very few tiny
plates of kaolinite. The quartz is in little sharp-edged splinters, in
subangular grains, in very irregular shaped particles and in a very
few cases in rounded grains. Evidently the material has not been
carried far from its source. It may be a residual mass, like that at
the Iola Mine from which most of the kaolinite has been removed.

In its present condition the material represented by the sample is
not a practical source of kaolin.

70. Overton Deposit Near Candor

A. J. Overton, Candor, N". C.

The Candor deposit is at the old Iola Gold Mine which is two and
one-half miles west of Candor and eight miles southeast of Troy. At
the mine mineralized quartz veins are associated with a slaty rock
which Hafer1 believes may be a sheared andesite. The kaolin is re-
ported by Mr. A. J. Overton, the owner of the land, as occurring over
ten acres under an overburden of about eight feet of sand and gravel.
The mine shaft that has penetrated it is 60 feet deep, and there are
drifts 100 feet long at its bottom.

The sample furnished is a loose, very light pinkish gray, gritty, flour-
like mixture of very fine quartz and kaolin. The few lumps occurring
in it are distinctly schistose, as though the original material from
which the clay was made was a fine-grained schistose or slaty rock,
as, for instance, a sheared felsite.

Mixed with water it forms a distinctly cream-colored paste, and the
coarse, gritty residue left after washing the crude material is flesh-
colored, and it contains comparatively large iron-stained grains.

Under the microscope the principal constituents visible are rough
quartz grains of all sizes from the most minute to those .2 millimeter in
length. Perhaps the greatest number have diameters between .05
and .06 millimeter. Besides these are a few white opaque grains with
straight edges that may be altered feldspar grains and a fair quantity

iMining World. Vol. 28, p. 332, 190S.

128 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

of small kaolinite particles of about the size of the smallest quartz
particles. Occasionally there is a shred of kaolinite .06 millimeter long
but most particles are less than .004 millimeter across.

Prof. C. W. Parmelee of the Ceramics Department of the University
of Illinois, to whom a .sample of the crude clay was submitted for
examination, reports that it gives a residue of 25 per cent sand on a
100-mesh screen. The washed clay is white. When wet it is plastic
but the mass is "short." When burned to cone 6 (1,250° C.) it yields
a light cream-colored product that is highly absorbent and so soft that
it is easily scratched with a knife.

It is noticeable that the washed samples of the three kaolins from
Montgomery County contain a great deal of fine quartz, in which
respect they differ markedly from the kaolins that are known to have
originated by the decomposition of pegmatites. It is probable that
all were derived from fine-grained rocks.

Kaolin Resources

The aggregate of all the kaolin deposits in North Carolina is very
great. Unfortunately, however, the expense of preparing the material
for market precludes the use of many of them because of their small
size. So far as now known only a few of them contain sufficient crude
material to warrant the construction of the washing plants necessary
to fit this for market. From the data now at hand it is probable that
there is enough material known to exist to furnish about 625,000 tons
of refined product. The annual output of the State is 16,000 tons;
consequently the supply is probably sufficient to last 39 years at the
present rate of production. But because of lack of labor the produc-
tion is less than the capacity of the plants to handle it. With plenty
of labor the output may be increased 50 per cent. Moreover, as the
methods of preparing the kaolin for market are improved, there will
unquestionably be an increase in the demand for the refined product
and an enlargement of the plants to take care of the increased demand,
and the life of the reserve will become correspondingly shorter.

A glance at the map (PI. II), however, will show that the deposits
now known center around a few points, notably Dillsboro, Spruce-
pine and Micaville. It is possible that the most attractive deposits
occur in these areas. It is more probable, however, that the discovery
of a few good deposits near these centers has encouraged the search
for others in the same neighborhoods, and that this is the explanation
of their peculiar distribution. It is known that pegmatite dikes are

THE KAOLINS OF NOETH CAROLINA 129

scattered rather uniformly through the mountain district. The distri-
bution of the mica openings corroborates this view. There is no
reason to believe that the kaolinized dikes are less widely distributed
than those that are being worked for mica. But kaolin will not bear
as high transportation costs as will mica, consequently the deposits
of kaolin to be profitable must be close to the railroad, while deposits
of mica may be more distant. There are large areas in the mountain
districts that have not been explored for kaolin, because of the difficulty
of getting the product to market. It is probable that these areas con-
tain deposits, which, except for the cost of transportation to the
railroad, would furnish as profitable sources of kaolin as some of those
now being exploited. With the extension of the system of hard roads
into remote mountain regions the use of trucks will be more feasible
and the cost of transporting the refined kaolin will decrease. Explora-
tion of the mountains will then become a more attractive proposition,
and unquestionably, as a consequence, new sources of kaolin will be
discovered. It is impossible to make any estimate of the probable
amount of material these new sources will contribute to the State's
output. It can only be stated that there may be found enough kaolin
in deposits now unknown to lengthen the life of kaolin industry several
times beyond that indicated by the size of the reserve now known.

Miscellaneous Clays — Sedimentary

During the course of the work on the kaolins the attention of the
Survey was called to the existence of what was supposed to be high-
grade white clay at a number of different localities. Samples from
some of the deposits proved to be kaolin. These have been referred to
in preceding pages. From others the samples are of light colored earth-
enware clay, and from others coarse clay that is of value only as brick
clay. All are sedimentary. None of the deposits were visited, so
that knowledge of them was obtained only by correspondence. As a
matter of record a few of what appear to be the best of the sedimentary
deposits are referred to below.

White Clay

Gerhaedt Deposit

After the field work on the kaolins and clays of the State was finished
a specimen of white clay was received from Mr. Paul Gerhardt from
a deposit about 60 miles south of Hemp, Moore County. The material
is a very pale cream-colored plastic clay. It contains a few iron stains
and numerous rootlets. There is a little fine-grained grit which appears

130 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

to be an integral part of the clay and an occasional large grain of
sand that may have been washed in from the surface.

Mr. Gerhardt writes that the deposit is a large one, has been proven
to a depth of 16 feet and is connected by a good road with the railroad.

Professor Parmelee reports that the sample furnished by Mr. Ger-
hardt leaves a residue of 5 per cent of sand on a 100-mesh screen.
The washed clay is white. When wet it is plastic but very short. For
this reason it is unsuitable for use alone in the manufacture of clay
products. At cone 6 (1,250° C.) it burns to a light buff color, the
body being highly absorbent.

Stoneware Clays

Rhodes Deposit Near Lincolnton

From a number of sources word has been received that there are
several white clay deposits in the vicinity of Xewton and Lincolnton,
Lincoln County, that are workable. Inquiry in Lincoln, however, in-
dicated that the clays referred to are light colored sedimentary clays
that are used for making jugs, crocks and other forms of earthenware.
The only deposit of which samples were seen is on the property of
Mr. D. P. Rhodes, four and one-half miles northwest of Lincolnton,
in the bottom land of South Fork River. The clay, when dry, is light
grayish buff, hard, and it is stained here and there by reddish brown
streaks. It is clearly not a kaolin.

LlNEBERGER AND TODD DEPOSIT Xeai* MoUllt Holly

Another deposit of nearly the same kind of clay occurs on the prop-
erty of Messrs. R. E. Lineberger and William Todd, six miles north
of Mount Holly, in Gaston County. It is on the second terrace of
the Catawba River. The details concerning its extent have not been
learned but from the general descriptions of those who have examined
it, there can be little question but that it is large. It has been used
by local potters in the manufacture of about 100,000 white jugs. The
clay is buff color and is not of "high grade" as the term is used in
this report.

A sample of this clay was tested by the Bureau of Mines at its
Columbus station with the following result :

When subjected to the screen test:

1 . 26% was left on the 20 mesh screen.
6 . 16% was left on the 65 mesh screen.
2.87% was left on the 100 mesh screen.
11 .25% was left on the 200 mesh screen.
78.46% passed through the 200 mesh screen.
The kaolin is very plastic and sticky and is slippery when too wet. It molds
well and possesses a good dry strength.

THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA 131

The quantity of tempering water in terms of dry clay is 33. 39%

The volume shrinkage on drying in terms of dry clay is 37. 4 %

The calculated corresponding linear shrinkage is 14.5 %

The moisture factor on a dry basis is 4. 36%

The deformation tempeiature is cone 29, final.

When burned at 1190° 1250° 1310° 1370° 1410°

The porosity in terms of

burned volume is 7.1 % 7.92% 6.36% 3.6 % 13.9%

No. of bars tested 3 3 3 3 3

The volume shrinkage in

terms of the dry clay is __ 23.1 % 27.99% 29.4 % 28.6 % 15.4 %
The corresponding linear

shrinkage is 5.42%

No. of bars tested 2 3 3 3 3

The surface colors of the bars burned at the different temperatures are:

1190° 1250° 1310° 1370° 1410°

Pecan brown Vinaceous Vinaceous Cocoa brown Wood brown

tawny

The body colors at 1190° and 1250° are the same as the surface colors, but the
body colors of the bars burned at the higher temperatures are very dark grays or
black.

Mills Deposit Near Tryon

Mr. Thomas C. Mills reports the occurrence of clay three miles
north of Tryon on the Columbia, Spartanburg and Asheville Branch
of the Southern Railway, in Polk County, at the foot of Tryon Moun-
tain. The sample seen is of an iron-stained, buff, coarse clay which
is fairly plastic when wet. It was taken from a narrow gully. "The
deposit is visible for about 50 feet along the gully and is from two to
three feet below the surface. About one-eighth mile east of the gully
the day is again visible near the surface."1 When stirred with water
and put through a 150-mesh screen it leaves a residue of 40 per cent
sand. The material passing the screen is sufficiently plastic to be
easily moulded into briquettes, which, burned at cone 6 (1,250° C),
yields a light tan colored product that is fairly well vitrified, but is
crossed by numerous shrinkage cracks. According to Professor Par-
melee this clay in its washed condition is suited for the manufacture
of ordinary stoneware and chemical stoneware.

72. Bennett Prospect Near Leaksville

In Rockingham County, three miles south of Leaksville, Mr. W. J.
Bennett reports a white clay on land owned by him. The deposit has
not been seen, but a sample was obtained from Mr. Bennett, wTho states
that it represents the material from two openings about 400 yards
apart. No particulars have been learned as to the method of occur-
rence of the clay, but from its character it is evident that it is of
sedimentary origin.

1Quoted from letter of Mr. Mills, dated March 26, 1919.

132 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The sample is of a light gray, finely granular and slightly gritty
clay that becomes very sticky when treated with water. It slakes
readily, forming a light gray viscous fluid from which a considerable
quantity of sand separates upon standing. This consists of small, clear,
sharp-edged quartz particles and larger rounded white or light gray
grains, that appear to be aggregates of quartz and feldspar. If care-
fully washed it might serve as filling for cheap cotton goods, linoleum,
etc. In its natural condition it would probably make good stoneware.
It is not a high-grade white clay or kaolin such as that used in the
manufacture of whiteware.

The deposit is within three miles of the terminus of the Danville and
Western Railway.

Shelton Deposit Near Parkersburg

Mr. Amos Shelton reports boring through a deposit of compact
white clay, when digging a well ten miles southwest of Parkersburg,
Sampson County. Samples of the clay have not been seen, but since
Sampson County is on the Coastal Plain it is possible that the deposit
may be similar to some of the deposits in the Cretaceous series in
South Carolina.

Wyatt Deposit Near Faith

Mr. J. T. "Wyatt writes that a deposit of white clay exists four and
one-half miles south of Salisbury, near Faith in Rowan County. It
is two miles from the Southern Railway. Some of it has been used
in making white smoking pipes. Samples were not seen.

Pyrophyllite Prospect Near Glendon

Mr. John S. Honeycombe reports the existence of a large deposit of
china clay near Glendon, Moore County. This "china clay," accord-
ing to Mr. Honeycombe, is pyrophyllite and not kaolin. A sample
possesses the optical properties of pyrophyllite.

Plate II.

132 THE KAOLINS OF NORTH CAROLINA

The deposit is within three miles of the terminus of the Danville and
Western Railway.

Shelton Deposit Near Parkersburg

Wyatt Deposit Near Faith

Mr. J. T. Wyatt writes that a deposit of white clay exists four and
one-half miles south of Salisbury, near Paith in Rowan County. It
is two miles from the Southern Railway. Some of it has been used
in making white smoking pipes. Samples were not seen.

Pyrophyllite Prospect Near Glendon

?>:

NORTH CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC SURVEY

CHAPEL HILL, N. C.

JOSEPH HYDE PRATT, Director

IN COOPERATION WITH THE

FOREST SERVICE, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

WILLIAM B. GREELEY, FORESTER

BULLETIN 30

WOOD- USING INDUSTRIES

NORTH CAROLINA

By R. K. HELPHENSTINE, Jr.

Statistician in Forest Products

1 '
, i

, i

■

RALEIGH

mltohei/l peisting company

State Printers

1923

GEOLOGICAL BOARD

Governor Cameron Morrison, ex officio Chairman Raleigh

Frank R. Hewitt Asheville

C. C. Smoot, III North Wilkesboro

Hon. John H. Small Washington

Dr. S. Westray Battle Asheville

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director, Chapel Hill

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

Chapel Hill, N". C, January 1, 1923.

To His Excellency, Hon. Cameron Morrison,
Governor of North Carolina.
Sir: — A report on "The Wood-using Industries of North Carolina,"
which has just been completed, was prepared jointly by the North Caro-
lina Geological and Economic Survey and the United States Forest
Service, and it is recommended that this be published as Bulletin 30 of
the publications of the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey.
This report should be of interest and value to the timber owner, the
sawmill operator, wood-using industries, merchants who handle the fin-
ished product, and all who are interested in trees and their uses.

Yours respectfully,

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director,
N. 0. Geological and Economic Survey.

,280

PREFACE

In 1910 the Survey published in Economic Paper No. 20 a report on
"The Wood-using Industries of Worth Carolina." This report was very
favorably received by the industries, and there was a constant demand
for it until the edition became exhausted. With the large increase in
the number of wood-using plants and the great increase in the volume
of business of our wood-using industries, and on account of the decided
change in the quantity and quality of raw material available for these
industries, it was deemed advisable to prepare another report on the
wood-using industries of the State which would consider not only the
production of the plants, but their sources of supply of raw material.
The statistics and information presented in this report cover the calendar
year of 1919. In collecting material for the report some most interest-
ing and instructive information regarding the timber used by these
industries and its source of supply was obtained.

During the investigation 155 of the more important wood-using plants
of the State were visited and, according to statements obtained from a
majority of these industries, their greatest need at present is a supply
of suitable timber to be used in their plants, and the manufacturers are
now considerably worried over their future supply. The statement was
made at nearly all of the industries visited that the quality of their
wood supply was not nearly as good as it was ten years ago, and that
they were having to go constantly further away for what they did obtain.
Representatives of at least one-third of these industries made the state-
ment that their available supply of timber will be exhausted in ten or
fifteen years.

With the shortage of timber there is a corresponding increase in price,
and seven manufacturers, representing Eastern, Central, and Western
North Carolina, state that the cost of their lumber supply has more than
doubled during the past ten years, and that the quality is not nearly as
good as it formerly was. These conditions have caused those interested
in our wood-using industries to begin to consider seriously the question
of a future supply of timber, and they are now beginning to cooperate
with the Survey in its endeavor to protect and conserve our timber
supply; and they are realizing that the conservation of our forests and
timber supply does not mean the nonutilization of the timber, but does
mean maintaining a future supply of timber by maintaining good trees
in our forests and bringing into timber cultivation land especially
adapted for this purpose. It is believed that North Carolina can main-

6 Preface

tain sufficient forests to produce and provide perpetually a sufficient
timber suppply for its manufacturing industries, but the first prerequi-
site to accomplishing this is the protection of our forests and timber
lands from fire.

The present report takes up in detail the various kinds of wood grown
in North Carolina and their distribution and the purposes for which
they are now being used, with suggestions of other uses. There is also
given a list of the commercial trees of North Carolina.

The investigation upon which this report is based was - carried on
under the joint direction of J. S. Holmes, State Forester of the North
Carolina Geological and Economic Survey, and H. S. Betts of the Office
of Forest Products, U. S. Forest Service. Mr. Holmes prepared largely
the chapter on "Forest Conditions," and compiled the list of commercial
trees of North Carolina.

It is hoped that this report will be an incentive to still greater co-
operation between the wood-using industries, the timber growers, and
the State in conserving and perpetuating our timber supply.

Joseph Hyde Pratt,

Director.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part I page

Introduction 11

Importance of Manufacturing 12

Purpose of the Study : 13

Forest Conditions 14

Mountain Region 15

Spruce Type 15

Mountain Hardwoods 16

Piedmont Region 17

Hardwood and Pine 17

Second Growth Pine Type 18

Coastal Plain Region 18

Coastal Pine Type 19

Hardwood Swamps 19

Depletion of Forest Resources 20

The Future Timber Supply 24

Part II

Kinds of Wood 26

State-grown and Imported Woods 28

The Woods Described 29

Softwoods 30

The Hardwoods 35

Foreign Woods 53

Part III

Industries 54

Planing Mill Products 56

Boxes and Crates 57

Furniture 60

Chairs : 62

Vehicles and Vehicle Parts 64

Fruit and Vegetable Packages 66

Sash, Doors, Blinds, and General Mill Work 67

Caskets and Coffins 69

Elevators and Machine Construction 71

Shuttles, Spools, and Bobbins 72

Handles 74

Fixtures 76

Agricultural Implements 79

Miscellaneous 80

Part IV

The Uses of Wood by North Carolina Manufacturers 82

Wood-using Factories of North Carolina 91

Part V

Production of Forest Products 99

Lumber 99

Lath and Shingles 100

Cooperage Stock 100

Veneer 101

Pulpwood 101

Appendix — Commercial Trees of North Carolina 103

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Plate Description Facing Page

I. A, Typical forest scene in the Mountain Region of North Caro-
lina ; B, typical forest scene in the Piedmont Region of North

Carolina 16

II. Typical forest scene in the Coastal Plain Region of North Caro-
lina 20

III. A, The manufacture of box shooks for canned food packages.
North Carolina pine is the wood used ; B, interior of a small

North Carolina box factory 57

IV. A wooden bedstead of oak in the "white," or before any finish of
any kind is applied. The framework is solid wood, and ply-
wood is used for the panels 61

V. A, Higher grade walnut bedroom pieces in a North Carolina
furniture factory. The chairs to the right are finished in old
ivory and have cane seats; B, interior of a North Carolina
factory devoted to the manufacture of bedroom furniture. The

articles shown consist of footboards of wooden beds 61

VI. A, Mirror frames for bureaus, chiffoniers, and dressing tables as
produced by a North Carolina manufacturer of bedroom furni-
ture ; B, the glue room of a large North Carolina furniture

factory 61

VII. A, Dressing table seats in a North Carolina chair factory ready
for staining and finishing ; B, a corner of the finishing room of
a North Carolina chair factory. Settees, rockers, dining-room

chairs, and others are shown in the picture 63

VIII. A, Chairs and settees in a North Carolina plant ready for stain-
ing and finishing. In this factory red gum is the principal
wood used ; B, chair parts in the making in a North Carolina

factory 63

IX. A, The wheel room of a large North Carolina wagon factory : B.
wagon box board stock, hubs and spokes in the plant of a large

North Carolina farm wagon manufacturer 65

X. A, Interior of a North Carolina wagon factory. Completed
wheels in the foreground and finished wooden gear parts in the
rear, ready for assembling ; B, a portion of the assembly room
for running gears in the factory of a large wagon maker of

North Carolina 65

XI. A, The finishing room in a North Carolina casket factory ; B. the

manufacture of burial cases in a North Carolina casket factory 69
XII. A, Dogwood is the principal wood used for shuttles. The picture
shows a pile of dogwood logs on the yard of a North Carolina
shuttle block mill ; B, shuttles in the making, the raw material
used being the dogwood blocks produced by the shuttle block

mill 73

XIII. A, Ash and hickory handle squares seasoning under cover at a
North Carolina handle factory ; B, finished and partly finished

"D" shovel handles in a North Carolina handle plant..— 75

XIV. Rough turned "D" shovel handles, the product of a North Caro-
lina handle plant 75

List of Illustrations 9

Plate Description Facing Page
XV. A, A store and office fixture factory in North Carolina. Show
cases in the making ; B, a special order of white enamel tea-
room fixtures under construction in the plant of a North Caro-
lina office fixture manufacturer 77

XVI. Agricultural implement handles and the raw material from
which they are made. The handles are of oak and are first

steamed and then bent, and afterwards worked 79

XVII. A, One-horse, three-row grain drills as manufactured in an agri-
cultural implement factory of North Carolina. Oak is used
for handles and beams, while North Carolina pine is employed
for seed boxes ; B, interior of a North Carolina agricultural
implement factory. Oak is the only wood used in the manu-
facture of the small fertilizer distributors shown in this plate,
the wood being employed for plow beams and handles 79

XVIII. Single-row oat sowers with oak handles and North Carolina pine
hoppers, the product of a North Carolina agricultural imple-
ment manufacturer 79

^^k^^^^

Wood-Using Industries of North Carolina

By R. K. Helphenstine, Jr., Statistician in Forest Products

PART I

INTRODUCTION

Important among the many valuable natural resources of North Caro-
lina are her forests. The total area of the State is 31 million acres, of
which 21 million acres, or two-thirds of all the land embraced within
its boundaries, support a timber crop. These forests produce practi-
cally all of the commercially valuable hardwoods native to the United
States and most of the eastern coniferous woods. An estimate made in
1920 by the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey placed
the stand of timber in the State at 34 billion feet, board measure. With
such a plentiful supply of timber, North Carolina has naturally always
been one of the leading lumber-producing states. The accompanying
chart shows the relative rank of the leading states in the production of
lumber for the eleven years from 1909 to 1919, inclusive.

From the foregoing chart it can be seen that North Carolina has never
occupied lower than tenth place during any of the years shown, and that
for six of those years she ranked either fourth or fifth. The lumber cut
in the State by the 1,211 mills that reported in 1921, the most recent
year for which these statistics have been gathered, amounted to
931,015,000 feet, board measure. Of this quantity 732,035,000 board
feet were softwoods, and 198,980,000 board feet were hardwoods. The
annual lumber cut alone does not, however, represent the total drain
upon the forests of the State. There must be added to the products of
the sawmills the raw material cut for shingles, ties, cooperage stock,
pulpwood, poles, etc., the manufacture of which all call for merchant-
able timber. In addition, several million feet of timber in the form of
cordwood is cut for fuel and other purposes. These various items bring
the total cut of timber in North Carolina each year up to the 7 billion
board foot mark, or an annual cut of 350 board feet per acre for all of
the forested area of the State. Even this stupendous figure of 7 billion
board feet does not cover the total quantity of timber removed annually,
for the reason that it does not take into account the extensive losses in
both merchantable timber and potentially valuable young growth due
to forest fires.

*The figures presented in this introduction relating to the area of the State, the area of the
forest land and the stand of timber are taken from the Biennial Report of the State Geologist
for 1919-1920 published in 1921 by the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey.

12 WoOD-USIXG IxDUSTEIES OF XoETH CaBOLIXA

The yearly growth of wood per acre in Xorth Carolina has been esti-
mated by the Geological and Economic Survey of the State to be ap-
proximately 150 board feet. Since the annual removal per acre, exclu-
sive of that destroyed by fire, is 350 board feet, the State is using each
year 200 board feet per acre in excess of that which is replaced by
growth.

Although the State Legislature of Xorth Carolina in 1915 passed an
excellent law embodying more particularly provisions for forest fire pro-
tection, formerly no appropriation was ever made to enforce it. In
1921, however, a sum of approximately $9,000 was set aside for this
purpose. With this sum provided by the State for this work, further
financial assistance is made available by the Federal Government under
the Weeks Law, Section 2 of which provides, among other things, for
assistance to the State in fire protection on the headwaters of navigable
streams in those states that have some paid system of State fire protec-
tion. The amount given by the Government cannot exceed the amount
spent by the State, but it may, however, go as high as $25,000 providing
the State spends a like amount. With sufficient funds to carry out the
provisions of her forest law, and with a well defined policy of forest
management in active operation, the State should soon be able to appre-
ciably check the rapid depletion of her forests.

IMPORTANCE OF MANUFACTURING

Xorth Carolina is beginning to take her place among the leading
manufacturing states, and her natural resources, which are of great
importance, have a marked influence in the establishment and growth
of many industries. Some of the materials used in manufacturing, such
as cotton, cereals, tobacco, timber, clay, and stone are produced in large
quantities. The extensive steam and electric railway mileage and the
transportation facilities provided by the harbors and navigable rivers
of the State are important factors in the furtherance of its manufac-
turing and commercial enterprises.

Agriculture is the leading industry of the State, the total value of the
farm products produced in 1919, as shown in the report of the Fourteenth
Census, being over $503,000,000. In the manufacturing field cotton
goods takes the lead, the total value of such products produced, as pre-
sented in the census report of 1919, being $318,368,181. Tobacco manu-
factures ranked second in value with $226,636,000, while the value of
lumber and timber products, the third in importance, was $51,928,000.
The wood-using industries, with which this report deals, constitute one of
the important classes of manufacturing enterprises of the State. Unfor-
tunately, however, no data are available which show the total value of

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 13

the products made by this group of industries, but it is more than prob-
able that if combined with lumber and timber products, the figure would
be sufficiently large to give the joint industry second place among those
of the State.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

During the years from 1909 to 1913, inclusive, the Forest Service,
U. S. Department of Agriculture, conducted studies of the wood-using
industries in practically all of the various states. In certain cases this
work was done in cooperation with the state, and the reports prepared
as a result of the study were published by the state forester. In others
the work was carried on in cooperation with state agricultural experi-
ment stations, state colleges of forestry, state departments of horticul-
ture, state geologic surveys, or state conservation commissions. For the
remaining states the Forest Service collected the necessary data, and
the reports were published in some of the leading lumber trade journals.
Since the data contained in these various reports are now considerably
out of date, some of the states for which these studies were originally
made have requested the assistance of the Forest Service in the revision
of these reports with a view of embodying in them more recent informa-
tion. Among these is the State of North Carolina, the original report
for which was prepared and published in 1910. In the preparation of
this revised report on the "Wood-using Industries of North Carolina,"
which covers the calendar year 1919, the plan of procedure was the same
as that previously followed.

An appropriate questionnaire was sent to each wood-using factory in
the State, requesting information as to the kind and amount of each
species used, the commodities manufactured, the form in which the raw
material was received at the factory, and whether the woods used were
grown within the State or came from outside. Other data covering
past, present, and future local timber supply, manufacturing tendencies,
etc., were also requested. Considerable quantities of lumber in its rough
form are used with no further change other than slight trimming to fit
it together, as in house construction and the building of bridges, con-
crete forms, scaffolding, fencing, etc. This material is not taken into
account in this study, nor is any wood not actually employed as raw
material in wood-using factories. The output of sawmills and such
other primary products of the forest as veneer, lath, shingles, crossties,
cooperage stock, posts, poles, extract wood, pulpwood, etc., is therefore
also excluded from these statistics. Information of this kind has always
been compiled separately, and such statistics as they relate to North
Carolina are presented in the appendix of this report. They cover the
most recent years for which such figures are available.

14 Wood-using Ixdusteies of Xoeth Carolina

The purposes of this report are manifold, and are intended to show
the extent to which lumber is further manufactured in the State of
Xorth Carolina, to indicate what industries of this kind exist in the
State, the kinds and quantities of the various woods they use, what they
pay for them, and the classes of finished commodities into which they are
converted.

The United States Forest Service and the Xorth Carolina Geological
and Economic Survey are in constant receipt of requests for information
from points throughout this and nearby states concerning markets for
various kinds of timber and lumber, data on wood uses, manufacturing
processes in various wood-using industries, and advice and assistance in
waste utilization. This report will supply much of this information.
In addition, it will aid the farmer, timberland owner, and sawmill
operator in disposing of timber which they desire to market through the
presentation of information as to the kinds of wood used by different
classes of manufacturers and the forms and prices applicable to such raw
material. Wood-using factories are in turn benefited by having these
additional opportunities to purchase raw material brought to their
attention. Manufacturers will also find in this report helpful sugges-
tions relating to various points pertinent to their respective industries,
such as the substitution of cheaper woods for the more costly ones now
being used, regional sources of supply for raw material, etc.

FOREST CONDITIONS

Probably as many important commercial timber trees occur naturally
in Xorth Carolina as in any State in the Union. Of the twenty-nine
"kinds of wood" listed by the Forest Service in its reports on the pro-
duction of lumber in the United States, twenty are important in this
State. Of the twenty-four "minor species" half of them are cut to
some extent in Xorth Carolina. Many of the "kinds" consist of a num-
ber of species ; for instance, seven different species of yellow pine cut in
Xorth Carolina are included under this class, though the great majority
of the yellow pine cut belongs to two species, the shortleaf and the
loblolly. Again, sixteen species of oak are cut into lumber, some of
them, however, only occasionally, eight hickories, six ashes, three or four
maples, three birches^ and two or three of several other kinds. At least
seventy tree species are used for lumber in Xorth Carolina, and several
others are used in some other form in the wood-using industries of the
State.

These trees are by no means distributed evenly over the State. In
fact, very few species occur in commercial quantities from the eastern to
the western border. Their distribution depends chiefly on soil, moisture,
and climate, all of which vary greatly in the different parts of the State.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 15

The range of temperature from the southeastern coast to an elevation
of 6,700 feet is accompanied by a change in typical trees from the
palmetto of Smith's Island to the spruce of Mount Mitchell.

Three general forest regions are recognized in North Carolina, the
Mountain, the Piedmont, and the Coastal Plain. The two former are
included in the Southern Appalachian Hardwood Kegion, and the latter
in the Southern Pine Region. Each of these three contains two or more
fairly distinct forest types, each furnishing its quota towards the State's
timber supply, and each requiring somewhat different methods of man-
agement to insure a permanent supply of the best quality of timber in
the greatest quantity, which is the chief object of forestry.

MOUNTAIN REGION

Approximately one-sixth of the area of the State, lying to the north
and west of the lower or eastern slope of the Blue Ridge, is comprised
within this region. It lies above an elevation of some 1,500 feet, and
an average elevation for the region would be about 2,500 feet.

Spruce Type. — The spruce forests, lying on the summits and slopes
of the higher mountains almost entirely above an elevation of 5,500 feet,
consisted of dense stands of spruce and balsam timber occurring in
varying proportion, but averaging about 60 per cent spruce and 40 per
cent balsam. In second growth the balsam is more abundant than the
spruce. These beautiful forests have been so inaccessible that up to
twenty years ago they were almost untouched by the lumbermen. Since
that time, however, owing to the increasing scarcity of spruce for lumber
and pulpwood, this type, of which there are probably not more than
300,000 acres in the State, has been cut until at the present time prob-
ably not more than 20 per cent of the area contains any merchantable
timber.

The cut-over areas have almost without exception been so severely
burned that they not only contain no young growth of these two impor-
tant species, but no other commercial timber trees are taking their place,
the second growth consisting only of shrubs and trees of no commercial
value.

During the World War there was a large demand for high-grade
spruce lumber for aeroplane construction, but the great majority of
spruce and balsam timber has been shipped to the northeastern states
for the use of the building trades. Practically no spruce lumber is used
in North Carolina industries. There is, however, a steadily increasing
demand for these two woods for paper pulp, and probably much more of
the spruce in North Carolina is used for this purpose than for lumber.

The spruce forests have been considered of extraordinary value in
protecting the headwaters of streams. In North Carolina uncut spruce

16 WOOD-USING INDUSTEIES OF NoETH CaEOLIXA

forests have seldom been known to burn. The consequence is that the
very heavy rains of the high mountains have been so retarded in their
runoff that there has been a minimum of variation in the now of streams
whose sources lie in these high altitudes. Unfortunately, these lands
have been all held by extensively private owners, who have been obliged
to look to the timber for profit only. They should have been in public
ownership so that they could have been properly managed and protected
for the public benefit. The future prospects are not bright. A very
long time must elapse before the burned over spruce areas can be re-
forested naturally to the same species. If fires are kept out, undoubt-
edly reproduction will eventually be secured, but without sufficient seed
trees this will be a matter of decades or possibly of centuries. Protec-
tion of the areas from fire is the first practicable measure. This should
be done by the State and Nation cooperating with the landowner.

Mountain Hardwoods. — The remainder of the mountain region below
the spruce is known «as the mountain hardwood type. The original for-
ests contained a large number of valuable as well as less important
species. The composition of the forest varies according to soil, moisture
and situation, so that the type is for convenience divided up into ridge,
slope, and cove. The timber on the ridges consists largely of chestnut
oak, chestnut, red maple, black gum, and a number of less important
species. On the higher ridges and slopes above 3,500 or 4,000 feet in
elevation often the chief trees are red oak, sugar maple, buckeye, and
basswood, as well as chestnut and chestnut oak. The coves have con-
tained the heaviest and most valuable timber, but owing to their accessi-
bility have been culled first. Here have grown yellow poplar, basswood,
cherry, ash, as well as chestnut, hickory, hemlock, and several species of
oak. The valuable ash, cherry, birch, and walnut have, however, been
largely cut out. Between the coves and the higher ridges stretch the
slopes supporting timber more or less dense and of large size, according
to the soil and aspect. The north slope differs very little in composition
from the cove, while the south slope is much more open and differs little
from the ridge forests. Occasionally "benches" and some of the cooler
slopes support almost pure stands of hemlock, but usually this tree, like
the white pine, occurs mixed with the hardwoods in comparatively small
proportion.

The earlier lumbering operations selected only the more valuable
trees, and often the cut-over area would look like an uncut forest from
a little distance. With the general use of logging railroads, however,
more and more of the timber within reach has been taken, until now
very little of any kind of timber is left after lumbering. However,
many of the hardwood trees reproduce readily by sprouts from the

PLATE I

A. Typical forest scene in the Mountain Region of North Carolina.

B. Typical forest scene in the Piedmont Region of North Carolina.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 17

stumps or roots of the younger trees, while others come in from seeds
which are easily scattered by the wind. Among the latter are the poplar,
ash, basswood, maple, hemlock, the pines, and some others. If seed
trees of these species are left there will be little trouble in getting a
second growth with these trees in the composition. Fires, however,
must be prevented, for practically all of these wind-sown and valuable
trees are easily injured by fire when young, and the burned-over forest
seldom contains any appreciable percentage of them. The object of the
forester in this type is to secure ample seed of the more valuable species
by retaining trees which will bear them and to prevent fire in order that
the young trees may be protected.

. piedmont region

From the lower slopes of the Blue Ridge to what is known as the "fall
line," which is where the Piedmont Plateau falls off into the Coastal
Plain Region, the original forests were a mixture of hardwood and short-
leaf pine. This area comprises practically one-third of the State.
Inroads have been made upon this forest by clearing for agriculture,
.until at the present time probably not more than 25 per cent of the area
retains the remnants of the original forest. Much of the land that was
cleared, however, has been allowed to revert to forest growth, and this
has usually come up to pine, making an entirely different type. The
mixed hardwood and the pine and the second-growth pine are the two
principal types of this region.

Hardwood and Pine. — Very little of this forest can now be found in
its original state. In nearly all cases the old pine trees have been cut
for lumber and often the best hardwood has also been removed. Excel-
lent quality oak of several different species was yielded by these forests,
and the establishment of the furniture industry in Piedmont North
Carolina was due almost entirely to the proximity of a large supply of
suitable oak timber. Yellow poplar was also abundant throughout the
region, but in consequence of lumbering and burning the woods it has
become exceedingly scarce. The planing mills of the Piedmont Region
years ago manufactured the old growth pine into sash, doors, blinds, and
building material of the best quality, but now they depend almost
entirely upon the second growth pine forests for their supply. The
principal species in this region that comprise the hardwood and pine
type of forest are, in the order of their importance, the oaks, which
nearly always form as much or more than one-half the stand, shortleaf
pine, both original and second growth, white pine and chestnut along
the western border of the region, poplar, hickory, gum, and a number of
other commercial species.
2

18 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Unlike the Mountain Region, lumbering is done here almost entirely
with portable mills. The areas are small, usually forming parts of the
farms, and it is seldom that more than 500 or 1,000 acres belongs to one
owner. It is because of the comparatively small continuous areas of
woodland that the risk from fire is so much less than in the mountains
or the Coastal Plain.

The chief feature of management of these forests is the removal of
the old, and in some cases comparatively worthless trees, with the object
of favoring thrifty young growth of the better species. "With a demand
for firewood as great as in any State in the Union, a market for even the
valueless trees can be found in most instances. Owners can do much
towards improving their woodland by following such a practice.

Second Growth Pine Type. — Throughout th.e Piedmont Region areas
which have been cleared and in turn abandoned have almost uniformly
grown up with pine, chiefly the shortleaf . On some areas, however, the
scrub pine has come in and on the higher, poorer situations this some-
what inferior tree tends to supplant the shortleaf pine. In the eastern
part of the region loblolly pine has in some cases taken possession of
old fields, but where it occurs it is usually mixed with shortleaf.

These second growth pine forests, many of them occupying land which'
was cultivated prior to the Civil "War, have for the past twenty years
furnished a large part of the pine lumber in this region. Formerly
"old field" pine was looked upon as an encumbrance upon the ground,
as it frequently invaded old pastures. It has only been in comparatively
recent years that its value has been recognized. The shortleaf pine
grows somewhat slower than the loblolly pine of the Coastal Plain
Region. The lumber of each is put upon the northeastern markets
under the same commercial name of "North Carolina pine."

Much "old field" land has been recleared after lumbering because it is
easier to remove second growth pine than hardwood stumps, the former
usually decaying within a very few years. Where the land has not been
cleared a growth of hardwoods follows the cutting of the pine, and often
a fair stand of hardwood reproduction is already on the ground before
cutting commences. Dogwood, poplar, red gum, oak, hickory, etc., form
the succeeding forest. With the reservation of seed trees and the pre-
vention of fires it should be possible to secure a second crop of pine,
which in most cases would be desirable.

COASTAL PLAIN REGION

' The original forests of the Coastal Plain region, which comprises
about one-half the total area of the State, were largely longleaf pine.
Ever since the first settlement, however, these forests have been de-

Wood-using Industries of Worth Carolina 19

structively exploited by the turpentine operator, the lumberman, and
the stock raiser, the latter often responsible for the damage done by both
fire and hogs. These two, fire and hogs, have been the principal causes
contributing to the desolate and unprofitable condition of much of our
eastern pine lands at the present time. There are now practically no
old growth longleaf pine forests left, though here and there a few
restricted areas of second growth longleaf may be found.

The present forest area, which has been estimated at nearly eleven
million acres, consists chiefly of second growth loblolly pine on the
uplands and hardwoods in the river bottoms and swamps.

Coastal Pine Type. — Three-fourths or more of the forest area of the
Coastal Plain Region is classed as pine forest. The present stand and
condition varies according to quality of soil, drainage, ownership, and
transportation facilities. It was recently estimated that 40 per cent of
this type was nonproducing, namely not growing sufficient timber on it
to produce a profitable crop ; 25 per cent was in young growth, too small
for market, and 35 per cent still supported a crop of merchantable
timber.

Loblolly pine, or shortleaf pine as it is generally called throughout the
region, is the principal timber tree. When sawed and put upon the
market it is almost universally known as Worth Carolina pine lumber.
It is used in this form for all kinds of construction purposes. The tree
grows rapidly on most soils in the region and readily reproduces itself
naturally where fires are kept out. Unlike the longleaf pine, its seeds
are not eaten by hogs, though the seedlings are often uprooted and
destroyed by these animals.

Although much of the pine land should be classed as potentially
agricultural, there will probably be no demand for the greater part of
it for many years to come. Labor is scarce and the reclamation of such
lands slow. In order, therefore, to put the land to use and make the
investment remunerative there should be no idle land, and what will not
be needed for farm crops for the next forty or fifty years should be
encouraged to produce a forest crop.

In cutting these forests provision should be made for securing suffi-
cient seed, even by leaving seed trees where necessary, and fire should
be absolutely prevented. Some have considered this an impossibility,
but no one has a right to this conclusion until an earnest effort towards
forest fire prevention has been made by the landowners, the local people,
and the State all cooperating.

Hardivood Swamps. — Along the rivers and smaller streams occur
alluvial and muck lands, more or less drained", but usually very wet
during part of the year. These are occupied mostly by a variety of

20 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

hardwoods, sometimes mixed with cypress or juniper. The latter is
found in wet sandy and often peaty swamps, while the former is more
common on heavier soils and near running water.

On the heavier lands, especially in the overflow swamps along rivers,
several species of oak are the chief timber trees. These are associated
with red maple, elms and gums. In other places the gums predominate.
Up until recent years these were not lumbered to any extent, and even
yet the demand for gum lumber is somewhat limited. It is, however,
cut into veneer for packages and furniture, and there has been con-
siderable inquiry about it for paper making.

These swamp lands, when cut over, come up largely to red gum, black
gum, and tupelo, though seedlings from other hardwood species are
usually present in more or less abundance. Cypress and juniper repro-
duce very irregularly, the large openings made by logging letting in
more direct sunlight than is good for the young seedlings of these species.

Many of these swamps, when drained, make excellent agricultural
lands, but some are better adapted to forest growth, and upon such areas
logging should be done so that a second crop of timber may reasonably
be expected. Fire prevention and the protection of the small trees is all
that is usually necessary, though sometimes retention of seed trees may
be advisable. Eire prevention is fairly simple in these swamps and if
fires are prevented, the hardwoods should soon form shade enough to
protect the juniper, and where seed trees are present a new crop of this
valuable tree may be expected. Cypress reproduction is more difficult
to secure, and like the longleaf pine, it may be destined to be replaced
by other more adaptable species.

DEPLETION OF FOREST RESOURCES

The forests of this country have been divided into several main divi-
sions, according to the predominant species that grow in each. One of
these is the Southern Appalachian Hardwood Kegion, which includes the
hardwood forests of Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Almost
the entire area embraced within this region was once covered by virgin
forests. These forests constituted a wealth of timber comprising oak,
chestnut, and yellow poplar of large size and high quality, walnut,
cherry, hickory, basswood, and the other valuable hardwoods, as well as
white and yellow pine, and hemlock. The earliest operations in the
region consisted of the removal of only such trees as walnut, cherry, and
the finest oak and yellow poplar from easily accessible situations. The
introduction of modern hogging methods extended operations into nearly
all parts of the region, so that at present comparatively little virgin

PLATE II

Typical forest scene in the Coastal Plain Region of North Carolina.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 21

timber remains, most of it remote and difficult to log. Present logging
operations consist for the most part of the working over of previously
culled stands and the removal of practically every saw log as well as a
large part of the smaller material. The lumber cut from such timber
is necessarily of poorer quality than that previously produced.

In 1909 the peak of lumber production was reached in the Southern
Appalachian Hardwood Region, the cut for that year being approxi-
mately 4 billion feet. Since 1909 the cut of lumber in the region has
gradually declined so that the normal cut now is in the neighborhood
of 3 billion feet. The lumber cut, however, represents only about a
third of the total consumption of wood in the region. The balance
represents material removed in the form of extract wood and bark,
poles, posts, ties, cooperage stock, fuel wood, and other products not cut
in the form of lumber. Much of the material converted into these
products consists of second growth timber. In the case of lumber pro-
duction, however, the large proportion of the timber is cut from old
growth stands. "With the exhaustion of the old growth, lumbermen will
then have to look to the second growth timber as a source of supply, and
since very little of this will yield lumber of a better quality than 'No. 1
Common, the effect upon the furniture and other industries largely
dependent upon high-grade lumber will be very serious.

The total quantity of timber removed annually from this region is
further augmented by that which is destroyed by fire and disease. The
chestnut blight has entered the mountainous area and, according to
pathologists, is almost certain to sweep through the hardwood forests
and eventually eliminate this important species. As a result, tanning
and other industries dependent upon this tree for raw material will be
deprived of their chief source of supply and other species will be called
upon to supply this demand, thus further adding to the depletion of the
timber. It is impossible to even estimate the depletion resulting from
the chestnut tree blight or from fire, which annually takes a heavy toll
from the forests of the region.

Considerable uncertainty exists in the minds of even the best informed
men in the lumber industry as to the duration of the cut in the remain-
ing old growth stands of timber in the Southern Appalachian Hardwood
Region. In West Virginia, which has been one of the leading hardwood
producing states, the statement was made recently by one of the best
informed men in the lumber industry that the length of cut on a large
scale would not exceed five years. A responsible official in a large mill
in that state reported that most of the mills would be cut out within
from five to eight years. The State Forester of North Carolina esti-
mates that the supply of old growth hardwood timber will last approxi-

22 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

mately 17 years. A prominent lumberman of western North Carolina
stated that in his opinion the cut from old growth timber in north
Georgia and southwestern North Carolina will last 20 years, but that
this cut will come increasingly from small operations. In Kentucky and
Tennessee the duration of the cut of old growth hardwoods is believed
by the manager of one lumber company to be 20 years, while another
well informed man sees 15 years ahead for the Kentucky hardwoods.
A future cut of 15 years is predicted for old growth timber in the
Southern Appalachian Region by another representative of the industry,
while still another estimates that the supply will last 25 years. The
consensus of opinion among the best informed men in the industry seems
to be that if present conditions continue the Southern Appalachians will
have ceased to function as an important lumber producing region of
high-grade hardwoods within 20 years, and that within 25 years the
old growth timber will be practically gone.

The extent of depletion of the old growth hardwoods in the Southern
Appalachian Hardwood Eegion is further reflected and perhaps more
forcibly brought to our attention by the statements made in the schedules
furnished by the wood-using factories of North Carolina, from which
the data in this report were prepared. Referring to local supplies at
the present time in comparison with conditions existing during the past
10 or 20 years, 93 per cent of the furniture plants in the State, 91 per
cent of the vehicle factories, and 100 per cent of the chair makers
reported that supplies had been greatly reduced. In the matter of pros-
pective local supplies on the basis of a 10-year outlook, 12 per cent of
the furniture, 22 per cent of the vehicle, and 43 per cent of the chair
factories reported that supplies would be exhausted. That supplies
would be gradually reduced was reported by 57 per cent of the chair
makers, 88 per cent of the furniture factories, and 67 per cent of the
vehicle plants. Of all firms in the State represented by these three
classes of establishments only 11 saw an outlook for sufficient raw mate-
rial, and these were all vehicle plants.

Depletion has not stopped with the hardwoods in the Southern
Appalachian Region. The coniferous trees have come in for their share,
especially the yellow pines. Recent estimates place the original yellow
pine area of North Carolina at 10 million acres. Of this amount all but
500,000 acres have been cut over. In the Coastal Plain region longleaf
pine was once the characteristic forest tree. Turpentine operations,
lumbering, the destruction of seeds and seedlings by hogs, and other
agencies have brought about the depletion of the supplies of this impor-
tant species in the State. The present stand of longleaf pine in North
Carolina is hardly more than 50,000 acres, most of it being second

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 23

growth timber, widely scattered in small areas. Such virgin longleaf
pine areas as remain will no doubt soon be logged and become either
nonproductive or be restocked with loblolly or shortleaf pine. The most
valuable tree, from an economic standpoint, in North Carolina is lob-
lolly pine, a species that now occupies in almost pure stands, much of
it over 100 years old, nearly all of the cut-over longleaf pine lands,
especially those in the Coastal Plain Region. As previously mentioned,
loblolly pine and shortleaf pine in the proportion of 80 per cent of the
former and 20 per cent of the latter comprise the pine marketed in the
State as North Carolina pine. The softwood lumber production of
North Carolina in 1921 was 732,035,000 feet, board measure, and of
this quantity 647,845,000 board feet, or over 88 per cent, was of yellow
pine. Since comparatively little longleaf pine is cut in North Carolina,
the bulk of that reported as yellow pine consisted of North Carolina
pine. On the other hand, the total quantity of wood consumed by the
wood-using industries of the State in 1919 was over 493 million feet,
while of this amount more than 248 million feet was North Carolina
pine. These figures of production and consumption show the promi-
nence of this species in North Carolina.

As already stated, all but 500,000 acres of the original 10 million
acres of yellow pine land in North Carolina has been cut over. Of this
total cut-over area 3,600,000 acres are now restocking with trees of saw-
timber size, 5,400,000 acres are restocking with trees of merely cordwood
size, while 1,200,000 acres are not restocking at all. From this it can
be seen that the forest area of North Carolina supporting yellow pine
saw-timber size has decreased more than 50 per cent. This is further
brought out by the fact that the lumber cut of yellow pine in North
Carolina has decreased from 1,575,186,000 board feet in 1909 to 931,-
015,000 board feet in 1921, or over 40 per cent during the 13-year period
mentioned.

In 1909 the cut of white pine lumber in North Carolina was 96,624,-
000 board feet, while in 1921 it was only 3,360,000 board feet, a decrease
in 13 years of over 92 per cent. This is but another evidence of forest
depletion in the State.

The dependence of the wood-using factories throughout the entire
United States upon the forest resources of the country is self-evident.
In North Carolina it is particularly noticeable, since, as shown in
Table 3, home-grown timber supplied nearly 86 per cent of the total
quantity consumed by the wood-using industries of the State. If our
forests are to continue to supply the enormous demands for raw material
that are made upon them it is perfectly obvious that some steps must be
taken immediately to insure future crops. Apparently there is but one

24 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

adequate means available, the establishment of a sound forest policy,
the details of which will have to be worked out to fit the conditions
existing in different regions of the country and perhaps also in different
states.

THE FUTURE TIMBER SUPPLY

This country may in a way be likened unto the spendthrift who
scatters his money to the winds and later has only vain regrets to remind
him of his squandered fortune. Unlike the spendthrift, however, the
country has come to the realization of how wasteful it has been with
its timber wealth, and is taking timely cognizance of its condition with
a view of improving it. The necessity for prompt, vigorous action
looking to the perpetuation of the timber resources of the United States
is apparent not only to a large number of individuals, but also to
many of the important industries which are partly or wholly dependent
upon the forest as a source of raw material*. Some of the states
recognized the handwriting on the wall years ago, others more re-
cently, and immediately took action in the matter of enacting forest
laws with the ultimate object of providing for future crops of timber.
At present thirty-five states maintain either a state forester, state board
of forestry, forest conservation commission, or some similar state organi-
zation, the functions of which are to carry out the provisions of existing
laws relating to reforestation and fire protection. The Federal Govern-
ment is doing its part in this work through its administration of the
national forests in the west, its acquisition of lands under the Weeks Law
for national forests in the east, its cooperative work with the various
state forest organizations, and its extensive educational program with
the general public. Large corporations, such as railroads, oil companies,
and mining companies are also vitally interested in the subject, and some
of them are either improving existing timber holdings or utilizing other
lands for reforestation purposes.

All of this indicates progress, but forest depletion in this country has
assumed such alarming proportions that nothing but a carefully worked
out, nation-wide forest policy will serve to prevent further devastation.
Such a policy should have the support of all interested parties. Impor-
tant among these are the private owners, whose forest lands constitute a
large portion of the total timbered area of the country. The provisions
of such a policy are manifold. Two of them stand out prominently,
however, and merit immediate attention, namely, forest fire prevention
and reforestation. In this work the Federal Government naturally will
and should be expected to take a leading part, especially in such matters
as the lending of aid to the activities of the several states, the standardi-
zation of technical practice in reforestation and fire protection, and by

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 25

the further acquisition of such land as is either more suitable for the
growing of timber or more valuable for the protection of watersheds
than it is for agriculture. Such a -forest policy naturally calls for new
legislation and possibly the revision of existing laws, both national and
state. For example, before the Federal Government can hope to increase
the scope of its present forest policy to one of a national character suffi-
cient appropriation from the public funds must be made available for
the purpose. On the other hand, the full cooperation of the private
landowner cannot be secured until state laws are enacted which will
bring about an equitable form of forest taxation and at the same time
place upon the owners certain responsibility in dealing with precautions
against forest fires, disposal of slash, and other factors directly affecting
forest production.

Timber depletion in this country has resulted not so much from the
use of the forests as the failure to grow them. Because of this fact
there are now in the United States 326 million acres of cut-over land,
on 81 million acres of which there is practically no timber growth, due
principally to forest fires and improper methods of logging. This enor-
mous area is being added to annually at the rate of from 3 to 4 million
acres, as the cutting and burning of forests continues. It is estimated
that there are available in this country a total of 463 million acres of
land, which, from an economic standpoint, are more suitable for the
growing of timber than for any other use. With a national forest policy
in full and efficient operation, this land could eventually be made suffi-
ciently productive to meet adequately the country's future demands for
wood.

PART II

KINDS OF WOOD

The wood-using factories of North Carolina consumed a total of
493,151,871 board feet of lumber in 1919, representing varying quanti-
ties cut from 28 different kinds of wood. In similar reports prepared
for other States the information requested on the questionnaire used in
gathering the original data called for the exact name of the various
woods used, which permitted of the listing of the different kinds accord-
ing to species, such as red oak, white ash, silver maple, red cedar, etc.
This made it possible for the reader to study the uses according to
inherent properties. In the collection of the material for this report,
however, only the generic name was for the most part specified, such as
oak, poplar, hickory, etc. In addition, the questionnaire used listed
yellow pine as second growth, original, and longleaf. In view of the
fact that these terms as used in any one of the three natural divisions
of the State, namely : the Coastal Plain, the Piedmont, and the Mountain
regions, are intended to include the predominant species of yellow pine,
it was found difficult to differentiate the various species implied in each
case. Since for the most part the bulk of the yellow pine in the State
is either shortleaf pine or loblolly pine, it was considered advisable to
include all wood reported either as second growth or original pine under
the designation of North Carolina pine, the term most commonly em-
ployed by the lumbermen of the State, especially those of the Coastal
Plain Region.

In Table 1 there is shown the quantity of all of the various woods
used by the North Carolina wood-using factories in 1919, together with
the percentage which each represents of the total consumption. This
table also gives the average price per thousand feet, board measure, paid
for the raw material f . o. b. factory, and the total cost for each wood.

North Carolina pine ranks first among the various woods listed in
Table 1 with a total of 248,221,156 feet, board measure. This represents
slightly over 50 per cent of the total consumption of the State. Oak
occupies second place, with 85,353,007 board feet, or 17.31 per cent.
Eed gum was third, with 40,443,000, or 8.20 per cent, and yellow poplar
fourth, the quantity of this wood used being 21,560,963 board feet, or
4.37 per cent of the total. Twenty-four other woods were used in grad-
ually decreasing amounts. Rosewood and mahogany were the only two
foreign woods reported.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Black walnut was the most expensive domestic wood used, with, an
average price of $201.62 per thousand board feet. Sugar pine, a Pacific
Coast wood, ranked second, the price paid for it being $135 per thousand
feet. Of the domestic woods used North Carolina pine was the least
expensive wood among the conifers purchased and elm was the cheapest
of the hardwoods.

Table 1. — Summary of Kinds of Wood Used in North Carolina in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity
Feet, B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory-

Total Cost

Pine, North Carolina

Oak

Gum, red

Poplar, yellow

Pine, longleaf

Chestnut

Gum, black

Hickory

Maple

Pine, white

Cottonwood

Dogwood

Birch

Hemlock

Walnut, black

Basswood

Ash

Locust

Cypress

Beech

Buckeye

Sycamore

Cedar...

Mahogany ._

Rosewood

Mountain laurel (Kalmia)

Elm

Pine, sugar

All other

Totals

248,221

85,353

40,443

21,560

21,313

20,996

19,524

9,124

8,325

6,521

2,000

1,575

1,525

1,028

838

735

627

370

350

205

200

112

2,083

,156
,007
,000
,963
,077
,915
,000
,500
,000
,557
,000
,000
,500
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,500
,000
,000
,500
,000
,196

50.33

17.31

8.20

4.37

4.32

4.26

3.96

1.85

1.69

1.32

.41

.32

.31

.21

.17

.15

.13

.07

.04

.02

.01

.42

29.03
55.34
73.90
42.04
38.86
42.25
25.12
44.70
54.50
40.14
75.00
35.00
60.25
40.00

201 .62
64.42
50.45
40.54
40.00
35.29

104.06
57.32
30.00

311.54

450 .00
44.00
24.00

135.00
23.42

.7,206,524

4,723,013

2,988,589

906,383

828,158

887,134

490,379

407,841

453,690

261,759

150,000

55,125

91,919

41,120

168,961

47,350

31,632

15,000

14,000

7,235

20,812

6,420

1,080

10,125

11,250

660

156

675

48,798

493,151,871

100.00

40.30

% 19,875,

Table 2 presents some very interesting data relating to prices paid
for raw material by the wood users of North Carolina. In this table
are shown the prices paid for the different kinds of woods used in 1909
and 1919. The 1909 figures are those which were published in Economic
Paper No. 20 of the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey,
which constitutes the first report issued on the wood-using industries
of the State. The 1919 figures are those given in this present report,
which is a revision of the report mentioned above. Not all of the woods

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

shown in the 1919 report were reported in use in the 1909 report, and
for this reason it was only possible to show in Table 2 the various woods
and the prices paid for those that were used in both years. It will be
noted that for the woods shown the 1919 figures represent increases over
the prices paid in 1909 of from 40 to over 500 per cent.

Table 2.

-Average Prices Paid for Raw Material oy the Wood-using Factories
of North Carolina in 1909 and 1919

Kind of Wood

Average Cost per M.
Feet F. O. B. Factory

Per
Cent of

1909

1919

Increase

I 12 .80

18 .05
17.61
16.50
21.28
15.95
15.80
12.00
18.75
26.72
12.00
42.15
20.75
25.62
14.00
13.67
19.74
40.00
10.76
21.40
147.42
10.00
13.38

S 29.03 127

Oak

55 .34
42.04
42.25
44.70
54.50
40.14
75.00
35.00
60.25
40.00

201 .62
64.42
50.45
40.54
40.00
35.29

104.06
57.32
30.00

311.54
44.00
24.00

207

Poplar, yellow.. . .._..._... ... . ..

139

156

110

Maple . .

242

154

Cottonwood _ ... ... . . . _ _

525

Birch

125

Hemlock... . ... __ ..... ..

233

Walnut, black . ... .

270

Basswood...

210

Ash.

Locust. . ..

190

Cypress. 1.

193

Beech .. . . .... ....

160

Sycamore ... ..... .

433

Mahogany . ........

111

Mountain laurel (Kalmia) . ... .. .

340

Elm

STATE -GROWN AND IMPORTED WOODS

Over 85 per cent of the 493,151,871 board feet of lumber consumed
by the secondary wood-using industries of North Carolina was grown in
the State. The entire supply of 10 of the 28 different kinds of wood
used came from within the State. These were dogwood, hemlock, bass-
wood, ash, locust, cypress, beech, cedar, mountain laurel, and elm. In
addition, the entire amount used of those woods grouped under the
general heading of "all other" was also State-grown. The quantity
produced within the State of all but one of the remaining 17 woods was
greater than the quantity shipped in. The exception mentioned was
red gum, of which 10,782,500 board feet, or 26.66 per cent, was cut
within North Carolina, while 29,660,500 board feet, or 73.34 per cent,
came from sources outside the State.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 3 shows the total quantity of the different kinds of woods used
and the amount and percentage of each which was home-grown or
imported.

Table 3. — Summary of State-groion and Imported Woods

Kind of Wood

Quantity
Feet,
B. M.

Source of Supply

Grown in
North Carolina

Quantity Per Cent

Grown Outside of
North Carolina

Quantity Per Cent

Pine, North Carolina

Oak

Gum, red

Poplar, yellow

Pine, longleaf

Chestnut

Gum, black

Hickory

Maple

Pine, white

C ott onwood

Dogwood

Birch

Hemlock

Walnut, black

Basswood

Ash

Locust...

Cypress

Beech

Buckeye

Sycamore

Cedar

Mahogany

Rosewood

Mountain laurel (Kalmia)

Elm....

Pine, sugar.

All other .

Totals

248,
85,
40,
21,
21,
20,
19,

221,156

353,007

443,000

560,963

313,077

996,915

524,000

124,500

325,000

521,557

000,000

575,000

525,500

028,000

838,000

735,000

627,000

370,000

350,000

205,000

200,000

112,000

36,000

32,500

25,000

15,000

6,500

5,000

083,196

231,353,156
73,165,507
10,782,500
19,350,263
18,898,077
20,696,915
19,216,000
7,999,500
5,192,500
6,443,357

93.20
85.72
26.66
89.75
88.67
98.57
98.42
87.67
62.37

16,868,000

12,187,500

29,660.500

2,210,700

2,415,000

300,000

308,000

1,125,000

3,132,500

78,200

2,000,000

1,575,000

1,375,500

1,028,000

576,750

735,000

627,000

370,000

350,000

205,000

175,000

77,000

36,000

100 .00
90.17
100 .00
68.82
100 .00
100 .00
100 .00
100.00
100 .00
87.50
68.75
100 .00

150,000
261,250

25,000
35,000

32,500
25,000

15,000
6,500

100.00
100 .00

5,000

2,083,196

100 .00

493,151,871

422,332,721

85.64

70,819,150

6.80
14.28
73.34
10.25
11.33

1.43

1.58
12.33
37.63

1.20
100.00

9.83

31.18

12.50
31.25

100.00
100 .00

100 .00

14.36

THE WOODS DESCRIBED

The following is a brief description of the principal woods employed
in North Carolina by the different wood-using industries in the manu-
facture of the wide range of commodities made partly or wholly of wood
which they produce. Lumbermen divide woods into two general classes,
namely, hardwoods and softwoods, the former comprising those trees
which have broad leaves and the latter those with needle leaves. It has
been found that this classification holds true generally and is practical,
and for these reasons it has become standardized.

30 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

softwoods

Eight species of conifers were called upon to furnish wood in 1919
for final manufacture in the State. Five of them were pines, while the
other three consisted of hemlock, cypress, and cedar, respectively. The
quantity of wood contributed by the coniferous trees constituted over
50 per cent of the total amount used.

North Carolina Pine {Pinus taeda and Pinus echinata). — Pine mar-
keted and known as North Carolina pine, or Yirginia pine as it is
frequently called in that State, is composed of approximately 80 per
cent loblolly pine and 20 per cent shortleaf pine. In the forest these
two species are easily distinguished, because the needles of the short-
leaf are generally shorter and the cones smaller than those of lob-
lolly. "When sawed into lumber, however, it is often exceedingly diffi-
cult to tell them apart, owing to the close similarity of the two woods.
Shortleaf pine grows sparingly as far north as Long Island, New York,
and at one time was plentiful in New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland.
At the present time it is cut for lumber, perhaps, no farther north than
Yirginia. Shortleaf reaches its best development and is most plentiful
in northern Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri, and in those . states is
often called by the trade name of Arkansas soft pine. In North Caro-
lina it is usually found in the drier situations and frequently enters into
the composition of upland forests. It appears less commonly in the
Coastal Plain Eegion, being especially rare south of the Neuse River.
Loblolly pine is a tree of the Coastal Plain Region, and finds its best
development in the form of original growth in moist, deep soil. Land
once cultivated and then abandoned a century or more ago by farmers
now supports stands of second growth loblolly.

The importance of North Carolina pine in the State is evidenced by
the fact that more than half of the wood used by the wood-consuming
factories in 1919 was of this species. The planing mill factories used
the largest quantity, while next in importance from the standpoint of
consumption were, in the order named, those industries making boxes
and crates, those producing sash, doors, and blinds, and the furniture
manufacturers. The quantity of North Carolina pine consumed by the
various wood-using factories of the State is shown in Table 4.

Longleaf Pine {Pinus palustris) . — This tree is the most important of
the southern yellow pine group. Yirginia marks the most northerly
limit of its range, while the heaviest stands are now located in Louisiana
and the eastern part of Texas, where virgin timber is being cut. Long-
leaf pine is often referred to as Georgia pine and hard pine. It is the
chief source of turpentine and rosin, and because of this is sometimes
called pitch pine, especially that which is exported. Longleaf pine gets

Wood-using Industries of 'North Carolina

its name from the fact that it has the longest needles of any of the pines.
Its strength, stiffness, and durability give it an important place among
those woods used for structural purposes, and large quantities are
demanded for this use annually. It is also extensively employed for
flooring, while during the war with Germany it contributed the major
portion of the tremendous amount of high-grade heavy timbers and
planking needed for wooden vessels of the Emergency Fleet Corporation.
Longleaf pine formerly extended in an almost unbroken forest from
Texas to Virginia. At present in North Carolina it is found chiefly in
widely scattered second growth stands of small area.

Table 4. — Consumption of North Carolina Pine in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

125,734,000
71,980,000
12,580,000
9,184,587
8,773,000
6,418,569
6,393,000

4,200,000
800,000
627,000
405,000
225,000
901,000

50.65
29.00
5.07
3.70
3.54
2.59
2.58

1.69
.32
.25
.16
.09
.36

$ 31.12
26.49
32.09
22.79
26.55
29.70
29.53

24.28
20.00
65.14
32.12
17.00
15.00

$ 3,912,511
1,906,928
105,300
262,199
232,945
190,631
188,797

101,962
16,000
23,472
13,010
3,825
13,515

112,842,000
71,010,000
11,080,000
9,184,587
8,433,000
6,337,569
5,793,000

3,765,000
800,000
627,000
355,000
225,000
901,000

12,892,000

970,000

1,500,000

Fruit, and vegetable packages. ..-

340,000

81,000

600,000

Elevators and machine con-

435,000

50,000

Totals

248,221,156

100 .00

$ 29 .97

$ 6,971,095

231,353,156

16,868,000

In 1919 the wood-using industries of North Carolina consumed
21,313,077 feet, board measure, of longleaf pine, the bulk of the con-
sumption being for boxes and crates and planing mill products. The
distribution of longleaf pine among the different industries that used it
is shown in Table 5.

White Pine (Pinus strohus). — White pine is a tree of first commercial
importance which occurs from New Foundland west to the Winnipeg
River and south through the northern states to Pennsylvania, Michigan,
Illinois, Iowa, and along the Appalachian Mountains to Georgia. It
reaches its best development in the region of the Great Lakes. The story
of white pine is a vivid example of forest depletion in this country.
Two hundred and fifty years ago the area mentioned above supported
virgin stands of this valuable species. The forests were so vast and the

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

stands so thick that the supply was considered inexhaustible. Lumber-
ing operations began in New England. When one pine region became
exhausted there was another one farther back and mills moved on to
new forests. This occurred when the pine on the New England coast
was cut. Next came the stands in New York, and after that those of
Pennsylvania, followed by West Virginia. Later, when the supply here
began to wane, the region of the Great Lakes was invaded and the
splendid forests of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota were called
upon to supply the increasing demand for white pine. Michigan was
in closer proximity to markets, and her forests were first among those of
the Lake States to show signs of depletion. Depletion in Michigan was
followed by depletion in Wisconsin, and the lumbermen then transferred
their operations to Minnesota. The history of white pine in Minnesota
is the history of white pine in other regions. Ahead of the state lies

Table 5. — Consumption of Longleaf Pine in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
Feet,
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

GroTvn ! Gro^vn

in Outside

State of State

10,653,077
7,750,000
2,700,000

169,000
50,000

49.98
36.36
12.67

.75
.24

1 35.38
43.31
39.00

42.50
70.00

1376,905.86
335,652.50
105,300.00

6,800.00
3,500.00

10,653,077
5,695,000
2,540,000

10,000

2.055,000

160,000

Elevators and machine con-

150,000

50,000

Totals

21,313,077

100 .00

$ 38.86

1828,158.36

18,898,077

2,415,000

the same goal that they have already reached. The Lake States, which
once measured their cut of white pine lumber in billions of feet, are now
producing comparatively small quantities. Michigan is cutting less than
Massachusetts and Wisconsin not as much as New Hampshire. The
difference between white pine production in the Lake States and the
production of this species in Massachusetts is worthy of note. The
Lake States are merely harvesting the crop which nature planted cen-
turies ago, while in Massachusetts, although the timber that remains is
all second growth, fires are kept out and it is otherwise protected. As
a result the cut of white pine in this State exceeds that of Michigan,
once the leader in the world's output. White pine's capacity for repro-
duction and its rapid growth make it an important tree from the stand-
point of forest management. In fact, the tree will readily perpetuate
itself if given a chance. Wind scatters the seeds by thousands, and they
quickly spring up. Since, however, the bark of the pine seedlings is

Wood-using Industries of North Carolin

thin and tender, the young trees are easily killed by fire. If, therefore,
fires can be kept out of white pine cuttings and a few seed trees are
allowed to remain, the rest can be left almost entirely to nature.

In North Carolina white pine is found only in the Mountain Region,
but the cut here is small compared to that of other regions of its growth.
In 1919 the total quantity of wood of this species reported as having
been consumed by the wood-using industries of the State was approxi-
mately 6% million feet, board measure. More than two-thirds of this
quantity, or 4,942,(100 board feet, was demanded for boxes and crates.
Nearly 99 per cent of the white pine consumed in the State was cut
from home-grown timber. The industries which used white pine in
North Carolina in 1919 and the quantity that each consumed is shown

in Table 6.

Table 6. — Consumption of White Pine in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

4,942,000
610,000
326,557
270,000
150,000

98,000
75,000
50,000

75.78
9.35
5.01
4.14
2.30

1.50
1.15

.77

$ 37.67
57.50
35.60
49.17
40.00

58.60
25.00
40.00

$186,165.14

35,075.00

11,625.43

13,275.90

6,000.00

5,742.80
1,875.00
2,000.00

4,942,000
584,800
326,557
220,000
150,000

95,000
75,000
50,000

25,200

Caskets and coffins

50,000

Elevators and machine con-
struction

3,000

Total

6,521,557

100 .00

I 40.14

1261,759.27

6,443,357

78,200

Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis). — The range of hemlock extends east to
Nova Scotia, west to Minnesota, and south along the mountain ranges
to Georgia. In North Carolina hemlock occurs in the mountains, and
is found in cool ravines, usually along streams on loamy or rich soil.
It is frequently associated with birch, cherry, and other hardwoods.
The tree is of considerable value to the tanning industry, its bark being
the principal source of supply of raw material for extract plants. In
North Carolina it is one of the chief woods used for paper pulp. The
wood of hemlock is light in weight, coarse grained, brittle, and has a
tendency to splinter. These properties have greatly influenced its use,
so that during the years when white pine was plentiful comparatively
little hemlock was cut. With the waning supply of pine, however, the
demand for hemlock increased, and at present it is called on to meet a
liberal share of the country's lumber requirements. It is an especially
important species in the region of the Lake States.
3

"Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

In 1919 in North Carolina the box and crate industry was the only
one that employed hemlock as raw material in the manufacture of its
products. The quantity used was 1,028,000 feet, board measure, and all
of it was produced in the State.

Cypress (Taxodium distichum). — Cypress is a southern species that
occurs in swamps and overflowed lands from Virginia to Texas and up
the Mississippi River as far as Missouri. It is a needle-leaf tree which
sheds its leaves in winter. The principal supply comes from Louisiana
and other Gulf States. In North Carolina it is found in the Coastal
Plain Region, where it constitutes one of the most common trees along
streams and swamps. The wood is light, soft, and straight-grained, and
the heartwood of the tree is extremely durable when placed in contact
with the ground or when used in damp situations. Its durability makes
it an ideal wood for caskets and coffins, planing mill products, and sash,
doors, and blinds, the three industries which together reported the con-
sumption of the 350,000 feet, board measure, shown in Table 7.

Table 7. — Consumption of Cypress in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
Feet,
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

GroTvn

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

200,000
100,000
50,000

57.14
28.57
14.29

$ 40.00
30.00
60,00

$ 8,000.00
3,000.00
3,000.00

200,000
100,000
50,000

Totals

350,000

100.00

S 40.00

1 14,000.00

350,000

Cedar. — The two species of cedar grow in North Carolina. They are
the common red cedar, often called pencil cedar (Juniperus virginiana) ,
and southern white cedar (Chamaecyparis tliyoides) known locally as
juniper. The former is one of the most widely distributed trees in North
America, and is found in all parts of the United States except Cali-
fornia, Oregon, and the western part of Texas. The latter grows along
the Atlantic Coast as far north as New England, but is of little com-
mercial importance above Maryland and the lower part of Delaware.
Red cedar meets most of the demands for pencil stock and large quanti-
ties of it in the form of slats are shipped abroad. It is also a favorite
wood for clothes chests. ' Southern white cedar is largely used in house
construction, is especially desirable for shingles, and with northern white
cedar is the principal wood used for telephone and telegraph poles. All
native cedars are especially durable in contact with the ground or when

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 35

used in damp situations. This property makes the wood valuable for
fence post material, and large quantities are employed for this purpose.

In North Carolina red cedar is confined to the Piedmont Region and
southern white cedar to the Coastal Plain Region. The wood users in
the State reported the use of 36,000 feet, board measure, but since the
species used was not stated, it has been classed in this report merely as
cedar. The entire quantity was consumed by the planing mills.

Sugar Pine (Pinus lambertiana). — Sugar pine is a tree of the Pacific
Coast and occurs in heavy stands in California and southern Oregon.
The tree reaches larger size than any of the pines. In mechanical prop-
erties it compares very favorably with eastern white pine {Pinus
strobus), and is employed for many of the purposes for which white
pine is used. Large quantities of sugar pine are shipped annually from
the region of its growth to eastern markets. The quantity used in North
Carolina in 1919 was exceedingly small, amounting to only 5,000 feet,
board measure, and was employed entirely for elevators and machine
construction.

THE HARDWOODS

A summary of the wood-using industries of the entire United States
shows that for the manufacture of commodities requiring wood as raw
material a larger quantity of softwood is required than hardwood. On
the other hand hardwoods are employed for a greater number of uses
and from the standpoint of distribution among the various industries
are more important. Twenty-one hardwoods entered into the manu-
facture of the products of the wood-using factories of the State in 1919,
and the entire supply of seven of them was obtained from sources within
the State. The total quantity used was slightly over 21 million feet.

Oak. — All of the fifty or more oaks that grow in the United States
are divided by botanists into two groups. Those on which the acorns
reach maturity in a single year are called white oaks, while those on
which the fruit does not ripen for two years are known as black oaks, or
more commonly as red oaks. The well known white oak (Quercus alba)
is representative of the white oak group, while red oak {Quercus borealis
maxima) occupies a similar position in the red oak group. Red oak or
white oak lumber may be cut from any one of 25 different kinds of oak,
but in the trade it is merely red or white oak, the lumbermen rarely
having occasion to use a further differentiation. White oak is usually
strong, hard, heavy, durable, dense, and more or less difficult to season.
Red oak is less strong and durable and not so dense or hard. Since it is
more porous, red oak is more easily kiln-dried than white oak. When
white oak is used in situations where it is in contact with the ground or
exposed to the action of the elements it is not usually customary to give

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

it a preservative treatment. Eed oak, however, is less durable, and when
so used should always be subjected to treatment.

Eighteen different species of oak grow in North Carolina. Twelve of
them are red oaks and six belong to the white oak group. From the
standpoint of quantity used, oak is the most important hardwood that
enters into furniture manufacture, not only in this State, but in practi-
cally all others in which studies of this kind have been made. Further-
more, it usually has the widest distribution among the different indus-
tries. The quantity demanded by the wood users of North Carolina in
1919 aggregates nearly 85% million feet. Seventy-four per cent of this
was used in the furniture and chair industries. The quantity of wood
used by the eleven other industries that reported a consumption of oak is
shown in Table 8.

Table 8. — Consumption of Oak in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
F. 0. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B. M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

40,465,000

23,930,000

7,545,000

5,719,500

3,347,000

985,000

813,807

540,000

365,000

290,000

260,000
131,500
961,200

47.41

28.04

8.84

6.70

3.92

1.15

.95

.63

.43

.34

.31

.15

1.13

i 57.33

60.48
41.87
45.74
47.92
65.00
39.50
33.50
37.83
74.17

52.30
47.50
50.00

$2,319,858.45
1,447,286.40
315,909.15
261,609.93
160,388.24
64,025.00
32,145.38
18,090.00
13,807.95
21,509.30

13,598.00

6,246.25

48,060.00

35,309,000

18,576,500

6,853,000

5,319,500

2,847,000

899,000

813,807

540,000

365,000

290,000

260,000
131,500
961,200

5,156,000

5,353,500

692,000

Vehicles and vehicle parts

400,000
500,000

86,000

Elevators and machine con-

Totals

85,353,007

$ 55.33

84, 722, 534 .05

73,165,507

12,187,500

Red Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) . — This species occurs from Con-
necticut to Missouri, south to central Florida, and westward to Texas.
It reaches its best development in the bottom lands of the Mississippi
Valley. It is one of the commonest trees throughout the hardwood
bottom forests and reaches large size. It is found also to a considerable
extent on the uplands and low ridges, but is there scattered and of
smaller size. In North Carolina it frequents moist situations from the
coast to the mountains. It is in the Coastal Plain, however, that it
attains its largest dimensions and is found in mixture with black gum
and cypress in deep swamps.

Wood-using Industries of Worth Carolina

Red gum has a tendency to warp and twist, and is therefore a refrac-
tory wood from the standpoint of both air seasoning and kiln drying.
This fact has always been an obstacle to its commercial exploitation,
especially in past years, when the supply of other hardwoods was so
large that there was no incentive on the part of wood users to work such
a supposedly unsatisfactory wood as red gum. With improved methods
of handling and the perfection of kiln-drying practice, red gum came
into its own, and today is an important species in many wood-using
industries. Among the primary industries it is extensively employed
for slack cooperage and is much in demand by veneer mills. Of the
secondary industries the box factories, furniture plants, chair makers,
and several other classes of wood users demand red gum in large quanti-
ties for the manufacture of their products.

In North Carolina in 1919 a total of 40,443,000 feet, board measure,
of red gum was used, nearly two-thirds of which was obtained from
outside the State. Over 50 per cent of this was converted into furniture.
The industry producing vehicles and vehicle parts was the second in
importance as far as the quantity consumed is concerned, while large
amounts were demanded also by the box and chair factories. The State's
consumption of red gum during the year covered by this report by those
industries that used it is shown in Table 9.

Table 9.-

—Consumption of Red Gum in 1919

Quantity-

Average
Cost
per M.
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B. M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

23,475,000

9,240,000

4,047,000

3,000,000

253,000

178,000

150,000

100,000

58.04

22.85

10.01

7.42

.62

.44

.37

.25

1 79 .47
51.75
95.67
60.00
113.33
143 .33
110.00
70.00

$1,865,558.25

478,170.00

387,176.49

180,000.00

28,672.49

25,512.74

16,50000

7,000.00

2,582,500

7,280,000

400,000

500,000

20,000

20,892,500

Vehicles and vehicle parts

1,960,000
3,647,000

2,500,000

233,000

178,000

Caskets and coffins

150,000

100,000

Totals

40,443,000

100.00

$ 73 .90

$2,988,589.97

10,782,500

29,660,500

Yellow Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). — Yellow poplar, although
widely distributed, is seldom the predominant tree in the forest, but is
found dispersed through forests of other hardwoods, seldom more than
three or four trees in a group. Its range extends from Vermont west
to the Lake States and south through Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi,
and Alabama to Florida. It probably reaches its best development

"Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

along the tributaries of the Ohio Eiver and on the lower slopes of the
high mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee. It grows habitually
in deep, rich, moist soil. Yellow poplar is found in all parts of North
Carolina, but is most abundant and attains its largest size on the lower
mountain slopes of the counties west of the Blue Kidge. The tree is
sometimes called tulip poplar, because its blossoms resemble those of the
tulip. There is a great difference between the heartwood and sapwood
of yellow poplar. The former is yellow in color and derives its name
from this fact, while the latter is white and is often called whitewood.
This differentiation often leads to the erroneous belief among users of
the wood that they are separate species.

The wood of yellow poplar is light, soft, straight-grained, very easy
to work, and holds its shape extremely well after drying. In addition
it takes and holds paint better, perhaps, than other wood. These prop-
erties commend it for many uses and make it a wood of first commercial
importance. It is highly prized and much in demand by furniture
manufacturers and is converted by them into drawer bottoms, backing,
white enamel bureaus, cabinets and chiffoniers, plywood core stock, and
many other commodities. Its ability to take paint makes it well adapted
for panel work in the vehicle industry.

Twelve industries in North Carolina reported in varying quantities
the consumption of yellow poplar in 1919. A total of 21,560,963 feet,
board measure, was used, and the furniture manufacturers, the box
factories, and the planing mills were the principal consumers. The
amounts demanded by the remaining nine industries are shown in

Table 10.

Table 10. — Consumption of Yellow Poplar in 1919-

Quantity-

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown

in
State

Gro^ra
Outside
of State

11,642,000
3,057,000
2,755,000
956,856
848,307
657,000
286,500
243,000

184,000

160,000

10,000

761,300

53.99
14.18
12.78
4.44
3.93
3.05
1.33
1.13

.85

.74

.05

3.53

$ 45 .42
43.90
35.00
33.61
37.00
45.68
42.50
36.75

55.00
25.00
30.00
23.50

$528,779.64
134,202.30
96,425.00
32,159.93
31,387.36
30,011.76
12,176.25
8,930.25

10,120.00

4,000.00

300 .00

17,890.55

10,163,000
3,055,000
2,755,000
956,856
135,807
639,800
286,500
243,000

184,000

160,000

10,000

761,300

1,479,000

2,000

Fruit and vegetable packages

712,500
17,200

Elevators and machine con-

Shuttles, spools, and bobbins

Totals .

21,560,963

100.00

$ 42 .04

$906,383.04

19,350,263

2,210,700

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 39

Chestnut (Castanea dentata). — In 1918 North Carolina ranked second
in the cut of chestnut lumber, the total production for the State being
nearly 49 million feet, board measure. The tree has a wide range,
extending from Maine to Michigan and south to Delaware and Tennessee
and along the southern Appalachian Mountains to Alabama. In North
Carolina its growth is confined principally to the Mountain Region.

The chestnut bark disease has made heavy inroads upon the stands in
various sections of the country, especially in the region north of the
Potomac River. The chestnut in Pennsylvania has perhaps suffered
most. The disease is becoming more serious each year, and according
to pathologists is practically certain to extend throughout the range of
this important species unless some unforeseen natural occurrence takes
place to check its ravages. The disease is a fungus, the spores of which
when carried by the wind or other agency into any wound on the trunk
or limb of a chestnut tree germinate and cause a spreading canker which
girdles the part attacked and eventually kills the tree. The Bureau of
Plant Industry of the United States Department of Agriculture recom-
mends that advance infections be destroyed by felling the trees and
burning the bark and brush over the stump, so that the surface of the
latter is completely charred. Another excellent method is to paint the
surface of the stump with creosote and then burn the bark and brush in
piles. The disease does not injure the wood, and sound wood cut from
dead timber is fully as strong as wood from healthy trees. Service tests
conducted by the Porest Service with posts, poles, and crossties cut from
healthy, diseased, and dead chestnut have shown that from the stand-
point of service and durability there is no difference between infected
or blight-killed chestnut and that which is healthy.

The sapwood of standing blight-killed chestnut starts to decay at the
end of two years, not because of the disease, but from the effects of insect
attack. At the end of four years the sapwood is full of insect burrows
and well rotted. During the fifth year after death the bark usually
falls from the trunk and the decayed sapwood dries out and peels off,
leaving the heartwood hard and sound. If the tree continues to stand
the heartwood will become so badly surface-checked as to make it un-
merchantable. It is advisable, therefore, for owners of chestnut timber
to cut it as soon as infection becomes apparent. If this is not possible,
it should at least be removed not later than two years after death before
insect injury, decay, and checking have started.

Chestnut is light in weight, easily seasoned, very durable, readily
worked, extremely porous, and possesses a very attractive grain. It
occupies an important place among the commercial woods included in
the hardwood group. Because of its durability it is the leading wood in

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

the casket and coffin industry, and is extensively employed for fence posts
and telephone poles. It also ranks well toward the top in a number of
other wood-using industries. Panel and plywood manufacturers as well
as furniture factories value it highly for core stock. The grade known
to the trade as "sound wormy," which contains numerous small pin
worm holes, but is otherwise sound, is considered most suitable for this
purpose, for the reason that these holes provide good anchorage for the
glue. This grade of chestnut is also largely used by box factories.
Chestnut wood is one of the sources from which tannin is obtained and
large quantities are employed annually by extract plants for this purpose.
The furniture factories used over 50 per cent of the chestnut demanded
by the wood-users of North Carolina in 1919. The second largest users
were the makers of caskets and coffins, while four other industries con-
sumed varying quantities. The six industries of the State, which
together reported a consumption of nearly 21 million feet, and the
quantity that each required in the manufacture of its products during
the year are presented in Table 11.

Table 11 -

-Consumption of Chestnut in 1915

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Gro"«~n

in
State

GroTvn
Outside
of State

Furniture ..

11,244,000

7,852,915

1,520,000

300,000

50,000

30,000

53.55

37.40

7.24

*.43

.24

.14

$ 40.53
43.34
50.00
35.00
50.00
69.00

$455,719.32
340,345.34
76,000.00
10,500.00
2,500.00
2,070.00

10.944,000

7,852.915

1,520,000

300,000

50,000

30,000

300,000

Totals .

20,996,915

100 .00

§ 42 .25

$887,134.66

20,696,915

300,000

Black Gum (Nyssa sylvatica). — Considerable confusion has always
existed in the classification of the various species of the genus Nyssa.
Three trees are important in this group, namely, black gum (Nyssa
sylvatica), cotton gum, or tupelo, as it is frequently called (Nyssa
aquatica), and water gum (Nyssa biflora). They are all members of
the dogwood family, but are not related to red gum (Liquidambar
styraciflua). The last two usually grow together in wet lowlands and
swamps in company with cypress and southern white cedar. Black gum
grows in similar situations, but usually somewhat removed from the
other two species and generally on well drained elevations. The wood
of the three species of gum so closely resemble each other that it is

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

difficult to identify them from their external appearance. The wood
of cotton gum splits straight and is fairly easy to work. The fiber
of black gum and water gum is closely interlocked and the wood is very
difficult to work or split. The wood of water gum has a yellowish hue
and is darker than that of black gum while cotton gum is lighter in
color than either of the other two. Frequently all three of these woods
are called merely black gum, lumbermen making no effort to separate
them.

Two of the gums occur in North Carolina. They are black gum and
cotton gum, although that used was all reported as black gum. Owing
to the variation in nomenclature applicable to these trees, however, it is
possible that species other than black gum were used. Black gum is
extensively utilized by box factories and by the fruit and vegetable pack-
age industries. In the latter industry it is usually employed in the
form of thick rotary cut veneer. As shown in Table 12, these two
industries were the principal consumers of black gum in North Carolina
in 1919.

Table 12. — Consumption of Black Gum in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown
in

State

Grown
Outside
of State

11,505,000

7,060,000

300,000

188,000

150,000

20,000

1,000

58.93

36.16

1.54

.96

.77

.10

.00

S 22.79
28.63
23.00
25.00
32.63
32.00
35.00
35.00

$262,198.95

202,127.80

6,900.00

7,500.00

6,134.44

4,800.00

700 .00

35.00

11,505,000
7,060,000

Furniture. .. ... _ .

300,000

300,000
180,000
150,000
20,000
1,000

8,000

Handles... . .

Totals

19,524,000

100 .00

$ 25.12

$490,396.19

19,216.000

308,000

Hickory. — Hickory is often referred to as though it were a single
species, like red gum or yellow poplar. In reality there are as many as
ten different species, the wood of some of them being considered valuable
commercially and others not. From the standpoint of commercial use,
especially in the manufacture of handles and vehicle stock, the hickories
may be divided into two main groups, namely, pecan hickories and true
hickories. In the former group are pecan hickory, water hickory,
nutmeg hickory, and bitternut hickory. The true hickories comprise
principally shagbark hickory, big shellbark hickory, pignut hickory, and
mockernut hickory. At one time hickory was available in ample quanti-
ties for commercial use in most of the states east and in several imme-

42 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

diately west of the Mississippi River. The Ohio and lower Mississippi
valleys were the regions of its best development, and here it was found
in the greatest abundance. The original supply has been cut to such
an extent that at the present time there is an acute shortage. In the
states east of the Alleghanies and north of the Potomac River this
shortage is especially marked. A few scattered stands are yet to be
found west of the Alleghanies and north of the Ohio River. Most of
what remains is in the lower Mississippi Valley, Arkansas and Tennessee
being the center of production. It is probable that by now the whole
hickory-producing territory has been covered by the timber buyers, and
that some of the larger companies are working over their old cuttings,
taking material which was rejected ten or fifteen years ago.

Eight species of hickory are found in North Carolina. Two of them,
bitternut and water hickory, are really pecans, while the other six are
true hickories. Bitternut hickory and whiteheart or mockernut hickory
occur throughout the State, but reach their best development in the
Mountain and Piedmont regions. Scalybark or shagbark hickory is also
found in all parts of the State, but is nowhere common, and least so in
the Coastal Plain Region. The southern shellbark, small fruited hickory
and pale hickory are most important in the Piedmont Region, while
water hickory is confined principally to the Coastal Plain Region.

The handle plants and vehicle factories are the largest consumers of
hickory, and use over two-thirds of the total annual consumption in the
manufacture of their products. The different hickories can be easily
distinguished in the tree by their botanical characteristics, but in the
form of lumber or other timber products identification is difficult. In
fact, lumbermen make little effort to separate them and the wood-using
factories usually report the wood merely as hickory. This accounts for
the use in this report of only the generic name hickory. Among the
trade, however, especially the handle and vehicle manufacturers, the
term "second growth" is commonly used, and is intended to mean wide-
ringed material of fast growth. Hickory possesses in combination
strength, toughness, and elasticity not found in any other commercial
wood. These properties are essential where the wood is used for such
commodities as spokes and other vehicle stock, axe, adze, pick and
hammer handles, picker sticks, and sucker rods.

In North Carolina in 1919 the combined consumption of hickory by
the six industries that used it was 9,124,500 feet, board measure. The
largest consumers were the vehicle factories. The quantity used by the
shuttle, spool, and bobbin industry, as shown in Table 13, was employed
in the manufacture of picker sticks and other loom supplies.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 13. — Consumption of Hickory in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
Feet,
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown
in

State

Grown
Outside
of State

5,553,000

1,925,000

1,351,000

280,000

10,500

5,000

60.86

21.10

14.81

3.07

.11

.05

$ 42.46
55.71
40.71
32.66
50.00
30.00

1235,780.38

107,241.75

54,999.21

9,144.80

525 .00

150.00

4,443,000

1,925,000

1,351,000

275,000

10,500

5,000

1,120,000

5,000

Totals

9,124,500

100.00

$ 44 .70

$407,841.14

7,999,500

1,125,000

Maple. — Two species of maple are cut for lumber in North. Carolina,
namely, sugar maple, often called hard maple (Acer saccharum), and
red maple (Acer rubrum). The quantity of maple lumber produced in
the State, however, is small, being less than one per cent of the total
production for the whole country. Of the two kinds of maple men-
tioned, sugar maple is the most important commercially. It is used for
almost as many purposes as oak, and the figured wood which it some-
times produces, known as birds-eye and curly maple, is much in demand.
The tree is highly prized for the sap which it yields, from which are
made maple syrup and sugar. When standing in the woods it is fre-
quently called sugar tree, but the lumber cut from it usually goes by the
name of hard maple. Hard maple makes an excellent floor material
and over one-third of the total quantity produced in this country is
converted to this use. It is a favorite wood for chairs and large
quantities are cut into squares and dimension stock for this purpose.
Furniture manufacturers employ it extensively for drawer and extension
table slides, while shoe last and bowling pin manufacturers depend upon
it altogether for raw material in the manufacture of their products.

The wood-consuming factories of North Carolina used during the year
a total of 8,325,000 feet, board measure, of maple. Eighty-seven per
cent of this amount went into final manufacture in the planing mills
and the chair and furniture factories. The industries that used the
balance and the quantities that each consumed are shown in Table 14.

Birch. — With the exception of the paper birch of New England, the
well known spool wood, lumbermen rarely separate the various kinds of
birch according to species. The only classification used commercially is
the differentiation of the wood according to the section of the tree from
which it is cut. Eor example, the heartwood, which is red, is called red
birch, while the sapwood, which is white, is called white birch. Lumber

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

containing both heartwood and sapwood, either separate or together in
the same piece, is known as unselected birch. In other words, the deter-
mining factor in this classification is whether the wood is heartwood,
sapwood, or both heartwood and sapwood. Forty-eight different wood-
using industries in this country use birch in varying quantities in the
manufacture of their products. Birch, beech, and maple constitute the
three woods most used by the hardwood distillation industry. Since the
physical and mechanical properties of these woods are so much alike,
most of the uses for one are common to the other two. Among the
secondary wood-using industries, the planing mills are the largest con-
sumers of birch, the wood that they consume going principally into the
manufacture of flooring and interior trim. Birch is an important wood
in the veneer industry and large quantities are demanded by the box,
furniture, and chair manufacturers.

Table 14

— Consumption

of Maple in 1919

Quantity-

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per
Vent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

4,052,500

2,290,000

1,030,000

500,000

400,000

42,500
10,000

48.68
27.51
12.37

6.01
4.80

.51
.12

S 56.67
45.34
79.69
30.00
45.00

110.00

45.00

§229,655.18
103,828.60
82,080.70
15,000.00
18,000.00

4,675.00
450 .00

3,212,500
790,000
637,500
250,000
250,000

42,500
10,000

840,000

Chairs .

1,500,000

392,500

250,000

Shuttles, spools, and bobbins

Elevators and machine con-

150,000

Totals.

8,325,000

100.00

$ 54 .50

3453,689.48

5,192,500

3,132,500

Black or sweet birch (Betula lento), red or river birch (Betula nigra),
and yellow birch (Betula lutea) are the species of birch that grow in
North Carolina. Sweet birch and yellow birch are confined entirely to
the Mountain Region, while red birch is found along streams and on the
borders of swamps throughout the State. The industries of the State
that reported the use of birch in 1919 were six in number and are shown
together with the quantity used by each in Table 15.

Black Walnut (Juglans nigra). — Black walnut is one of the valuable
timber trees of this country, and is distributed over practically the
entire eastern half of the United States. It reaches its best development
in the rich bottomlands of southwestern Arkansas and Oklahoma and on
the western slopes of the Alleghany Mountains. This wood was of
immense importance from a national defense standpoint during the world

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

war. Millions of gunstock blanks were made of it and large quantities
were used for aeroplane propellers. The whole country was literally gone
over with a fine-tooth comb to obtain raw material for these wartime
uses. The tree is not found in dense stands, but occurs in small groups
of a few trees each, which probably accounts for its wide distribution.
The wood of black walnut is straight-grained, very easily worked, highly
shock-resistant, glues readily, and possesses the ability to hold its shape
extremely well when seasoned. Walnut was used during Kevolutionary
times for gunstocks, and its stability, shock resistance, and workability
are the properties that made it highly satisfactory for that use and for
propeller manufacture during the war with Germany. Walnut is also
important as a furniture wood and is highly prized for veneer. The
most attractively figured wood is obtained by the sliced veneer process
from stumps, especially those showing burls. These burls are usually
on the root of the tree and mostly beneath the surface of the ground.
Burls occurring higher up on the trunk or limbs are not especially
desirable, since they are more apt to contain cavities. Good burls should
have sound, solid wood, and the best are usually turnip-shaped.

Table 15. — Consumption of Birch in 1919

Quantity-

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

650,000
405,000
255,000
100,000
68,000
47,500

42.61

26.55

-16.72

6.55

4.46

3.11

$ 38.66
57.50
132.50
30.00
51.00
68.33

I 25,129.00

23,287.50

33,787.50

3,000.00

3,468.00

3,245.68

650,000
285,000
255,000
100,000
38,000
47,500

120,000

30,000

Totals

1,525,500

100 .00

$ 60 .25

$ 91,917.68

1,375,500

150,000

In North Carolina black walnut is found throughout the State, but
attains its largest size and is more plentiful in the Piedmont Region.
During 1919 the furniture factories and the casket and coffin makers, as
shown in Table 16, used together 838,000 board feet of walnut, or all
that was consumed in the State.

Dogwood {Com/as florida). — The range of dogwood extends from
southern New England west to southern Ontario and south to Florida
and eastern Texas. Stands of trees with low crowns growing in the
forest and overtopped by other species with which they are usually
associated are known as an "understory." In North Carolina in the

"WOOD-USIXG IXDUSTEIES OF XoETH CaBOLIXA

Coastal Plain Eegion dogwood forms an understory beneath pine. In
the Piedmont and Mountain regions it occupies a similar position under
oaks, hickories, and yellow poplar. The tree is frequently called flower-
ing dogwood from the profusion of beautiful white flowers which it bears
in the spring. Dogwood was once considered a weed tree, but at the
present time is in great demand. The wood is hard, heavy, dense, and
has the particular quality of wearing smooth with continued use. These
properties, especially the last one mentioned, enable dogwood to meet
the exacting requirements for raw material for shuttle blocks. The first
three commend it highly for use in the manufacture of golf club heads.

Table 16. — Consumption of Black Walnut in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown
in

State

Grown
Outside

of State

Furniture

813,000
25,000

97.02
2.98

S 206.67
37.50

§168,022.71
937.50

558,000
18,750

225,000
6,250

Totals-

838,000

100 .00

-S 201.62

$168,960.21

576,750

261,250

Persimmon has been found to possess to a greater degree than any
other commercial wood the properties of dogwood, and it contributes
largely in supplying the demands of the shuttle block and sporting and
athletic goods manufacturers.

No persimmon was used by the wood-using factories of North Caro-
lina in 1919, but they consumed over a million and a half feet, board
measure, of dogwood, all of which was converted into shuttle blocks and
was cut from home-grown timber.

Basswood. — Three species of basswood grow in the United States.
The most common is known merely as basswood (Tilia americana).
The other two are white basswood {Tilia heterophylla) and downy bass-
wood (Tilia pubescens) . All three species occur in North Carolina, but
they are so nearly alike that lumbermen do not differentiate between
them. Basswood is often called linn, which is an abbreviation of linden,
the name applied to a similar species in Europe.

Since basswood is a broad-leaved tree it is classed as a hardwood. The
wood, however, is softer than many of the woods included in the softwood
group. Because of the annual rings being indistinct and the medulary
rays invisible to the naked eye, basswood shows less figure irrespective
of the way it is sawed than any other wood. Basswood is easily worked,
warps very little, and imparts no taste when used for food containers.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

These properties make it especially valuable for chopping bowls, flour
buckets, bread boards, and similar woodenware. It is also highly prized
by manufacturers of apiarists' supplies.

Such basswood as was consumed by the wood-using industries of
North Carolina in 1919 was not employed for any of the uses mentioned
in the preceding paragraph. A total of 735,000 feet, board measure, was
reported for the year, and the commodities for which it was used were,
in the order of importance, planing mill products, caskets and coffins,
furniture, and fixtures. The total quantity of basswood used was
cut from forests within the boundaries of the State. Table 17 shows
by industries the consumption of basswood in North Carolina in 1919.

Table 17. — Consumption of Basswood in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

400,000

175,000

150,000

10,000

54.42

23.81

20.41

1.36

$ 40 .00
110.00
75.00
85.00

$ 16,000.00

19,250.00

11,250.00

850.00

400,000

175,000

150,000

10,000

Totals

735,000

100 .00

$ 64 .42

S 47,350.00

735,000

Ash. — Fifteen or sixteen different kinds of ash grow in the United
States. Some of them occur in restricted areas, but most of them are
widely distributed. As is the case with birch and gum, lumbermen
rarely differentiate between species. Ash is another very important
commercial wood, and is used in the manufacture of a wide range of
commodities made wholly or partly of wood. It has always been exten-
sively employed and highly prized by horse-drawn vehicle manufacturers,
who use it for shafts, top bows, felloes, panels, and many other parts.
The automobile industry depends upon it very largely for raw material,
especially for body frames, running boards, storage battery boxes, floor
boards, and many other uses. Its value to both industries is attributable
to the fact that it is strong, tough, and elastic. These properties com-
mend it for use in the manufacture of agricultural implements and for
certain kinds of sporting and athletic goods, such as tennis rackets,
baseball bats, and skis. It is the premier wood for handles for pitch-
forks, rakes, hoes, shovels, and other farm and garden tools and large
quantities are converted annually to this use. Because it imparts no
taste or odor when used as a food container, ash has always been a
favorite wood for butter tubs and lard tierces.

"Wood-using Industries of Nokth Cabolina

White asli (Fraxinus americana), green ash. (Fraxinus lanceolata),
red ash {Fraxinus pennsylvanica), and water ash (Fraxinus caro-
liniana) are the four principal members of the ash family found in
North Carolina. As is customary in the trade, the wood-using factories
of the State which reported a consumption of ash in 1919 did not indi-
cate the species used. The total quantity of ash that went into final
manufacture during the year was 627,000 feet, board measure. This
was all home-grown wood and was consumed by those industries engaged
in the manufacture of agricultural implements, chairs, fixtures, handles,
and vehicles. The quantities each used are shown in Table 18.

Table 18. — Consumption of Ash in 1919

Quantity-

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

375,000

150,000

91,000

10,000

1,000

59.81

23.92

14.51

1.60

.16

$ 55.00
42.00
47.50
35.00
35.00

$ 20,675.00

6,300.00

4,322.50

350 .00

35.00

375,000

150,000

91,000

10,000

1,000

Totals

627,000

100 .00

$ 50 .45

$ 31,632.50

627,000

Beech (Fagus atropunicea) . — Beech grows in all states east and in
several immediately west of the Mississippi River. Since the wood of
beech is rather difficult to season and frequently warps and checks when
in place even after it has been thoroughly dried, it does not compare in
quality with its associates, the maples and birches. At one time it was
considered an inferior wood and was seldom cut for lumber. Later,
however, beech and other species in its class were called on to meet the
increasing demands for wood, so that at present the annual sawmill out-
put of beech lumber exceeds 190,000,000 feet, New York, Michigan, and
Pennsylvania being the three states in the order given which lead in its
production. Beech is an important wood in the slack cooperage indus-
try, large quantities going annually into heading and staves. It is also
manufactured considerably into flooring, that of the special grade of
"Bed Clear" beech possessing a rich warm color peculiar to no other wood
used for this purpose. Beech is much in demand by brush manufac-
turers, who use it for backs of scrubbing and other cheap brushes. It is
the principal wood used for clothes pins, and wood turners value it
highly as raw material for the manufacture of their products.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Beech occurs in North Carolina throughout the State. It is found
sparingly in the form of small trees in the Coastal Plain Region, more
commonly and of larger growth in the Piedmont Region, and most
abundantly and of greatest size in the Mountain Region. The quantity
of beech lumber produced in the State is small, the cut of the few mills
that reported in 1921 being slightly in excess of 1% million feet, board
measure. The total quantity used by the wood-consuming factories of
North Carolina in 1919 was 205,000 feet, and was used for bobbins,
chairs, and furniture. All of the wood used was obtained from sources
within the State, and its distribution among the industries that used it
is shown in Table 19.

Table 19.— Consumption of Beech in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
Feet,
F. 0. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

100,000

80,000
25,000

48.78
39.02
12.20

$ 30.00
42.00
35.00

$ 3,000.00

3,360.00

875.00

100,000
80,000
25,000

Totals

205,000

100 .00

$ 35 .29

$ 7,235.00

205,000

Yellow Buckeye (Aesculus octandra) . — Although buckeye has rather
an extensive range, it is, from the standpoint of lumber production,
considered a minor species among the commercial woods of the United
States. West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina were
the only states that reported a cut of buckeye in 1921, which amounted
to less than 4 million feet, board measure. Buckeye reaches its best
development in the Alleghany Mountains of North Carolina and Ten-
nessee. The wood often loses its identity and goes to market mixed with
yellow poplar. Artificial limb manufacturers sometimes employ it as
raw material for their product, in which case it is called for by name.
The wood is light in weight, cross-grained, soft, and rather difficult to
split. In color it is almost white, and the line of demarcation between
heartwood and sapwood so indistinct as to be hardly distinguishable.
The furniture factories and the makers of caskets and coffins were the
only two industries that reported a consumption of wood of this species
in North Carolina in 1919. They used together 200,000 feet, board
measure, 85 per cent of which was cut from home-grown timber. The
quantities consumed by each are shown in Table 20.

50 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 20. — Consumption of Buckeye in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost
per M.
Feet,
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry-

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

125,000
75,000

62.50
37.50

$ 112.50
90.00

I 14,062.50
6,750.00

100,000

75,000

25,000

Totals..

200,000

100 .00

S 104.06

% 20,812.50

175,000 9H nnn

Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) . — This is a very common tree that
grows in rich, moist soil, generally near streams, and is found in most
of the states east of the Mississippi and in several west of that river.
It is often called "buttonwood' and "button ball," getting its name from
the similarity of its fruit to a button ball. The tree is easily distin-
guished by the appearance of its upper branches, from which the outer
bark usually peels, leaving the stark white inner bark. Sycamore, per-
haps, attains greater diameter than any other American hardwood, trees
measuring twelve to fifteen feet having been known. As a general rule,
however, such trees are hollow-butted, sound trunks being found only in
trees of approximately 24 inches and less in diameter. The wood of
sycamore has a distinct grain, somewhat contorted. It is hard, heavy,
moderately strong and durable, moderately difficult to season and work,
and does not hold its shape well. The choicest material goes to the
furniture factories and is rift-sawed, which exposes the broad medullary
rays as in quartered oak. The contrast is much more marked, however,
in sycamore than in oak and the general appearance of the wood is most
pleasing to the eye. Sycamore is a favorite wood for use in the manu-
facture of butchers' blocks, for which purpose it is usually cut into small
blocks that are set on end and bolted together. Considerable quantities
are also utilized for meat skewers.

Sycamore grows in North Carolina in all parts of the State, but
attains its best size along the edges of the alluvial swamps of the Pied-
mont Region and is least abundant in the Coastal Plain Region. As
shown in Table 21, only 112,000 board feet of this wood was used in the
State in 1919, and the industries that consumed it were the furniture
factories and fixture manufacturers.

Locust. — Two species of locust occur in North Carolina and both are
found in the Mountain Region. They are black or yellow locust (Robinia
pseudacacia) and honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) . The former is
the most important of the two species commercially and was demanded
in huge quantities during the war with Germany. Its wartime use con-

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

sisted of its manufacture into treenails, which are long, round, wooden
pins, either straight or tapered, used to fasten the timbers of wooden
ships together. These treenails were required by the United States
Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation in connection with its
wooden ship construction program. Since contracts were let for 375
wooden vessels, each requiring from 30,000 to 50,000 treenails, some idea
of the demand for locust for national defense purposes can be obtained.
As in the case of walnut, the entire country was covered in order to get
sufficient raw material for this purpose. Honey locust is an extremely
porous wood and was otherwise found unsuitable as treenail material.
Black locust, on the other hand, is a hard, dense wood of great durability,
and one which shrinks less than any other commercially important wood
found in this country. Black locust is employed extensively for fence
posts and has been known to give upward of forty years service in the
ground. It is also much in demand for insulator pins and brackets and

tie plugs.

Table 21. — Consumption of Sycamore in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. 0. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per

Cent

Grown

in
State

Grown
Outside
of State

100,000
12,000

89.29
10.71

$ 60 .00
35.00

$ 6,000.00
420 .00

65,000
12,000

35,000

Totals

112,000

100 .00

$ 57 .32

$ 6,420.00

77,000

35,000

Table 22 shows that the wood-using factories of North Carolina
consumed 370,000 feet, board measure, of locust in 1919. All of the
wood was State-grown and was converted into loom parts and insulator
pins.

Table 22. — Consumption of Locust in 1919

Quantity

Average

Cost

per M.

Feet,

F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Industry

Feet, B.M.

Per
Cent

Grown
in

State

Grown
Outside
of State

Shuttles, spools, and bobbins

350,000
20,000

94.59
5.41

S 40.00
50.00

$ 14,000.00
1,000.00

350,000
20,000

Totals

370,000

100 .00

$ 40 .54

$ 15,000.00

370,000

Elm. — White elm (Ulmus americana), slippery elm (Ulmus puhes-
cens), cork elm (Ulmus racemosa) , winged elm (Ulmus dlata), and cedar

52 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

elm (Ulmus crassifolia) are the five species of this genus which produce
the supply of elm wood in the United States. The proportion which
each contributes to the lumber industry is not known, since they are
often mixed together, and when included in statistical reports by lumber-
men and wood users are merely listed as "elm." In this report no
attempt has been made to separate the various species. White elm,
often called American elm, is by far the most important species from
the standpoint of lumber production.

Three of the five species of elm mentioned above occur in North
Carolina. They are white elm, winged elm, and slippery elm. None of
them are commercially important, however, as evidenced by the fact that
the total production of elm lumber by those sawmills of the State that
reported in 1921 was only 74,000 feet, board measure. The wood-
using factories of North Carolina consumed but 6,500 board feet of elm
in 1919, all of which was home-grown and went into the manufacture of
vehicles and vehicle parts.

Cottonwood (Populus heterophylla) . — Such timber of this species as
grows in North Carolina is for the most part well scattered. It is
usually found in the Piedmont Region along streams and on rich swampy
lands, but is not an important commercial tree in the State. Cottonwood
belongs to the poplar family, as do also the aspens. In Virginia it
frequently goes by the name of Carolina poplar. Cottonwood is easy
to season, works well, and is extensively employed for vehicle body panels,
woodenware, soft drink cases, and a number of other purposes where a
white wood with practically no figure is required. The box factories
of the State, which in 1919 used 2,000,000 feet of this wood, were the
only manufacturers that reported the consumption of cottonwood. All
of the wood of this species used was obtained from sources outside the
State.

Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia). — Mountain laurel is a small
evergreen hardwood tree which usually attains an average height of from
10 to 15 feet, although trees as large as 20 inches in diameter and 40
feet high have been known. Its range is very wide, extending from
New Brunswick and Lake Erie to western Florida and through the
Gulf States to western Louisiana and Arkansas. It reaches its best
development in the southern Alleghany Mountains, where it often forms
dense thickets.

In North Carolina it is found sparingly in the Coastal Plain Region,
and to a greater extent in the Piedmont Region. It is most abundant,
however, in the Mountain Region, where it is known locally as "ivy."
Commercially the mountain laurel is valuable for its large, burl-like
roots, which are used in the manufacture of smoking pipes. It serves

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 53

as an excellent substitute for the genuine French briar, and in the form
of the finished product it is difficult to differentiate them. All of the
15,000 feet of mountain laurel reported by the wood-using factories of
North Carolina in 1919 was converted into smoking pipes, and was
obtained from sources within the State.

FOREIGN WOODS

Two foreign woods were employed by the wood-using factories of
North Carolina in 1919. They were mahogany and rosewood. The
furniture industry used 7,500 feet, board measure, and the manufacturers
of fixtures 25,000 feet of the former, while the entire amount of 25,000
feet of the latter was consumed by the furniture makers.

PART III

INDUSTRIES

The various species of wood which the wood-using factories of North
Carolina employ as raw material in the manufacture of their products,
their botanical relations, source of supply, and in some instances their
properties, have been discussed in Part I of this report. Part II deals
with the various factories which use the different woods and considers
the processes of manufacture employed and the extent to which the woods
are utilized according to the respective properties of each. In North
Carolina a total of 14 industries used 493,151,871 board feet of lumber
in 1919, and Table 23 shows how the total consumption was apportioned
among them. The largest industry required 150,503,000 board feet of
wood and the second in importance utilized 109,776,077 board feet,
while the smallest used 962,500 board feet. Six other industries de-
manded more than 15,000,000 board feet. Several small industries
represented by less than three concerns each were grouped together
under the heading "Miscellaneous" for the reason that if they were
shown separately the figures presented would reveal the individual
operations of the firms which reported. The industries presented in
Table 23 have been arranged according to the quantity of wood used.

In North Carolina the handle factories and those making agricultural
implements were the only two industries which obtained their entire
supply of raw material from home-grown wood. The remaining twelve
industries obtained the major portion of their wood from sources within
the boundaries of the State. The chair factories employed a larger
percentage of wood obtained from outside the State than any of the
other industries, while the makers of caskets and coffins used the least
quantity of shipped-in wood.

As previously stated, the total consumption of wood by the wood-using
industries of North Carolina in 1919 was 493,151,871 feet, board
measure, which cost delivered at the factories $19,875,788. In 1909, or
ten years previous, the amount of wood used was 676,166,250 board feet
with a total delivered value of $9,577,242. "With these figures before
us it is of interest to note that although the quantity of wood used in
1919 was less than the amount reported in 1909 by 183,014,379 board
feet, the price paid for the 1919 consumption was more than double the
cost of that used in 1909.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

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56 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Planing Mill Products. — The manufactured products belonging to
this industry include such commodities that come within the scope of
interior and exterior house trim as flooring, siding, ceiling, partition,
and stock mouldings. It does not, of course, include lumber, either
rough or dressed, used for building construction which needs no further
change than can be made with a hatchet, chisel, or saw to fit it in place.

Over 25 per cent of the lumber cut of the United States is demanded
for the making of products belonging to this industry and more wood
in a greater variety of species enters this line of manufacture than any
other. It is to be expected, therefore, that these same facts apply to
North Carolina, and that in this report the planing mill industry takes
first place in point of wood consumed. Table 24, following, lists the
kinds and amounts of wood used in this industry during the period
covered by this report. It does not, however, represent the total lumber
requirements of the State in this line, for the reason that considerable
quantities of these products are shipped into the State in finished form
by large lumber companies which operate planing mills in conjunction
with their sawmills and by factories that manufacture ready-cut houses.
A glance at Table 24 shows that fifteen different kinds of wood were
used by the North Carolina manufacturers of planing mill products.
North Carolina pine heads the list with 125,734,000 board feet, or nearly
84 per cent of the total amount of wood consumed by the industry.
Longleaf pine and oak rank second and third respectively, each con-
tributing approximately 5 per cent of the total quantity used. The
supply of basswood, chestnut, cypress, birch, cedar, and those woods
included under "miscellaneous" was obtained entirely from the forests
of the State. Of the balance of the woods listed all but one were obtained
in much larger quantities from within the State than from without. Of
the total of 150,503,000 board feet of wood used by this industry more
than 88 per cent was cut from the forests of North Carolina. This is
indicative of the importance which the forests bear to the commercial
development of the State. The planing mill industry is not only one of
the most prominent wood-using industries of the State, but also one that
more strongly appeals to the interest of every class of citizen. In order
to keep constant the supply of wood which the State contributes for
building material and, if possible, to increase this supply in the future,
it is essential that the forests be adequately protected and improved with
this object in view. The State has perfected and has had enacted a law
embodying an excellent forest policy covering all phases of the subject.
If sufficient funds for fully carrying out the provisions of this law are
provided and popular support given much will have been accomplished
to help solve the problem of a future timber supply.

PLATE III

A. The manufacture of box shooks for canned food packages. North Carolina pine is the wood used.

B. Interior of a small North Carolina box factory.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 24. — Wood Used for Planing mill Products in North Carolina in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

State

Outside
State

Pine, North Carolina

Pine, longleaf

Oak

Maple

Poplar, yellow

Pine, white

Basswood

Chestnut

Hickory

Gum, red

Gum, black

Cypress

Birch

Cedar

All other

Totals

125,734

7,750
7,545

,000
,000
,000
,500
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,500
,000
,000

83.54

5.15

5.01

2.69

2.03

.41

.27

.20

.19

.17

.13

.03

.02

.12

31.12
43.31
41.87
56.67
43.90
57.50
40.00
35 .00
32.66
113.33
32.63
60.00
68.33
30.00
32.00

$3,912,511

335,652

315,909

229,655

134,202

35,075

16,000

10,500

9,145

28,672

6,134

3,000

3,246

1,080

6,400

112,842,000

5,695,000

6,853,000

3,212,500

3,055,000

584,800

400,000

300,000

275,000

20,000

180,000

50,000

47,500

36,000

200,000

150,503,000

100.00

$ 33.54

$ 5,047,181

133,750,800

12,892,000

2,055,000

692,000

840,000

2,000

25,200

5,000

233,000

8,000

16,752,200

Boxes and Crates. — In reports of this kind prepared in the past for
other states an effort was made to secure data on the wood used for
boxes from every possible source. In this connection the information
was solicited not only from box factories but also from all manner of
manufacturing plants that maintain a packing department for the mak-
ing of packages and containers. Such establishments included glass
factories, paper mills, machinery manufacturers, makers of electrical
goods, wholesale dry goods stores, and similar concerns. In the prepara-
tion of this report, however, these various classes of consumers were
omitted, the figures presented in Table 25 merely showing the consump-
tion of wood by those firms engaged in the manufacture of boxes. Boxes
are used for so many different purposes that it is impractical to attempt
to list them. They may, however, be separated into twro main groups,
those which are fully made up and ready for use and the knocked-down
box, the component parts of which are more frequently referred to as
box shooks. The former includes the nailed box, the wirebound box,
the lock cornered box, and the dovetailed box. Nailed boxes are rarely
ever shipped in any other than the shook form, those that are made up
ready for use usually being sold in the same locality in which they are
made. The wirebound box is made either of thin, resawn lumber or of
sheets of thick veneer. In either case it is usually reinforced with cleats
and further strengthened with wire or metal strapping. This is one of
the types of boxes used for the shipment of canned food. Even though
the poorest grades of lumber are mostly used for the manufacture of

58 "Wood-using Industkies of North Carolina

boxes, the shortage of raw material even in this wood-using industry
is reflected by the increased use of veneer. This type of package is
particularly well adapted for the shipment of light-weight material, such
as dry goods, millinery, men's hats and furnishings, etc. Strength is
given to the container by the use of mortised and tenoned cleats and
wire or metal strapping. The veneer box is less expensive than the solid
wood box, and furthermore, since it is lighter in weight, effects a saving
in freight charges on a shipment. For an especially strong box of
minimum weight plywood is employed. In this type of box the top,
bottom, and sides are made of three sheets of veneer glued together, the
direction of the grain of the center sheet or core running at right angles
to the grain of the two outer sheets or plys. In addition to its strength
and light weight the one-piece faces of the plywood box present a very
attractive appearance. Boxes of this type are also strengthened with
cleats and in some cases they are wire or metal bound. The raw mate-
rial required for both the veneer and plywood box is usually cut by the
rotary or sliced veneer processes. Since cheap veneer woods, principally
the gums, are more plentiful in the South, most of the panel makers are
located there, and large quantities of this class of boxes in the form of
shooks are shipped from North Carolina and other states in the Southern
Appalachian Hardwood Kegion annually.

Shooks are knocked-down boxes so made that they readily and neatly
fit when nailed together, and to facilitate assembling, are systematically
bundled. The manufacture of shooks includes both boxes and knocked-
down crates. At one time any kind of lumber, either rough or dressed,
in practically any color, thickness, or width used to do for boxing and
crating, and the lumber yard rather than the box factory served as the
source of supply. Today manufacturing plants using wooden containers
for the shipment of their products give considerable attention to their
packages and exercise care in the matter of construction. As a conse-
quence, the factories making box shooks are also called upon to furnish
neat and well designed crates. These are usually put up in unit bundles
and in their manufacture particular attention is given to the size, kind,
and thickness of the material used, dependent upon the weight, form,
and character of the goods to be shipped. At the present time well
designed and attractively branded packages for the shipment of merchan-
dise constitute an excellent advertising medium, the general public being
quick to recognize the make of goods which the box or crate contains
without further identification being necessary.

Those factories in North Carolina making boxes and crates consumed
the second largest quantity of wood. The thirty firms engaged in this
industry which reported used during the year 1919 a total of 109,776,077

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

board feet of wood. Fourteen different species of wood were employed
in varying quantities, North Carolina pine taking first place with
71,980,000 feet, board measure, or 65 per cent of the total consumption
by the industry. The average price f. o. b. factory paid for North
Carolina pine by the box makers in 1919 was $26.49 per thousand board
feet, or nearly three times what this material brought ten years previous.
Longleaf pine ranked second, the quantity used being 10,653,077 feet,
while black gum was third, with 7,060,000 board feet. Of the total
quantity of wood used for boxes, over 94 per cent was obtained from the
forests of the State. The entire quantity used of eight of the fourteen
woods listed was obtained from sources within the State. Cottonwood
was the only species the entire supply of which was obtained from sources
outside the State.

The statistics of the United States Forest Service show that in 1921
North Carolina ranked twelfth among the several states in the produc-
tion of eastern hemlock. In view of this fact it is surprising to note that
the quantity of this wood, which is cheap and otherwise well adapted for
box manufacture, was so small. A plausible explanation would be,
however, that since low-grade hemlock is used for pulp as well as boxes,
the bulk of the wood of this quality that was used was consumed by the
pulp mills. North Carolina pine, white pine, red gum, black gum,
yellow poplar, cottonwood and hemlock are all favorite box woods and
enter principally into the manufacture of packing boxes used in com-
merce. The other woods listed in Table 25 are rarely used for this
purpose, but are frequently employed for fancy or novelty boxes for
special use.

Table 25. — Wood Used for Boxes and Crates in North Carolina in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

State

Outside
State

Pine, North Carolina

71,980,000

10,653,077

7,060,000

4,942,000

3,000,000

2,755,000

3,347,000

2,000,000

1,520,000

1,028,000

500,000

5,000

986,000

65.57

9.70

6.43

4.50

2.73

2.51

3.05

1.82

1.39

.94

.46

.90

$ 26.49
35.38
28.63
37.67
60.00
35.00
47.92
75.00
50.00
40.00
30.00
30.00
16.50

$ 1,906,928

376,906

202,128

186,165

180,000

96.425

160,388

150,000

76,000

41,120

15,000

150

16,269

71,010,000
10,653,077
7,060,000
4,942,000
500,000
2,755,000
2,847,000

970,000

Gum, red

2,500,000

Oak

500,000

2,000,000

1,520,000
1,028,000

250,000
5,000

986,000

250,000

All other

Total

109,776,077

100 .00

S 31.04

S3.407.479

103,556,077

6,220,000

"Less than .005 per cent.

60 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Furniture. — In accordance with the last official statistics that were
gathered, North Carolina ranked first among the several states in the
consumption of wood for use in the manufacture of furniture, the city
of High Point being the center of the industry. Since, however, the
quantity of wood used in 1919 by the furniture makers of the State was
less by approximately 35 million feet than was reported in 1909, it is
probable that North Carolina does not still hold first place in the in-
dustry. The factories of the State engaged in this line of manufacture
make all classes of furniture from the cheap kitchen table to the high-
priced piano-finished parlor suit. For the most part, furniture may be
separated into two main groups: (1) Commodities that are more im-
portant from a utilitarian standpoint, such as cupboards, ice boxes, and
refrigerators; (2) articles in which the appearance of the finished
product is as important as its lasting qualities. This second class com-
prises dining room, living room, library, parlor, and bed room furniture,
all of which is usually purchased with the object in view of having it
harmonize with the other appointments of the room in which it is to be
placed, as well as to tone in with the general interior decorative scheme
of the house as a whole. In the preparation of the 1909 report on the
wood-using industries of North Carolina, the two classes of furniture
mentioned above were kept separate and considered as separate indus-
tries. In this report, however, owing to the form in which the original
data were collected, it was found impracticable to segregate them. As
was the case in the previous North Carolina report, however, the manu-
facture of chairs has been considered as a separate industry. This is
done because of the fact that the economic conditions existing in the
chair industry are distinctly different from those of the furniture indus-
try. For example, the form of the raw material is different, the processes
of manufacture are in no way alike, and in the marketing of the products
they are usually kept separate.

Furniture makers demand various kinds of wood. In fact, the num-
ber of woods used by this industry in North Carolina was greater than
was reported by any other discussed in this report. The wide variation
in classes and grades of furniture makes this necessary. Some are con-
structed for the most part of costly woods; others entirely of cheap
material. Even in the manufacture of expensive furniture, however, it
is customary to employ cheap plain woods for interior hidden parts, and
reserve the finer ones for the outside finish. An ideal in high-grade
furniture manufacture, and one that is sought after in well organized,
up-to-date factories, is the production of a product which not only pre-
sents a pleasing appearance, but from a practical point of view is con-
structed of the most suitable material available for the purpose.

PLATE IV

A wooden bedstead of oak in the "white," or before any finish of any kind is applied.
The framework is solid wood, and plywood is used for the panels.

PLATE V

w'wm

W f i

xiifenj

■

A. Higher grade walnut bedroom pieces in a North Carolina furniture factory. The
chairs to the right are finished in old ivory and have cane seats.

B. Interior of a North Carolina factory devoted to the manufacture of bedroom furni-
ture. The articles shown consist of footboards of wooden beds.

PLATE VI

A. Mirror frames for bureaus, chiffoniers, and dressing tables as produced by a North
Carolina manufacturer of bedroom furniture.

B. The glue-room of a large North Carolina furniture factory.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 61

From the standpoint of quantity used, oak is the most important
furniture wood in this country. Even in those states where the supply
of standing timber of this species is extremely limited it leads all other
woods. Iowa, Minnesota, and Michigan are examples. On the other
hand, in those regions where other furniture woods are more plentiful,
such as red gum in the southern Mississippi Valley, oak still leads in
quantity consumed. Red gum, maple, birch, and yellow poplar in the
order named are the other woods demanded in the greatest quantity by
furniture factories.

The bulk of the cheaper grades of furniture are constructed of solid
wood, as are also some of the better grades, such as the poplar mission
type. For this class of furniture woods with pronounced grain are most
commonly used, such as oak, ash, chestnut, etc. The more costly pieces
of furniture, where one of the main objects is to show an attractive
figured surface, are constructed mainly of built-up wood. This char-
acter of construction is in general use throughout the furniture industry,
and consists of the manufacture of various furniture parts out of several
laminations of wood glued together. In the construction of built-up
wood or plywood, the name by which it is most commonly known, the
inside layer or core is usually of some soft, porous, coarse-grained wood,
such as chestnut, ash, or yellow poplar, which possesses the particular
quality of absorbing and holding glue well. To each side of this core,
which varies considerably in thickness according to the use to be made
of the plywood, is glued a thin sheet of finish wood, or face veneer, as it
is known in the trade, the grain of which runs at right angles to the core.
Such construction is much stronger than solid wood, and will hold its
shape better. In addition, the method followed in cutting veneer makes
it possible to obtain a wonderful, natural figure in the wood. Hence, in
furniture made of plywood a far more beautiful outside appearance
from the standpoint of grain can be secured than is possible in solid
wood construction. The use of veneer in furniture making dates back
to Colonial days, many of the antique pieces of that time being con-
structed in this manner, with the exception that the core was of the same
wood, usually mahogany or walnut, as the face veneer.

Table 26 gives in the order of their importance from the standpoint
of quantity used the various woods used for furniture in North Carolina
in 1919. Oak was most in demand, the quantity used being 40,465,000
board feet, or nearly 41 per cent of the total consumption. Red gum
occupied second place with 23,475,000 board feet, and was followed in
the order named by yellow poplar, chestnut, North Carolina pine, and
maple. All of the 13 other woods shown were used in quantities of less
than 1,000,000 feet, while mahogany, an important furniture wood, con-
tributed only 7,500 board feet.

Wood-using Industeies of North Caeolina

Oak, chestnut, North Carolina pine, and sycamore were the woods
employed by the North Carolina furniture factories for frame work.
Principally because of their ability to wear smooth sugar maple and ash
were used for drawer and extension table slides. As mentioned above,
soft, coarse grained, porous woods are considered best for core stock,
and chestnut, yellow poplar and North Carolina pine supplied the
demand. Oak, red gum, black walnut, birch, rosewood and mahogany
were the principal woods used for exterior finish. Yellow poplar pos-
sesses to a marked degree the property of taking paint well and in this
connection serves admirably as a finish wood for white enameled furni-
ture. White pine, basswood, black gum, sycamore, and beech served
for drawer bottoms, partitions, shelving and other inside work. Since
the wood scours white and is thus easily kept clean, buckeye is valued
for kitchen table tops, while for kitchen safes and cabinets yellow poplar,
gum and the lower grades of oak were used. Nearly 100 million feet of
wood were used by the industry during 1919, and of this quantity over
70 per cent was cut from forests of the State.

Table 26. — Wood Used for Furniture in North Carolina in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

State

Outside
State

Oak

Gum, red

Poplar, yellow

Chestnut

Pine, North Carolina

Maple

Walnut, black

Birch.

Gum, black

Basswood

Buckeye

Sycamore

Beech

Pine, longleaf

Pine, white

Rosewood

Hickory

Mahogany

All other

Totals

,465,000

,475,000

,642,000

,244,000

,773,000

,030,000

813,000

405,000

300,000

150,000

125,000

100,000

80,000

50,000

25,000

10,500

7,500

201,000

40.90

23.72

11.77

11.36

8.87

1.04

.82

.41

.30

.15

.13

.10

.08

.05

.03

.01

.20

57.33

'79.47
45.42
40.53
26.55
79.69

206 .67
57.50
23.00
75.00

112.50
60.00
42.00
70.00
40.00

450 .00
50.00

350 .00
25.00

$ 2,319,858

1,865,558

528,780

455,719

232,945

82,081

168,023

23,288

6,900

11,250

14,062

6,000

3,360

3,500

2,000

11,250

525

2,625

5,025

35,309,000

2,582,500

10,163,000

10,944,000

8,433,000

637,500

558,000

285,000

150,000
100,000
65,000
80,000

50,000

10,500
201,000

98,946,000

100.00

$ 58.04

§5,742,749

,568,500

5,156,000
20,892,500

1,479,000
300,000
340,000
392,500
255,000
120,000
300,000

25,000
35,000

50,000

25,000

7,500

29,377,500

Chairs. — Although chairs are classed as furniture, it is customary, as
explained under the chapter on furniture, to consider their manufacture
separately. The reason for this is primarily because chair factories
confine their operations to that one article, while the furniture industry

PLATE VII

A. Dressing-table seats in a North Carolina chair factory ready for staining and finishing.

B. A corner of the finishing room of a North Carolina chair factory. Settees, rockers,
dining-room chairs and others are shown in the picture.

PLATE VIII

A. Chairs and settees in a North Carolina plant ready for staining and finishing. In
this factory red gum is the principal wood used.

^j^»#
>;

Jlt%I

;:li *-'S 'V}k

■

; .:.4

Oft

'itJ

B. Chair parts in the making in a North Carolina factory.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 63

lias a much wider field of operation. In the manufacture of chairs
JSTorth Carolina stands well up toward the top among the various states
in which this industry attains any importance. In 1919 the chair
makers of the State used 31,627,000 feet, board measure, of wood, con-
sisting of eight different kinds. Of these oak was the most important,
contributing more than two-thirds of the total quantity consumed. Of
the entire amount reported by the chair industry, over 6Q per cent was
supplied by the forests of the State. Red gum and maple were obtained
in larger quantities from outside the State than from within, while the
supply of all the others listed, with the exception of oak, was home-
grown. Table 27 shows the quantity of each kind of wood used by the
industry, the average price paid for it f . o. b. factory, its total cost, and
the source from which it was obtained.

The raw material used by the chair industry consists for the most part
of dimension stock, usually squares, the chair makers perhaps using
more wood in this form than any other industry. Sawmills operating
in hardwood timber make a practice of supplying such stock and obtain
it by bolting slabs and edgings. They also frequently use for this pur-
pose small crooked logs, tops, down timber, and cut-offs which ordinarily
could be disposed of in no other way. Wood-using factories, especially
those requiring oak, beech, birch, and maple, constitute another source
of supply. In such plants low grades and factory waste are converted
to this use. In some instances this material is further manufactured
into turned chair parts and shipped to the chair factories ready to
assemble. In view of the foregoing, it can be seen that the chair indus-
try occupies a position of economic importance, in that it not only
contributes to the industrial development of the State, but also to the
movement of forest conservation through its tendency to promote the
closer utilization of mill and factory waste.

~Not all of the raw material used by this industry is in the form of
dimension stock, nor is all of the dimension stock used by chair makers
obtained from waste. For chair seats and backs, wide planks in thick-
nesses ranging from 1% to 2% inches are used, and this same class of
material is ripped up into squares in order to obtain sufficient stock in
this form to meet the requirements of the industry. Chair stock is
usually thoroughly air-seasoned or kiln-dried before use. Sawmills
cutting dimension stock for the chair industry from green timber are
careful to see that the stock is straight-grained and fairly free from
defects, and that allowance is made for shrinkage.

Dimension stock in the form of principally birch, beech, and maple
squares are required mostly for turned chair parts or others which can
readily be manufactured from raw material of this kind, such as square

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

tapered legs and square rung stock. For chairs which follow more or
less straight line designs, as well as for those of the mission style, requir-
ing parts which are wider than they are thick, the raw material is cut
from wide plank. Oak, ash, and chestnut are more commonly called
on for raw material for the better grades of these types of chairs, while
for the parts of the cheaper imitation articles woods like sap red gum,
birch, and also elm are used, with a grain representing that of oak, ash
or chestnut printed on them.

Table 27. — Wood Used for Chairs in North Carolina in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

In
State

Outside
State

Oak.....

Gum, red

Maple

Birch

Ash

Poplar yellow
Pine, white. ..
Beech

Totals..

23,930,000
4,047,000
2,290,000
650,000
375,000
160,000
150,000
25,000

75.66

12.80

7.24

2.05

1.19

.51

.47

60.48
95.67
45.34
38.66
55.00
25.00
40.00
35.00

$ 1

,447,286
387,176
103,829
25,129
20,625
4,000
6,000

18,576,500
400,000
790,000
650,000
375,000
160,000
150,000
25,000

31,627,000

100.00

63.08

$ 1,994,920

21,126,500

5.353.500
3,647,000
1,500,000

10,500.500

Vehicles and Vehicle Parts. — Hickory and oak, in the order men-
tioned, have always been the two leading vehicle woods, but in North
Carolina in 1919 these two species were relegated to third and fourth
place respectively by red gum and North Carolina pine, which from the
standpoint of quantity consumed occupied first and second place in the
order named. That red gum took first place in the industry is surpris-
ing, especially in view of the fact that this wood, on the basis of total
annual consumption by the vehicle industry for the entire United States
ranks ninth in importance. In North Carolina in 1909 it occupied sixth
place, the total quantity consumed by the vehicle industry during that
year being only 250,000 feet, board measure. In 1919 the quantity used
increased to 9,240,000 feet, board measure, or over 33 per cent of the
total amount of all kinds of wood used by the industry. This sudden
prominence of red gum in the vehicle industry of the State is explained,
however, in this way. A certain factory in North Carolina engaged in
the manufacture of wooden automobile parts uses red gum exclusively,
and the bulk of the 9,240,000 board feet reported as. having been used
by the vehicle makers of the State was consumed in this particular
factory. It has always been a rule of the Forest Service in preparing
reports of this kind to exclude from them all information likely to reveal

PLATE IX

A. The wheel-room of a large North Carolina wagon factory.

| • tiiiiiiiiMijtiij

ilMllf! - M M! li

Hit
i «l in

I nil i r in it

B. Wagon box-board stock, hubs and spokes in the plant of a large North Carolina farm

wagon manufacturer.

PLATE X

A. Interior of a North Carolina wagon factory. Completed wheels in +he foreground and
finished wooden gear parts in the rear ready for assembling.

B. A portion of the assembly room for running gears in the factory of a large wagon maker of North

Carolina.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 65

the operations of individual firms. Since the factory in question is the
only one in the State that makes these articles, this rule would be
violated if the name of the article were divulged or its use described.

In accordance with the latest statistics of the National Automobile
Chamber of Commerce, there were, in 1919, in the entire world a total
of 8,750,000 automobiles, 7,558,848 of which are in the United States,
or 1 to every 14 of the population of this country. With these facts
before us, it is not surprising that many of the establishments through-
out the country which formerly made horse-drawn vehicles have been
converted and are now engaged in some way in that part of the automo-
bile industry where wood is the raw material used. Even, however, with
the phenomenal growth of the motor car industry, the demand, especially
in rural districts, for horse-drawn vehicles is still strong.

Specialization has always been an important practice in the vehicle
industry, and is the principal reason why so few factories manufacture
the full complement of parts needed to turn out a complete vehicle.
Some establishments purchase hubs, spokes, and rims separately and
complete the vehicle from this point. Others obtain wheels already
manufactured, axles with skeins fitted in place, and other parts of the
running gear fully ironed, and merely build the bodies. Still another
class buy all parts complete, even to the bodies and tops, and assemble
them. In order to avoid duplication, assembling establishments of this
kind were not taken into account in the compilation of the data relating
to this industry.

The kinds of horse-drawn vehicles manufactured in North Carolina
are buggies, surreys, carriages, and similar light pleasure vehicles, as
well as farm and delivery wagons, carts, warehouse and other trucks and
wheelbarrows. In the manufacture of these vehicles, oak and hickory
contributed the largest quantity of raw material. Hickory was used
for such parts as spokes, rims, tongues, bolsters, axle caps, hounds, top
bows, fuchels, single, double and whiffle trees. Oak was employed for
body frames, wagon spokes, axles, and felloes, hounds, tongues, bolsters,
etc. Ash was converted into top bows and body frames, while birch and
elm were used largely for hubs. Tor body work red gum, North Caro-
lina pine, yellow poplar, and white pine constituted the principal woods
used. In making wagons, the vehicle manufacturers used for flooring
or bottom boards maple, oak and ash, while for panels yellow poplar,
white pine and red gum were the woods reported. Body linings were of
yellow poplar and North Carolina pine, the latter wood also being used
for warehouse trucks.

In the automobile field, which in North Carolina consisted principally
of the manufacture of commercial bodies, the oak and ash that was used
5

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

went for body and door frames. North Carolina pine, oak and yellow
poplar were employed for seat boxes, while elm, yellow poplar, ash and
red gum supplied the raw material needed for floor boards and running
boards.

The vehicle industry of North Carolina consumed in 1919 a total
of 27,867,000 feet, board measure, of wood, the total cost of which was
over a million dollars. Since the industry demands high-grade material,
it naturally follows that the average price paid for it was comparatively
high. The quantity of wood used by the industry in 1919 exceeded that
reported in 1909 by 12,231,000 feet, board measure. Of the total quan-
tity used, slightly over 85 per cent was home grown.

Table 28 shows the kinds and quantities of the various woods required
by the industry, the average price per 1,000 feet f. o. b. factory which
the vehicle makers paid for it, the total cost, and the source from which
it was obtained.

Table 28.

-Wood Used for Vehicles and Vehicle Parts in North Carolina
in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory-

source of Supply-

Total
Cost

State

Outside
State

Gum, red

Pine, North Carolina

Oak

Hickory

Poplar, yellow

Ash

Pine, white

Birch

Maple

Elm

All other

Totals

9,240,000

6,393,000

5,719,500

5,553,000*

657,000

91,000

75,000

68,000

10,000

6,500

54,000

33.16

22.94

20.52

19.93

2.36

.33

.27

.24

.04

.02

.19

51.75
29.53
45.74
42.46
45.68
47.50
25.00
51.00
45.00
24.00
38.33

478,170

188,797

261,610

235, 780

30,012

4,322

1,875

3,468

450

156

2,070

7,280,000

5,793,000

5,319,500

4,433,000

639,800

91,000

75,000

38,000

10,000

6,500

54,000

27,867,000

100.00

$ 43 .30

$ 1,206,710

23,739,800

1,960,000
600,000
400,000

1,120,000
17,200

30,000

4,127,200

Fruit and Vegetable Packages. — Wood in the form of veneer is the
raw material used by this industry in the manufacture of barrels,
baskets, berry crates, hoppers, etc., for use in shipping peaches, apples,
potatoes, beans, tobacco, cucumbers, berries of every kind, and other
fruits and vegetables. The veneer used is cut in thicknesses ranging from
%0 to % of an inch. The cheapest woods available are usually em-
ployed. The raw material comes to the factory in the form of logs,
which are cut into bolts of the required length. The bolts are boiled or
subjected to steam for from 12 to 24 hours to soften them, and then the
bark is removed. The bolt is then placed in the veneer stave machine,

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

which consists of a cylinder containing knives. As the log revolves the
knives cut the face of the bolt lengthwise to a depth equal to the thick-
ness of veneer desired, and the staves come from the machine in finished
form ready for assembling. One form of waste in this industry consists
of core stock, which is that part of the bolt that is left after all the
veneer possible has been removed. These cores are sawed into thin
lumber, are joined together with cleats to make a square board, and then
cut around into bottoms and lids. Other waste is converted into hoops.

By referring to Table 29 it can be seen that black gum, North Caro-
lina pine, and yellow poplar were the principal woods used by the plants
engaged in this industry. Manufacturing costs in the industry are high,
and for this reason high-priced woods cannot be employed. The low
average price of $23.38 per 1,000 feet, board measure, f. o. b. factory,
reflects the low quality of the logs used in the production of the com-
modities made. The cheapness of the material used, coupled with the
fact that a thousand feet, log measure, will make six or eight thousand
surface feet of veneer, more than offsets costly production. This enables
the factories manufacturing fruit and vegetable packages to offer them
at reasonable prices, thus stimulating the demand for such packages for
shipping farm and truck garden products to market.

The total amount of wood used by the industry in 1919 was 22,791,897
feet, board measure. In point of quantity consumed, black gum took the
lead with 11,505,000 feet, board measure. North Carolina pine ranked
second with 9,184,587 board feet, while yellow poplar occupied third
place. Nearly 97 per cent of the total amount of wood used for fruit
and vegetable packages was home grown.

Table 29.-

■Wood Used for Fruit and Vegetable Packages in North Carolina
in 1919

Quantity-

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

State

Outside

State

11,505,000

9,184,587

848,307

813,807

440,196

50.48

40.30

3.72

3.57

1.93

$ 22.79
21.69
37.00
39.50
18.00

$ 262,199
199,227
31,387
32,145

7,924

11,505,000

9,184,587

135,807

813,807

440,196

712,500

Oak

Totals

22,791,897

100 .00

$ 23 .38

$ 532,882

22,079,397

712,500

Sash, Doors, Blinds, and General Mill Worh. — The commodities dis-
cussed in this chapter are so closely allied to those produced by the
planing mill that it is sometimes difficult to differentiate them. Planing

68 "Wood-using Ixdustkies of North Carolina

mill products for the most part, however, consist of such articles as
flooring, ceiling, siding, partition, and stock mouldings, which are manu-
factured universally to standard design and size. The ordinary planing
mill usually operates planers and nothing else, and is frequently con-
nected with a large sawmill, which supplies it with rough lumber. The
mill which turns out sash and doors may be considered more in the
nature of a factory, since it planes, saws, cuts, fits, and finishes the article
produced. In addition it is usually equipped with a wide variety of
machinery adaptable for turning out custom work. Unlike the planing
mill, it procures its raw material in the general market in quantities
and kinds needed to fill current or anticipated orders. Formerly sash,
doors, and blinds were made in local planing mills, but within recent
years the establishment of factories specializing in the manufacture of
these commodities in standard sizes has caused the small planing mills
to abandon this line of work. At the present time, therefore, the
products of the local sash, door, blind, and general mill work factories
consist for the most part of commodities made on special order. They
comprise sash, doors, blinds, window frames, stair work, built-in cup-
boards, mantels, grills, panels, cornice and porch finish, capitals, columns,
lattice work, and other classes of interior and exterior house trim.

Table 30 lists the various woods demanded by this industry in North
Carolina during the year 1919. It will be noted that North Carolina
pine heads the list and contributed over 75 per cent of the total used by
the industry. Longleaf pine occupied second place, while oak ranked
third. Nearly 90 per cent of the total quantity of wood consumed by
the industry was obtained from the forests of the State. The total
supply of five of the eight woods reported by the industry was obtained
from sources within the State, as was also the bulk of the other three.

The North Carolina door, as it is known to the trade, is one of the
most important articles of commerce produced by the factories of the
State. It gets its name from the fact that North Carolina pine is the
wood used in its manufacture. Other woods that contributed to the raw
material for doors are longleaf pine, cypress, oak, chestnut, and white
pine. As is the case in other wood-using industries, veneer plays an
important part in the manufacture of doors. Some of the highest
grades of this class of woodwork are of built-up construction. For
veneer doors the usual run of soft, porous woods, such as chestnut, yellow
poplar, and white pine, are employed for core stock and highly figured
woods for the face veneer. Yeneer doors, if properly made, are much
stronger, less liable to warp, and will give better service than those made
of solid wood. "White and North Carolina pine and some oak were the
principal woods used for sash, both stock sash and that calling for

PLATE XI

A. The finishing room in a North Carolina casket factory.

B. The manufacture of burial cases in a North Carolina casket factory.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

special designs and sizes. The capacity of cypress, especially the heart-
wood, to resist decay makes it an important wood for use in the manu-
facture of window screens, cornice, window frames, and greenhouse sash
and other articles used in damp or exposed situations.

Yellow poplar is a wood that takes paint well, and because of this fact
is extensively employed for outside trim. Oak is a favorite wood for
mantels and other high-grade finish, for which purpose it is used on
account of its attractive grain and because it takes a high polish. "When
quarter-sawed, the broad medullary rays, or "flakes" as they are referred
to in the trade, present a very pleasing appearance in interior house trim.

Table 30. — Wood Used for Sash, Doors, and Blinds

Quantity-

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

State

Outside

State

12.580,000
2,700,000
365,000
300,000
270,000
243,000
100,000
50,000

75.74

16.26

2.20

1.81

1.63

1.46

.60

.30

$ 32 .09
39.00
37.83
25.00
49.17
36.75
30.00
50.00

I 403,701
105,300
13,808
7,500
13,276
8,930
3,000
2,500

11,080,000
2,540,000
365,000
300,000
220,000
243,000
100,000
50,000

1,500,000

160,000

Oak..

50,000

Totals

16,608,000

100 .00

$ 33.60

$ 558,015

14,898,000

1,710,000

Caskets and Coffins. — Care and reverence in laying away the dead is
an age-old custom of the human race the world over, a fact that is well
corroborated by the discoveries made at the recently opened tomb of
King Tut-ankh-amen. The manufacture of coffins dates back many
centuries. The mummy cases of the ancient Egyptians to be found in
museums of the present day are evidence of this fact. Cedar of Lebanon
was one of the woods employed for this purpose, and, strange as it may
seem, some of these burial cases, although made only of wood, have
survived the passage of centuries down the misty corridor of time, while
the houses and other structures built of stone during those periods have
crumbled into dust.

During the present century it was formerly the custom for every com-
munity to provide its own coffins as needed, and the local carpenters or
cabinet makers were called upon to furnish them. The name "coffin"
has almost universally been replaced by the term "casket." Both are
used for the same purpose, the only difference being that the coffin is
constructed so as to conform to the lines of the human body, while the
casket is merely rectangular in shape. The latter type of burial case

TO "Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

is the one most commonly used at present. Today the manufacture of
caskets and coffins is an important wood-using industry carried on largely
in cities. The manufacture of outer cases, or the rough box in which the
casket is placed, is also a part of the industry. As much wood is con-
sumed in making these boxes as is used in the manufacture of caskets.
"Woods that are easily worked, take stain well, and are susceptible of a
good polish are used for cheap coffins. Yellow poplar is more commonly
employed than any other wood. In the South the principal wood used
for coffins is cypress, while western red cedar serves the same purpose on
the Pacific Coast, and basswood is favored in the Lake States.

In North Carolina, as in many other States, chestnut is considered
the most suitable wood for caskets. Since nearly all caskets are cloth-
covered, this permits of the use of the lower grades of lumber. At the
same time the raw material must be free of defects that would be likely
to affect the strength and durability of the casket. Chestnut is espe-
cially durable under ground, and, in addition, it is light in weight and
possesses sufficient strength. Some of the chestnut going into caskets
is of the very best grade, but for the most part the grade known com-
mercially as "sound wormy" is used. The lumber sold under this grade
is perforated with small worm holes about 1/16 inch in diameter, but it
possesses the requisite strength and durability, and the worm holes are
an advantage, since they present an especially good surface to which to
glue the cloth covering. High-priced caskets are finished in natural
wood that has been carefully worked, and in some cases handsomely
carved, and then given a piano finish. For such burial cases mahogany,
walnut, oak, and similar highly-figured cabinet woods are employed.

In Table 31 are listed the various woods which supplied the raw
material consumed by the casket and coffin manufacturers of North
Carolina in 1919. Chestnut occupied first place with 7,852,915 feet,
board measure, while North Carolina pine was a close second with
6,418,569 board feet. The chestnut reported went into caskets and
coffins, while the North Carolina pine was used principally for outer
boxes. The total amount of wood consumed by this industry during
the year was 16,469,897 feet, board measure, and chestnut and North
Carolina pine together contributed more than 86 per cent of this quan-
tity. Of the total quantity of wood reported by the industry, less than
1% per cent was obtained from sources outside the boundaries of the
State. The fact that the requirements of these manufacturers are met
so largely by the forests of the State should elicit their interest in any
movement that has for its object the perpetuation of the timber supply
of North Carolina.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 31. — Wood Used for Gaskets and Coffins in North Carolina in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total

Cost

Source of Supply

State

Outside
State

Chestnut

Pine, North Carolina

Poplar, yellow

Pine, white

Oak

Cypress

Basswood

Gum, red

Buckeye

Walnut, black

Totals

7,852,915

6,418,569

956,856

326,557

290,000

200,000

175,000

150,000

75,000

25,000

47.68

38.97

5.81

1.98

1.76

1.22

1.06

.91

.46

.15

43.34
29.70
33.61
35.60
74.17
40.00
110.00
110.00
90.00
37.50

340,345

190,631

32,160

11,625

21,509

8,000

19,250

16,500

6,750

938

7,852,915
6,337,569
956,856
326,557
290,000
200,000
175,000

75,000
18,750

16,469,897

100.00

$ 39 .33

$ 647,708

16,232,647

81,000

150,000
6,250

237,250

Elevators and Machine Construction. — The principal raw materials
used in the manufacture of elevators and various kinds of machinery
consist of iron and steel. Wood, however, is indispensable for certain
parts, and in North Carolina varying quantities of seven different woods
were used by those factories engaged in this industry in the manufacture
of grist mills, both stationary and portable, freight elevators, cotton
gins, cotton presses, textile, sawmill, and tobacco machinery, feed mills,
and similar apparatus. Nearly 85 per cent of the 4,949,500 feet, board
measure, of wood consumed by the industry was North Carolina pine,
over half of which was employed in the making of portable grist mills,
each requiring in the neighborhood of 200 feet, board measure, of wood.
The modern passenger elevator is usually an all-metal product, with a
sanitary composition floor. In the manufacture of freight elevators,
however, wood is still extensively employed. For such parts as plat-
forms, guide posts, and guide strips sugar maple and longleaf pine were
found especially wrell adapted, while oak served for car sills and over-
head beams. For freight elevator car siding North Carolina pine was
used, and large quantities of this wood were also consumed in the manu-
facture of miscellaneous machinery, where it was employed for light
frames and panel work. Yellow poplar and wmite pine wTere used for
grain runways, hoppers, and bins of grist mills, as was also sugar pine,
a w^ood of the Pacific Coast. Sugar maple was employed for section
beams and other parts of textile machinery where a hard, dense wood is
required. This wood was also used along with oak for log decks and
carriage platform parts of sawmill machinery. Table 32 shows the
wroods used by this industry.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Nearly 90 per cent of the total quantity of wood used by this industry
was supplied from home-grown timber. Here, again, is evidence of the
dependence of the wood-using industries of North Carolina upon a con-
tinuous supply of State-grown wood. This should serve to stimulate
interest among wood-using factories in the matter of obtaining an ade-
quate appropriation to put into effect the forestry law of the State.

Table 32. — Wood Used for Elevators
North Carolina

and Machine Construction in
in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

State

Outside
State

4,200,000

260,000

184,000

160,000

98,000

42,500

5,000

84.86
5.25
3.72
3.23
1.98
.86
.10

$ 24.28
52 .30
55 .00
42.50
58.60
110.00
135 .00

! 101,962
13,598
10.120
6,800
5,743
4,675
675

3,765.000

260,000

184,000

10.000

95,000

42.500

435,000

Oak

150,000

Pine, white

3,000

5,000

Totals

4,949,500

100 .00

S 29.01

3 143,573

4.356.500 593.000

Shuttles, Spools, and Bobbins. — When the work of preparing State
wood-using industry reports was first started by the Forest Service a
careful selection of headings was made to cover certain industries or
groups of industries. This classification was followed in the prepara-
tion of the thirty-odd reports of this kind that were published. In some
cases the similarity of the products made in several industries made it
advisable to combine such industries under one heading. This accounts
for the shuttle, spool, and bobbin industry, and although these various
products are not always made in the same factory, the processes of manu-
facture are so much alike as to make it convenient for purposes of tabu-
lation to combine them.

In North Carolina the articles made by the factories embraced in the
above-mentioned group of industries include not only shuttles, spools,
and bobbins, but also picker sticks, cones, cobs, clearer rollers, and other
loom supplies and skewers. For shuttles the favorite woods are dog-
wood and persimmon, both of which because of their density possess to
a high degree the requisite property of wearing smooth with continued
use. In addition, they are heavy, hard, and strong. The manufacture
of shuttle blocks is usually an industry separate from the manufacture
of shuttles. Great care is exercised in getting out the blocks. Fre-
quently costly delays and damage result when shuttles of second quality
are put in the loom. Therefore, to obviate this and to avoid injury to

PLATE XII

A. Dogwood is the principal wood used for shuttles. The picture shows a pile of doj
wood logs on the yard of a North Carolina shuttle-block factory.

B. Shuttles in the making, the raw material used in being the dogwood blocks produced by the shuttle-
block mill.

"Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 73

delicate fabrics during the process of weaving only perfect blocks can be
used. Shuttle blocks are cut to full size to allow for seasoning, and the
following dimensions are considered standard :

Dimension of

Size

Green Block

Dry Block

No. 0

15" x 2" x 1%"

14%" x 1%" x 1%"

No. 1

i5y2" x 2y8" x i%"

15" x 1%" x 1%"

No. 2

16%" x 2%" x 2"

16" x 2" x 1%"

No. 3

16%" x 2%" x 2%"

16" x 2" x 2"

No. 4

17" x 2%" x 1%"

16%" x 2%" x 1%"

No. 5

18" x 29/16" x 2%"

17%" x 2%" x 1%"

No. 6

19% " x 29/16" x 2"

19" x 214" x 2"

No. 7

21%" x 2i3/16" x 29/16"

21" x 2%" x 2%"

No. 8

23%" x 3%" x 2i%6"

23" x 2%" x 2%"

Blocks must be cut from perfectly clear timber, correctly sawn and
free from knots, checks, cross grain, bark, or other defects which would
give the finished shuttle the slightest bit of rough surface. In sawing
out the blocks the practice is to cut them so as not to include the pith of
the tree. Immediately after being sawed both ends of the blocks are
dipped to a distance of about an inch in paraffin or a mixture of lamp-
black and rosin to prevent end checking. They are then stacked for
sixty or ninety days to permit of partial seasoning and the development
of imperfections which cannot be detected in the green wood. The per-
fect blocks are then sorted out, tied up in burlap sacks according to size,
and shipped to the shuttle factory. These blocks pass through twenty-
three separate and distinct operations during the process of converting
them into finished shuttles. The North Carolina factories engaged in
this industry used no persimmon in 1919, but reported over a million
and a half feet of dogwood, this species, from the standpoint of quantity
consumed, being second only to hickory among the various woods used.

Picker sticks are those parts of a loom mechanism which cause the
shuttle to move backward and forward in its groove. For these articles
hickory has been found most satisfactory, and a large part of the
1,925,000 feet, board measure, of this wood was converted to this use.
The balance was consumed in the manufacture of skewers, the small,
pointed, pencil-like wooden sticks used by butchers to fasten together
roasts of beef and other cuts of meat after the bone has been removed.

Wood suitable for bobbins must be hard, tough, and close-grained, and
possess the ability to turn well without the wood "roughing up" during
the process. Beech, birch, and maple possess these qualities to a high
degree, and in North Carolina were used for bobbins and speeder mate-
rial as well as for other turned loom parts, such as quills and twisters.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

The yellow poplar reported by this industry went into the manufacture
of quill boards, while the commodities made from the locust used con-
sisted of cobs, cones, and other miscellaneous parts.

The manufacture of spools is an industry confined for the most part
to New England, the State of Maine being its center, and the wood of
paper birch the raw material most used. No spools were reported as
having been manufactured in North Carolina in 1919.

The woods used in 1919 by the North Carolina factories engaged in
the manufacture of shuttles, spools, and bobbins are presented in Table
33, and are arranged in the order of their importance from the stand-
point of consumption. This table also shows the average cost per thou-
sand feet f. o. b. factory of the different species listed. Nearly five
million feet of wood was reported, and of this quantity nearly 97 per
cent was cut from home-grown timber.

Table 33.

■Wood Used for Shuttles, Spools, and Bobbins in North Carolina
in 1919

Kind of Wood

Quantity

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.

Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

State

Outside
State

Hickory

Dogwood-

Maple

Locust

Pine, North Carolina

Beech. .

Birch...

Poplar, yellow

Totals..

1,925,000
1,575,000
400,000
350,000
225,000
100,000
100,000
10,000

41.09
33.62

8.54
7.47
4.81
2.13
2.13
.21

55.71
35.00
45.00
40.00
17.00
30.00
30.00
30.00

107,242
55,125
18,000
14,000
3.825
3,000
3,000
300

,925,000
575,000
250,000
350,000
225,000
100,000
100,000
10,000

4,685,000

43.65

204,492

150,000

4,535,000 I 150,000

Handles. — The handle factories of North Carolina reported the use of
2,991,000 board feet of wood in 1919, which cost them $100,189, or an
average of $33.50 per thousand feet, board measure, f . o. b. factory. All
of the wood was supplied by the forests of the State, and the industries
that used it are shown in Table 34.

Hickory is the best known material for certain classes of tool handles,
such as the axe, pick, hammer, adze, and hatchet. Nearly half of the
total quantity of wood consumed by the industry was hickory. Woods
to take the place of this valuable handle material have been sought the
world over, but no satisfactory substitute has yet been found. There is
a strength, toughness, and elasticity to hickory which nature has denied
to other commercial woods. Some are stronger, many are harder, but

PLATE XIII

A. Ash and hickory handle squares seasoning under cover at a North Carolina handle factory,

B. Finished and partly finished "D" shovel handles in a North Caro-
lina handle plant.

PLATE XIV

■

.r:.^

""-';'

Rough-turned "D" shovel handles, the product of a North Cf

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 75

the rare combination of the qualities mentioned is lacking in all of them.
Since this paragraph has reverted to the subject of the mechanical prop-
erties of hickory, it may be of interest to discuss briefly a few other
points relative to this important wood.

Hickory is often referred to as though it were a single species, like
red gum or yellow poplar. In reality there are as many as ten different
varieties, some of which are valuable for handle manufacture and others
not. The sapwood of hickory is white and is universally referred to as
"white hickory," while the heartwood is red, and is known to the trade
as "red hickory." The proportion between the heartwood and sapwood
varies greatly in different trees, at different ages during the life of the
same tree, and between different species. Generally young trees growing
in the open are nearly all sapwood, while old trees possess compara-
tively thin sapwood. There has always existed a prejudice against the
use of the heartwood of hickory for handles, a prejudice principally
on the part of the consumer. The manufacturer, on the other hand, has
long been aware of this condition, and has realized that he has been
placing brash white hickory in the grade of No. 1 handles and throwing
red hickory handles of excellent quality into the grade of "No. 2. This
practice, for the most part, however, has been followed principally in
connection with axe, adze, machinist hammer handles, and others requir-
ing great resiliency or the ability to resist shock. This property is not
insisted upon in pick handles, and for these no objection is usually raised
to the use of the heartwood of the tree. In other words, strength in
hickory has always been associated with the sapwood. Heartwood in a
larger proportion than sapwood is more likely to be found in trees of
slow growth. The same is true of old trees, which have naturally
reached that age producing narrow annual rings. Accordingly red
hickory is associated in the tree with wood showing narrow annual rings
of growth. Exhaustive experiments conducted by the Forest Service,
however, have shown red hickory to be just as strong, weight for weight,
as white hickory, and highly suitable when of proper density for all
types of handles.

With the increasing scarcity of hickory, oak is being employed for
clay and railroad pick handles as well as others which do not require
the elasticity so essential in an axe handle. Ash is the favorite wood for
farm tool handles, such as pitch forks, grubbing hoes, rakes, spades,
shovels, manure forks, etc. In other states where the manufacture of
handles is 'included among the other industries represented, ash, from
the standpoint of quantity used, is usually second in importance to
hickory among the woods employed. In North Carolina, however, it
came within one of occupying last place, and the 150,000 feet, board

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

measure, that was reported was not used for the types of handles men-
tioned above, but went entirely for broom handles, along with Xorth
Carolina pine and gum.

Table 34.— Wood

Used for Handles

in North Carolina in 1919

Quantity-

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

In
State

Outside
State

1,351,000
800,000
540,000
150,000
150,000

45.17

26.75

18.06

5.01

$ 40.71
20,00
33.50
42.00
32.00

$ 54,999
16,000
18,090

6.300
4,800

1,351,000
800,000
540,000
150,000
150,000

Oak .

Ash

Totals.

2,991,000

100 .00

S 33.50

S 100,189

2,991,000

Fixtures. — The products turned out by those establishments making
fixtures are so closely related to those of the sash, door, and blind facto-
ries and the furniture plants that it is sometimes difficult to determine
under which classification they properly belong. Fixtures may be said
to occupy the middle position between these two industries. The term
"fixtures" as used in this report includes various types of show-cases and
counters for stores and shops, and such furnishings as wall cases, pews,
altars, pulpits, partitions, railings, especially designed desks, tables,
racks, and telephone booths and similar articles for offices, churches, hotel
lobbies, lodge, court, and bank directors' rooms, barber shops, lunch
rooms, cafeterias, etc. One item of dissimilarity between the commodi-
ties made in the sash, door, and blind factory and those produced in the
plant making fixtures is that the former, such as mantels, colonades, and
cabinet work are for the most part of permanent, built-in construction,
while the latter are usually readily portable, or, at least, can be moved
with slight remodeling. Large establishments usually specialize in one
or the other of the two lines mentioned. In small towns, however, where
the local demand does not justify separate industries, establishments
will often be found that are engaged in the manufacture of both.

Practically the same woods as are used in the manufacture of furni-
ture are employed for fixtures, with the exception that perhaps a larger
proportion of the higher grades is demanded by the latter industry.
In both industries the woods consumed may be grouped into those used
for exterior finish and those that go into interior construction of hidden
work. In the fixture industry, as in the manufacture of furniture, and,
in fact, in many other industries, veneer plays an important part.

PLATE XV

- " " ; ,&?

m -

WmKB^^^BKKB^^k

? - ^ m§>:0'§

■ •

- ■

ft •'* /,/

In!

•
1

A. A store and office-fixture factory in North Carolina. Showcases in the making.

B. A special order of white enamel tea-room fixtures under construction in the plant
of a North Carolina office-fixture manufacturer.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

METHOD OF QUARTER SAWING A LOG

FIRST CUT
|HA LYING THE LOG

SECOND CUT
VAN EIGHTH INTO BOARD5

THIRO CUT

LJ»

KANOTMER EIGHTH INTO BOARDS

FOURTH CUT
K ANOTHGR EIGHTH INTO BOARDS

FIFTH CUT
ANOTHER EIGHTH INTO BOARDS

TMEOTHER HALF OFTHE LOG IS CUTINTHE SAME MANNER

Plate No. 26 — Method of quarter-sawing a log.

78 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Oak, which, occupied first place among the eleven woods used by the
fixture makers of North Carolina, was called on to supply nearly half
of the total quantity of raw material used by the industry in 1919. Its
prominence in this industry, and the fact that it ranked first among the
woods used for furniture, is due mainly to its highly-figured grain,
especially when quarter sawn or when cut into veneer by the rotary
process. Quarter sawing is the same as rift sawing and consists of the
cutting of the log into halves lengthwise and the sawing of these halves
into boards, the saw crossing the annual rings of growth at right angles
or as nearly so as possible. During the operation the halves of the logs
are canted two to several times on the carriage. Plate 23 shows the
common method of quarter-sawing a log. Perhaps more figure is shown
in cutting oak if the boards are merely plain sawed, but the pleasing
effect of the wide flake produced by quarter sawing is more in demand,
and, in addition, lumber, when so cut, is less liable to warp. North.
Carolina pine was second among the list of woods used, but practically
all of it went into hidden work. Yellow poplar goes both into exterior
and hidden works, its suitability for these uses being due to its soft
texture, stability, straight, even grain, the fact that it is easily worked,
and because it takes and holds paint perhaps better than any other wood.
All of these properties commend it for exterior enameled work, partitions,
drawer bottoms, hidden parts of show-cases and shelving. Birch is the
wood most often used to imitate mahogany, for which purpose the heart-
wood of the tree is usually employed, although the white sapwood is also
similarly used. Birch occupied fourth place from the standpoint of
quantity used in this industry. Bed gum is another wood extensively
employed for fixtures, although in North Carolina the quantity used
during the period covered by this report was less than 200,000 feet, board
measure. Some red gum trees produce what is termed "figured wood."
The figure in red gum is fundamentally different from the characteristic
figures of oak and many other woods. Oak's figure in quarter-sawed
stock is due to the medullary rays, with certain modifications by annual
rings of growth. The figure in chestnut is due almost wholly to the
annual rings of growth. Bed gum's figure is due to neither. The shades
and tones cross the annual rings in every direction, although they some-
times follow them with a certain amount of regularity. The medullary
rays have practically no visible effect, the colors ramifying through the
wood and obeying no known law of growth or deposit of earthy matter.
With red gum, especially figured wood in the form of rotary cut veneer.
it is possible, therefore, to obtain a wonderful variety of markings and
color tones to meet the individual taste of the designer. Bed gum has

PLATE XVI

.. ,. .

ISr -ft.

Agricultural implement handles and the raw material from which they are made.
The handles are of oak and are first steamed and then bent, and afterwards
worked.

PLATE XVII

A. One-horse, three-row grain drills as manufactured in an agricultural imple-
ment factory of North Carolina. Oak is used for handles and beams, while
North Carolina pine is employed for seed boxes.

B. Interior of a North Carolina agricultural implement factory. Oak is the only wood
used in the manufacture of the small fertilizer distributors shown in this plate, the
wood being employed for plow beams and handles.

PLATE XVIII

I"
ft rt

r- ft

£*

03.-

i :-

C ^

-co

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

the combined beauty of Circassian walnut and mahogany, and yet it
possesses a distinctive character peculiar to no other wood.

Table 35 shows the total amount of each kind of wood used by the
fixture manufacturers of North Carolina in 1919. Of the 2,216,500
board feet consumed, nearly 85 per cent was supplied from sources within
the State. Fixture manufacturers, like many others, using home-grown
timber, should also be vitally interested in forest conservation looking
to the State's future timber supply.

Table 35. — Wood Used for Fixtures in North Carolina in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per

Cent

State

Outside
State

Oak..

985,000

405,000

286,500

255,000

178,000

30,000

25,000

20,000

12,000

10,000

44.44

18.21

12.93

11.51

8.03

1.35

1.13

.90

.54

.45

$ 65 .00
32.12
42.50
132.50
143 .33
69.00
300 .00
35.00
35 .00
35.00
85.00

$ 64,025

13,010

12,176

33,788

25,513

2,070

7,500

700

420

350

850

899,000
355,000
286,500
255,000

86/00

Pine, North Carolina

50,000

Birch

178,000

30,000

25,000

20,000
12,000
10,000
10,000

Ash

Totals

2,216,500

100 .00

S 72 .37

$ 160,402

1,877,500

339,000

Agricultural Implements. — The articles produced by manufacturers
engaged in this industry consist of the various tools and machinery em-
ployed by farmers in the preparation and tilling of the soil, the planting
of seed, and the gathering or harvesting of crops. Among such are
threshers, harvesters, drills, grain cradles, harrows, cultivators, ensilage
cutters, hay ladders, hay presses, manure spreaders, corn planters, mow-
ing machines, hay rakes, plows, and binders. In North Carolina this
is perhaps one of the least important among the various wood-using
industries, as evidenced by the fact that of the several hundred firms
that furnished the data on which this report is based, only four were
engaged in the manufacture of any of the commodities mentioned above.
Furthermore, the total quantity of wood used was less than one million
feet, board measure, all of which was home-grown.

North Carolina pine ranked first among the woods used and con-
tributed over 65 per cent of the total. Oak, the only other wood reported
in any quantity, occupied second place. Table 36 shows the quantity
of the different woods used by the industry, the average price of each
per 1,000 feet, board measure, f. o. b. factory, and the total cost.

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Table 36. — Wood Used for Agricultural Implements in North Carolina in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

In Outside

State | State

627,000

131,500

1,000

202,000

65.14

13.67

.10

20.99

$ 37 .44
47.50
35 .00
18.00
55 .00

S 23,472

6,246

11,110

627,000

Oak

131,500

Ash

1,000

Gum, black ._ . .._.._.

1,000
202,000

Totals

962,500

100 .00

3 42.47

$ 40,881

962,500

Miscellaneous. — It has been the custom of the Forest Service in pre-
paring reports of this kind to refrain from including in them any in-
formation that would be likely to reveal the operations of individual
firms. Therefore, whenever reports were received from less than three
firms engaged in the same industry, the data was placed under the head-
ing "Miscellaneous." This practice has been followed in this report and
the information presented in this chapter covers the activities of six
different establishments representative of as many separate industries.

Table 37 shows the quantity of wood used by the factories referred
to above. Oak, which in point of consumption occupied first place,
was used in the manufacture of insulator pins and brackets and for
parts of reed organs. North Carolina pine, which ranked second, was
also employed in the manufacture of reed organs and for excelsior, wood
wool, and wash boards. Yellow poplar and red gum contributed the
raw material used in the manufacture of butter tubs, while kalmia
(mountain laurel) was converted into smoking pipes. Over 96 per cent
of the total quantity of wood consumed by this group of industries was
cut from home-grown timber.

Table 37.

-Wood Used for Miscellaneous Commodities in North Carolina
in 1919

Quantity

Average
Cost per
M. Feet
F. O. B.
Factory

Total
Cost

Source of Supply

Kind of Wood

Feet,
B. M.

Per
Cent

State

Outside
State

Oak

961,200
901 , 000
761,300
100,000
20,000
15,000

34.84
32.66
27.60
3.63
.73
.54

I 50.50
15.00
23.50
70.00
50.00
44.00

$ 48,541

13,515

17,891

7,000

1,000

660

961,200
901,000
761,300

100,000

20,000
15,000

Totals ---

2,758,500

100 .00

$ 32.12

$ 88,607

2,658,500

100,000

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

PJG4

Plate No. 33-The evolution of smoking pipe. Mountain laurel is the wood used for pipes
the North Carolina factories engaged in this industry. P P

PART IV

THE USES OF WOOD BY NORTH CAROLINA MANUFACTURERS

The uses for which the various woods previously described were em-
ployed by the North Carolina wood-consuming factories in 1919 are
shown in the following list :

Ash

Backing, show-case

Backs, seat

Boxes, automobile seat

Bows, vehicle top

Chair parts

Cotton planter parts

Counters, store

Doors

Drop gates, wagon

Fertilizer distributor parts

Fingers, grain cradles

Fixtures, exterior work

Foot boards, automobile

Frames, automobile body

Frames, buggy

Frames, carriage bodies

Frames, drays

Frames, wagon bodies

Frames, farm machinery

Furniture, case goods

Gear parts, vehicle

Handles

Handles, contractor's shovels

Handles, grubbing hoes

Handles, hay fork

Handles, hoe

Handles, long shovel

Handles, mallet

Astragals, folding door
Backing, mirror
Backing, furniture
Backing, fixture
Balusters
Blinds, window
Boards, drain
Boards, ironing
Cabinets, medicine
Cabinets, kitchen
Casket cases

Handles, pitchfork

Handles, rake

Handles, small tools

Handles, spade

Hay beds, farm wagon

Head blocks, wagon

Hubs, wheelbarrow

Hay ladders, farm wagons

Moulding, window

Neck yokes

Panels, wagon bodies

Partitions, store and office

Peanut picker parts

Peanut planter parts

Posts, chair

Push cart bodies

Rungs, plow

Rungs, ladder

Running boards, automobile

Shafts, light vehicle

Show-cases

Sides, wagon bodies

Side pillars, light delivery wagons

Snathes, grain cradle

Tubs, butter

Trucks, tobacco

Trucks, factory

Trucks, warehouse

Basswood
Casing

Clothes driers
Drawer sides, furniture
Fixtures, hidden work
Furniture, hidden work
Moulding, picture
Moulding, house interior trim
Panels, door

Partitions, furniture drawers
Sash, window
Store and office fixtures, interior work

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Beech

Arms, chair
Backing, bureaus
Backing, desk
Backing, mirror
Backs, chair
Bobbins

Bottoms, drawer
Book shelves
Cabinets, medicine
Chairs, stepladder

Arms, chair

Axle caps

Backs, chair

Back posts, chair

Backing, furniture

Balusters, stair

Benches, piano

Bookcases

Book racks

Bottoms, automobile seat

Bottoms, carriage bodies

Bottoms, wagon

Bottoms, factory trucks

Bottoms, warehouse trucks

Brackets, stair

Brackets, plate rail

Bureaus

Cabinets, medicine

Cabinets, instrument

Cabinets, music

Casing, window

Casing, door

China closets

Costumers

Davenports

Doors

Dowells

Drawer bottoms

Drawer sides

Drawer slides

Fixtures, curtain

Fixtures, office

Backing, mirror
Backing, furniture
Bins, kitchen cabinets
Bottoms, drawers

Cupboards, kitchen
Loom parts
Moulding, bed
Posts, chair
Rounds, chair
Seats, chair
Sides, drawer
Slides, drawer
Stools
Tops, kitchen table

Birch

Fixtures, store

Flooring

Frames, furniture

Furniture, case goods

Hubs, buggy wheel

Leaves, table

Moulding, picture

Moulding, house interior trim

Panels, door

Panels, furniture

Partitions, office

Partitions, drawer

Parlor furniture, frames

Rails, stair

Risers, stair

Rockers, chair

Rounds, chair

Sash

Seats, chair

Screens, window and door

Shelves, book

Show-cases

Slides, table

Stands, flower

Store and office fixtures, exterior

Tables, library

Tables, sewing

Tabouretts

Tops, case goods

Wainscoting

Wagon boxes

Wardrobes

Buckeye

Core stock, furniture panels
Cupboards, kitchen
Outer boxes, casket and coffin
Tops, kitchen table

Wood-using Industries of Xoeth Carolina

Bannisters, porch
Brackets, porch
Columns, porch
Cornice work

Backing, bureau

Backing, desk

Backing, dresser

Box shooks

Boxes, plant

Boxes, tin plate

Boxes, tobacco

Bureaus, hidden work

Caskets

Cabinets, medicine

Casing, door and window

Ceiling

Chairs, arm

Chairs, desk

Chairs, mission

Chairs, rocking

Chests, hall

Coffins

Cores, veneer

Couch frames

Counters, store

Boxes, bottle

Boxes, butter

Boxes, cracker

Boxes, creamery shipping

Boxes, plant

Boxes, plug tobacco

Battens, O. G., barn

Beams, pergola

Bevel siding

Blinds

Boxes, plant

Brackets, porch

Cases, casket

Casing, door and window

Caskets and coffins

Columns, porch

Cornice

Doors

Face brackets

Fence pickets

Cedar

House trim, exterior
Newel posts
Siding

Chestnut
Crates
Doors

Drawer sides
Footstools
Frames, mirror
Frames, picture
Frames, furniture
Frames, store and office fixtures
Interior finish, house
Kitchen cabinets
Mantels
Newel posts
Panels, veneer
Refrigerators
Stair work

Screens, door and window
Shelves, book
Tables

Treads, stair
Wainscoting
Washstands

Cottoxwood

Boxes, packing
Box shooks
Cases, soft drink
Cases, egg
Crating

Cypress

Frames, door and window
Frieze railing, porch
Gable ornaments
Greenhouse, woodwork
Lattice work
Moulding, drip cap
Moulding, porch
Moulding, screen
Moulding, stair
Railing, outside stair
Railing, porch
Sash, hotbed
Screens, porch
Screens, door and window

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Siding

Sills, window

Spindles, porch

Subframes, hotbed
Thresholds, porch door
Window stool

Dogwood
Shuttles

Axles, wagon

Bent parts, automobile body

Bows, automobile top

Eveners

Floor boards, automobile

Frames, automobile body

Frames, horse-drawn vehicle bodies

Hubs, carriage wheel

Elm

Hubs, wagon wheel
Hubs, wheelbarrow
Hounds, light vehicles
Reaches, light vehicle
Running boards, automobile
Seat frames, automobile
Singletrees
Yokes, neck

Gum, Black

Backing, furniture
Baskets, fruit
Baskets, grape
Baskets, split
Baskets, vegetable
Barrels, veneer
Berry cups
Blocks, hub
Boxes, tin ware
Boxes, bottle
Box shooks
Brake blocks

Backs, chair

Backing, furniture

Backing, case goods

Bannisters, stair

Baskets, fruit

Baskets, vegetable

Bedsteads

Boxes, cracker

Box shooks

Bureaus

Cabinets, medicine

Cabinets, music

Cases, casket

Cases, clock

Cases, sample

Cases, shipping

Casing, door and window

Caskets

Chairs, rocking

Chairs, dining room

Crates, berry

Crates, bottle

Cleats, box

Dishes, lard

Fertilizer distributor parts

Handles, broom

Hoops, veneer package

Hubs, buggy wheel

Hubs, wagon wheel

Hubs, wheelbarrow

Mauls

Gum, Red

Chiffoniers

Church pews

Coffins

Colonnades

Commodes

Costumers

Crating

Cupboard doors

Doors

Drawer bottoms

Dressing tables

Frames, chair

Frames, door

Frames, dresser

Frames, window and door

Front doors, house

House interior trim

Humidors

Mantels

Mirror doors

Wood-using Industries of JSToeth Caeolina

Moulding, bed
Moulding, picture
Panels, furniture
Plate rails
Posts, bed
Posts, dresser
Reed organs

Show-cases

Store and office fixtures

Tables, library

Telephone stands

Telephone booths

Wardrobes

Washstands

Boxes, glassware
Boxes, cracker
Boxes, packing
Boxes, canned goods
Box shooks

Axles, wagon

Axle caps, buggy

Bows, automobile top

Carts, dump

Cross bars, buggy shafts

Doubletrees

Eveners

Felloes, wheel

Fifth wheel bars

Fifth wheel circles

Flooring, motor truck

Furniture dowels

Gear parts, vehicle

Handles, axe

Handles, adze

Handles, blacksmith's hammer

Handles, claw hammer

Handles, cant hook

Handles, chisel

Handles, grub hoe

Handles, hatchet

Handles, machinist's hammer

Heads, mallet

Hemlock

Cases, packing
Cracker boxes
Crates, bottle
Crating stock

Hickory

Hounds, light vehicles

Head blocks, light vehicle

Loom parts

Neck yokes

Picker sticks

Pole fuchles, light vehicle

Poles, buggy

Porch furniture

Reaches, buggy

Ribs, wagon top

Rims, automobile wheel

Rounds, chair

Rounds, ladder

Split bottom chairs

Shackle bars, light vehicle

Singletrees

Spokes, buggy wheel

Spokes, automobile wheel

Spring bars, light vehicle

Spring blocks, wagon

Sweep sticks, loom

Trucks, warehouse

Wheelbarrows

Kalmia (Mountain Laurel)
Smoking pipes

Insulator pins
Loom parts

Arms, chair
Back posts, chair
Bedsteads
Bureaus

Locust

Telephone brackets

Mahogany

Book cases
Book racks
Cabinets, magazine
Cabinets, music

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Cabinets, smokers
Cases, dental
Caskets

Chairs, rocking
Chests, clothes
Chiffoniers
Desk chairs
Frames, furniture
Frames, mirror
Panels, furniture

Arms, chair

Axles, wagon

Back posts, chair

Beds, warehouse trucks

Bobbins

Bolsters, wagon

Bottoms, basket

Bottoms, drawer

Boxes, cutlery

Boxes, buggy

Boxes, automobile seat

Boxes, knife

Box shooks

Bureaus

Cabinets, medicine

Cases, shipping

Chairs, camp

Chairs, rocking

Chair seats, plywood

Chair frames

Cogs, flour mill machinery

Crates

Dowels

Eveners

Flooring

Frames, box mattress

Show-cases, exterior
Stands, plant
Tables, card
Tables, parlor
Tables, sewing
Trays, sewing
Tops, table
Veneer panels
Wardrobes

Maple

Frames, corn sheller

Frames, cot

Frames, farm machinery

Friction blocks

Gear parts, farm machinery

Guide strips, elevator

Knobs, door

Knobs, furniture

Legs, furniture

Packers, flour mill machinery

Partitions, drawer

Parts, hay press

Posts, bed

Posts, chair

Posts, dresser

Rockers, chair

Rungs, chair

Seat boxes, automobile

Slides, extension table

Stops, drawer

Straw carriers

Swings, porch

Tables, kitchen

Thresholds

Trucks, factory

Wheelbarrows

Altars, church

Altars, lodge room

Arms, chair

Bedsteads

Buffets

Baseboards

Bedposts

Bed rails

Boxes

Box shooks

Buggy bodies, bottoms

Oak
Bureaus
Cabinets, music
Casing, door and window
Caskets
Chairs

Chairs, dining
Chairs, rocking
Chairs, mission
Chiffoniers, exterior work
China closets
Church altars

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Church pews

Cider presses

Coffins

Commodes

Couch frames

Davenport frames

Desks, office

Doors

Drays

Dressers

Dump carts

Felloes, wagon

Flooring

Frames, vehicle

Frames, furniture

Fixtures, exterior

Hounds, wagon

Hubs, wagon

Insulator brackets

Interior finish, house

Kitchen cabinets

Landing posts

Lounge frames

Mantels

Newel posts

Panels, furniture sides

Pilasters, furniture

Pilasters, mantels

Plow beams

Plow handles

Plug tobacco boxes

Plow rungs

Pole steps, telephone

Reed organs, exterior work

Road carts

Sash

Sills, wagon bodies

Sideboards

Singletrees

Spokes

Spring bars, buggy

Stair balusters

Stair rails

Stair risers

Stair treads

Stair work

Stands, bedroom

Stretchers, table

Tables, extension

Tables, library

Table leaves

Table elides

Table tops

Telephone boxes

Thresholds

Tobacco machinery rarts

Toilet seats

Tree blocks

Truck parts, cars

Wagon bodies, framework

Wagon gear parts

Wagon tongues

Wash stands

Whiffletrees

Balusters, porch

Balusters, stair

Baseboards, house trim

Base moulding

Battens, O. G., barn

Beams, elevator

Bevel siding, house

Blinds, window

Box shooks

Brackets, porch

Cabinet work

Cars, elevator

Cases, tobacco

Casing, door and window

Ceiling

Cleats, elevator

Cornice, house construction

Pine, Longleaf

Crates, cabbage

Derricks, well

Elevators, freight

Flooring, house construction

Footing pieces, elevator

Frames, couch

Frames, freight elevator

Frames, window and door

Interior finish, house construction

Lattice

Moulding, bed, house construction

Moulding, brick, house construction

Moulding, cap, house construction

Moulding, cove, house construction

Moulding, crown, house construction

Moulding, drip cap, house construction

Moulding, picture

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Moulding, plaster

Moulding, quarter round

Newel posts

Nosing, house trim

Partition

Platforms, elevator

Poles, wagon

Porch columns

Porch newels

Risers, stair

Balusters

Baseboards

Basket bottoms

Blinds

Boxes

Boxes, dry goods

Box cleats

Box shooks

Cabbage crates

Cabinets

Casing

Ceiling

Clapboards

Coffins

Conduits

Cornices

Crates, vegetable

Crates, fruit

Cross-arms

Cultivators

Doors

Door frames

Excelsior

Fixtures, store and office

Flooring

Flooring, factory

Furniture backs

Furniture, veneer cores

Grain doors

Guide strips, elevator

Bins, flour mill machinery
Bins, grain
Grain shutes

Backing, furniture
Backing, mirror
Balusters, porch

Sash

Screens, window and door

Sheathing

Siding

Sills, door and window

Thresholds

Treads, stair

Wainscoting

Window apron

Window stool

Pine, North Carolina
Harrows
Hoppers
Interior trim
Kitchen safes
Landing posts
Lattice
Mouldings
Newel posts
Outer cases, caskets
Panels, furniture sides
Partitions
Pilasters
Porch columns
Poles, wagon
Poultry coop bottoms
Roofers
Sample cases
Sash

Screens, door
Screens, window
Siding, house
Stair rails
Stairways
Stepping
Store fronts
Veneer boxes
Truck bodies
Wagon panels
Window and door frames

Pine, Sugar

Hoppers, feed mill

Panel sides, mill machinery

Troughs, ensilage cutters

Pine, White

Beds, light delivery wagon
Bins, flour mill machinery
Bins, grain

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Blinds, window

Boxes, packing

Boxes, plant

Boxes, tobacco

Box snooks

Brackets, porch

Capping, sink, house trim

Cases, casket and coffin

Cases, leaf tobacco

Cases, sample

Casing, door and window

Chests, clothes

Cornice

Crating

Doors

Drain boards, sink

Floor boards, automobile

Frames, window and door

Gable ornaments

Hoppers, plow and feed

Lining, dumb waiter shafts

Lattice

Mantels

Mirror doors

Moulding, house trim

Panels, stair work

Porch columns

Porch railings

Risers, stair

Running boards, automobile

Sash, window

Sash, hotbed

Seat boxes, automobile

Screens, door and window

Shelves, dumb waiter

Sides, wagon bodies

Siding, house

Spindles, porch

Wheels, water mill

Window stools

Poplar, Yellow

Balusters

Backs, dresser

Bands, berry basket

Bedsteads, white enamel

Berry baskets

Blinds

Boxes, bottle

Boxes, cracker

Boxes, cutlery

Boxes, plug tobacco

Boxes, wagon

Cabinets

Cases, casket

Casing, door and window

Ceiling

Cigar boxes

Clapboards

Coffins

Cores, veneer

Cornice work

Crating

Doors

Doors, poultry coops

Drawer bottoms

Drawer sides

Fixtures, store and office

Frames, upholstered furniture

Interior finish, house

Kitchen cabinets

Kitchen safes

Kitchen tables

Lining, light wagon bodies

Lounge frames

Mantels, white enamel

Mirror backing

Moulding

Packing cases

Panels, automobile bodies

Panels, delivery wagon tops

Panels, furniture sides

Panels, interior house trim

Partition

Pilasters, mantels

Plug tobacco boxes

Porch blinds

Porch columns

Porch newels

Porch railing

Poultry coop bottoms

Reed organs, interior parts

Running boards, automobile

Sample cases

Sash, window

Seat boxes, automobile

Shelves

Siding, house

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Stair risers
Traveling cases
Wagon bodies

Backing, Bureau
Backing, mirror
Bottoms, drawer
Cabinet work
Chairs, kitchen
Frames, kitchen cabinet
Frames, furniture

Altars, church

Arms, chair

Bedsteads

Benches, piano

Bible stands

Bookcases, exterior

Bureaus, exterior

Cabinets, magazine

Cabinets, music

Cabinets, phonograph

Caskets

Chairs

Cheval mirrors

Chiffoniers, exterior

Coffins

Wagon beds
Wardrobes
Window frames

Sycamore

Frames, fixture

Mantels

Seat frames, chair

Sides, drawer

Slides, drawer

Tables, kitchen

Walnut, Black

Footstools

Frames, mirror

Furniture, lodge and church

Panels, desk

Pews, church

Rockers, chair

Screens, fire

Settees

Sewing tables

Tables, dining room

Tables, library

Tables, parlor

Tables, tea

Trays, serving

Wall cases

WOOD-USING FACTORIES OF NORTH CAROLINA

The following is a list of the wood-using factories of North Carolina
which supplied the data upon which this report is based. It will be
noticed that the names of several establishments appear under more
than one industry, the reason for this being that they produce more than
one class of wooden commodity. This list is arranged to correspond
with the industries described in the preceding pages :

Agricultural Implements

Asheboro Wheelbarrow Company Asheboro

Cole Manufacturing Company Charlotte

S. B. Carter ... Elizabeth City

Gardner Manufacturing Company Greenville

A. G. Cox Manufacturing Company Winterville

Boxes and Crates

Interstate Cooperage Company Belhaven

Jarman Lumber Company Burlington

Styers Sash and Door Shop Cherryville

D. L. Boney Clinton

92 Wood-using Industkies of Xoeth Caeolina

Carolina Cross-Arm Company Elkin

West Lumber and Box Company Fayetteville

Warlich Lumber Company Gilkey

Roberson, Strader & Company Greensboro

C. F. Hany Grover

Hutton and Bourbonnais Company Hickory

Zove Box and Crate Company High Point

Selwood Manufacturing Company Hobgood

Morehead City Manufacturing Company Morehead City

John L. C. Miller Mt. Pleasant

Jeffreys Myers Manufacturing Company Oxford

Halifax Builders' Supply Company Roanoke Rapids

The Church Lumber Company Ronda

Yadkin Valley Mill and Lumber Company Ronda

Makepeace Box and Lumber Company Sanford

C. M. Wall & Son _ Southmont

Stantonsburg Lumber Company Stantonsburg

Boyce Lumber Company Statesville

Statesville Lumber Company Statesville

Alexander Lumber Company Taylorsville

Hughes and Peace Lumber Company Thomasville

Carolina Lumber Company Walnut Cove

Mengel Box Company Winston-Salem

J. E. Shelton Box and Lumber Company Winston-Salem

Caskets and Coffins

Burns Casket Company Asheboro

National Casket Company _ Asheville

Burlington Coffin Company Burlington

Charlotte Casket Company Charlotte

Rankin Coffin and Casket Company High Point

Rockwell Furniture Company Rockwell

Atlantic Coffin and Casket Company .*. Rose Hill

Rose Hill Coffin Factory Rose Hill

Richardson Manufacturing Company Sparta

Hearnes Brothers and Company Whitakers

The Turner-White Coffin Company Winston-Salem

Chairs

American Bentwood Chair Company Asheboro

Asheboro Chair Company Asheboro

Piedmont Chair Company Asheboro

Randolph Chair Company Asheboro

Coleridge Manufacturing Company Coleridge

Denton Chair Company Denton

Hickory Chair Manufacturing Company Hickory

Barnes Manufacturing Company High Point

Southern Chair Company High Point

Thomasville Chair Manufacturing Company High Point

Tomlinson Chair Manufacturing Company High Point

Johnson Chair Company Julian

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 93

Bernhardt Chair Company ....... Lenoir

Carolina Chair Company . _ Lenoir

Ethel Chair Company Lenoir

Lenoir Chair Manufacturing Company Lenoir

Hoover Chair Company Lexington

Lexington Chair Company Lexington

Liberty Chair Company Liberty

Hanes Chair and Table Company Mocksville

Bent Oak Chair Manufacturing Company Siler City

High Point Bending and Chair Company Siler City

Statesville Chair Company Statesville

Standard Chair Company Thomasville

Elevatobs and Machine Construction

Alexander and Garsel Charlotte

Liddell Company .., Charlotte

Moffatt Machinery Manufacturing Company Charlotte

The Park Manufacturing Company Charlotte

Grover Gin Company Grover

W. C. Meadows Mill Company .H North Wilkesboro

E. V. Williams Company North Wilkesboro

New Williams Mill Company North Wilkesboro

R. C. Meadows Mill Manufacturing Company Pores Knob

Blue Ridge Mill Company Roaring River

Briggs-Shaffeur Winston-Salem

Fixtuees

H. M. Wade Manufacturing Company Charlotte

Moss Cabinet Shop Hickory

Myrtle Desk Company High Point

Cochran Hardwood Manufacturing Company Lincolnton

Raleigh Manufacturing Company Raleigh

Allright Manufacturing Company Rural Hall

Dellinger Show Case Company Statesville

Statesville Show Case Company Statesville

Kwick-Bath Manufacturing Corporation Wilson

Feuit and Vegetable Packages

Aberdeen Crate and Box Company Aberdeen

Patten Package Company , Calypso

Rhaney and Rector Company Drexel

Foreman-Derrickson Veneer Company Elizabeth City

Southern Roller Stave and Heading Company Elizabeth City

N. J. Brown and Company , George

Empire Manufacturing Company Goldsboro

Utility Manufacturing Company Goldsboro

Cecil Manufacturing Company High Point

O. E. and C. A. Bivins Hillsboro

Eureka Lumber Company Washington

T. R. Peppers ~, Winston-Salem

Sheppard Veneer Company Winston-Salem

94 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Furniture

Albemarle Mantel Company Albemarle

Carolina Wood Products Company Asheville

Styers Sash and Door Shop Cherryville

Home Table Furniture Company China Grove

Drexel Furniture Company Drexel

Elkin Furniture Company Elkin

Newberry Brothers & Cowell Dunn

Goldsboro Furniture Manufacturing Company _ _ Goldsboro

Warlich & Sherril Company Granite Falls

Melton-Rhodes Company, Inc _ Greensboro

Standard Table Company Greensboro

Sterling Furniture Company „ Greensboro

C. F. Hany Grover

Unagusta Manufacturing Company Hazelwood

Waynesville Furniture Company Hazelwood

Hickory Cabinet and Manufacturing Company Hickory

Martin Furniture Company „ Hickory

Southern Desk Company Hickory

Alma Furniture Company High Point

Continental Furniture Company High Point

Dalton Furniture Company _ High Point

J. F. and Arthur Ellison High Point

Giant Furniture Company _ High Point

Globe Parlor Furniture Company High Point

Ideal Table Company High Point

Kearns Furniture Company : High Point

Keystone Cabinet Company.... High Point

J. A. Lindsay High Point

Marsh Furniture Company ., High Point

Tate Furniture Company.... , High Point

Tomlinson Chair Manufacturing Company High Point

Union Furniture Company High Point

Welch Furniture Company -High Point

Wrenn Columbia Furniture Company High Point

Zone Box and Crate Company High Point

Kernersville Furniture Manufacturing Company Kernersville

Ring Furniture Company ...Kernersville

King Manufacturing Company King

Caldwell Furniture Company Lenoir

Harper Furniture Company Lenoir

Lenoir Furniture Corporation Lenoir

Atlas Furniture Company Lexington

Dixie Furniture Company „... Lexington

Elk Furniture Company Lexington

Foster Furniture Company Liberty

Catawba Furniture Company Marion

Drexel Furniture Company Marion

McDowell Furniture Company ~ Marion

White Furniture Company Mebane

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina 95

J. H. Myers Monroe

Mooresville Furniture Company Mooresville

Morganton Furniture Company...., Morganton

Banner Manufacturing Company Mt. Airy

National Furniture Company Mt. Airy

Mt. Airy Furniture Company Mt. Airy

Mt. Airy Mantel and Table Company „ Mt. Airy

John L. C. Miller Mt. Pleasant

Valley River Lumber Company Murphy

Forest Furniture Company North Wilkesboro

Oak Furniture Company North Wilkesboro

John R. Hagaman Patterson

Fitts-Crabtree Manufacturing Company Sanford

High Point Bending and Chair Company Siler City

Carolina Parlor Furniture Company , Statesville

Imperial Furniture Manufacturing Company Statesville

Statesville Furniture Company Statesville

Statesville Wood Products Company Statesville

Forsyth Dining Room Furniture Company „ Winston-Salem

Forsyth Furniture Company Winston-Salem

B. F. Huntley Furniture Company Winston-Salem

Hyatt & Company Waynesville

Keller Manufacturing Company Waynesville

J. C. Money Yadkinville

Handles

A. W. Vickory & Company Bonlee

Craven Brothers Boonville

Bryson City Handle Company Bryson City

J. D. Pitts Glen Alpine

Crawford Spoke and Handle Company Mebane

Jesse Lovell Pilot Mountain

Fred R. Thompson Staley

Brendle Handle Works Wilmington

Planing Mill Products

Asheboro Wheelbarrow Company Asheboro

Home Building and Material Company Asheboro

Jordan Hampton Blowing Rock

Miller Supply Company Brevard

Spoon & Safford Burlington

J. D. Bush Lumber Company Cary

Lee Lumber Company Cary

Beam Lumber Company Charlotte

Cathey Lumber Company Charlotte

Doggett Lumber Company Charlotte

Hardwood Manufacturing Company, Inc Charlotte

J. H. Wearn & Company Charlotte

Styers Sash and Door Shop Cherryville

Clinton Lumber Company Clinton

Sampson Power and Planing Mill Company , Clinton

96 Wood-using Industries of jNTokth Carolina

Cary Lumber Company Durham

Chatham Lumber Company Durham

Durham Lumber Company East Durham

Jackson Brothers Fayetteville

Spencer Lumber Company, Inc Gastonia

Warlich Lumber Company Gilkey

E. E. Bain Greensboro

Fuller Lumber Company, Inc Greensboro

Oetinger Lumber Company Greensboro

Pennsylvania Lumber Company Greensboro

C. F. Hany Grover

J. D. Pitts Glen Alpine

Hendersonville Lumber Company Hendersonville

Pace Lumber Company Hendersonville

C. M. and W. G. Wilson Hendersonville

H. S. Smith . Hickory

Kannapolis Lumber Company „ Kannapolis

Hines Brothers Lumber Company Kinston

Kent-Coffee Manufacturing Company Lenoir

Lenoir Manufacturing Company Lenoir

C. M. Thompson Sons.... Lexington

E. E. Wallett Littleton

C. H. Fallin Lumber Company Madison

Beaman Lumber Company Marion

Chapman Lumber Company Marion

Payne and Decker Lumber Company Marion

Dixie Lumber Co Mebane

Fitch & Riggs Lumber Company Mebane

J. L. Sheek Mpcksville

J. H. Myers Monroe

G. M. Tucker Monroe

Mooresville Furniture Company Mooresville

Beasley & Tesh Lumber Company , Mt. Airy

John L. C. Miller Mt. Pleasant

Cherokee Manufacturing Company Murphy

The Pine Lumber Company New Bern

Setzer Lumber Company Newton

Wilkesboro Manufacturing Company ....North Wilkesboro

Oxford Orphanage Wood Shop Oxford

C. D. Ray Lumber Company Oxford

Job Hiatt Pilot Mountain

S. K. Harris & Son Polkton

John B. Rogers Reidsville

Richfield Lumber Company Richfield

Sider & Kluttz Rockwell

Halifax Builders' Supply Company.... Roanoke Rapids

Rocky Mount Woodworking Company Rocky Mount

Wilson Mill and Lumber Company Rural Hall

Goodman Lumber Company Salisbury

Graf-Davis-Collett Company Salisbury

Wood-using Industries of ^Torth Carolina 97

Makepeace Box and Lumber Company Sanford

Thompson Company Shelby

Boone Fork Lumber Company Shulls Mills

Little River Lumber Company Star

Southern Timber and Lumber Company Star

Boyce Lumber Company Statesville

Statesville Lumber Company Statesville

Stantonsburg Lumber Company Stantonsburg

Alexander Lumber Company Taylorsville

Guilford Lumber Manufacturing Company _ Troy

Dan River Lumber Company Walnut Grove

Pridgen Manufacturing Company Warrenton

Moss Planing Mill Company Washington

Hyatt & Company Waynesville

Dixon Lumber and Millwork Company Weldon

Chadbourn-Bate Company Wilmington

Chadbourn Lumber Company ..Wilmington

Clark-Lynch Lumber Company *.. .Wilmington

Hilton Lumber Company Wilmington

Fogle Brothers Company Winston-Salem

Orinoco Supply Company Winston-Salem

The Phillips Lumber Company Winston-Salem

Yadkinville Buggy Company Yadkinville

Sash, Doors, Blinds, and General Mill Work

William W. Jones Asheville

Spoon & Safford Burlington

John I. Barns Clayton

Styers Sash and Door Shop Cherryville

Durham Lumber Company East Durham

T. A. Henry Gastonia

A. T. Griffin Manufacturing Company Goldsboro

Novelty Lumber Company Hickory

J. R. Wilson Lumber Company Hendersonville

J. M. Beam & Brother Henry

Jonesboro Sash and Blind Company Jonesboro

Builders Supply Manufacturing Company Lincolnton

J. H. Lineberger & Son Lincolnton

Morganton Manufacturing and Trading Company Morganton

Neuse Lumber Company New Bern

Baker-Thompson Lumber Company Raleigh

J. M. Beam and Brother Reepsvillo

Builders Sash and Door Company Rocky Mount

Graf-Davis-Collett Company Salisbury

Sanford Sash and Blind Company Sanford

L. K. Overcash Statesville

Guilford Lumber Manufacturing Company Troy

Dixon Lumber and Millwork Company Weldon

The Aladdin Company Wilmington

W. W. Siinms Company : Wilson

98 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Shuttles, Spools, and Bobbixs

J. Elwood Cox Biltmore

Hickory Handle and Manufacturing Company Conover

Ivey Manufacturing Company Hickory

Elwood Cox Manufacturing Company High Point

Liberty Picker Stick and Novelty Company Liberty

Novelty Wood Works Ramseur

Jordan Manufacturing Company Toecane

Vehicles and Vehicle Parts

Aslieboro Wheelbarrow Company _ Asheboro

The Knowles Manufacturing Company Biltmore

Tyson & Jones Buggy Company Carthage

Charlotte Wagon and Auto Company .Charlotte

Cotton States Wagon Company Charlotte

T. A. Smitherman East Bend

Gastonia Wagon and Auto Company Gastonia

W. H. Piland Gates

Corbett Bugg> Company Henderson

Carolina Buggy Manufacturing Company Henderson

Piedmont Wagon Manufacturing Company Hickory

North Carolina Wheel Company High Point

W. G. Hollowell _ Hobbsville

Parkers Wagon Shop Kelford

J. H. Hampton Buggy Company.... .....Leaksville

Waters Buggy and Auto Company New Bern

Garman Wheel Company Oxford

C. R. Overton , Powellsville

Wilson Mill and Lumber Company Rural Hall

Veneer Products Company Smithfield

Thomasville Spoke Works Thomasville

Washington Buggy Company Washington

Hackney Brothers Wilson

E. S. Dail Carriage Company Windsor

George E. Nissen Company Winston-Salem

S. J. Nissen Company Winston-Salem

J. C. Spach Wagon Works Winston-Salem

Winston Vehicle Company Winston-Salem

J. C. Money Yadkinville

Yadkinville Buggy Company Yadkinville

Miscellaneous

J. F. Rodman Clinton

Blue Ridge Locust Pin Company Dillsboro

Carolina Cross Arm Company Elkin

Carolina Woodenware Company Fayetteville

High Point Veneer and Panel Company High Point

Shipman Organ Company High Point

Clarence Call North Wilkesboro

Oval Oak Manufacturing Company Siler City

Putnam & Parks Spruce Pine

PART V

PRODUCTION OF FOREST PRODUCTS

As previously stated, the information given in this report does not
include rough lumber or the products of primary industries, such as
shingles, lath, cooperage, pulpwood, etc. Such statistical data have
always been collected separately, either by the Bureau of the Census or
the Forest Service. Since statistics of production of forest products
have such an important bearing on those of consumption, it was con-
sidered advisable for purposes of reference and comparison to include the
former, in so far as they relate to North Carolina, in this appendix.

Lumber. — Although North Carolina, in 1921, was among the ten
leading states in the production of lumber, she did not occupy first place
in the cut of any one particular species. In the production of chestnut
lumber, however, the State ranked third.

Table I given below shows the rank according to quantity produced of
the 22 woods cut for lumber in North Carolina in 1921.

Table I. — Production of Lumoer in North Carolina in 1921

Kind of Wood

Quantity
(Feet B. M.)

Average

Value per

M. Feet

F.O.B. Mill

Total Value
F.O.B. Mill

Yellow pine...
Oak

Spruce

Chestnut

Red gum

Yellow poplar

Hemlock

Cypress

Maple

Tupelo.

Cedar

Basswood

White pine

Hickory

Ash

Beech

Birch

Sycamore

Elm

Cottonwood..

Walnut

All others*

Totals..

647,845,

83,088

47,486

36,806

26,346

18,728

16,894

11,817

11,209

7,426

4,633

4,058

3,360

2,053

1,769

1,716

1,521

117

3,966

000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
,000
.000

19.04
23.78
27.01
24.21
17.38
31.56
18.47
27.10
25.39
15.81
41.45
30.86
25.82
26.28
35.98
23.93
31.31
20.80
26.50
25.15
64.41
51.02

12,334

1,975

1,282

891

457

591

312

320

284

117

192

125

202

,832.64
,596.86
,073.26
,893.48
,055.68
,032.18
,240.70
,596.51
,405.06
,037.85
,229.88
,755.20
,952.84
,648.62
,063.88
,622.51
,433.60
,961.00
, 634. 75
,447.58
,345.32

931,015,000

20. S3

19,388,828.20

*Includes buckeye, chittem, and box elder.

100 Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Lath and Shingles. — Lath are chiefly a by-product of lumber manufac-
ture, and are cut from so many kinds of timber that no effort is made in
the collection of such statistics to differentiate between species. They
are manufactured for the most part from slabs, although large quantities
are also produced by portable lath mills working in cut-over tracts and
utilizing the small timber, crooked logs, tops, and other material left
behind the sawmill. The quantity produced in North Carolina in 1921
is shown in Table II.

The bulk of the shingles produced in this country are made of cedar,
principally the western red cedar of the Pacific Coast, although con-
siderable quantities are cut from the eastern white cedar. Other woods
used are cypress, southern yellow pine, and chestnut. The total pro-
duction of shingles in North Carolina in 1921 is shown in Table II.

Table II. — Production of Lath and Shingles in North Carolina in 1921

Product

Quantity
(Pieces)

Number

of Mills

Reporting

Equivalent
in Feet
B. M.

Lath

16,164,000
46,064,000

3.233,000

Shingles

4.606.000

Cooperage Stock. — Cooperage stock is of two kinds, slack and tight.
Slack cooperage includes barrels intended for use in the shipment of dry
products, such as sugar, flour, cement, plaster, salt, certain classes of
hardware, crockery, etc. Tight cooperage consists of barrels used as
containers of alcoholic and other liquids. The substitution of cotton,
jute, and paper sacks has limited the demand for slack cooperage stock,
especially in the flour, salt, cement, plaster and sugar industries. The
increased demand for slack barrels in other industries has, however,
probably offset the reduced consumption of wood as containers of certain
industries as brought about through substitution of other materials.
Woods that dry quickly, steam well, retain their form when bent, and
which are comparatively free from resin and odor make the best slack
stave material. Red gum, pine, elm, and ash are in the order named
the four most important woods employed by the industry.

White oak, especially that cut from the heart of the tree, is considered
the most satisfactory wood for tight cooperage stock. The pores of the
wood are not open like those of red oak, and after the barrel is made,
no leakage of the contents takes place through the pores. Although the
uses for tight barrels, other than for the shipment of alcoholic beverages,
are many, there is no doubt but that national prohibition will have the
effect of greatly reducing the consumption of wood by the tight cooperage

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

101

industry. Table III shows by kinds of wood the number of slack staves
and sets of heading that were produced in North Carolina in 1921.
The tight cooperage industry in North Carolina in 1921 was of such
minor importance that the production of tight staves in the State during
that year was not shown separately in the published statistics.

Table III. — Production of Slack Cooperage Stock in North Carolina in 1921

Kind of Wood

Staves
(Number)

Heading

(Sets)

Equivalent in
Board Feet

Tupelo

Pine _

38,102,000

16,427,000

3,700,000

50,000

1,708,000

620,000

3,214,000

17,824,000
6,715,000

7,661,000

All other

16,000

Totals

58,279,000

5,542,000

32,216,000

Veneer. — North Carolina, in 1921, ranked fifth among the various
states in the consumption of wood in the manufacture of veneer. The
total quantity used in the State was 24,264,000 feet, log scale, as com-
pared with 400,388,000 feet, log scale, reported for the entire country.
Table IV shows by species and processes of manufacture the consump-
tion of wood in this industry in North Carolina during the year.

Table IV. — Consumption of Wood in North Carloina in the Production of

Veneer in 1921

Total (Feet
Log Scale)

Process

Kind of Wood

Rotary Cut,
Quantity

(Feet
Log Scale)

Sliced,
Quantity

(Feet
Log Scale)

Sawed,
Quantity

(Feet
Log Scale)

13,707,000

7,498,000

2,299,000

760,000

13,677,000

7,498,000

2,299,000

225,000

30,000

Yellow poplar..

Tupelo

All other*...

35,000

Totals .

24,264,000

24.199,000

65,000

"Includes yellow pine, maple, white oak, beech, spruce, sycamore, walnut, and chestnut.

Pulpwood. — Since there are less than half a dozen pulp mills in North
Carolina, the industry is of minor importance in the State. As small
as the industry is, however, it consumed in 1921 over 70 million feet of
raw material in the form of cordwood, which constitutes quite an item
in the total annual drain upon the forests of the State.

APPENDIX

LIST OF COMMERCIAL TREES OF NORTH CAROLINA

Common Names Botanical Name
White pine Pinus strobus

Loblolly pine Pinus taeda.

Shortleaf or rosemary pine. -.Pinus echinata.

Trade Name
White pine

Local Names

J White pine

\Balsam pine

Old field pine

Shortleaf pine

Longleaf pine

Bog pine

Slash pine

Loblolly pine

Old field pine

Forest pine

Yellow pine

Rosemary pine...

Shortleaf pine

Longleaf pine Pinus palustris Longleaf pine Yellow pine

Spruce pine

N. C. pine

Yellow pine
N. C. pine

Spruce pine or Virginia pine.. Pinus virginiana.

Pond pine.. Pinus serotina.

Pitch or black pine Pinus rigida.

Nigger pine

■ Alligator pine...

Hickory pine

Scrub pine.

Bay pine

Pocosin pine

Black bark pine-
Pond pine.

Black pine

Pitch pine

Ridge pine

Mountain pine...

Old field pine

(Black pine

Table mountain or moun-
tain pine Pinus pungens -{Ridge pine..

I Prickly pine

(Spruce

\He balsam..

Red spruce Picea rubra.

N. C. pine
>N. C. pine

Yellow pine

Yellow pine
Spruce

Southern or mountain
balsam Abies Fraseri.

Hemlock Tsuga canadensis. .

Carolina hemlock Tsuga caroliniana.

Balsam (Balsam

She balsam (Spruce

Hemlock |

Spruce pine f Hemlock

Hemlock spruce J

Cypress.

.Cypress

Cypress. Taxodium distichum

Pond cypress Taxodium ascendens

White cedar Chamaecyparis t hy oides Juniper. Juniper

Red cedar Juniperus virginiana Red cedar ...Red cedar

White walnut or butternut.. .Juglans cinerea White walnut.. .Walnut

Black walnut Juglans nigra Black walnut Black walnut

White heart or mockernut

hickory Carya alba White heart hickory Hickory

Bitternut hickory Carya cordiformis .Red heart hickory Hickory

Water hickory Carya aquatica ..Swamp hickory Hickory

Pignut hickory Carya glabra Hickory Hickory

Scaly-bark or shagbark

hickory Carya ovata Scaly bark Hickory

Pale-leaf hickory Carya pallida Hickory Hickory

Southern shell-bark hickory .Carya carolinae-septentrionalis._Scaly bark hickory Hickory

Little-nut hickory Carya microcarpa Hickory Hickory

River birch Betula nigra River birch Birch

104

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

Common Names

Botanical Name

Local Names Trade Name

Mountain mahogany ]

Overcup oak Quercus lyrata.

Swamp chestnut oak Quercus prinus.

> White oak

Black birch Betula lenta < Mahogany [►Birch

[Cherry birch J

Yellow birch Betula lutea lWhVh'""li" fBirch

Beech Fagus grandif olia Beech Beech

Chestnut Castanea dentata Chestnut Chestnut

White oak Quercus alba White oak White oak

Post oak Quercus minor White oak White oak

/Overcup oak \™n... i

<0 , , >White oak

[Swamp post oak J

(Swamp white oak \v

\Swamp chestnut oak.

{Chestnut oak |
Rock oak [-White oak
Mountain oak J

Live oak Quercus virginiana Live oak Live oak

(Red oak .... 1

Northern red oak Quercus borealis maxima s,, . . """ /Red oak

I Mountain oak

[Buck oak... J

Scarlet oak Quercus coccinea Spanish oak Oak

Black oak Quercus velutina Black oak Oak

fRed oak )

Southern red oak Quercus rubra s Turkey oak [Oak

[Spanish oak J

Swamp red oak Quercus pagedaefolia. Red oak Oak

Water oak Quercus nigra Water oak Oak

wn i ^ u ii [Water oak.

Willow oak Quercus phellos

Slippery elm Ulmus fulva

Winged elm . Ulmus alata

White or american elm Ulmus americana.

Willow oak.

-Slippery elm Elm

f Small-leaved elm.

J Corky elm.

| Winged elm

[Southern elm

JElm

White elm

Elm

>Elm

Red mulberry Morus rubra.

Hackberry Celtis occidentalis < _ &C erry >Hackberry

[bugarberry..

Mulberry

Red mulberry

(Cucumber
Mountain cucumber.. (-Cucumber'
Wahoo

(White bay

\Sweet bay

Cucumber-tree -Magnolia acuminata Cucumber Cucumber'

Yellow poplar ]

White poplar

Poplar

I Tulip poplar J

/Sweet gum Red gum

reet or red gum... ...Liquidambar styraciflua... . ^ gum gatin ^^

Sweet or white bay.

.Magnolia virginiana.

Yellow poplar Liriodendron tulipifera.

>Mulberry

^Cucumber"

^Poplar

Sycamore Platanus occidentalis.

Black cherry Prunus serotina

Black locust... Robinia pseudacacia..

Holly Ilex opaca

Sycamore 10

_ , > Sycamore

Buttonwood J

Black cherry

Wild cherry

Locust

Black locust

Holly

^American holly..

>Cherry
>Locust
>Holly

Sugar maple Acer saccharum ( _ "" >Hard maple

[Sugar maple

Wood-using Industries of North Carolina

105

Common Names Botanical Name Local Names Trade Name

fRed maple

Red maple Acer rubrum -j Swamp maple...

I Carolina maple.
Yellow buckeye Aesculus octandra (Buckeye

\Yellow buckeye-
Linden or basswood Tilia spec { -„ -------

[Basswood

Dogwood Cornus florida Dogwood Dogwood

Black gum... ...Nyssa sylvatica... Black gum .. .Black gum

Sour gum

fSoft maple

{Buckeye
Basswood

Water gum Nyssa biflora.

Tupelo Nyssa aquatica

Sourwood Oxy dendrum arboreum.

Persimmon Diospyr os virginiana

Silverbell.

Halesia carolina.

White ash.

.Fraxinus americana.

Tupelo gum

Black gum

Bowl gum

Tupelo gum

Cotton gum

Sourwood

Sorrel tree

Persimmon

['Simmon

f Silverbell tree..
J Snowdrop tree.

|Box elder

[Bell wood

/Ash

\White ash

..Red ash

^Tupelo

>Tupelo

>Sourwood

Persimmon

^Pee woodf

>Ash
.Ash

Red ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica

Biltmore ash Fraxinus biltmoreana ash White ash Ash

Green ash Fraxinus lanceolata Green ash Ash

Pumpkin ash Fraxinus profunda Pumpkin ash Ash

Water ash Fraxinus caroliniana Water ash Ash

In addition to the trees listed above, there are some ninety other
species of trees native to North Carolina, most of which are either too
small or too rare to be used commercially. There are also some dozen
introduced species which have escaped from cultivation and become wild.

*Cucumber is often cut with and classed and sold as poplar.*
fSometimes cut and sold with cherry.

(Compiled by J. S. Holmes, State Forester, North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey,
Chapel Hill, N. C, with the advice of Dr. George B. Sudworth, U. S. Forest Service.)

NORTH CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC SURVEY

JOSEPH HYDE PRATT, Director

BULLETIN No. 31

DEPOSITS OF BROWN IRON ORES (Brown Hematite)
IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA

BY
W. S. BAYLEY

RALEIGH

Edwards & Broughton Printing Company

1925

GEOLOGICAL BOARD

Governor Cameron Morrison, ex officio Chairman Raleigh

Frank R. Hewitt Asheville

C. C. Smoot, III North Wilkesboro

Hon. John H. Small Washington

Dr. S. Westray Battle Asheville

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director Chapel Hill

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

Chapel Hill, N. C, February 3, 1922.

To His Excellency, Hon. Cameeon Morrison,

Governor of North Carolina.

Sir: — I herewith submit for publication as Bulletin No. 31 of the
publications of the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey a
report on The Brown Iron Ores of Western North Carolina, which has
been prepared by W. S. Bayley, Geologist. This investigation of these
iron ores showed that there is a larger quantity of commercial ore than
we had realized. This report should be of particular interest to the
people of Western North Carolina and all those interested in the devel-
opment of the iron ores of the State.

Yours respectfully,

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director,
North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey.

6143 i

PREFACE

This report on "The Brown Iron Ores (Brown Hematite Deposits)
of Western North Carolina" represents simply part of an investigation
of the iron ores of "Western North Carolina which has been made by
Mr. W. S. Bayley, Geologist, of the University of Illinois. It has been
a cooperative investigation between the United States Geological Sur-
vey and the North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey, and the
results of the investigation will be published as a series of reports, botb
by the State and Federal Surveys. One part of the investigation on
"Magnetic Iron Ores of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina"
will be published as a cooperative report between the Tennessee Geo-
logical Survey and the North Carolina Geological and Economic
Survey.*

The present report describes particularly the brown iron ores of
Cherokee and Clay counties, which is the district containing the largest
amount of commercial ore. From the results of the investigation it is
considered that this district oifers a promising field for development
of an iron ore industry of some considerable importance.

The deposits in Madison, McDowell, Catawba, Lincoln and Gaston
counties are also examined and described, but they are not considered
of any great commercial importance at the present time.

The report also gives an estimate of the amount of ore in the several
districts.

Joseph Hyde Pratt, Director,
North Carolina Geological anal Economic Survey.

*Has since been published as Bull. No. 32 of the North Carolina Survey and Bull. No. 29
of the Tennessee Survey.

CONTENTS

Page

Letter of Transmittal iii

Preface iv

Introduction 1

Character of the ores 1

Deposits of brown iron ores in the Mountain district 2

Geology of the ores 2

Origin and age of the ores 5

Deposits in Madison County 7

Deposits near Tennelina 7

Ore reserves near Tennelina 10

Other deposits in Madison County 10

Deposits in Cherokee County 11

Geology of the ores 11

Distribution of the ores. 13

Ore deposits in the Valley and Nottely rivers belt 15

Mines and deposits in the Valley River belt 18

Deposits near Murphy IS

Fain-Hitchcock Mine 18

Hall-Starbuck Mine 21

Dockery Mine 22

Section 6 openings 22

Savage Bros. Mine 23

Ore reserves near Murphy 25

Deposits near Marble Creek 25

Ore reserves near Marble Creek 27

Deposits near Maltby 27

Kinsey-Betts property 27

Heaton and Russell Mine 28

Welch and Guy Green mines... 29

Ore reserves near Maltby 30

Deposits near Marble 30

Puett and McHan mines 30

Hayes-Hoblitzell Mine 32

Cooper and Hanks openings 33

Ore reserves in the neighborhood of Marble 36

Deposits between the Jenkins place and Andrews 36

General 36

Taylor or Geo. Luther property 37

Southern Iron Mining Company's mine 37

Deposits between the southern Iron Mining Company's mine

and Andrews 39

Ore Reserves between the Jenkins place and Andrews.. 40

Deposits between Andrews and Topton 41

vi Contexts

Page

Deposits in the Andrews area 41

General 41

Washburn place 42

Swan property 42

Ferebee and Young Mine 42

Rogers opening 44

Marvacar Mining Company's property 45

J. W. Walker preperty 46

Ore reserves in the Andrews area 48

Deposits in the Nottely River belt 48

Ore reserves in the Nottely River belt 52

Ore deposits in the Peachtree area 54

Ore reserves near Peachtree 56

Ore deposits in the Brasstown belt and the Martin Creek area 56

General 56

The Brasstown belt 56

General _ 56

Deposits north of the Hiwassee River 57

Deposits south of the Hiwassee River 58

Ore reserves in the Brasstown belt 59

The Martin Creek area 59

General 59

The Monteith Mine 60

Other deposits in the Martin Creek area 61

Ore deposits in the Hiwassee and Nottely rivers belt 63

Ore reserves in the Hiwassee and Nottely rivers belt 67

Deposits in McDowell County 68

Deposits in the Piedmont Plateau 69

Deposits in Catawba and Lincoln counties 69

Deposits in Gaston County 70

General 70

Ormond Mine 70

Little Mountain Mine 72

Ore reserves in Catawba, Lincoln and Gaston counties 76

ILLUSTRATIONS

Plate Facing Page

I. General geological map, showing locations of principal brown

iron ore deposits in the Nottely and Valley rivers belt 11

•II. Map of Murphy and vicinity, showing positions of rock exposures

III. Pit of Fain-Hitchcock Mine, near Murphy, looking northeast 20

•IV. Map of rock exposures in neighborhood of Maltby

V. Heaton and Russell Mine, near Maltby 28

D. Ore-vein, bottom layer, dipping away from observer.

B. Mining by hydraulic jet.

C. Washer.

VI. The Hayes and Hoblitzell Mine near Marble 32

C. General view of the pit looking south.
B. Near view, end of pit.

*VII. Map of pits and rock exposures in Andrews-Valleytown area

VIII. Views of mine of Southern Iron Mining Company, near Andrews 38

A. General view of ore-bed.

B. West end of ore-bed, showing parallelism with surface.

C. Detail of ore-bed, showing detrital character.

IX. Marvacar limonite mine, near Andrews 45

A. General view of south end of open cut.

B. Near view of vein in same cut.

Figure Page

1. Index map of western North Carolina, showing positions of areas in

which are important deposits of brown hematite ores 3

2. Geological map of brown hematite deposits at Tennelina, near Hot

Springs 8

3. Diagrammatic N-S section through area shown in figure 2 9

4. N.W.-S.E. section across Valley River belt near Marble 15

5. Diagrammatic cross section through Fain-Hitchcock Mine, near

Murphy 19

6. Mamillary ore in Savage Bros. Mine, near Murphy 23

7. Section across end of pit on J. W. Walker property, near Andrews.... 46

8. N.W.-S.E. section across Nottely River belt at Culberson 4S

9. Geological map of Peachtree area and Eastern part of Brasstown belt 53

10. Section across Brasstown belt, Peachtree area and Valley River belt

near Regal 54

11. Map of Martin Creek area and Hiwassee-Nottely rivers belt, show-

ing locations of important deposits of brown hematite 62

*Plates II, IV, and VII could not be completed from the original surveys in time to avoid
delaying unduly the publication of this paper. It is planned to issue them later as a
supplement.

DEPOSITS OF BROWN IRON ORES (BROWN HEMATITE)
IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA

By W. S. Bayley

INTRODUCTION

For some years North Carolina has been supplying small quantities
of brown hematite ore to the furnaces of the South. Between 1917 and
3920 the quantity reported to the U. S. Geological Survey was 126,000
tons. Most of this came from Cherokee County. Formerly a little
came from near Asheville in Madison County and from near Bessemer
City in Gaston County, but the mines in these counties were abandoned
several years ago. There are deposits also in other counties but they
have not yet been developed.

The ores occur mainly in the valley between the mountains in the
western part of the State and in the Piedmont Plateau region in its
central portion. The most important mountain deposits are in Madi-
son and Cherokee counties. Less important ones are in McDowell
County. The most important in the Piedmont Plateau are in Catawba,
Lincoln and Gaston counties.

Character of the Ores

While it is probable that most of the brown hematites of these
regions are limonite and goethite, a few of them may be composed
largely of other compounds. They are all hydrated iron oxides, but
some of them may contain a greater proportion of water than is usually
present in limonite. A few of them have been reported to be turgite.

Limonite is commonly represented by the formula Fe403(OH)6,
but its analyses vary between such wide limits, that the assignment of
a definite formula to represent its composition is hazardous. It is often
regarded as a colloidal goethite with one or more molecules of water, de-

2 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

pending upon temperature. That it is a colloid admits of little doubt.
It is never found in crystals, but always in some form that suggests
its precipitation from solution. It is often found as stalactites, as glob-
ular masses or in forms that imitate the crystals of other minerals,
which it has replaced. It is also often found in the shapes of leaves,
twigs, etc. In these cases it is said to be a pseudomorph. The orig-
inal materials have been replaced by the limonite, which has assumed
their forms. In no case does it appear to have a shape which is pe-
culiar to itself. Like other gel colloids, limonite possesses the power
of absorbing compounds from their solutions, so that the mineral may
in fact be a mixture of colloidal iron hydroxide and various other com-
pounds which differ in nature in different occurrences. Limonite is
brown on fresh fractures and its powder is yellowish-brown. When
earthy it is often yellow, as in the case of "yellow ocher." In cases
where its origin is known, the mineral is the result of the decompo-
sition of other iron-bearing compounds by oxygenated water, or is a
deposit made by the accumulation of the remains of iron secreting
bacteria.1 The ores in North Carolina have originated in the first way.
The commercial ores are hard, dark-brown, flinty mixtures of goethite
and limonite and soft, yellowish-brown, sandy limonites. As furnished
in carload lots they are non-Bessemer ores, containing about 45%-52%
Fe, 0.25%-1.25% Mn, 0.3%-7% P, and 8%.18% Si02. The sulphur
content is small, rarely greater than 0.1%. The variations in iron and
silica depend mainly upon the care taken in preparing the ore. The
variation in the manganese is due to inherent differences in the ore.
In a few ores the manganese content is less than 0.25%, on some
it is greater than 2.25%, and in a few cases the ore is a low grade man-
ganese ore. The sulphur content is never large enough to be objec-
tionable.

DEPOSITS OF BROWN IRON ORES IN THE MOUNTAIN

DISTRICT

Geology of the Ores

Madison, Cherokee and McDowell counties are in the Appalachian
mountain division of the Appalachian Province. (See map, fig. 1..)
The rocks associated with the ores are Cambrian sediments that have

1 Harder, E. C, Iron-depositing bacteria and their geologic relations. U. S. G-eol. Survey,
Prof. Paper 113, 1919.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

been metamorphosed to a greater or less extent, depending upon their
character, by the great movements that occurred during the Paleozoic
Era and culminated soon after the close of the Carboniferous period.
As one of the results of these movements the sediments which were
once in approximately horizontal beds were crinkled into folds and
broken by great faults. The folds are of various magnitudes. They ex-
tend in a general northeasterly direction and they are generally over-
turned to the northwest. Nearly all the dips on the sides of the folds
are southeastward, those on their northwest sides being the steeper.

SPECIAL MAPS
h Peach tree area and east end

of Brasstown belt
2=Nottely and Valley river belt
3= Martin Creek area and Hiwassee and

Nottely river belt
4= Area near Hot Springs

Figure 1. Index map of western North Carolina showing location of areas containing
valuable deposits of brown hematite.

The faults usually appear on the northwestern sides of the anticlines or
southeastern sides of synclines. Nearly all the fault planes dip toward
the southeast and their strikes in general are parallel to the axes of
the folds.

Besides the folds and faults produced by the compression of the sedi-
mentary beds, the rocks composing these beds were broken by innumer-
able small cracks, and were changed in composition by the growth of
many new minerals. Moreover, these new minerals were produced
under conditions that caused them to grow with their long directions

4 Deposits of Beown Ikon Oees

in planes that are approximately at right angles to the direction of
greatest pressure. This has resulted in the production of a schistosity,
the strike of which is in general parallel to the strikes of the folds
and faults and its dip is steep, usually 50° or more.

The sequence of the Cambrian sediments in Cherokee and Madison
counties, as worked out by Keith,1 is indicated m the following table,
in which Keith's names are used. In Cherokee County metamorphism
has been more pronounced than it has been in Madison County and
the present character of most of the formations is different; but there
is a general parallelism in them, the differences being only such as
might be exhibited by rocks in any two basins separated from one an-
other at recurring intervals or even by different portions of a single
basin if differently situated with respect to old shore lines. The names
of the several formations and their order of deposition in the two
areas are:

Table of Cambrian Formations in Cherokee and Madison Counties

CHEROKEE COUNTY

MADISON COUNTY

Nottely quartizite. White quartizite.

Andrews schist. Calcareous ottrelite schist,
with iron-ore beds.

Murphy marble,
with talc.

White and blue marble,

Valleytown formation. Graywacke, garnet
and ottrelite schist and slate.

Brasstown schist. Blue and black ottrelite
schist and slate.

Tusquitee quartzite. White quartz.

Knox dolomite. Light and dark magnesian
- limestone with chert.

I Nolichucky shale. Variegated calcareous shales
I and thin limestone.

s Honaker limestone. Blue and gray lime-
I stone. Thin.

I, Watauga shale. Purple, red and yellow shales
and sandy shale.

Shady limestone. Gray and blue cherty lime-
stone with marble beds near base.

Hesse quartzite. Chiefly white quartz.

Murray slate. Grayish slate and shale with
sandy layers.

Natahala slate. Black slate, with garnet-
staurolite schist at base.

Great Smoky conglomerate. Conglomerate,
coarse gray sandstone and graywacke,
with many beds of black slate and
schist.

Hiwassee slate. Bluish-gray, banded argil-
laceous slate.

Nebo quartzite. Chiefly white quartz.

Nichols and Nantahala slate. Grayish slate
and shale with sandy layers, metamor-
phosed to mica schist and and ottrelite
schist.

Cochran and Great Smoky conglomerates.
Gray conglomerate with beds of slate,
metaporphosed to schists in Great Smoky
conglomerate.

Hiwassee slate. Dark banded slate and
schists, with layers of limestone and
sandy beds.

Snowbird formation. Light colored quartz-
ite and sandstone with beds of slate,
conglomerate and arkose.

1 Keith, A., U. S., Geol. Survey Geo!. Atlas, Asheville folio (No. 116), 1904 and Nantahala
folio (No. 143), 1907.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 5

These lie on a basement of granites, gneisses and crystalline schists
that are Algonkian and Archean.

The geology of McDowell County has not yet been studied, but the
rocks associated with the ores in this county are similar to those asso-
ciated with the similar ores in Madison County.

The limonite deposits of greatest value are found in the residual clays
of the Andrews schist and Murphy marble or their equivalents, at the
contact of the marble and the schists with quartzites, along or near faults
separating the limestone or calcareous schists from other formations,
and at the contact of quartzites with the Valleytown and Brasstown
formations in Cherokee County. The most important are those at the
contact of quartzites with the marble or the calcareous schists, and
those in faults.

Origin and Age of the Ores

The ores occur in veins and in residual deposits, formed by the break-
ing down of the rocks containing the vein material. When the rocks
containing the veins are weathered much of their material is dissolved
and carried away in solution. The insoluble residue consists of sand
mingled with fragments of ore that remains as a covering over the un-
decomposed rocks. Where the underlying rocks were mineralized
marble or calcareous Andrews schist the residual mantle is rich in ore
fragments, because most of the rock that was originally with the ore
has been carried away. In some places the ore fragments in this sandy
mixture are so large and so abundant that they are gathered by hand
and shipped. In most places they are small. Where sufficiently
abundant the soil is washed and the ore thus separated from the sand.
Most of the mines are at present obtaining their ore either from this
layer of decomposed rock, or from the partly decomposed rocks be-
neath it.

The vein ore is found only at such places as furnish easy channels
for downward traveling water; consequently it is believed that the
veins received their ore from above. The source of supply of the
ferruginous solutions was the great thickness of rock beds that was
formerly above the Cambrian rocks in which the ore now occurs. As
these were weathered the ferruginous solutions drained downward,
were oxidized and made the deposits by filling the cracks through which
they were flowing and replacing their walls by iron hydroxides.
Because the ores are oxidized products it is probable that they are
confined to shallow depths. They were formed near the surface; con-
sequently they could not have been deposited until the surface had

6 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

reached nearly its present position, which was probably later than
Tertiary time. It is believed that the greater portion of the filling of
the veins was accomplished in Quaternary time.1

For the most part the veins follow bedding planes or fault cracks,
but the smaller ones may divide and coalesce in an intricate pat-
tern, locally crossing the rock layers, swelling and thinning, and in
some places wedging out. Few of the thicker veins consist of pure
ore throughout. Most of them are mixtures of iron hydroxides and
sand, which in some places occur as thin alternating layers and in
others as uniform mixtures. In many deposits the vein material is
coarsely porous and the ore lining the openings is mammillary. Mam-
millary surfaces are also common on the sides of veins (PL V), espe-
cially those in the bedding planes of the Andrews schist, and in man-
ganiferous ores the portions richest in manganese are the outer layers
of the spheroids. Thus the North Carolina ores are like some of
those in the Cartersville district of Georgia, which are described by
Hayes and Eckel2 as consisting of geodal shells containing cavities
with stalactitic and botryoidal forms, which have glazed surfaces.

The veins are nowhere single. They are almost invariably grouped
in stockworks, which have the same general strikes and dips as the
rocks with which they are associated. Those in faults may follow the
fault planes for short distances, but they feather out into the bedding
planes or into joints and other fractures of the faulted rocks and so
may possess very irregular shapes.

Nearly all the ore of the veins in the Andrews schist contains sand
grains and the remnants of decomposed ottrelite crystals. The cal-
careous cement of the original rock has been replaced by the iron com-
pounds, leaving only the micaceous decomposition products of the
ottrelite and little grains of sand to represent the original schist. Such
ore may preserve the schistosity of the replaced rock in the arrange-
ment of the sand and the decomposition products of the ottrelite.

As remarked by Hayes and Eckel,3 in discussing similar ores in
the Cartersville area in Georgia, the ores appear in part to have filled
open fissures and in part to have replaced schists. These authors think
it probable that the veins in the Cartersville district were formed by
solutions ascending from a considerable depth and that the ore may
change below the water level into a mixture of iron oxides, sulphides,
and perhaps carbonate. In North Carolina there is practically no evi-

1 For further discussion of the origin of the brown iron ores in this district see: U. S.
Eull. 735-F, Geol. Survey, pp. 160-163, 1922.

2 Hayes, C. W., and Eckel, E. C., Iron Ores of the Cartersville district. Ga.. U. S. Geol.
Survey Bull. 213, p. 240, 1903.

3 Op. cit, p. 240.

Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores 7

dence as to the character of the ore below groundwater level. !N"one of
the mines have reached to so great a depth. It is certain, however,
that the veins were formed after the deformation of the rocks in which
they occur, as they exhibit no signs of slickensides or of true schistosity,
and it is almost equally certain that they were produced by water per-
colating downward. They are best developed at the contacts of replace-
able rocks with impervious beds and in fault zones and are more
abundant above the impervious beds than beneath them. In some
places the veins are arranged as if in synclines and thus apparently
follow a bed that is more easily replaced than others; but a glance at
the maps (PI. I and figs. 2, 9, 11), will show that they do not occur at
any definite horizon. They may be present almost anywhere within
the Andrews schist, for the rocks of this formation, because of their
porous texture and pronounced schistosity, furnish abundant channels
for percolating water. The veins are largest, however, at the contacts
of the schists with impervious or nearly impervious beds, because these
contacts furnish the best channels for the ore-depositing solutions. In
rocks other than the calcareous schists deposits of brown iiematite occur
only at contacts or in faults.

The explanation of the existence of large deposits in the Andrews
schist on the northwest side of the quartzite ridge in the Valley River
belt is difficult unless it may be assumed that the foliation planes of
the schists near the contact were opened by shearing when the beds
were folded and, naturally, thereafter became easy conduits for descend-
ing solutions. As the folds are overturned to the northwest, the folia-
tion of the schists and their accompanying veins dip southeasterly
under the overlaying quartzite.

DEPOSITS IN MADISON COUNTY

Deposits Near Tennelina

In Madison County the only deposits that have been worked to any
considerable extent are mainly limonite lumps and masses in the residual
clays of the Shady limestone near Shut-in Creek at Tennelina, 3 to
4% miles west of Hot Springs. The amount of ore in the clay varies
greatly. It is most abundant at the west end of a belt of limestone,
where that rock lies in a synclinal basin surrounded by ridges of con-
glomerate and quartzite. Keith writes (Folio 116, p. 10) "The hema-
tite is most abundant near the contact of the limestone and the under-
lying quartzite, and is found here and there along the entire contact.
The upper portions of the limestone contain very little ore. Its presence

Deposits of Beown Iron Oees

in the lower layers near the quartzite appears to be due to downward
concentration into these layers. The limestone itself contains little or
no ferruginous material, so that the hematite is probably derived from
the quartzite series, in which are found small accumulations of pyrite."
The depth of the ore has been tested only by shallow pits. "It is prob-
able that * * * the clays containing the ore are not much more
than 30 feet deep."

A map and cross-section of the area showing the relation of the ores
to the limestone are given in Figs. 2 and 3. They are taken from
Keith's map of the Asheville quadrangle (Folio 116). The section is
slightly modified, since Keith's section is east of the points at which the

Contour interval 20O feet. Datum, mean sea /eve/
EXPLANATION

^^^

?^sSS

5SKS

Watauga shale Shady limestone Hesse quartzite Murray slate Nebo quartzite Nichols slate

a.- quartzite lentil

Opening in
brown hematite

Figure 2.

Cochran Hiwassee slate Snowbird

conglomerate formation

Geologic map of area containing deposits of brown hematite at Tennelina, near
Hot Springs, N. C. A-B, Line of section, figure 3.

ores are best developed. Just west of Shut-in Creek the rocks on the
upthrow (north) side of the fault are members of the Cochran con-
glomerate and not of the Snowbird formation as they are further east
where the section was made. The ores are in or near the fault. Here
weathering has been excessive because of the ease with which water
could travel down the fault zone, and the limestone has been changed
to sandy and clayey decomposition products to a greater depth than
elsewhere.

The ore occurs nearly everywhere along the north side of the lime-
stone. In some places it forms little streaks in the bedding planes of the

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 9

limestone; in other places it occurs as large dense masses in brecciated
and massive limestone and clay and in still other places it is in veinlets
cutting the limestone and to some extent the neighboring shale and con-
glomerate. The relations indicate that the ore is a replacement of
limestone along joints, small faults and bedding cracks. As erosion
proceeded the ore became shattered and scattered through the clay and
formed the productive ore-mass that Keith describes.

The source of the iron in these deposits is problematic. It may have
come from any one of the formations that have been eroded from above
the Cochran conglomerate. Keith apparently ascribes its origin to
pyrite in the Hesse quartzite; but after a careful examination of the
old openings one can scarcely escape the conviction that some, at least,
of the limonite came from the limestone itself.

Figure 3, Diagrammatic north-south section through area shown in figure 2. a, Watauga
shale; b, Shady limestone; c, Hesse quartzite; d, Murray slate; e, Nichols slate; f,
Cochran conglomerate.

The mines, which are situated on or near the fault, form a line
extending west from Shut-in Creek for a distance of about 1% miles.
Most of them are open pits that are now so filled with dirt that no
rock can be seen in their walls. A few are tunnels in which small ex-
posures are visible. It is said that several hundred cars of ore were
shipped to Knoxville and other points when the mines were operated
by A. Gr. Betts in 1917. Most of the ore was wash ore that yielded 1
part of commercial ore to 4 parts of material mined. In some places,
however, the ore was hard and massive. In these cases it was hand
picked and shipped as lump, yielding a much higher average of ore
than 1 :4.

The most easterly opening is a tunnel in mixed limestone, chert and
other rocks. It is a comparatively small opening on the north side
of a little stream, and is about *4 mile west of the creek. The dips of
the rocks penetrated by the tunnel vary from horizontal to 30° N". E.
The tunnel opening goes down at an angle of about 75° "NJW. following
a chert-limonite streak. The strike of the beds, as nearly as could be
determined, is 30° S. of W. The material removed consisted of chert,
shale, and thin layers of limonite. This was washed.

10 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

Mr. John Smith, who made an examination of the district for the.
]N"orth Carolina Geological and Economic Survey when the mines were
in operation, reports that athe ore was all worked from open cuts
except the last attempt, in which the hydraulic process was used.
* * * The water and ore were carried to the plant by means of an
open box flume. * * * The concentration of the ore is accomplished
by means of the log roller process" at the rate of 125 to 300 tons daily.

"In all, there were six mines opened on this property, from which
about 30,000 tons of ore have been taken," at a cost of about $1.00 per
ton.

Ore Reserves Near Tennelina

There is no means at present of estimating the quantity of ore
in the belt of country along the fault trace, as all the pits are filled
with sand and there are no exposures. It appears probable that
the amount of ore material removed from the pits had a width of
about 15 feet. If this yielded 30,000 tons of marketable ore, as has
been reported, there may be as much as 100,000 tons left within about
50 feet of the surface. Since much of this would be furnished by the
bowlders, etc., in the clay and sand that have resulted from the con-
centration near the surface of that part of the fault zone which has
been worn away, the quantity of ore that might be mined profitably
in the next 50 feet, if the veins extend that deep, is much less.

So far as we can judge, without systematic exploration, the supply
of ore in the area discussed is not sufficiently large to warrant the
erection of a plant which could handle the material effectively. Con-
siderable ore remains that might be concentrated profitably on a small
scale by log washers, but there is no promise of production on a large
scale.

Other Deposits in Madison County

Deposits have been reported by Nitze1 from two other points in the
county but their descriptions are very brief and their locations not pre-
cise. He mentions, on the authority of H. L. Harris, the existence of
a bed of limonite having a width of 30 feet and an unknown thickness,
on the western waters of Shut-in Creek. This was said to be cellular
and in places ocherous, and to be associated with a gritty metamorphic
sandstone that is conglomeratic in places. The analysis of a sample
gave:

iXitze, H. B. C, Iron ores of North Carolina: N. C. Geo!. Survey, Bull. Xo. 1, p. 210.

4 A

10 Deposits of Bkown Ikon Ores

Mr. John Smith, who made an examination of the district for the,
j^orth Carolina Geological and Economic Survey when the mines were
in operation, reports that "the ore was all worked from open cuts
except the last attempt, in which the hydraulic process was used.
* * * The water and ore were carried to the plant hy means of an
open box flume. * * * The concentration of the ore is accomplished
by means of the log roller process" at the rate of 125 to 300 tons daily.

"In all, there were six mines opened on this property, from which
about 30,000 tons of ore have been taken," at a cost of about $1.00 per
ton.

Ore Reserves Near Tennelina

Other Deposits in Madison County

iXitze, H. B. C, Iron ores of North Carolina: N. C. Geol. Survey, Bull. No. 1, p. 210.

Deposits of Beown Ikon Oees

SiCh

P ratio

11.94

45.05

.39

.53

1.176

At another point in the neighborhood the ore is said to he botry-
oidal and compact, and at still another point the deposit is said to con-
sist "of a fairly solid central mass, with stringy and lumpy crusts run-
ning out from it."

All these descriptions apparently refer to the deposits on the fault
at Tennelina ; but other deposits are said to exist "along the south-
eastern slopes of the Unaka Mountains, the northwestern boundary of
Mitchell County."

DEPOSITS IN CHEROKEE COUNTY
Geology of the Ores

The sequence of the formations associated with the limonites in
Cherokee County has already been noted. Those that are most closely
associated with the ores are the Valleytown formation, the Murphy
marble, the Andrews schist, and the lottery quartzite. All belong in
the upper portion of the Cambrian. (See pi. I.)

The Valleytown formation as described by Keith in the Nantahala
folio (p. 4) consists in the main of mica-schist and fine grained gneiss.
"In the basin of Valley River these rocks constitute practically all
of the formation. * * * The mica-schist passes downward into the
Brasstown schist. * * *

"On the south side of Valley River, where metamorphism is greatest
near a fault plane, the mica-schist is strongly developed and many of
the gneissoid beds have received a secondary schistosity. Similar re-
sults are seen north and west of Andrews, along the border of the
Murphy marble, where the folding has been excessive. The strata of the
formation south of Valley River are filled with small crystals of garnets
♦ * *, Further southwest the garnets are less common." North of
the river the rocks contain both garnet and ottrelite and at some places
south of the river they contain also staurolite.

All the members of the formation are closely folded and often con-
torted, and all of them are schistose.

Since this formation has been closely folded, in common with all
the other rocks of the region, it is impossible to get accurate meas-
urements of its thickness. It is thought, however, that the entire
formation is not less than 1,000 feet thick.

12 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

The Murphy marble occupies a narrow strip of country extending
southwest along the Nantahala, the Valley and the Nottely rivers, and
alongside the Murphy Branch of the Southern Railway and the Murphy
Branch of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad; a small crescentic
area near Peachtree, and a narrow belt extending southwest from near
Peachtree to near the southwest corner of the Nantahala quadrangle
and then westward into the Murphy quadrangle for a mile, at which
point it expands northward into the wide valley of Martins Creek.
The narrow belt continues up the west branch of the creek to the head
waters of Gold Braiich and down this to its mouth. (See maps, pi. I
and figs. 9 and 11.)

The formation consists of a fine grained white, gray, pink or blue
marble, which passes downward into the Yalleytown formation by in-
terbedding with the ValleytoAvn schists, and upward into the Andrews
schist through several feet of interbedded marble and schist. Its thick-
ness before erosion was probably 500 feet.

Where the original deposit was impure through the presence of sand
or clay the metamorphic processes that changed it into marble caused
also the production of a number of silicates, such as micas, tremolite,
garnet and talc. The talc occurs mainly as lenses embedded in the
marble near its base. At many places the talc is mined, furnishing an
excellent product. Pyrite is present not only in layers in which garnet
is plentiful, but also as disseminated grains through the general body
of the rock.

The Andrews schist also occupies narrow belts. It flanks the Murphy
marble on the east from Valleytown nearly to the State line, and also
borders the marble at Peachtree on the west, south and east sides.

The formation consists of a series of beds of calcareous schists from
about 200 to about 350 feet thick. The schists are composed of a matrix
of marble in which are embedded sand grains and great quantities of
muscovite and biotite flakes and plates of ottrelite. It is in this schist
that most of the limonite deposits occur.

At its base the Andrews schist grades into the marble by interbedding.
"Upward it passes into the Nottely quartzite, as the sandy material in-
creases both in separate layers and as grains in the body of the schist."

The Nottely quartzite appears in small lenticular areas surrounded
by Andrews schist between Murphy and Maltby. Farther northeast
it is entirely missing, but farther southwest it occupies an almost con-
tinuous narrow belt stretching to the State line and beyond, into
Georgia. Here it is on the east side of the marble, the Andrews schists
being cut out by the Murphy fault.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 13

The Nottely quartzite is composed entirely of white quartzite, con-
sisting of quartz, a little feldspar and considerable white mica that
was produced during the period of metamorphism. Where the mica is
abundant the quartzite passes into a micaceous quartz schist. The
thickness of the quartzite is at least 150 feet.

The region occupied in part by Cherokee County consists of a great
synclinal basin with a northeast-southwest axis, complicated by minor
folds with the same strike, of which one is a syncline following the
Valley and Nottely rivers (map, pi. I). From Marble to the State
line the syncline contains the youngest rocks of the region, but it rises
rapidly toward the northeast and older beds are brought to the surface.
In many cases the beds have been so compressed that the strata on each
side of the axis of the fold were made practically parallel. Their dips
are everywhere high and at many places, as at Andrews, the beds are
nearly vertical.

Moreover the region is characterized by many faults, which like the
folds have a general northeast trend. One of these, the Murphy fault,
follows along the east side of the Valley River trough, bringing in
contact the Valleytown formation with the overlying Nottely quartzite,
the Andrews schist, or the Murphy marble through most of its course
from Andrews to the State line. This is believed to be the second
longest fault in the southern Appalachian Mountains, its total length
being about 100 miles. Just south of Andrews the fault was probably
folded after its formation, as it now outcrops in a curved Z. The dips
of the Murphy fault are generally to the southeast at various angles
varying between 20° and 60° in Valley River and Nottely River val-
leys. Its maximum throw is about one mile in the neighborhood of
Andrews.

A small syncline accounts for the Brasstown and Martin Creek strips
of Murphy marble (figs. 9, 10 and 11), and an anticline for the outcrops
of marble and Andrews schist at Peachtree (fig. 10). The Peachtree
area, moreover, is bounded by two curving faults separating it from the
Valleytown formation on the north and east and from the immediately
underlying Brasstown schist on the west (map, fig. 9).

Distribution of the Ores

The most important and most persistent limonite deposits in the
county as well as in the State are along the belt of Murphy
limestone and associated rocks that occur in a narrow zone along
the Murphy Branch of the Southern Railway from Valleytown

14 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

to Murphy and its extension along the Louisville and Xashville
Railway to the State line, a distance of 28 miles (map, pi. I). That
portion from Valleytown to Murphy has been called the Valley River
ore belt, since it lies near the Valley River, a tributary of Hiwassee
River, emptying into it at Murphy. That portion southwest of Murphy
is simply an extension of the portion northeast of the city. It contains
the same kind of deposits as those in that portion of the belt to the
northeast and they are in the same geological positions as the latter. It
lies along the Nottely River, another tributary of the Hiwassee River,
and may therefore be designated as a matter of convenience the lottery
River belt.

Another series of deposits surrounds the area of marble near Peach-
tree 6 or 7 miles west of Murphy (map, fig. 9). There has been no
development of any of the deposits in this area, mainly because of their
distance from the railroad. With the recent construction of the road
from Andrews to Hayesville they are now more easily reached, and
some of the most promising ones may be opened up.1

A third series lies along the border of a strip of marble that has been
traced from a point a mile southeast of Peachtree, through Brasstown
to the west boundary of the JNTantahala quadrangle, a distance of about
6% miles. This may be called the Brasstown belt (map, fig. 8). Here
too development has been retarded by lack of cheap transportation.
The belt of limestone is known to extend westward, possibly with one
interruption, into the valley of Martins Creek in the Murphy quad-
rangle, and then southwest with some interruptions along Gold Branch
to the Nottely River. It apparently expands into a broad area at
Martins Creek, where it is bordered as usual by ore deposits. For con-
venience, this western portion of the belt is called the Martin Creek
area.

A fourth series occurs between ledges of quartzite and black slate
that are probably members of the Brasstown schist. It extends in a
southwesterly direction from the Hiwassee River, near the mouth of
Hampton Creek, 1% miles southeast of Murphy to near the bridge
crossing JSTottely River on the road between Murphy and Culberson.
a distance of about 9 miles (map, fig. 11). Through this distance is
a ridge of dark quartzite on the south side of which are a number of
deposits, some of considerable size. Because of their distance from the
railroad they have not been worked since the abandonment of the local

1 In 1924 one of the occurrences west of Peachtree was opened but to what extent is
not known.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

forges. A few other deposits several hundred yards south of the north-
east end of the same ridge may have had their positions determined
by a thinner bed of quartzite; but the number of deposits in this series
is few and the line is short.

Other deposits, some of them apparently of good promise, are on
the northeast side of Hiwassee River, about on the strike of the belt
of deposits last mentioned. These, too, are on the southeast side of a
quartzite ridge, but whether this is the northeast extension of the belt of
quartzite to the southwest is not yet known.

OKE DEPOSITS IN THE VALLEY AND NOTTELY
RIVERS BELT

Thi> Valley and Nottely rivers belt of ore banks extends from the
State line northeast to Andrews as an almost continuous series of de-
posits. Throughout this distance, as has already been noted, is a nar-
row trough of Murphy marble, Andrews schist and Nottely quartzite
which is a syncline overturned to the northwest, as shown by the sec-
tions (figs. 4, 8 and 11) given by Keith through Marble and Regal and
by LaForge and Phalen through Culberson. The eastern side of the
troug.i is limited by the Murphy fault with its dip to the southeast of
from 20° to about 60°. Its downthrow being on the northwest side, the
upper formations on this side have been preserved.

h-m )■■,:[

Figure 4. Northwest-southeast section across Valley River brown hematite belt near Marble,
N. C. b, Andrews schist; c, Murphy marble; d, Valleytown formation; e, Brasstown
schist; /, Tusquitee quartizite ; g, Nantahala shale; h, Great Smoky formation.

Beyond Andrews to the northeast only an occasional deposit is
known, and others are not likely to be found, since, because of the
rise of the syncline in this direction, the upper formations have been
almost entirely lost by erosion.

At Andrews the trough takes a sudden turn to the south for about a
mile, then as suddenly, south of Valleytown, turns to the northeast and
resumes its original course. On the outside of the bend are a few
deposits; and these are the northeasternmost that are, at present, of
economic importance.

16 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

Although limonite deposits are known to exist at short intervals all
the way from the State line to Andrews, only those near Murphy and
from Murphy north to Valleytown have been worked.

Where the Nottely quartzite is present there are usually two parallel
belts of deposits, one on each side where it is in contact with the An-
drews schist. Where the quartzite is not present the ores are usually
in the center of the Andrews schist area, or in the schist near the fault
that borders it on the east, or they occur at the surface in the clay and
sand resulting from the decomposition of the rocks near the fault trace.

Many of the deposits are large enough to be worked with profit even
by the wasteful processes that have heretofore been employed. Much
of the ore shipped has been picked by hand from the surface or has
been separated by hand or with a fork from the material that has been
broken by pick and shovel from the walls of open pits. This is known
as hard lump ore.

Where only hand picking is employed to obtain ore of shipping
quality the operation is short lived and the "mine" is soon abandoned.
At many places, however, the soil is so full of ore that it may be re-
moved in its natural condition and shipped without beneficiation of any
kind. The dirt is shoveled or forked into trucks or wagons and hauled
to the railroad without hand picking or washing. The only selection
made is in the pit, where portions of the dirt that appear poor are
left behind. Mines worked in this way are also short lived, for with
increasing depth the ore becomes more solid and less evenly distributed
through the soft rock, and the associated rock itself also becomes harder.
The cost of exacavation thus becomes more expensive and the prepara-
tion of the shipping product requires greater care. A little larger
capital outlay is required and more careful supervision of the work-
men. When pay dirt can no longer be forked into the carts without
regard to its quality mining ceases.

Since most of the mining in the valley has been carried on in one
of the two ways described, it is natural that there should be many
abandoned mine sites. The first impression gained by a rapid examina-
tion of the field is that failure has followed the attempts to exploit it.
As a matter of fact, most of the operations have been successful finan-
cially. Abandonment resulted only when the cream of the district had
been skimmed. Most of the operators were interested in other projects
and when time and attention were required to operate their mines suc-
cessfully they preferred to use their capital and energy elsewhere.
There are many old mine pits in the district, but unfortunately they are
now tumbled in and consequently very little can be learned as to the
conditions under which the ore occurs.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

In the Tenth Census Report1 only a few paragraphs are devoted to
the ores of the district. Following Kerr2 the deposits are described
as being in three parallel belts. Only 5 mines were visited by the
census geologists, and only a few descriptive words are devoted to each.
At the Morse place, 10 miles northeast of Murphy, the ore was found to
be hard and compact "with nodules filled with clay and some softer,
more earthy portions." The vein was about 8 feet wide and had an
east-west strike. An average sample from the entire exposed face
analyzed as in I. At the Tomotla bank 3 miles southwest of the Morse
opening were some shallow pits, from the old stock pile of which a
sample was taken for analysis II. The belt in which the pits were
sunk was thought to be at least 200 feet wide.

At a point known as Section 6 one mile north of Murphy, considerable
work had been done, but only one small exposure was seen and from
this sample III was collected.

A small opening at Mr. Little's place 5 miles southeast of Murphy
furnished sample IV, and openings at the Monteith place 6 miles south-
east of Murphy furnished sample V. At Monteith's the vein varied
from 4 feet to 10 feet in thickness.

P ratio

57.84
55.85 '
58.25
51.94
56.46

.021

.291
.387
.994
.691

» .036

II .

.521

Ill ..

.160

.664

1.914

1.224

Since the appearance of the Tenth Census Report, however, the belt
has been explored more vigorously than had been the case before the
visit of the census geologists and a large number of small openings have
been made. Mining was especially active during the war with Germany.
But, as has been stated, most of the openings were superficial, and since
they have now been filled with wash they reveal little information of
value.

1 Tenth Census U. S., vol. 15, pp. 327-329, 1886.

2 Kerr, W. 0., Report of the Geological Survey of North Carolina, vol.
Raleigh, 1875.

1, pp. 160-163,

18 Deposits of Beown Iron Ores

Fortunately, there are a few large mines in the district which have
been able to work since the close of the War by the employment of
efficient methods for removing material from the pits, for securing most
of the ore in the material removed, and for properly preparing the prod-
uct for market. These mines have furnished nearly all the information
that has been obtained with respect to the manner of occurence of the
ore.

MINES AND DEPOSITS IN THE VALLEY RIVER BELT
Deposits Near Murphy

All the mines in the Valley River belt, as has been stated, are either
at Murphy or between that city and Valleytown.

Fain-Hitch co ch Mines: — The southermost mine in the Valley River
belt is the Fain-Hitchcock Mine which is about % mile southwest of
Murphy and therefore more properly in the Nottely River belt (see
p., 14). It is described here because it is the only active mine in the
southern belt and geologically its deposit is more nearly like the de-
posits in the northern mines than it is like those in the more southern
openings. The mine is on the southwest slope of a ridge, the crest of
which is occupied by the Nottely quartzite. (See map, pi. 1.) On the
lower slope of the hill and to the south, as far at least as the track
of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, the surface is covered with
sandy slate fragments suggesting the Andrews schist, but near the
top of the low hill south of the track are outcrops and float of an
ottrelite schist that is characteristic of the Valleytown formation. The
ore consists of layers of hard limonite and loose bowlders of the same
mineral in a mixed clay and sand matrix that appears to have been
derived largely from a calcareous schist that may well have been the
Andrews schist. On the surface and near it the ore is in sandy clay
as loose fragments and nodules forming an excellent wash ore. At a
greater depth it occurs in layers in a friable sandy schist dipping at
angles to the southeast.

Such ore as can now be seen in place is in the main a mass of small
and large veins cutting in a general parallel direction through much
disintegrated sandy schists but often crossing the schist layers between
them and uniting into a few large veins. Some of the ore is coarsely

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

botryoidal with dense spherical masses measuring about 3 or 4 inches
in diameter. (Compare fig. 6.) Other portions are brown sandy
masses that fall apart when roughly handled. Many of these contain
little scaly portions that represent the decomposed ottrelite plates in the
original schist, and others are simply masses of sand and limonite.
The veins evidently were formed by the replacement of the calcareous
cement of the schist by iron hydroxides. In open spaces and in layers
that were limestone dense ore was formed. In sandy layers sandy
ore resulted. It is this sandy ore and that occurring in the plexus of
small veins which furnish the "wash ore." The thick veins of dense
limonite and the botryoidal variety furnsh the hard or "lump ore."
In this mine, as in most others in the district, the wash ore is in much
greater quantity than the hard ore.

1500 ft. above
sea level

Figure 5. Diagrammatic cross section through Fain-Hitchcock mine, near Murphy, N. C.
a, Nottely quartzite; b, Andrews schist; c, Murphy marble; d, Valleytown formation.

Since the dumps contain fragments of conglomerate and breccia, it
is probable that the conditions are somewhat similar to those at Tenne-
lina in Madison County. The breccia probably marked the position of
a small fault in the pit at the contact of the schist and the quartzite.
The presence of the Murphy fault south of the Andrews schist accounts
for the absence of the Murphy marble from between the schist and the
Valleytown formation — the position it should occupy if undisturbed
by faulting (fig. 5).

Southwest of the old pits are exposures of hard ore out-cropping as
rugged solid ledges for a distance of about 2,000 feet and a width of
175 feet and large bowlders of ore covering a belt that is considerably
wider. To the northeast the belt can be traced by float for S00-1,000
feet.

20 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

The workings of the original mine consist of an open pit about 400
feet long trending about !N".. 35° E. (See pi. III.) It crosses a low hillock
to the east and extends into a little depression to the west. Its maximum
depth at the top of the ridge is 40 feet and in the depression 25 feet.
As the bottom of the trench to the east is at the level of the top of that
to the west, the total depth to which the ore has been proven is 65
feet. The width of the opening is now about 20 feet and the width
of the vein between 12 and 15 feet, but the width of the layer of pro-
ductive wash ore must be much wider than this. To the southwest of
the old pit the ledge is now being opened by a new pit.

The ore was blasted and the loose material was loaded on cars with
forks and shovels. It was carried by dump cars of 1% tons capacity,
actuated by gravity along 2,200 feet of track to a siding on the Louis-
ville and Nashville Railroad. The ore was loaded without special
screening or washing; consequently only the best of it was taken from
the pit. The dumps still contain much ore that might be saved by
an efficient washing plant.

It has been reported to the North Carolina Geological and Economic
Survey that operations began in April, 1917, and 500 to 600 tons of
ore were shipped weekly. The mine was active during 1918 but had
closed down before the summer of 1919. In the early fall of the same
year operations were again resumed at the west end of the old pit but
were soon thereafter abandoned. In the fall of 1920, when the mine
was again opened, a log washer was installed and preparations were
made to ship 100 tons of washed ore daily, but legal complications
ensued and the mine was idle in 1921.

The shipped ore is said to have contained from 44.75% to 49.50% Ee.
ISTitze (1. c. p. 198) gives an analysis of a surface sample of the best
ore as follows :

SiO^S.82; Fe=56.56; S = .047; P=.820; P ratio=1.449

Nitze declares that on the western flank of the ridge on which the
mine is situated "the parallel outcrop of the syncline is found on the
west side of the quartzite, which dips 55° S. E.," and that at one time
a prospect shaft was sunk into it. If ore exists on the northwest side
of the quartzite, corresponding to that on its southeast side, there is
on this side of the ridge a complete sequence from the Valleytown
formation to the ISTottely quartzite. The northwest slope of the ridge
is covered by quartzite fragments, but in the valley at its base are a few

North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey

Plate III

Pit of Fain-Hitchcock Mine, Near Murphy. Looking N<

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 21

exposures of marble and a number of shafts from which talc has been
taken. Across the valley to the south are abundant ledges of the Yalley-
town formation. It is evident that the ridge is synclinal. On its south-
east limb, however, the Murphy marble is lacking, due no doubt to the
presence of the Murphy fault, which at this place apparently intersects
the Andrews schist. Nitze (1. c. p. 198) gives a section through the ridge
but in it neglects to indicate the existence of the fault. An ideal sec-
tion through the hill is shown in fig. 5 (p. 19).

Hall-StarbucJc Mine: — The Hall Mine is about % mile north of
Murphy. This and its extension for about 1,200 feet was worked in
1917 by F. E. Seeley. About 100 cars are said to have been shipped
before the mine was closed. It was opened again in 1920 and was
worked for the Roane Iron Company by Ben Starbuck who produced
daily about 60 tons of washed ore containing from 44.5% to 58% of
iron, with an average of about 48%. Two carload shipments in July
analyzed :

Moisture

46.30
47.70

.29
.29

3.90
4.40

The workings consist of three or four open pits between a belt of
quartzite on the northwest and ottrelite schists on the southeast. The
strike of pits and rocks is about !N\ 35°-40° E. and the dip of the rock
layers about 65° to 70° S. E. Beyond these to the northeast are other
pits and trenches that indicate the extension of the ore about 1,000
feet in this direction. The main pit is about 250 feet long and about
20 feet wide. It is about 25 feet deep at the northeast end, where it
exposes a ledge of ore about 12 feet thick.

West of the quartzite, at the spring on the south side of the road,
are small exposures of ottrelite schist and associated with it is some
limonite, and at the switch of Whiteley Lumber Company's track is a
well characterized deposit of soft ore. Beyond these is a valley with-
out exposures. This is probably underlain by the Murphy marble.
These various beds represent the northwest side of a syncline at the
center of which is the quartzite. Its southeast limb lacks the marble,
the Andrews schist being faulted against the Valleytown formation by
the Murphy fault. (See map, pi. I.)

The quantity of ore on the northwest side of the quartzite at this
place is very small as compared with that on its southeast side, due no

22 Deposits of Brown Iron Oees

doubt to the comparatively high dip of the beds to the southeast. The
overhanging impervious quartzite on the northwest limb of the syn-
cline protected the schist to some extent from the action of downward
travelling water, while on the southeast side the quartzite has served
as a basement along which the descending water was concentrated.

Dockery Mine: — Although at the Hall Mine limonite has been found
in small quantity only on the northwest limb of the syncline, about %
mile further northeast at the Dockery Mine, which was also operated
by Mr. Seeley, the principal ore deposits so far as known are on the
northwest limb. The quartzite here forms a ridge southeast of the
mine openings and on its southeast slope ore is again encountered,
but only in small quantity.

The mine is a comparatively small hole, now filled with water.
North of it for a distance of 900 feet, however, there have been dug
a number of pits and one shaft, and from some of these marble
fragments have been taken. By a glance at the map it will be seen
that the ore lies between the marble and the quartzite, in a location
that would naturally be underlain by Andrews schist. No exposures
of this rock are visible, either northwest or southeast of the quartzite;
nor has the exact position of the Murphy fault on the southeast side
of the quartzite been identified.

Section 6 Openings : — About % mile farther northeast from the
Dockery place begin the numerous openings on "Section 6," that extend
for nearly a mile on the northwest side of the quartzite ridge, thus con-
tinuing the vein system of the Dockery Mine. Some of the openings
are very large, but none are deep. Some are long trenches extending
from near the crest of the ridge down its west slope for 125 feet. Others
are large pits near the bottom of the slope. The long trench exposes
nearly throughout its length ore layers dipping 55° S. E. One of these
consists of almost solid ore 30 feet wide and another of ore 15 feet
wide. Besides these there are many small veins, aggregating in thick-
ness 10 or 12 feet. On the hill above the upper end of the trench ore
bowlders are scattered abundantly over the surface, so that the fair in-
ference is that the mineralized belt is even wider than the width exposed
in the trench. Moreover, pits on the slope all the way from the lower
end of the trench to the road at the bottom of the slope — a distance of
500 feet — show the presence of ore in the soil, but none of them, so far
as could be determined, reach solid rock. The ore on their dumps is
probably all superficial material that has rolled from above.

Deposits of Beown Ikon Ores

About y<2, mile farther northeast other openings well up on the north-
west slope of the* ridge also show a series of limonite layers from 6 inches
to 2 feet thick, dipping about 45° S. E.

From the character of the ore layers seen in the few openings that
reach undisturbed rock it is believed that there are here no great thick
hard ore layers that can be mined without washing. On the other
hand, the abundance of bowlders strewn over the northwest slope of
the quartzite ridge for a distance of over a mile and the great quantity
of ore fragments present in the soil and sand uncovered by the many
pits that have been opened on its lower slopes indicate that this belt
of country as far northeast as Marble Creek furnishes favorable pros-
pects for an efficient washing operation.

Fig. 6. Mammillary ore in Savage Bros. Mine near Murphy.

According to Nitze (1. c. p. 199) the ore contains:

Fe=58.80; S=0.161; P=0.391; P ratio=0.664

Savage Bros. Mine: — On the opposite (southeast) side of the hill
from that occupied by Section 6 openings are the open cuts of the
Savage Bros. Mine. The property was worked by A. G. Betts, during
the first half of 1917, but later came into the possession of the Messrs.
Savage of Murphy and was worked by them during the late war. The
main opening, which is on the old Cooper property, is a large open pit
about 500 feet long and 75 feet wide at the top, narrowing to 30 feet
at the bottom. Its depth varies between 12 and 35 feet. It is well up
on the slope of the quartzite ridge which separates the deposit from
that on the Section 6 property. Mr. Savage states that the width of
good ore was between 30 feet and 40 feet, of which 20 feet was solid black
ore and 10 or 15 feet was soft ore. In its general character the ore which

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

dipped nearly vertical, is similar to that of the Fain-Hitchcock Mine,
botryoidal, or mammillary varieties being abundant (fig. 6). Only such
hard ore as it was possible to hand cob was shipped. The soft ore and
small fragments were thrown on the dump. Mr. Betts shipped in all
about 1,000 tons and the Savage Bros, about 4,000 tons.
Carload lots shipped by Savage Bros, analyzed:

Fe_;

47.08

45.10
.58

4.88

49.54

.25

1.90

48 81

.29
2.73

1 00

Mtze reports (1. c. p. 199) that the ore on the Cooper place yielded:

Si02

i
P ratio

7.76

51.94

.06

.730

1.405

An inspection of the huge dumps at this place gives abundant evi-
dence of the great quantity of ore that has been wasted. Although,
of course, no estimate has been made of the percentage of ore present
in the sand and clay that make up the greater portion of the dump
piles, nevertheless there would appear to be no doubt that some of the
piles would warrant washing. Mr. Savage states that the width of the
wash ore is at least 100 feet. If this is so, and it seems to be the case,
the property deserves careful prospecting and testing with an efficient
washing plant, since about 60,000 tons of ore must be available above
a depth of 70 feet.

About 1,800 feet southwest of the Savage Bros, opening are exposures
of ottrelite mica schists on the road. These are probably members
of the Yalleytown formation. Between these exposures and the mine
are no outcrops. In this interval should appear the Andrews schist and
a part of the Murphy marble unless faulted down by the Murphy fault
which also should be situated somewhere in this interval. Since a
cut in the highway, 600 feet southeast of the northeast end of the pit,
is through red clay with the characteristics of clay that is known to
be derived from marble, it is probable that the fault passes through the
upper portion of the marble layer and very close to the road, and that
here marble exists on both sides of the syncline.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 25

Ore Reserves Near Murphy

The depth to which the ore deposits extend is not known; conse-
quently any estimate of the total quantity of ore present in any por-
tion of the Cherokee County area is of no conceivable value. It is
certain, however, that ore persists to a depth of 75 feet in most places
and to at least 100 feet in others. Even though it might extend
downward for great distances, the ore below the ground water level
would be unavailable under present economic conditions because of
the cost of draining the openings. At present we can regard as avail-
able only the ore that can be reached by open cuts, as the individual
veins are so small that they cannot be followed profitably by under-
ground methods. In order that a deposit may prove profitable all
the material in the small veins must be recovered, and this is pos-
sible only where a wide slice of rock may be raised and washed. Open
pit mining with the aid of steam shovels or of hydraulic jets is the
most economical method of accomplishing this result at present, con-
sequently the only available ore is that which can be reached by open
pit mining. Since most of the ore outcrops are on hill-sides well above
the surface drainage level, it is probable that the bottoms of pits might
be carried to 70 feet below the outcrops without meeting with any
serious obstacle in the way of groundwater.

If we regard as available all ore within 70 feet of the surface and
base our calculations upon the length and width of the productive belt
at the surface, the quantity of ore that may be reached in that portion
of the Valley River belt adjacent to Murphy is about 465,000 tons. The
actual amount of ore in the area is several times greater than this, but
it is so scattered in thin veins and small complexes of veins that except
in a few places, it cannot supply more .than a few carloads at a cost
that would not be prohibitive.

Deposits Near Marble Greek

Farther northeast at Marble Creek (pi. I), two ore belts are again ex-
posed. %The creek cuts across the quartzite which dips 45° S. E. On the
southeast side of the quartzite, near the mouth of the creek, ore outcrops
along the highway a few feet above the level of Valley River. Its dip
is 75° to 90° S. E. Because of the low altitude of the outcrop, perhaps,*
the ore has not been explored and consequently the thickness of the
deposit is not known.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

On the northwest side of the ridge the ore has been exploited on the
slope of the ridge, by large open pits, both south and north of the creek.
INTitze states that they were made by the Valley River Company!
In recent years the openings to the southeast were worked by A. G.
Betts and the pits northeast of the creek by F. R. Seeley.

Nitze (1. c. p. 200) describes the southern deposit as consisting
of a "solid ore bed 8 to 12 feet in thickness, dipping 50° S. E., and un-
derlaid by decomposed shale and clay, beneath which there are several
smaller seams of siliceous ore," with the composition.

Si02

P ratio

17.52

48.44

.038

.295

.609

On the north side of the creek the ore was 8 feet thick and was
more siliceous than that in the southern opening.

"West of the openings the Murphy marble is exposed and is quarried
for commercial purposes by the Regal Blue Marble Company and %
mile further northeast is worked for talc. Keith1 describes the section
through the marble as follows:

"At the bottom are several feet of white marble with tremolite crys-
tals; above this are 50 feet of pure white marble, 40 feet of blue
marble, and "30 feet of white marble. After a small interval in which
are no exposures the ottrelite-bearing Andrews schist outcrops."
Then follow the ore deposits and after these about 150 feet to
200 feet of lottery quartzite in the bed of the creek. The struc-
ture is a syncline overturned to the northwest. A reproduction of
Keith's section is given in fig. 10.

The large openings immediately northeast of Marble Creek extend
for about half a mile, beyond which are a number of small pits scattered
on the northwest side of the quartzite for another half mile, and here
and there on its southeast side is a small exposure of ore. There are no
other large ore openings until Montvale is reached — a distance of about
1% miles. Through this stretch the Nottely quartzite has been entirely
eroded and with it any ore deposits that may have developed along its
contacts with the Andrews schist. Here and there, as has been stated,
pits in the Andrews schist have opened into small deposits, but these are
very limited and of no commercial importance.

1 Keith, Arthur, U. S. Geol. Survey Geol. Atlas, Nantahala folio (No. 143), p. 7, 1907.

Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores 27

ORE RESERVES NEAR MARBLE CREEK

The aggregate tonnage near Marble Creek, on the assumption that
a strip 30 feet wide might be worked to a depth of 70 feet, would be
about 120,000 tons.

Deposits Near Maltby

Kinsey-Betts Property: — Just above Montvale going northeast the
Nottely quartzite reappears and constitutes a little ridge which extends
at least as far as Morgan Creek and probably a quarter of a mile beyond.

That portion of the ridge southwest of Morgan Creek is flanked on
both sides by ore deposits, but those on its northwest side have been
much more thoroughly explored than those on its southeast side,
although on this side are a few large, but shallow pits and several
promising exposures.

The principal opening is at the northeast end of the ridge, near
Morgan Creek, where active operations are now being carried on inter-
mittently by Ben Starbuck of Murphy under lease from Mrs. Kinsey
who owns the mineral rights. The main opening is about 325 feet long.
Other openings on the strike of this are small and shallow, but they
are so distributed as to indicate a considerable width of mineralized
rock, dipping 35° S. E. The mine is equipped with a pump and log
washer. Most of the product is washed, yielding an ore analyzing in
carload lots about 12% Si02 48% to 52% Ee, 0.13%, Mn and 0.04% P.
The yield is about 800 lbs. of ore to the ton of rock. During the war
the mine furnished several carloads of very porous ore to the naval
station at Pensacola where it was used for the generation of hydrogen.

The quartzite ridge is very narrow. On its southeast side at its
northeast end are exposures and strippings showing 8 or 10 feet of hard
ore which it is proposed soon to work. Farther southwest are several
large openings that were formerly operated by A. G. Betts. Mr. John
Smith in a report to the North Carolina Geological and Economic Sur-
vey writes of the "Dockery place" at Montvale, presumably the prop-
erty worked by Betts, that the ore vein is "made up of flat lenses stacked
one on another and reaching a maximum of 7 layers, width 1 to 8 feet ;
dip about 45°. This was worked for about 3 months and produced
about 3,000 tons." At the "Kinsey property," probably the southern
part of this area, he writes "about 7,000 tons have been produced since
the first opening of this mine some years ago, 1,200 of which were
mined this year" (1918). The openings at the southwest end of the

28 Deposits of Brown Ikon Oses

strip of ore-bearing ground on the southeast side of the quartzite are
spread over a width of about 150 feet indicating a belt of ore at least
125 feet wide.

Mr. Starbuck declares that 3 engineers have estimated the reserve
on both sides of the quartzite as from 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 tons,
assuming a double belt of ore bodies to extend % mile. He does not
know the data upon which the estimates were based, but states that a
shaft on neighboring property followed the ore to a depth of 85 feet.
So little is known of the horizontal or vertical continuity of the veins
in this locality and so vague is the information as to the proportion
of ore to waste that the estimates have very little value. If the width
of the strip of ore-bearing rock on the east side of the ridge is 125 feet
and that on its northwest side is equally wide, and the rock can be
worked profitably to the depth of 70 feet, then the quantity of concen-
trate that may be obtained from the two slopes of the hill within 1,800
feet of Morgan Creek is about 650,000 tons, provided the entire body
of rock raised will yield 800 pounds of ore to the ton.

Heaton & Russell Mine: — Keith does not map the lottery quartz-
ite as extending to the northeast beyond Morgan Creek. There are,
however, two small knobs north of the creek on which bowlders of
quartzite are thickly strewn. On the northwest sides of these knobs, well
up on their slopes are 4 or 5 large openings, some of which have dis-
tinctly defined quartzite to the east, while others are apparently not
associated with any visible quartzite though on the strike of those
further southwest which are so associated.

At the northeast end of the southern ridge, about *4 mile from the
Starbuck Mine is the large opening being worked by Messrs. Heaton
and Russell. The opening shows no unusual features. (See pi. V.)

Mr. Smith writes of the "Kilpatrick property" which answers to the
description of the Heaton and Russell Mine that the vein is vertical,
20 feet wide and cut into two parts by a horse. The ore is said to be
more solid than it is further southwest and to have been proven for
% mile.

The ore was originally cobbed but not washed, and consequently
there was a great quantity of fine ore left on the dumps. In the summer
of 1920 this was being raised by steam shovel and washed, yielding
about ys ton of concentrates to the cubic yard. Shipments were at the
rate of about 50 tons daily. The main pit around which the dumps
have accumulated is an open cut about 175 feet long, 40 feet wide and
from 40 feet to 60 feet deep, with an entrance at its northeast end
through a cut 150 feet long. The vein as now exposed is in ore 6 to

z -.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 29

10 feet wide, but ore is so thickly scattered over the surface down slope
that it is believed the soil will warrant washing as far as 100 feet from the
outcrop. During 1921 water was conveyed to the mine and delivered
with a nozzle pressure of 100 lbs. It is intended to use it in excavating
the ore.

Southwest of the main opening of the mine a continuous trench about
1,200 feet long has uncovered throughout its whole length 3 sets of
veins, ranging from 2% to 5 feet in thickness, in which are sandy part-
ings only a few inches thick. The veins dip 45°-50° S. E., and are
separated from one another by 10 to 15 feet of schist containing many
small veins. To the northeast the openings of the Welch and Guy
Green mines seem to prove that ore occurs beyond the visible quartzite
through a distance of 1,800 feet. There is a possibility, however, that
ore has not been deposited between the Welch and Green mines, in
which case the northeast extension of the vein beyond the Heaton and
Eussell Mine is only 900 feet.

If we assume a continuous vein 2,100 feet long and a workable slice
of ground 100 feet wide and 70 feet deep which will yield a concen-
trate of only y2 ton to the cubic yard, the available ore in this strip
will approximate 270,000 tons. That the yield of ore would be as great
as y<2, ton per cubic yard admits of no doubt, as the yield of the waste
left at the Heaton Mine after picking out the good lump ore was, as has
been reported by Supt. E. C. Palmer, a little greater than % ton per
cubic yard, during a week in August, 1920, when 778 cubic yards of
dirt yielded 621,000 lbs. of shipping ore. As much of the material that
would be removed from the strip would consist of vein ore, the yield
of the entire strip would be much greater than that of the mine dumps.

Southeast of the mine there is a narrow exposure of quartzite on the
top of the ridge, but so far as known there are no ores on its southeast
side as is the case at the Kinsey-Betts location.

Welch and Guy Green Mines: — Northeast of the Heaton & Russell
Mine the quartzite seems to disappear. It is possible that it may ex-
tend to the Welch Mine 600 feet further northeast, though no outcrops
are to be seen on the hill above the opening and none are known further
northeast in Cherokee County. The brown ores northeast of the Welch
mine occur in relations different from those to the southwest.

At the Guy Green Mine, which is 1,000 feet northeast of the Welch
Mine, the quartzite is probably absent. The mine is on comparatively
low ground and there is no distinct ridge to the east. It may be that
the quartzite was originally present in its usual position just over the

30 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

ores but that it has been entirely removed by erosion, which, however,
has not yet cut deeply enough into the underlying Andrews schist to
remove the deposits that were formed near the contact of the schist and
quartzite.

The Welch Mine is a few hundred yards northeast of the Heaton
and Eussell Mine. It is a shallow open cut about 600 feet long with a
width varying between 10 and 50 feet and a depth of from 6 to 10 feet.
In 1920 it»was being operated on a small scale by J. W. Welch. The
opening is in flat country and is therefore difficult to work. The
main ore vein is about 6 feet wide but there are other thin veins
separated by thin layers of sandy schist. The ledge is broken down
and the ore handled by forking. Thus nearly all the finer ore is lost.
Up to September 1st, 1920, about 50 tons of ore had been shipped.

The Guy Green Mine, now known as the Green and Mehaffy Mine,
consists of a large shallow pit and 5 or 6 small ones, occupying the top
of a low hillock. At present nothing can be seen at the mine but a pile
of mixed sand and ore. The largest pit is about 200 feet long, 25 feet
wide and 15 feet deep. Southwest of this the ledge is stripped for a
length of 150 feet on the vein which strikes N. 55° E. and dips
50°-55° S. E. About 200 feet further southwest is another pit 125
feet long, 10 to 15 feet wide and 6 feet deep in which the vein is again
exposed. Thus the ore is exposed for nearly 700 feet on the property.
The "vein" comprises for the most part a number of small veins, each
about 1 foot thick, alternating with layers of sandy schist. Only the
harder ore was shipped. Since the solid ledge has not yet been reached
by either the Welch or the Green mines, it is impossible to predict the
conditions under the mantle of decomposed rock. A clean hand speci-
men of the ore from the Green Mine gave 52.53% Fe and .687% P as
the result of a commercial analysis.

OEE RESERVES NEAR MALTBY

On the assumption that ore exists only in those portions of the strip
between the Kinsey-Betts property and the Guy Green Mine where it
is exposed on the surface, and that it can be worked to a depth of 50
feet in the neighborhood of the Guy Green Mine and to a depth of 70
feet elsewhere, the aggregate available tonnage in the vicinity of
Maltby is about 1,070,000 tons.

Deposits Near Marble

Puett and McHan Mines: — Beyond the Guy Green place for 2 miles
no ore has been discovered. The country is low and erosion has exposed

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

the Murphy marble all the way to the town of Marble, where the An-
drews schist reappears.

At Marble, however, begins another series of openings, some of which
have developed into important mines. The series begins with the Puett
openings about Y5 mile south of Marble Station. Formerly they were
worked together with the openings on the adjacent McHan property
by A. G. Betts, producing about 1,500 tons, without screening or wash-
ing. The Puett property is now abandoned, and the McHan Mine has
not been in operation during the past few years.

The Puett Mine consists of a number of holes, some of them large,
extending in a comparatively broad band across the road from Marble
up Vengeance Creek. The largest hole is about 20 feet deep and on its
northeast and southeast sides shows a little hard ore. Exposures indi-
cate a width of this ore measuring 8 or 10 feet. The dumps are so filled
with fragments of ore and limonite sand as to appear to be worth wash-
ing. About 200 feet farther northeast is another large pit on a little
rise. In this the vein is 7 or 8 feet wide. Several more openings indi-
cate a vein with a strike of about N". 20° E. and a very high dip. Other
openings northwest of these seem to show that the deposits are in a
double belt, but they are small and not so distributed as to prove the
case.

Immediately northeast of the Puett Mine and northeast of the road
up Vengeance Creek is the McHan Mine. Mr. Smith writes that Mr.
"W. McHan began to mine here in January, 1917, at first by contract
and later under his own direction. The ore was shipped without
screening or washing but was separated- from sand by forking. After
producing about 900 tons of material averaging 45% Fe, work was dis-
continued in the early part of July, 1917. The ore is reported to have
occurred in veins 3 to 10 feet wide. Analysis showed that some cars
contained from 2% to 3% Mn. Work was again undertaken in the
early part of 1918 add stopped in May of that year after the shipment
of about 75 cars, some of which ran Over 52% Fe. An average of
analyses of 12 cars sent to the Roane Iron Co. and reported upon in
August, 1918, gave:

Si02

AI2O3

10.86

5.30

49.90

.58

.02

Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores

The present openings on the McHan property are some very large
pits uncovering a plexus of veins in a sandy schist. There is now vis-
ible no distinct massive vein, although it is currently reported that some
of the veins opened were 10 feet thick, but in the northeast hole, which
is about 1,500 feet from the southwesternmost pit at the road, the veins
are so crowded that they form a stockwork 20 feet wide striking about
N". 40° E. and dipping 35° to 40° S. E. There is no solid rock in sight.
In the largest new pit which is 300 feet long, 60 feet wide and 50 feet
deep, the upper 25 feet are in sand containing no ore except in bowlders
lying on the surface. Beneath this is the decomposed schist with ore
veins running in all directions within the belt referred to above. In
the entry northwest of the main pit a little light colored clay is
exposed. This may indicate the position of the southeast contact of the
Murphy marble, and the material in which the pits are dug may be
decomposed Andrews schist. Keith indicates the width of this belt of
Andrews schist as extending from the river to the railroad, but it is
possible that he has placed the contact of the schist and marble too
far north, as might well be the case, since no rocks were exposed here
at the time of his visit. It is only by the stripping of sand from over
the ore veins that the white clay was brought to light.

Hayes-Hoblitzell Mine: — A few hundred yards farther northeast on
the ridge on which are the northern openings of the McHan Mine, and
across a little valley from these are the openings of the Hayes-Hoblitzell
Mine (pi. VI). The principal open cut, which is at the northeast end
of the hill overlooking the valley of Hyatt Creek, is about 300 feet long,
about 75 feet wide and 70 feet deep at its southwest end where it is cut
into the hill. The walls of the pit are sand shot through with ore, form-
ing a stockwork 50 feet wide. No well denned solid vein was seen, though
southwest of the main opening are several cross cuts that prove the ore
belt to extend in that direction for more than 50 feet, and about 125
feet southeast of the main cut is another small opening showing con-
siderable hard ore. If this is the Morse property referred to by Nitze
(1. c. p. 202) there is an old shaft on it that at the time of his visit
showed ore in its walls. A sample of this ore was analysed with the
result shown in I. In the report of the Tenth Census (p. 327) the ore
was said to be 8 feet wide, and to have the composition given in II.

SiO*

P ratio

6.49

57.16
57.84

.036

.756
.021

1.322

.036

North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey

Plate VI

The Hayes & Hoblitzell Mink. Neab Mab

C. General view of pit, looking south.
B. Near view, end of pit.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 33

The dip of the main veins is southeast as usual, but the smaller ones
dip to the northwest across the bedding as though following joint cracks.

The mine is equipped with a steam shovel, a 40 foot log washer and
a pump with a capacity of 200 gallons a minute.

It is reported by Mr. Hayes that there have been shipped from the
present opening about 30,000 tons of ore in the past 3 years, all of
which contained notable quantities of manganese. In 1920 mining was
at a standstill but the old dumps were being washed, yielding 2 cars of
ore daily, at the rate of 100 tons of ore to 250 yards of sand. It is
estimated that in the cut the proportion of ore to sand is as 3 :2.

Carload shipments during June, July and August, 1918, are repre-
sented by the four analyses of dried material following :

Fe_.
Mn.

49.20
1.37

49.80
1.03

48.80
1.13

48.50
1.38

Cooper and Hanks Openings: — About % mile northwest of the Hayes
Mine are numerous openings on the Cooper and Hanks places, now
owned by Mr. L. L. Jenkins, that indicate a great quantity of ore that
is available for washing. Although an old property that was worked
extensively during the latter part of the last century, it was reopened
in 1917 by A. G. Betts and worked intermittently during the war, ship-
ping about 200 cars of ore averaging 48% to 49% of iron.

On this property are eight or nine small pits extending in a straight
line about 1,500 feet and several larger ones on both sides of this line,
all of which show many small veins in a mineralized zone in schists.
In the southwesternmost of these the vein is 5 feet thick, and in several
others it is reported to be from 7 feet to 10 feet thick, but in most of
them the veins measure scarcely more than 6 or 7 inches. The
mineralized zone is said to be 40 feet wide, tapering to 6 feet at the
northeast opening. The ore in some of the pits is notably globular.

In the large open pit from which most of the ore was taken the
lower portions of the walls show the usual plexus of small veins cutting
sandy schists. Above, the veins are truncated and over their cut-off
edges is a blanket of conglomerate formed of bowlders, pebbles and sand.
Some of the bowlders are of ore. They may be of local origin like those
on the slope of the quartzite hill at Section 6 (see p. 22), but here they
are rounded and the deposit shows a rude bedding, as though worked
over by water.

34 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

About 600 feet southeast of the main line of openings is another
series of several shallow openings on the opposite side of the ridge. The
northeasternmost one shows a vein of hard ore 7 feet wide but the others
only wash ore. The ore has also been uncovered on a slope forming the
west bank of Valley River. The largest opening is about 60 feet above
the stream, but a smaller cut is nearer the river. The latter shows 4
to 10 feet of ore dipping about 30° ~N. E. Across the river on the
right of way of the new railroad between Andrews and Hayesville are
numerous outcrops of Andrews ottrelite schists, with which at several
points are associated limonite layers.

Fortunately Nitze visited the old mines when their openings were
comparatively fresh and described the conditions as he saw them at
that time. He stated (1. c. p. 203) that there are two series of out-
crops trending nearly east-west on parallel ridges about 600 feet apart.
The northern belt was uncovered by trenches for a width of 175 feet
and at one point a shaft was sunk 38 feet in ore, without reaching the
bottom of the deposit.

The outcrops on the southern belt had been explored by a shaft 55
feet deep, which penetrated to its full depth alternating layers of clay
and limonite averaging about 4 feet thick. Drifts from the bottom of
the shaft were driven 40 feet and 20 feet south in the same mixture of
materials. A few yards east of the shaft the top of the ore had been
uncovered for a width of 60 feet and had been found to be 8 feet thick.
Further east the ore had been again stripped and penetrated by a shaft.
Here the deposit was also found to be only 8 feet thick. It lay almost
horizontal as a layer 8 feet thick just under the surface. Again at
the river a large outcrop was exposed over a width of 48 feet and this
again was 8 to 10 feet thick.

The deposit described above as dipping 30° "N. E., which is just a
little steeper than the slope of the surface at this point, is probably the
extension of the layer described by ISTitze. It is evident that a nearly
uniformly thick layer of ore exists under the surface, following its undu-
lations rather closely. It is overlain by about 4 or 5 feet of sand and
loose rock fragments, some of which are quartzite and granite bowlders
and many others are ore bowlders, and is underlain by sand and clay,
representing a decomposed rock. In no way is this ore layer directly
related to fissures in the associated material, as is the case with the hard
ore veins. Mtze (1. c. p. 205) describes the ore bed near the river as
being "as a rule compact, but in places porous; again it is nodular and
extremely argillaceous, changing in fact into a hard, siliceous, ferru-
ginous clay slate." Observations by the writer revealed a layer made

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

up of rounded masses like bowlders, in some places tightly cemented
by limonite and in others loosely embedded in a mass of sand and
limonite.

Analyses of samples of ore from the two belts are as follows :

Si02

P ratio

I. From shaft on northern belt -.-

3.32
10.70

58.52
54.88

.026
.072

.520
.273

.888

II. From 30 foot shaft on southern belt

.497

It is plain that the blanket deposit which slopes with the surface has
not had the same origin as the hard ore veins that are steeply inclined.
The latter were evidently made in fractures in the rocks. The former
is not related to fractures, but appears to be directly related in some
way to the surface. The deposit seems to be a conglomerate or breccia,
such as might be made by cementing together into a mass the ore frag-
ments so thickly strewn over the surface near the outcroppings of ore
veins and down slope from them. It is possible that the thick layer of
clay below the ore represents decomposed marble and calcareous schist,
and the ore was originally in the debris on top of these rocks before they
were so thoroughly decomposed, like the ore in the clay above the marble
in Madison County (p. 8) or like the conglomerate above the sandy
schists in the main pit on this property. Apparently the deposit was
made and cemented after the general features of the present topog-
raphy had been developed, the ore having been furnished by veins
outcropping near the apex of the ridge.

At present no work is being done anywhere on the property, although
it furnishes a promising opportunity for the use of a steam shovel and
log washer. At a few places, as on the slope to Yalley River, though
there are abundant bowlders of ore scattered over the surface, there are
intermingled with these many equally large bowlders of granite and
quartzite which it would be impossible to separate except by hand
picking. However, it is probable that the cost of picking these from
the washed ore would be slight. Moreover, they occur only on the sur-
face and are not found in the layer of ore beneath the surface, so that
most of the material furnished by the shovel could be delivered from the
washer in shape for shipment without any further treatment.

36 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

ORE RESERVES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OE MARBLE

It is clearly impossible to estimate the quantity of ore in the vicinity
of Marble. Small cuts southwest of the main pit of the Hayes-Hob-
litzell Mine show that the ore-bearing strip extends at least 600 feet
in this direction, and the openings on the McHan and Puett properties
extend it at least 1,500 feet further. If the ground can be worked as
deep as at the mine, there are in this strip of 2,100 feet about 160,000
tons of ore. But it is probable that mining can be carried on profitably
below this depth, since the ore at the bottom of the mine is in a condi-
tion to be removed easily and, in all probability, if all the material re-
moved were put through the washer, the yield in concentrate would be
greater than it has been in the case of the material taken from the
open cut. It is therefore very likely that the quantity of ore that might
be taken from this strip of country south of Hyatt Creek would amount
to well over 200,000 tons.

Northeast of Hyatt Creek on the Jenkins property a moderate quan-
tity of wash ore is available from the strip of country on the north-
west side of the ridge. On the southeast side of the hill is the blanket
deposit which, if it is spread over this slope uniformly, will yield about
750,000 tons.

On the assumptions made the total quantity of available ore in the
vicinity of Marble must be about 1,000,000 tons.

Deposits Between the Jenkins Place and Andrews

General: — At the Jenkins place the ore belt crosses the Valley River
and for the rest of its course remains southeast of the river.

Small exposures on and near the Andrews-Hayesville railraod where
it crosses Taylor Creek mark the course of the main veins for a mile,
and other exposures and pits extend it all the way to Andrews. Other
exposures and pits farther south, on and near the highway from An-
drews to the mouth of Vengeance Creek, indicate the presence of other
deposits near the fault trace between the Andrews schist and members
of the Valleytown formation. None of the explorations on any of these
deposits have yielded promising results. In some places the deposits
are moderately large, but nowhere are they large enough to warrant the
installation of washing plants under present normal economic con-
ditions.

Although the ore veins on the southeast side of the river are not prom-
ising sources of ore, the case is quite different with respect to the blanket

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 37

deposits, already referred to as existing at the northeast end of the
Jenkins property. From Nitze's description we are assured that the
conglomeratic sheet-like layer of ore spreads over the northeast end of
the hill on this property and dips down to the edge of the river.
Whether it fills the river valley and the slopes on its opposite side is
not known, since no exposures of it are seen for the next mile. A few
rods northeast of Taylor Creek it is, however, again encountered and
from this point it extends at least % mile farther northeast where it
is mined by the Southern Iron Mining Company.

Taylor or George Luther Property: — The Talyor or George Luther
prospect is on the little hillock between the lower portion of Taylor Creek
and the river. There are two openings on the southeast slope of the
hill in a very flat lying ore bed which is exposed also in the road cut a
few yards to the east. The ore is said to be about 10 feet thick, over-
lain by a mixture of sand and ore fragments. Nitze (1. c. p. 205)
reports the ore to be 40 feet wide and from 6 feet to 8 feet thick. As
the ore body slopes with the surface, it is probably a sheet like that on
the Jenkins Place, in which case the width exposed possesses no great
significance. As a matter of fact, small pits and trenches that have
merely removed the loose soil have exposed ore under a strip of country
% mile long.

On the northwest slope of the hill are exposures along the track of
the Carolina and Georgia Railroad and a few pits, which show the pres-
ence of an ore vein the size of which has not been developed. A clean
sample of the ore from one of these pits yielded Fe=48.93; P=.766.

Southern Iron Mining Company's Mine: — On the next hill to the
northeast the conditions are nearly the same as at the Luther place.
Here the main openings of the Southern Iron Mining Co. are at the
southwest end of the hill where an area at least 100 feet wide has been
uncovered, showing a sheet of ore about 10 feet thick wedging to 5 feet or
6 feet toward the west and east. On the top of the hill farther east are
ditches and test pits, all uncovering ore over an area 250 feet wide and
nearly % mile long. Within this area a shaft is reported to have
penetrated ore to a depth of 38 feet. Moreover the valley to the south-
east of the hill is said to have been explored by several pits now obliter-
ated and these pits exposed 5 feet or 6 feet of ore like that on the hill.
Other pits and a tunnel 750 feet west of the mine opening mark the
presence of a well defined vein.

The ore sheet here has in most places a conglomeratic aspect, although
so compact that it forms a continuous unbroken and quite rigid layer
i(pl. VIII, A). It is composed mainly of many bowlders of limonite

38 Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores

and a few of quartz and schist in a matrix of micaceous sandy limonite.
In some places globular masses of ore are cemented by a dense limonite
or goethite exhibiting no characteristic structure, or by crusts of fibrous
goethite that were evidently deposited in open spaces between frag-
ments. The structure of the layer is distinctly platy (pi. VIII, C), be-
cause of the fact that many of the bowlders are flat and partly because
there are in it many lenses of decomposed schist, similar to that under-
lying the ore bed. Many of the quartz pebbles are fractured and the
cracks are filled with iron hydroxides. The cement of the ore is in
general very porous. Some of the pores are now completely filled with
soft limonite and others are lined with fibrous goethite. The mica
plates so abundant in it evidently represent the partially decomposed
ottrelite plates that are so common in the Andrews schist.

Below the ore bed is a mass of sand that represents decomposed
Andrews schist. It is thinly layered like the schist, and the layers
are as a rule complexly distorted. Just under the ore, however, the
layers of the schist become parallel to the ore-bed and many schist
streaks are interlaminated with the ore, especially at its base. This
parallelism of the schist layers with the ore-bed is thought to be due
to slumping occasioned by the weight of the ore. The underlying
sand is almost free from ore particles. Occasionally there is a little
limonite vein in the foliation planes, but there are in it no large
pieces of ore.

Above the ore is a 3-foot layer of an obscurely bedded mass of mixed
sand, ore fragments and pebbles of quartz. At its base, immediately
over the ore, is a thin layer of pebbles and sand. This grades upward
into a red sand and this into soil. Although the evidence is very weak,
nevertheless it appears to indicate that the ore rests on an old erosion
surface and that another old surface is just above it.

From the property, which when formerly active was known as the
Lena Walker Mine, 13 cars of float ore were shipped and 65 cars of ore
were taken from the opening at the east end of the hill. The mine was re-
opened in November, 1919, and a steam shovel and washer were installed
to recover the ore in the sand above and beneath the ore sheet as well
as from the ore sheet itself. Between November, 1919, and April 21st,
1921, when the mine was again closed, production was at the rate of
about 70 tons of washed ore daily, containing an average of 48.5% Fe
and a moisture content between 2% and 4%. The total shipments be-
tween October, 1919, and August, 1920, were about 11,000 tons. The

° C -T

O O o

O p? Q

<i ffl" O

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 39

overburden of loose material above the ore-bed yielded about % ton of
ore to each ton of material handled and the ore bed a little less than
% ton (about 1,450 pounds to the ton).

In ]STitze's report (1. c. p. 205) the "Sharp place" is described as
being 3 miles from the point at which the ore belt crosses the river, but
the description fits the Lena "Walker place. If the two names refer to
the same place his statement that "in one of the prospect shafts marble
was found at a depth of 32 feet below the ore by means of a sounding
bar," is of interest. Keith does not map any marble in this vicinity,
but, since it is not exposed, it may easily have been missed, and the
southeast boundary of his marble area may have been placed a trifle
too far north.

If the ore layer is continuous over the area between the Luther
property and the Southern Iron Mining Company's land and has as
wide a spread over the last named property as seems to be indicated
by the explorations that have been made on it, and the yield of mer-
chantable ore that might be obtained from it is as great in proportion
as that now being recovered at the Southern Iron Mining Company's
pit, there is probably available in the vicinity of the mine about 600,-
000 tons of ore.

Deposits between Southern Iron Mining Co/s Mine and Andrews: —
Between the Southern Iron Mining Company's plant and Andrews,
a distance of 3 miles, there are no mines. The country is mapped by
Keith as being underlain by a strip of the Andrews schist about %
mile wide all the way to Andrews. This is bounded on the south by the
Murphy fault and on the north by the Murphy marble. As the country
is flat and only a few exposures exist, it is probable that the mapping
is only approximately correct. It is possible that the strip of schist is
much narrower than mapped, as a ledge of material resembling decom-
posed marble was noted on the highway 1% miles west of Andrews in
the area colored for Andrews schist. No evidence of the presence of the
JSTottely quartzite was seen anywhere between the Lena Walker property
and Andrews. At several points, however, ore has been uncovered near
the highway to Andrews, but at no place has mining been undertaken
seriously, though a number of carloads of ore fragments were shipped
from several of the openings during the exploratory operations.

The more promising explorations are on the land of Mr. Ensley,
about % of a mile northeast of the Southern Iron Mining Co.'s plant,
where there are 4 shallow trenches in the hill back of Mr. Ensley's
house; on the property of Mr. D. P. Adams, about } o mile farther

40 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

northeast, where 4 or 5 cars of ore are said to have been shipped from
a pit on the west side of the highway; on the farm of B. W. Luther
about a mile farther northeast, where there is a large pit on the east
side of the highway; near the church, 14 mile farther northeast, where
there are several old pits to the west of the highway on both sides of
the road running northwest to the railroad and another on the road
running east from the church, and on the property of Mr. C. M.
Schlagel, % mile east of the highway, on the outskirts of Andrews about
7/g mile southwest of the Andrews railroad station.

At the Ensley place the pits show some ore but it is not in distinct
veins. On the east side of the highway, however, on the northwest
slope of a small hill is the outcropping of a very distinct vein which is
persistent for several hundred feet. The size of the vein is not deter-
minable but much of the float is in such large fragments that its width
is probably several feet.

Near the church is a shallow pit in decomposed Andrews schist. Od
its walls, which are much weathered, is a breccia of schist fragments
cemented by iron hydroxides and cut by small veins of limonite. Above
this, and reaching to the surface, is a layer of conglomeratic ore like
that farther southwest. The exposures are poor and there is nothing
to show whether the opening is in a small local deposit or whether it
cuts into the blanket deposit that is so prominent at the Southern Iron
Mining Company's plant. The pit on the Luther place shows no blanket
ore. It exposes a series of small veins.

The Schlagel occurrence is on a little hill covered with ore bowlders.
On its slope are two shallow pits that reveal nothing as to the source
of the bowlders. Two carloads of ore fragments taken from the holes
and picked from the surface in July and August, 1918, yielded on
analysis Fe 45.80% and Mn 1.18%. Since the pits are not far from the
position of the Murphy fault as mapped by Keith, it is possible that the
ore fragments came from a deposit in the fault fracture.

Ore Reserves Between Jenkins Place and Andrews

It is impossible to estimate the quantity of available ore in the strip
of ore-bearing rocks between the Southern Iron Mining Company's land
and Andrews because of lack of exposures and the scarcity of explora-
tions. There are unquestionably some deposits in the strip that would
yield a few tons of ore; but there is no evidence at present that their
yield would be commensurate with that of the mines farther southwest.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 41

DEPOSITS BETWEEN ANDREWS AND TOPTON

Northeast of Andrews the syncline of marble and Andrews schist
that is so marked a feature in the Valley River Valley southwest of
Andrews disappears a few miles from Andrews. Beyond it to Topton
there remain only a few patches of marble that represent its bottom.
Elsewhere the entire syncline has been eroded and the great Murphy
fault, already referred to, separates a strip of Valleytown formation from
a strip of Nantahala slate (pi. I). Along this fault are a few deposits,
but none of them give promise of successful operation under present
economic conditions. So far as now known they are comparatively
small and are not in compact veins. There are only two points at
which explorations have been made. One is on the crest of the little hill
on the east side of the railroad track about 500 feet south of Rhodo
Station. Here there are 3 small trenches that uncover a little ore that
appears to be a horizontal vein or a thin blanket deposit like that on the
Lena Walker property, south of Andrews (p. 37). The other is about
1,600 feet north of Topton on the east side of Red Marble Gap. Here
the Nantahala black slate is mapped by Keith as being in contact with
the Tusquitee quartzite, which lies above it. The ore occurs at this
contact where the conditions are somewhat similar to those further
southwest. In both cases quartzite lies above a schist and ores were de-
posited at their contacts. Very little is known about the Red Marble
Gap occurrence. The openings have nearly been obliterated. Nitze
(1. c. p. 206) states that the deposit is 20 feet thick and that it dips
toward the southeast.

DEPOSITS IN THE ANDREWS AREA

General: — Attention has already been called to the fact that the Mur-
phy fault makes a sudden turn at Andrews, running south for a mile to
the mouth of Snyder Creek, then southwest for % mile, where it appar-
ently is cut off by another fault that trends northeast and continues the
general fracture so prominent southwest of Andrews. Where this fault
crosses Junalaska Creek it is joined by a short fault that extends for
several miles in a little more northerly direction and then dies out.
The triangular area enclosed by the faults west, south and south-
east of Valleytown is occupied by a crescentic area of Murphy marble
to the northeast and a surrounding crescent of Andrews schist to the
southwest. The Andrews schist is bounded by the faults which separate
it on the surface from the Brasstown and lower formations. In the

42 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

Andrews schist and along the faults that limit the area on the south-
east are several mines and a number of prospects that are being seri-
ously considered for exploitation in the near future.

Washburn Place: — Northeast of Andrews there is one deposit on the
strike of the deposits in the Valley River belt to the southwest. This
was described by Nitze (1. c. p. 206) as occurring on the Washburn
place, % mile north of Valleytown, on the south side of Valley River
between the mouths of Tatham and Junaluska creeks, which is not far
from the position of the contact between the Murphy marble and An-
drews schist as mapped by Keith, The occurrence is described as con-
sisting of two outcrops, one of which was 75 yards a little south of east
of the other. One exposed 18 feet and the other 25 feet of a compact,
massive ore. This is the place later worked by J. Q. Barker and from
which about 150 tons of ore were taken. There are 3 pits on the
sides of a little hillock about 750 feet east of the Andrews Lumber
Company's plant. The vein is said by Mr. Barker to trend northeast
and then to bend to the southeast, following in general the direction
of the contact between the marble and the Andrews schist as it makes its
turn toward the south into the Tatham Creek area. The largest pit is
about 150 feet long and its bottom is from 10 feet to 15 feet below the
water level. There was no evidence that the limonite was changing to
pyrite with depth, as is the case where limonite is a surface oxidation
product of pyrite deposits. During the course of the operations some
bowlders measuring 30x40 feet were mined, indicating the existence of
a large vein somewhere in the vicinity. None of the ore was washed,
only the coarse, hard material being saved.

Swan Property: — The first openings southeast of the Washburn place
are two pits on the property of Mr. G. W. Swan near the junction of
the road to Valleytown and that up Snyder Creek. The larger is a
trench 10 feet wide and 70 feet long trending 1ST. 15°-20° E. Its walls
show a number of small veins dipping about 25° S. E. No compact
ore is now visible, though it is said that some ore was shipped without
washing. A second pit a few hundred yards further southeast is just
east of Valleytown. It is a shallow opening 70 feet by 40 feet in a
wash ore. These two pits must be near the contact of the marble with
the Andrews schist, as mapped by Keith, or within the schist near the
contact.

Ferebee & Young Mine: — The next openings in this direction are
those of the Eerebee and Young Mine, about % mile nearly east of
Valleytown at the junction of the road from Valleytown to Topton

Deposits of Beown Iron Oees

and that leading northwest from Junaluska Creek. Here are several
openings, from one of which about 200 cars of ore were shipped.

One of the openings is a small pit on the side of the road leading
northwest to Topton, where there is a deposit of loose ore about 8
or 9 feet thick lying under calcareous schists dipping 45° S. E.

Most of the ore that was shipped came from a large pit 150 yards
from the road, near the top of a little hill, and near the fault bounding
the Andrews schist on the southeast. This pit has a length of 125 feet
in a direction N". 80° E., which is believed to be the trend of the vein,
a maximum width of 70 feet and an average depth of 17 feet. The
rocks associated with the ore appear to be contorted and crushed, as
though in a fault zone. The ore-ledge in the bottom of the mine con-
sists of many thin layers of limonite separated by sandy layers, the
whole measuring about 9 feet wide, and having a high dip to the south.
The mining operations followed this ledge in a general way, but the
whole area of the pit was worked. In some places the material was
simply scraped up and loaded into trucks without washing or even
forking. In other places the material was screened and shipped. When
the harder rock under the mantle of disintegrated material was reached
the place was abandoned.

It is reported that near the surface about 50% of the "dirt" was
iron. "With greater depth the iron content diminished to 45%. At a
depth of from 12 to 15 feet the material became so poor in iron that it
no longer paid to ship it. A glance at the bottom of the pit reveals
the fact that there is still a great quantity of ore in it, but that it will
require washing before it becomes salable.

Analyses of the ore as shipped without washing or cobbing are given
below. In the second series the effect of increasing depth on the qual-
ity of the ore is well shown.

Mar., 1917, 1 car..

Oct. 3, 1917

Mar., 1918, 17 cars

April, 1918, 6 cars.

Si02

5.46

53.00

.78

.46

11.90

50.40

.41

1.03

7.93-

46.08

.37-

.35-

10.93

.92

.65

11.15

49.80

.49

.35

Analyst

Va. I. C. & C. Co.
Intermont C. & I. Corp.
Va. I. C. & C. Co.

5 Roane Iron Co.

Mar.
1917

Aug.
1917

Sept.
1917

Oct.
1917

Nov.
1917

Dec.
1917

.Mar.
1918

Apr.
1918

June
1918

52.40
3

52.75
1

51.57

50.06
9

51.46
18

47.84
10

46. OS
17

49. SO
6

52.30

44 Deposits of Brown Irox Ores

Samples of selected ore gave :

Si02

12.48

46.70

3.37

1.008

3.63

56.01

.00

1.22

3.23

58.11

.90

2.56

55. 16

.113

Analyst

Road cut

Hill opening.
Creek openin

Intermont C. & I. Corp.
F. P. Drane, Charlotte.
F. P. Drane, Charlotte.
F. P. Drane, Charlotte.

The last sample was taken from a small hole on the creek south of the
opening on the road. It is evidently from a small vein of pyrolusite.

There are no other ore pits and no exposures of brown ore anywhere
in the immediate neighborhood of the mine. It is reported, however,
that trenches and pits have uncovered limonite in Ingram field, which
occupies the valley extending from the Eerebee and Young Mine west-
ward to Junaluska Creek. The ore is probably underlain by the Murphy
marble and the Andrews schist, for in an old pit for manganese on the
east bank of the creek where it crosses the valley, is exposed a broad
expanse of contorted calcareous schist resting on a white marble that
dips southeast.

About 300 yards southwest of this point, on the west side of the road
up Junaluska Creek several openings and a shaft have been made in
search for magnetite. Bowlders of magnetic ore were scattered over
the surface and through the soil in which the pits and shaft were dug.
but no ledge was encountered. A line of magnetic attraction is said
to run southeast to the point of a projecting hill of Xantahala shale.
The source of the ore is unknown.

Rogers Opening: — The road leading up Tatham Creek follows very
closely the fault between the Valleytown formation and the Andrews
schist, which forms the western boundary of the Yalleytown area, l^ear
or on this fault are some of the largest deposits in the area, one of which
is now being worked by the Marvacar Mining Company. The most
northerly deposit that has been uncovered in this portion of the district
is about 100 yards east of the road opposite the residence of J. R. Rogers,
^which is about % mile south of the junction with the Valleytown road.
Here an open cut 150 feet long and from 40 feet to 70 feet wide has
exposed a series of sandy schists striking about N. 50° E. and dipping 50°
S. E. These schists are traversed by a number of small veins forming a
stockwork about 20 feet wide. Many of the veins are an inch or two
in width but more are larger., They are so closely spaced and there
are so many of them that the whole would appear to offer a promising
opportunity for a washing plant.

North Carolina Geological and Economic Survey

Plate IX

Marvacab Limonite Mine, Near Andrews

A. General view of south end of open cut.

B. Near view of vein in same cut.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 45

Marvacar Mining Company's Property: — About a mile south of the
Rogers opening is the large pit of the Marvacar Mining Company (pi.
IX). This is the only operating mine in the district. It was formerly
operated by Cover & Porter and later by Griffith, Middleton k Co.
In September, 1920, the Marvacar Mining Company was incorporated.
This company secured the mineral rights on 201 acres of land and im-
mediately began plans to operate on a large scale.

The present workings consist of an open cut, 550 feet long by about
100 feet wide, and varying in depth from a few feet to 50 feet. The
opening follows a ledge of dark compact ore striking ~N. 50° E. and
dipping 65°-70° S. E. There is an 18-foot vein of ore of which 10
feet is hard and compact in the southeast wall and this constitutes the
principal source of the shipping ore, though the whole pit is in material
that furnishes a satisfactory wash ore. The foot wall of the main vein
is a micaceous sandy schist and the hanging wall a red and white clay
that may be a fault gouge. The overburden varies in thickness from
1 to 10 feet, and much of it contains enough ore to pay for washing.

It is said that 6 drill holes put into the bottom of the pit 30 feet
northwest from the outcrop of the vein bottomed in ore. Assuming that
the width of workable ore is 50 feet, there is present under the pit,
for every 30 feet of depth, about 80,000 tons of merchantable ore. It
is reported by the men in charge of the washing that under normal
conditions the material going to the washer would yield 3 tons of washed
ore containing about 50% Fe to 4 tons of ground excavated.

Sandy schists containing ore veins extend for some distance to the
west of the main vein, and prospect trenches cut in the hill 500 feet
west of the pit indicate that the ore-bearing zone may cover a strip of
country at least this wide. The westernmost row of trenches has uncov-
ered ledges showing several veins from 2 to 3 feet wide and a number
of thinner ones closely spaced through a width of 18 feet. The soil
covering the ledges is only a few feet deep, but everywhere it contains
numerous fragments of ore.

About 24,000 tons were shipped from the property between April,
1917, and December, 1918. During a portion of 1919 the mine was
shut down temporarily, but in 1920 it was shipping about 50 tons daily
until the end of the year, when it was again shut down. During the
summer of 1921 mining was suspended, but a little work was being done
to prepare the mine for more economical operation. It is interesting
to note the use of hydraulic methods for removing the overburden and
washing the sand from the ore. Water for the system is drawn from
a branch of Tatham Creek.

Deposits of Beown Iron Oees

The ore is broken down by very light charges of dynamite, is elevated
by a steam shovel and hauled by a light locomotive over a narrow
gauge track 2,000 feet to the washing plant on the Andrews Manufac-
turing Co.'s railroad and then on this logging road 1% miles to An-
drews. Formerly about 2 cars were loaded daily, but the property is
now being equipped to load 3 or 4 cars daily.

The following analyses of carload lots represent the composition of
the shipped products.

SiO*

Nov. 17, 1917.. .

49.00
41.00
49.60
44.00
45.40
51.21
51.90
51.73

.64
.40

1.00
.52

8.40

Nov. 28, 1917

17.92

Nov. 28, 1917..

7.84

Dec. 17, 1917

.26
1.12

.76
.54

11.00

Dec. 17, 1917

10.10

Mch. 18, 1918 .

April, 1918

8.91

June, 1918

J. W. Walker Property: — The J. W. Walker property is about %
mile southwest of the Marvacar Mine near the junction of the two
faults limiting the east and west sides of the Yalleytown area.

The property is under the control of the Southern Iron Mining Co.
but is not now being worked. Explorations have been made by means
of trenches and pits on the crest and northeastern slope of a hill over-
looking a branch of Tatham Creek. There are five large openings in

Brown hematite with few
sandy layers

Sandy schist with small
ore veins

Figure ?. Section across end of pit on J. W. Walker property, near Andrews, N. C.

the hill and^ several small trenches exposing ore for a distance of 700
feet in length and several hundred feet in breadth. These openings
were made for exploratory purposes, but during the explorations about
60 cars of ore were shipped. The rocks in most of the openings dip
55° S. E., but in the large pit that is farthest east the dip of the vein
is nearly vertical. The loose ore was separated from the sand of the
decomposed schist by hydraulicking, forking and screening. In addi-

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

tion hard ore was broken from the steep quarry-like faces of some of
the pits and shipped without further preparation. At the large open-
ing on the south side of the top of the hill there has been exposed a wall
60 feet long that shows about 30 feet of ore, in two veins 17 feet and 15
feet wide, separated by 3 feet of sand, and a number of smaller veins
from 1% feet to a few inches wide. Some of the ore in the wider
veins could be shipped without washing, but much of it and most of
that in the smaller veins and in the sand between the veins (see fig. 7)
would have to be washed to become salable.

The following analyses of shipments made to the Roane Iron Co. in-
dicate the character of the product that may be furnished without wash-
ing and without further cobbing than the rejection of sand in the pit.
There is added for comparison the analysis of a sample composed of
material taken from the 5 openings on the property, quartered and
washed.

Analyses of carload lots of dried material, unwashed. 1918.

July

Aug.

Sept.

Oct.

46.50
.39

43.30
.45

46.70
.69

45.90
2.36

47.90
.98

42.80

.88

40.50

.34

44.10

Mn...

.64

Analysis of 8 cars unwashed ore and sample from 5 openings. Dry.

AI2O3

Insol.

Eight cars, Sept., 1918

44.04
48.41

1.02
2.36

.84
.349

4.57

20.15

12.65

The Walker property appears to be well situated for working. Water
can be obtained by ditch from Tatham Creek and delivered 40 feet
below the main openings. It can then be pumped to the pit and utilized
for carrying ore and sand to the bottom of the hill where separation
can be accomplished by washing. An outlet to Andrews might be pro-
vided by building a spur of % mile up Tatham Creek from a logging
road already in operation.

The southwesternmost openings in this area are several pits between
Tatham Creek and the road on its southeast side, some of which are
on the property of Geo. Walker, about % mile from the pits just
described. They are now filled. About 20 cars of ore were shipped
from them before the place was abandoned. The rocks in their vicinity
strike a little east of north and dip 85° E.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

ORE RESERVES m THE ANDREWS AREA

If the ore-belt is continuous from the Marvacar through the Walker
property, the quantity of ore in the southwest corner of the Andrews
area must be very large. Unfortunately, however, we are not yet sure
that the veins extend between the two. An estimate of the ore that is
available in this portion of the area, based on the explorations that have
been made, indicates the existence within 70 feet of the surface of about
1,350,000 tons. Most of the ore elsewhere in the area is unavailable at
present. Some of the deposits might be worked on a small scale for
a short time, but so far as is now known, they could be operated only
to a shallow depth, because, since the area is one of low relief, the
underground water level is close to the surface except at a few places.
It is probable that the deposit at the Eerebee and Young Mine might
furnish considerable wash ore, but the product would have to be hauled
1% miles to Andrews for shipment, unless a spur were built down
Ingram field to the Andrews Company's logging road at Junalaska
Creek.

DEPOSITS IN THE NOTTELY RIVER BELT

The extension of the Valley River ore belt to the southwest as far
as the State line has been called the Nottely River belt, since it follows
very closely the course of this river all the way to Georgia (pi. I). As a
rule the syncline is much narrower to the southwest of Murphy than it is
between this city and Andrews and the Andrews schist is not as well

Culberson
<£ ca.

Sea /eye/

Figure 8. Northwest-southeast section across Nottely River helt at Culberson, N. C. a,
Nottely quartizite; c, Murphy marble; d, Valleytown formation; e, Brasstown schist; /,
Tusquitee quartizite; g, Nantahala shale; h, Great Smoky formation.

developed. The rocks are closely folded so that their dips are usually
high (fig. 8). Moreover the Murphy fault traverses the fold nearly along
its axis. The close folding and the position of the fault account for the
narrow width of this portion of the syncline. Because the syncline is
more depressed to the southwest than toward the northeast (see p. 13),
and because of the close folding, the Nottely quartzite has been more
completely protected from erosion in this portion of the syncline than

Deposits of Bkown Ikon Ores 49

further northeast and has consequently been preserved as a low ridge
flanking the Murphy branch of the Louisville and Nashville railroad
nearly all the way to the State line. West of the quartzite is a narrow
strip of the Murphy marble which at Kinsey was formerly quarried and
in many places has been worked for talc. East of the quartzite is a
comparatively narrow belt of the Andrews schist and east of this the
trace of the Murphy fault. The fault in some places passes very near
the quartzite, so that the belt of Andrews schist exposed at the surface
is reduced to very narrow limits. In other places the fault passes
through the Andrews schist and consequently there are at these places
wider patches of the schist between the quartzite and the members of the
Yalleytown formation. At one point near Ranger, a very narrow strip
of the Murphy marble is between the Andrews schist and the fault line,
but this is the only outcropping of the marble known on the east side of
the quartzite.

The ore deposits in the Nottely belt are confined mainly to the
neighborhood of the fault. That is, so far as known, most of them
occur only on the southeast side of the Nottely quartzite ridge. A few
pits have uncovered deposits on its northwest side but they are small
and unimportant. No mines have been developed, but from a few
openings in the neighborhood of Culberson small shipments have been
made from time to time.

On the southeast side of the quartzite ridge, on the other hand, are
numerous evidences that an ore belt is nearly, if not quite, continuous
all the way to the State line. Many pits and small exposures on or near
the highway from Murphy to Culberson have shown the presence of
deposits all the way. Only on the Fain-Hitchcock property, however,
have any large explorations been attempted (see p. 18). Most of the
openings are small pits that have not reached the solid ledge; conse-
quently there is no means of learning whether the veins are large or
small. Usually only soft ore was encountered and because of this the
openings were abandoned. No recent attempts have been made to test
the material as a source for wash ore.

One of the most promising of these deposits is the Rogers prospect
near the mouth of Cane Creek where it crosses the quartzite ridge just
before entering Nottely River about three miles southwest of Murphy.
Here ore appears to be between the quartzite and Andrews schist. It is
opened by a comparatively large pit, just east of the railroad track, ex-
posing a yellow or yellowish-brown and sandy ore containing many little
rhombohedral or cubical masses of limonite that represent decomposed
ottrelite plates, indicating that the ore replaced Andrews schist. North-

50 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

east of the pit near the railroad are 5 other pits that carry the ore-
bearing zone about % mile further in this direction. Some of them are
large, and from them a great deal of ore must have been taken. It was
apparently all loose ore that required washing. Much of the ore is
manganiferous and some of the pits have yielded manganese ores of
shipping grade. There is no means of estimating the quantity of ore
in the deposits, but if the ore-belt is 20 feet wide through the entire
"Yz mile about 60,000 tons are present within 50 feet of the surface.

A small pit in the woods about 1,000 feet north of the pit on the
railroad shows that ore is on the northwest side of the quartzite as well
as on its southeast side, and exposures on the track of the Louisville
and Nashville Railroad indicate that the mineralized zone extends at
least 3 miles farther southwest. But the exposures are all small and
the veins uncovered are all narrow, so that the quantity of ore on the
northwest side of the ridge is probably inconsiderable in quantity.

On the southeast side of the ridge, farther to the southeast, are a num-
ber of pits and several fairly large exposures revealing the presence of
much wider veins than those on its northwest side. Most of the exposures
are on the highway between Murphy and Culberson, and the pits are
near this road on either side. An exposure of manganiferous ore is at
the road corner about 650 feet southwest of the bridge over Cane Creek,
a cut in red ocher is on the road and a pit is just east of it on the prop-
erty of W. P. Hall, about 2,000 feet farther southwest, and other ex-
posures are at about equal intervals between the Hall property and the
corner of the road to Kinsey.

Between this corner and the junction of the highway with the road
to Ranger are 4 more exposures on the main road, and two pits on the
west side of the road in the Andrews schist near its contact with the
quartzite. Neither of the two pits shows any ore in its wall, but the
dumps are so filled with small fragments of limonite as to suggest that
the deposits might furnish wash ore in fair quantity.

Near the corner of the highway and the road to Ranger ore is much
more abundant. About 750 feet northeast of the corner is an exposure
in the stream-bed just east of the road and in a cut on the Ranger road a
few yards northwest of the corner is another. On the northest bank of
the cut is a small pit in the same veins as are exposed in the cut, but
neither in the cut nor in the pit can the width of the mineralized zone
be determined. It is reported by the residents in its vicinity that some
ore was shipped from the pit. These deposits are all near the trace of
the Murphy fault. On the map (pi. I), they are designated the Speed
and Kirkpatrick prospects.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 51

The largest deposit in this region is opened at the southeast side
of the quartzite ridge, on the southwest side of the Ranger road just
east of the railroad crossing. At this point is a pit several hundred
feet long well up toward the crest of the ridge and just east of a large
quartzite quarry. The pit has been abandoned for some time and
therefore shows no solid ledge, but from its size it is evident that it has
yielded considerable ore. Here and there are small seams of sandy ore
in very much disintegrated schist. Their strike is N". 40° E. and dip
about 75° S. E.

Another group of deposits is exposed by a series of trenches and a
tunnel at the southwest end of the same quartzite ridge — the Carroll
prospect. Like the pit at its northeast end, the trenches are on the
contact of the quartzite and the Andrews schist. There are a few
narrow seams of ore in the schist but most of the ore appears to con-
sist of bowlders in its disintegrated upper portion. About 1,500 feet
farther east, on the southeast side of the highway, are two other
pits, likewise in loose ore, and a few yards west of them is an exposure
of ore in the road. These are near the Murphy fault line. If the
strip of country 500 feet wide between the various pits and exposures
is everywhere as rich in ore as is indicated by the character of the
material in which the pits have been sunk, it contains a large quantity
of ore suitable for washing.

At this point the syncline widens and a narrow belt of the Murphy
limestone lies between the Andrews schist and the Murphy fault trace.
Only one distinct exposure of the marble is known to occur, and that
is in the large spring north of Carroll's corner, but the east slope of the
hill to the soutliAvest is covered with the kind of white sand that is
known to result from the decomposition of the marble elsewhere, so that
there can be little doubt that it is underlain by the marble.

Here the highway turns south and crosses the fault line, and
for the rest of its distance to Culberson runs over rocks of the Valley-
town formation. Since it nowhere crosses onto the Andrews schist belt
it cuts no more ore exposures.

The quartzite ridge, however, continues its southwest course and
crosses the Nottely River midway between the highway and the railroad.
Most of the area between the highway and the river is devoid of expos-
ures, but the quartzite can be traced across it by trains of bowlders.
Near the river are a few exposures of the quartzite and about 1,000 feet
from its bank is a little ridge which is covered with quartzite frag-
ments. On the northwest side of this is an exposure of ore in veins and
above this is a thin layer of conglomeratic ore. There is no likelihood

52 Deposits of Bkown Iron Ores

that the ore is in large quantity. The occurrence is interesting, how-
ever, as indicating the presence of ore on the northwest side of the
quartzite.

About a mile farther toward Culberson, where the railroad passes
through a narrow valley between two small hills, ore is again met with.
The little valley is in marble. The hill to the southeast is mainly
quartzite, but on its southeast slope is a pit from which some ore has
been taken. Nothing is known of the size of the deposit, but the float
indicates that the ore zone extends the full length of the hill. South-
east of the pit the land is low and there are no exposures for a distance
of 500 feet. Beyond this the rocks are sandy slates that are probably
Valleytown. The interval between the slates and the pit may be un-
derlain by Andrews schist, in which case the ore is on the contact of this
rock and the quartzite. If the underlying rocks are Yalleytown the
deposit is on the Murphy fault plane.

No other deposits were seen on either side of the quartzite until Cul-
berson was reached. This is about % mile from the State line. On the
road running northwest from the railway station is an exposure of ore
on the northwest side of the quartzite, and a little farther west, on the
northwest side of the main road, are three pits near the contact of the
marble with the Valleytown formation, from which it is said large
quantities of ore were once taken for the use of local forges. The pit
walls are now covered with weeds and nothing can be seen in them, but
the old dumps still contain a great many ore fragments.

Other exposures and pits mark the position of an ore belt on the
northwest side of the quartzite all the way to the State line and just
across it, in Georgia, exposures and pits prove the existence of ore on
both sides. Much of the ore near Culberson is highly manganiferous,
and some is composed largely of pyrolusite. In no case do any of the
deposits appear of commercial importance.

OEE RESERVES IN THE NOTTELY RIVER BELT

There appears to be no good reason why there should not be ore de-
posits in the Nottely River belt, south of the Fain-Hitchcock Mine, of
the same magnitude as those farther north, since the geological condi-
tions are the same in both portions of the ore-bearing belt. There is,
however, no evidence that large deposits occur in the southern portion of
the belt. There are several deposits from which a few thousand tons
of ore might be obtained, but none, so far as known, that would yield
a large production. The most promising deposits are those near the

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

Contour interval ZOO fe^t

EXPLANATION

^E=E2

\ v\ \

\ \ \ x .

\ VA .\

Andrews
schist

Murphy

marble

(Including some

Andrews schist

in the Brasstown belt)

Valleytown
formation

Brasstown Tusquitee

schist

quartzite

Nantahala
slate

Figure 9. Geologic map of the Peachtree area and the eastern part of the Brasstown belt,
N. C. A-A', Line of right-hand portion of section, figure 9.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

mouth of Cane Creek. There may be others equally as large, which
explorations have not discovered, but the covering of soil is so uni-
formly spread over the rocks of the area that outcrops are rare and the
trace of the Murphy fault is difficult to locate.

ORE DEPOSITS IN THE PEACHTREE AREA

The village of Peachtree, 6 miles east of Murphy, lies in the concavity
of a crescentic-shaped area of Murphy marble and Andrews schist pro-
duced by the erosion of an anticline pitching toward the southwest (fig.
9). The fold involves only the two formations mentioned, with the
Andrews schist surrounding the marble on all sides but the northeast.
A fault separates the Andrews schist from the Brasstown schist on the
west, and another separates it from the Valleytown formation on the
south and east. Both faults are indicated by Keith as dipping at com-
paratively low angle to the southeast. (See fig. 10.)

Figure 10. — Section across Brasstown belt, Peachtree area, and Valley River belt near
Regal, N. C. a, Nottely quartzite; b, Andrews schist; c, Murphy marble; d, Valleytown
formation; e, Brasstown schist; /, Tusquitee quartzite; g, NantaUala shale.

There have been no developments of ore deposits in the district in con-
sequence of the lack of transportation facilities. With the opening to
traffic of the Carolina and Georgia Railroad to Hayesville, it is probable
that a more thorough knowledge of the resources of the district will soon
be available. Because of the lack of exposures in the vicinity of the
village few deposits are known to exist within the area underlain by
the marble and Andrews schist, but nearly a dozen are known within
a short distance of the village outside of this area.

One of the most promising looking of all the deposits is just west of
Peachtree on the lands of Messrs. Eliot and Leatherwood, where two
ledges about 20 feet by 35 feet rise a few feet above the general level
of the valley. There are no other rocks in the neighborhood, but the
position of the deposit is near that of the contact between the marble and
the Andrews schist.

There has been no attempt to discover the extent of the vein, nor so
far as known, has there been analysis of the ore.1 It is clear from in-
spection alone that much of the vein could be shipped without washing.

1 This exposure was opened during the Summer of 1924, but with what result is not known.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 55

The only other evidences of ore in the area are a narrow ledge cross-
ing the road, about half a mile north of the Eliot deposit, another
crossing Peachtree Creek about % mile southeast of the Eliot ledge, and
two openings in ocher, one near the junction of the Murphy and Zim-
merman Creek roads, and the other about % uiile north on the road
running north from this junction. The exposure first mentioned ap-
pears to be near the contact of the marble and the Andrews schist,
as mapped by Keith, and the second is in the Andrews schist near
the fault separating it from the Valleytown formation. Neither is
large enough to offer promise of affording much ore.

The first of the two openings in ocher is in a cut on the north side
of the road very near the fault line. The material is a mass of red
clay just west of exposures of white and pink clays that probably repre-
sent weathered calcareous layers in the Andrews schist. The second is
also close to the fault, but it is also close to a ledge of quartzite which
lies just west of it. It is a large pit, locally known as the Paint Mine,
but it is so old that its walls have fallen in and are now hidden by a
thick cover of weeds and brush.

The quartzite immediately west of the Paint Mine is not mapped by
Keith as a separate formation. However, it extends southwest as a ridge
which is flanked on its southeast side by ore deposits. It may be a thick
bed in the lower portion of the Brasstown schists, but from its massive
character it appears more likely to be a strip of the Tusquitee quartzite
raised from beneath by folding.

Ore is exposed on the southeast side of the quartzite, a few rods
west of the corner of the Zimmerman Creek and Murphy roads, at a few
yards further south on the property of Mr. W. P. Smith, and again in
a road cut 600 feet south of Mr. Smith's house.

Only one of these deposits is of more than passing interest. This
is the one on Mr. Smith's property, about 200 yards north of his house.
Here on a low hill are a ledge and many loose fragments of hard ore
that would seem to indicate a vein 6 or 7 feet wide. It has not been
explored, so no estimate of its value as a source of ore can be made.

Another and more lofty ridge of quartzite is a little further south-
west. The quartzite is well exposed at the corner of the Peachtree and
Murphy roads where it has been quarried for road metal. Erom this
point it extends as a distinct ridge all the way to Zimmerman Creek,
but beyond this point it has not been traced. It may be the southern
extension of the belt of quartzite near the Paint Mine. All along its
southeast side are exposures of ore or belts of ore float. The most not-
able deposits are at its southwest end, where for ] [> mile from the

56 Deposits of Brown Ikon Oees

Murphy road exposures and heavy float ore are continuous. The largest
exposure is about % mile from the road-corner, on the east side of a
rough quartzite ledge which forms the crest of a little ridge near the
base of the greater ridge. The exposure is a ledge of hard ore about 7
feet wide, and nearby is a small pit. There is no question of the pres-
ence of considerable ore in the belt, but it is doubtful if it is so con-
centrated in any one place as to constitute an important deposit.

ORE RESERVES NEAR PEACHTREE

The Peachtree area proper offers little promise for the development
of large mining operations, though one or two of the deposits in it
may furnish fair quantities of ore.

ORE DEPOSITS IN THE BRASSTOWN" BELT AXD THE
MARTIN CREEK AREA

General: — Southeast of Peachtree is a second belt of quartzite, in
the area mapped by Keith as being underlain by the Valleytown
formation. This quartzite is not as well developed as that farther west.
It is at the northeast end of the Brasstown belt of Murphy marble (see
map and section, figs. 9 and 10) which begins at a point a little south of
east of Peachtree as a narrow belt, nowhere more than % a mile wide,
that has been mapped as extending for 7 miles to the western border of
the Nantahala quadrangle, passing through the village of Brasstown. At
the Monteith Mine on the divide between Little Brasstown and Martin
creeks no evidence of the presence of marble was seen; consequently
it may be assumed that the Brasstown belt terminates at this point.
Another belt starts at the head waters of Martin Creek, a mile further
west, spreads out over the valley of Martin Creek, and then contracts
and again becomes a narrow belt running southwest to the Xottely
River. This has been called the Martin Creek area.

THE BRASSTOWN" BELT

General: — The marble strip passing through Brasstown is the ex-
posure of a closely compressed syncline overturned to the northwest
about 15° from the vertical. It is bordered on both sides by the rocks
of the Valleytown formation. (See fig. 9.)

Ore deposits are known to occur on both sides of the marble through-
out nearly its entire length, and at several points they were formerly
exploited.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 57

Deposits North of the Hiwassee River: — The most important de-
posits in that portion of the Brasstown belt north of the Hiwassee
River are those on the west side of the marble near its contact with
the quartzite already referred to above. If Keith's mapping is cor-
rect, the deposits are in the Valleytown formation between the marble
and the quartzite. The topography, however, suggests that the mar-
ble or the Andrews schist may extend as far west as the ore-ledges,
in which cases the deposits are in the calcareous rock at its contact
with the quartzite.

At all points where observed the ore in this portion of the belt is
hard and comparatively dense and is apparently in large quantity. At
the J. van Davis place, about one mile southeast of Peachtree, and at
the A. E. Suddeth place % mile farther southeast pits have been dug
and some ore has been removed.

At both of these places the ore is at the east contact of a narrow belt
of quartzite, which if Keith's interpretation of the structure of the area
is correct, is a bed of quartzite near the top of the Valleytown formation
and overlying schistose beds of the same formation. The quartzite is
persistent for several hundred yards to the northeast and appears at in-
tervals for a mile to the southwest. The ore was not seen in place at
either location, but it outcrops as narrow veins at several places in the
road between them.

On the Davis property large fragments of almost pure ore occur on
the slopes of a low hill in such great quantity as to suggest the presence
of a wide vein near by, and at the Suddeth place is a pit with an old
dump composed almost entirely of limonite gravel.

The largest and most promising ledges in this portion of the belt
are on the property of J. W. Cooper about V2 mlle south of the
Suddeth property and west of the residence of Cyrus Witte, across
a valley which is underlain by marble. There are here two ledges
that are the outcrops of parallel veins about 300 feet apart. The
eastern ore is exposed in a little cliff, which apparently marks the
western boundary of the marble. The vein can be traced contin-
uously for 500 feet as an almost solid ledge about 15 feet wide. It
is admirably situated for mining. The western exposure is an ac-
cumulation of large fragments and rough ledges that indicate another
vein about 15 feet wide at the surface. This has been traced by float
for a distance of about 1,000 feet, where it disappears to the southwest
under a valley filling. Between the two lines of ledges no rock is ex-
posed, but the character of the soil indicates the presence of calcareous
schists beneath.

5S Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

Deposits South of the Hiwassee River: — South, of the Hiwassee
River ore is known to exist at Brasstown on the southeast side of
the marble and at two points on its northwest side near the village.
The ore on the southeast side is exposed in a small ledge just east of
the post office. Northwest of the village about 400 yards east of Big
Brasstown Creek, on the northwest side of the marble belt, is an old
pit in an exposure that shows a closely crowded series of small veins of
limonite. The ground in the vicinity is covered with fragments of ore
so that neither the width nor the length of the series can be determined.
The third point near the village at which ore is known to occur it about
400 yards south of that last mentioned and about the same distance
west of the village. Two pits, dug many years ago, uncovered soft ore,
but they are now so covered with brush that the character of the deposit
cannot be seen.

Farther west there are several exposures on the road leading to Mar-
tin Creek and near the road on its southeast side are several pits and
shafts from which small quantities of ore have been taken for local
forges. They show that the ore belt is persistent and nearly, if not
completely, continuous all the way to the Monteith Mine. South of the
ore exposure marble ledges occur in some of the springs, and in the bed
of Little Brasstown Creek, and a short distance south of the creek
are exposures of the Valleytown formation. The best exhibit of ore is
on the road near Rev. Gay Bryant's residence, about 2 miles from
Brasstown. In a little cut in the road about 10 feet of ore have been
uncovered, and in an old field on the opposite side of the road frag-
ments of float ore of the same kind as that in the road are quite abund-
ant. If ore is continuous between the two points the deposit will be
worthy of careful exploration when transportation conveniences are
furnished the country south of the Hiwassee River.

A little farther west near the point marked Ballew on the map of
the Murphy quadrangle are several exposures on the road and in an old
pit a short distance to the north but nothing of special interest is shown
by them. South of the road, however, on the crest of a ridge of white
sandy rock, is a large opening in a black, porous manganese ore which
is composed mainly of pyrolusite. The ore is intimately associated with
the white sandy rock, which in this place is probably decomposed lime-
stone. The deposit is on the south side of the marble, probably near
its contact with members of the Valleytown formation, for a short dis-
tance farther south are numerous exposures of a siliceous ottrelite schist.

All the other ore exposures in the valley of Little Brasstown Creek
are of small veins cutting sandy schists lying between the marble on the

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 59

south and members of the Valleytown formation on the north. The
sandy schists may represent a thin bed of siliceous limestone at the
base of the Murphy marble.

A few evidences of the existence of ore are said to be present on the
south side of the marble belt, but none were found except at Brasstown
and near Ballew.

ORE RESERVES IN THE BRASSTOWN BELT

Until transportation facilities are provided for the country south of
the Hiwassee River, it is futile to discuss the value of the deposits in
this portion of the Brasstown belt. There is not in the entire belt suf-
ficient ore to warrant the building of a railroad, and there is no deposit,
so far as we now know, that is rich enough to furnish ore that could
stand the cost of haulage to Murphy or to any point on the Carolina
and Georgia Railroad. It is possible that at a few points mining might
be prosecuted on a small scale for 2 or 3 years, but there is no likeli-
hood that a large mine might be developed at any place.

North of the Hiwassee the case is different. The exposures on the
Cooper property indicate the existence there of a comparatively large
deposit, and the new Carolina and Georgia Railroad offers a convenient
outlet for shipments. On the Davis property there is probably also a
large, or at any rate, a fair-sized deposit. If the two deposits could be
worked under one management so that the overhead charges could be
distributed between them, their development might be profitable for a
few years, at any rate. We have no means of knowing the depth to
which the deposits extend with their surface widths, and so have no
basis for estimating their value after their surficial portions have been
removed.

THE MARTIN CREEK AREA

General: — The only mine in this portion of the district that was ever
of importance was the old Monteith Mine about 3,500 feet west of
Ballew, on the headwaters of Martin Creek about 5 miles south of
Murphy. As has already been stated, the Brasstown belt of Murphy
marble may end at the divide between the headwaters of Little Brass-
town Creek and those of Martin Creek, and another area, beginning
near the Monteith Mine, may follow down the valley of Martin Creek
and up its west branch. It is possible, of course, that the two areas
are continuous, since all rock between the headwaters of the two creeks
is covered by sand. For the purpose of the present report the marble
on Martin Creek is regarded as a separate area. (Map, fig. 1 L.)

60 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

The larger part of the Martin Creek area of marble occupies the
valley of the main creek from near the Monteith Mine to the junction of
the two roads along its sides four miles farther north. A narrow ex-
tension follows the principal western tributary to its source, then
an eastern tributary of Cane Creek for a mile, and then down Gold
Branch to its mouth. Few exposures of the marble are seen. The best
are at the bridge crossing Martin Creek about % mile north of the
Monteith Mine, where two low ledges show a definite strike and dip.
A small exposure in a stream a few yards farther north, a ledge in Mr.
Elliott's spring, occasional shallow cuts made by the tributaries of Mar-
tin Creek in which white clay is uncovered, and a few sink holes are
about the only data, aside from topography, by which the main area can
be outlined. The western strip extending down Cane Creek and Gold
Branch is traced by sink holes east of Martin Creek Church, by an
exposure in Cane Creek a few hundred feet west of Martin's Saw
Mill, an exposure in the bed of Gold Branch near the cross-
ing of the old road from Ranger to Belview, and finally by frag-
ments of talc plowed from the fields near the mouth of the Gold Branch.
According to Mr. L. E. Mauney, marble occurs also in the hill to the
west of the mouth of the branch.

Limonite deposits have been discovered at the Monteith Mine, at sev-
eral places along the west side of the marble area in the valley of Martin
Creek and on the north side of its western extension, and in the valley
of Gold Branch. At one or two points the deposits are large enough
to have furnished ore to local forges, but none are thought to be worthy
of exploitation at present.

The Monteith Mine: — The Monteith Mine is the best known of all
the occurrences in this area. It is at its southeast corner, about 3,500
feet west of Ballew (fig. 11, No. 2). If the ledge of ottrelite schist
exposed in the bed of Martin Creek, about 1,800 feet northwest of the
old pits, is a member of the Andrews schist series, the mine is on the
southeast side of the marble, at or near its contact with the slates of
the Valleytown formation.

The old mine which is on Ham Stalcup's farm is now represented by
a series of very old pits in a line striking about X. 70° E. Mtze
(1. c. p. 207) states that the ore was mined for a forge 10 miles away.
At the time of his visit the dimensions of the main opening were de-
termined to be 600 feet long and 6 feet to 20 feet deep. The width of
the ore was reported in the Tenth Census Report to vary between 4 and
10 feet. Its better portions were hard and flint-like, the softer being
more siliceous, grading into a brown clay.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 61

A sample taken from one of the cuts analyzed :

Fe=56.46; P=.691; P ratio=1.224

All the pits are now so overgrown that no rocks can be seen in them,
nor can any ore be found on their dumps. From the great amount
of work they represent, it is plain that the mine must once have been a
very important one.

Other Deposits in the Martin Greek Area: — The next openings to
the west were about 1,000 feet northeast of the residence of J. Martin, at
the corner of the road between Martin Creek and Brasstown and that
to Beaver Gap (fig. 11, 'No. 3). Here was a trench about 250 feet long
from which it is said much ore was taken during the Civil War. Noth-
ing can be seen as to the character of the ore, but from the material in
the small dumps around the trench it is probable that it would require
thorough washing before shipment. A pit about 700 feet north of
the trench has also uncovered ore, the quality of which, however, is
not known. About 350 feet east of the trench decomposed marble is
exposed in the bed of a little stream. Between the two there are no
exposures of any kind. It is probable that there is at the contact of
the marble with the Yalleytown formation.

Farther north, east of Mr. H., D. Elliott's house, ore is said to have
been found by test pitting near the marble referred to above as ex-
posed in the spring on Mr. Elliott's property.

~No other evidences of ore are known in the main valley of the creek,
but along the western extension of the area, forming the narrow strip
running along the road to Ranger, are several old openings that can
still be recognized as ore pits and a few depressions that are said to be
the remnants of other pits that have been filled. None of them are im-
portant, although from several ore was formerly obtained. Two of
these are a few hundred yards east of the Martin Creek Schoolhouso
and north of the road, apparently between a narrow strip of marble to
the south and a hill of slate to the north.

In the road west of the school house are exposures of decomposed
marble and soft ocherous ore, but no considerable explorations have
been made until the headwaters of Gold Branch are reached. The
marble belt turns from the Cane Creek valley to that of the Gold Branch
and follows this stream southward to the Nottely River, beyond which it
has not been traced. The most westerly point in the valley of Cane
Creek that is reached by the marble is about % mile east of the junction
of the Ranger and Belview roads. It reappears as another very
narrow strip at the Belview road about Vo mile southeast of the June-

Deposits of Brown Irox Ores

tion, runs southwest crossing the road down Price's Creek at the old
sawmill and continues down Gold Branch to its mouth. A few hundred
yards southwest of Mr. Suit's house on the new Belview road is a sink-
hole, and just south of it is a small trench in soft ore (fig. 11, Xo. 6). On
Gold Branch, at the bridge crossing, about ^ mile to the southwest, is a
large pit and trench on the south side of the stream, and a few feet
down stream is a small exposure of brecciated talc and marble in the
bed of the stream (fig. 11, Xo. 7).. The pit, which is so old that it
shows nothing in its dumps, is on the south side of the marble as at

Contour interval ZOO feet Datum sea level
EXPLANATION

»2

■

0 R E

Murphy Valley town Brasstown Tusquitee Mine or Road

marble formation schist quarti.it : prospect

Figure 11. Map of Martin Creek area and Hiwassee-Nottely rivers belt, X. C, showing
location of deposits of brown hematite.

Mr. Suit's house.. It is reported that a number of tons of ore were
removed from it and shipped to local forges, but no definite figures
concerning the quantity can now be given. The farmers in the vicinity
state that ore was taken from several pits in the stream valley, but,
because of the fact that the whole valley has been dug over for gold,
none of these could be identified.

Xo other evidences of the presence of ore in this belt were seen along
the branch, though Mr. Mauney states that ore occurs in its channel
near its mouth.

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 63

ORE DEPOSITS IN THE HIWASSEE AND NOTTELY
RIVERS BELT

The fourth, belt of deposits is on the southeast side of the quartzite
ridge that stretches from the Hiwassee River about 2 miles above
Murphy in a general direction S. 35° W. to the bridge crossing the
Nottely River 1% miles northeast of Culberson (fig. 11). The quartzite
is nearly continuous through this distance, but at some places the out-
crop becomes very narrow. On the road running south from Murphy,
up the valley of Martin Creek, the quartzite is in contact on the
south with black slates that are probably members of the Brasstown
formation. It has not been determined whether the quartzite is also a
bed in this formation or whether it is a narrow strip of the Tusquitee
quartzite on the crest of an anticline. The series dips about 70° S. E.,
and the principal ore deposits are on its southeast contact with the slates.
At the northeast end of the belt a second line of deposits is about 300
yards south of the main line. The ore here is also on the southeast side
of a quartzose layer. In some places this quartzose layer is in contact
with black slate and in others with a clay that resembles a decomposed
calcareous schist. Some of the deposits on both lines were worked
years ago, furnishing considerable ore; others have simply been ex-
plored. As a rule the ore is more porous and more ocherous than that
in the Nottely and Valley river belts and usually much more sandy.
Moreover, much of it, especially that in the more southerly line, ap-
parently contains some hematite and much more than the usual quan-
tity of manganese. Some of it is so rich in pyrolusite that it would
pass as an ore of manganese.

The most northeasterly point at which ore is known to exist in this
belt is about l1/^ miles southeast of Murphy on the northeast corner
of a hill overlooking the Hiwassee River. At this point is a fairly large
opening on a vein about 34 feet wide dipping southeast. The hanging
wall looks like a shaly limestone cut by quartz veins. The footwall was
not seen, but to the northwest on the crest of the hill is quartzite. About
2,000 feet southwest of this is another opening near the crest of the
quartzite ridge in which only about 10 feet of good ore are exposed. The
hanging wall is a black slate. About 200 feet southeast of the eastern
limonite vein is a 5 foot wide vein of hematite in red slates.

Other pits and ledges give evidence that brown hematite ore is con-
tinuous on the south side of the quartzite ridge all the way to the road
leading from Murphy up Martin Creek. On and near this road, about
i/4 mile south of the lower crossing of Martin Creek, on land belonging

Deposits of Brown Irox Ores

to Mr. L. E. Mauney, are the two largest explorations in the belt (fig.
11, No. 1). This is probably the place referred to by Mtze (1. c. p.
207) as the Mooney place, % mile above the month of Martin Creek.
Nitze describes the exploration as a "rectangular pit on the southeastern
flank of a qnartzite ridge; it shows a thickness of 18 feet of mixed
ore, clay and shale; ronghly estimated, over 50% of this material is
ore, which is porous and ocherous. At one point of the bed the ore
is solid for a thickness of four feet; the dip is 55° S. E. and the strike
of the shales is K 45° E."
A sample analyzed:

Si02

P ratio

15.42

48.02

.039

-201

.418

On the east side of the road is a deep trench 64 feet long with a shaft
at its northeast end. According to Mr. Mauney, the owner of the
property, the shaft, which is said to be 60 feet deep, was sunk in 1855.
The trench is in thinly layered rocks striking N. 45° E. and dipping 45°
S. E. On the road, northwest of the trench and about 100 feet distant,
are road cuts in qnartzite and graywacke schist and between these and
the . opening of the trench is an exposure of clay that seems to be a
decomposed slate. ~No rocks but a few black slates were seen near the
ore on its southeast side, but 800 feet distant in this direction is a tun-
nel 110 feet long, running into the slope from the northeast side of the
road. The tunnel cuts about 20 feet of ore and for the rest of its length
is in quartz schists. South of the ore are again black slates. About 60
feet northwest of the tunnel are other quartz schists and about 50 feet
southeast is another trench. This also shows a little ore underlying a
blue slate which is on its southeast side.

The relation of these ore veins is not clear. It is certain, however,
that there are at least two veins of ore, each on the southeast sides of
belts of quartzites and a third under slates. The latter, however, ap-
pears to be only a local de/elopment.

About y± mile southwest of the trench on the road, on the south side
of another hill which is the extension of the hill north of the trench, is
another opening. Here again the ore is at the southeast contact of the
qnartzite. In this opening the ore is said to be 49 feet wide, but of this
width 6 feet is black clay. Its dip is 70° S. E. On the hanging wall is
fissile black slate and south of this a few thin layers of qnartzite which
are apparently beds interstratified with the more slaty members of the

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores 65

Valleytown formation. South of this quartzite are a couple of hundred
feet of black fissile slates and in these are layers of ore aggregating
about 10 feet. The ore exposed in the pits outcrops on an old road, at
a point about 600 feet northeast of the pit.

About 200 yards southeast of the pit and about 150 feet north of
the main highway from Murphy is a trench in a sandy slate that has
been strongly impregnated with limonite and hematite, but in which
no definite ore deposit has been made. The mineralized belt is about
10 feet wide. It represents the last exposure to the southwest on the
southern line. About a mile farther southwest a small deposit of man-
ganese ore was developed on the top of a little hill near the main high-
way from Murphy, and this also is on the southern edge of a ledge of
quartzite, but the quartzite is a different bed from that farther north-
east, or at any rate the two are not continuous on the surface, and they
are at different distances south of the main quartzite belt, which is con-
tinuous.

A few pages back attention was called to the existence of a vein of
hematite in slates at the northeast end of the belt. It is a matter of pass-
ing interest to note that there are other deposits of hematite in this neigh-
borhood, some of which have been opened by trenches. INTone of them
are of any economic importance. The most extensive is about 150 yards
south of the trench on Mr. Mauney's place and near the Glade Church.
Here are two veins, 5 feet and 12 feet thick. The uppermost is overlain
by white stratified clay. The hematite is of two kinds — a dull red gran-
ular variety that resembles a fragment al deposit, and a dense, lustrous
darker variety that looks like a direct precipitate. The latter has a
reddish brown streak and may be turgite. About 75 yards southeast of
these is a small limonite vein with a foot wall of red and yellow slate cut
by quartz veins. The hanging wall was not seen, but in the cuts on the
road slates are exposed in the position to be expected of the hanging.

The hematite and limonite in the slates are evidently of very dif-
ferent origin from the larger deposits of limonite that occur in the dis-
tinct and well defined belts. Although nothing definite can be made out
about their relations to the rocks associated with them, they neverthe-
less appear to be only small deposits of local origin, occurring in the
bedding of schistose planes of slates.

To return to the limonite deposits. About 14 mile southwest of the
pits last referred to and about 1,200 feet northwest of the bridge over
Martin Creek is another pit in limonite on the south edge of a bluff of
quartzite. Here again the ore appears to be associated with slates.
It occurs in three layers having a total width of 30 feet.

66 Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores

Beyond this point the quartzite ridge can be followed to the south-
west without interruptions for several miles, but nowhere are there any
explorations for ore, until the road between Martin Creek and Cane
Creek is reached. A few rods north of this road, on the farm of R. R.
Owensby, are three trenches on the north side of the road that are dug
at the contact of the quartzite and Brasstown schists (fig. 11, Xo. 4).
They uncovered about 5 feet of ore which is reported to contain about
2% of manganese. The ore deposit is probably wider than 5 feet, but
it is doubtful if it is of sufficient size to be of economic importance.

On the south side of the highway, a little farther east is the largest
deposit of manganese ore that that has been developed anywhere in
Cherokee County. It is on the land of Geo. R. Eager about % mile
south of the main quartzite ridge in a mass of quartz, and thus is in
the same position with reference to the main ridge as is the deposit 1%
miles northeast on the road between Murphy and Martin Creek (fig. 11,
"No. 5). At the Eager place the ore is a shattered mass of quartzite
about 20 feet wide that is cemented by psilomelane and pyrolusite.
There are three trenches in the ore body and from them a great deal
of ore has been removed; but unless the material was crushed and
washed it cannot have had much value. Other openings north of the
road and about 200 yards southeast of Mr. Owensby^s house also un-
covered manganese ore but in what quantity is unknown.

For the next 1% miles to the southwest the hills have been unex-
plored, but about y<2, mile north of the residence of Mr. J. H. Headon
on the Martin Creek road is a pit high up on the southeast side of a
hill which is covered with quartzite bowlders (fig. 11, ISTo. 8). The pit
shows only a mass of soft brown ore that is plainly manganiferous.
No ore was seen in place, as the walls of the pit are covered with loose
material; consequently there is no means of learning whether or not
there is any considerable body of ore uncovered. The quartzite is on
the strike of that at the three trenches on the Owensby place.

There are two other points beyond this place at which explorations
have been undertaken, and although they are on the south side of a
quartzite belt which is on the trend of the quartzite ridges along which
so many evidences of the existence of ore have been noted, nevertheless
it is possible that they may be in a different belt of deposits since the
ridge has not been followed continuously from the Headon place. It
is more probable, however, that the two ridges are continuous and that
the ores are in the same belt. This view seems all the more reasonable
since the ores are manganiferous.

Deposits of Beown Ikon Ores 67

One of the largest of the explorations is a deep trench and small pit
on a tributary of Gold Branch, about 1% miles southeast of Ranger.
The trench, which is about 25 feet long, is 200 to 250 feet south of a
ledge of quartzite which outcrops on the hill slope above (fig. 11, No. 9).
It uncovers a sandy slate with which are interlayered three seams of
manganese ore (pyrolusite), manganiferous limonite and some hard
limonite. The material in the dumps appears to be rich, but in all
probability this is due to the deep color given it by the pyrolusite. By
carefully washing the crude material there may be secured a highly
manganiferous ore that may be a profitable product.

A little over a mile farther to the southwest, on the land of Mr. B. L.
Fox and his neighbors to the northeast are three other pits and trenches,
on the south side of the same quartzite ridge which is continuous all
the way from Gold Branch (fig. 11, No. 10). The openings show very
little of interest. The most widely separated ones are about % mil©
apart and the three are connected by a continuous line of float.

The only other deposit in this portion of the country is exposed by
a pit on the southwest side of the road, about % mile southeast of Cul-
berson, and just across the State line in Georgia. The pit is in black
slates mapped as Valleytown by La Forge and Phalen. The slates
strike N. 40°-60° E., and the ore seems to be a plexus of veins about 6
feet wide occurring in a fracture zone, partly as seams in the cracks
and partly as replacements of the slate. It is reported that some of
the material, which is a very richly manganiferous limonite, has been
shipped as a manganese ore. There is no quartzite in the vicinity of
the pit, nor is it near a fault line. The only explanation of the pres-
ence of the ore is that it is a local replacement deposit along a shear
zone.

ORE RESERVES IN THE HIWASSEE AND NOTTELY
RIVERS BELT

From the descriptions of the deposits in the Hiwassee-Nottely rivers
belt it will be inferred that the explorations on this belt have as a rule
been so superficial that we know almost nothing of the size of the de-
posits or of the quality of the ore in them. At a few places, as for
instance on the Mauney property, south of Murphy, it has been shown
that the deposits are reasonably large, but whether they are sufficiently
large to warrant the construction of plants ample to handle their prod-
ucts efficiently is doubtful. Moreover, all of them are a mile or two
from the nearest railroad, to which their ore would have to be hauled
over hilly roads before it could be shipped. None of them give prom-

68 Deposits of Brown Ikon Oees

ise of profitable development in the near future, though it is possible
that when the hard road is completed up Martin Creek a few of them
might be worked on a small scale.

deposits in Mcdowell county

In the north corner of McDowell County is a deep gorge-like valley
extending from Linville Falls south and southwest to the North Fork of
Catawba River. Its bottom is occupied by North Cove Fork for nearly
its entire length. East of it is the great mass of Linville Mountain,
which consists mainly of Erwin quartzite and west of it are other ridges
of the Blue Ridge, composed principally of crystalline pre-Cambrian
rocks with here and there small masses of the Cambrian Hampton shale,
which lies under the Erwin quartzite.

Where the valley is narrow the stream flows over quartzite. In the
few places where it widens the underlying rock is the Shady limestone,
which is approximately equivalent to the Murphy marble in Cherokee
County. About northwest of Brown Mt. it is now being quarried as
an ornamental stone, and % mile above Ashford is being quarried and
crushed by the Clinchfield Lime Company for agricultural purposes.
At the quarry the limestone is a thinly bedded blue-gray rock, dipping
about 30° to the southeast. A short distance farther south, between
Ashford and Avery, the stream and the tracks of the Carolina, Clinch-
field and Ohio Railway run over quartzite dipping 45° "N. "W. South
of Ashford the valley widens to about % mile and is underlain for the
most part by limestone.

On the lower slopes of Linville Mt. about % mile southeast of Avery
Station and about 200 feet above the railroad track are several limonite
deposits in a line trending about K". E.-S. "W., and higher up on the
mountain to the northeast are other deposits. At all the occurrences
the ore appears to lie on the quartzite, forming a veneer on the slope
facing the railroad. At any rate, no exposures are to be seen between
the ore layer and the track except here and there in the railroad cuts,
where a decomposed sandy schist containing ore veins is occasionally en-
countered. The slope of the ridge, where not covered with talus, has
about the same inclination as the dip of the quartzite, so that when the
limestone was removed by erosion the ore, if a vein, was left as a veneer
on the quartzite beds.

At only one point has the ore been opened, and at this point it has
not been sufficiently uncovered to show its relations to the surround-
ing rocks. So far as can be judged, it occurs as a vein about 15 feet
wide dipping about 35° ~N. W.

Deposits of Brown Ikon Oees 69

DEPOSITS IN THE PIEDMONT PLATEAU

Although brown hematites are known to occur at many places on the
Piedmont Plateau, most of them are in small deposits, which do not
offer much prospect at present for profitable exploitation. The only
deposits of prospective importance are those in Catawba, Lincoln and
Gaston counties, and of these only those in Gaston County have been
developed.

DEPOSITS IN CATAWBA AND LINCOLN COUNTIES

The deposits in Catawba and Lincoln counties are described by Nitze
(1. c. p. 87) as occurring in a belt passing 2 miles east of Lincolnton.
They are said to be in mica schists, lying above a limestone, which
may be of Cambrian age. Search was made for some of the old
pits mentioned by Nitze, but none were found. They have been
abandoned many years and are now obliterated. The belt is
said to cross the Carolina and Northwestern Railway 2% miles south
of Lincolnton, but a traverse along the railroad revealed nothing but
micaceous schists cut by pegmatites and fine grained quartz veins many
of which contain tourmaline. No iron ores were seen but some of the
schists are very red. Nitze also reports the existence of old pits on
land formerly belonging to Cephas Quickel 2 miles east of Lincolnton.
He states that a line of pits extends from the Seaboard Air Line Bail-
way in a general southwesterly direction for 1*4 miles to the C. and
N. "W. Ry. A cut on this road, he writes, "exposes the talcose, or hydro-
mica schists, with small seams of yellowish, saccharine quartz, having a
strike of 3° to 5° east of north, very much folded; and this folded
structure evidently accounts for the great width of the ore-belt, which,
judging from the position of the old openings and the wide dis-
tribution of the float ore over the ground, which is comparatively level,
must be % mile. The ore beds here are reported to vary in thick-
ness from about 6 inches near the surface to 2 and 3 feet at a depth of
10 feet, with a general pitch toward the south, between walls of dark
red to dark yellowish slate, accompanied by seams of yellow saccharine
quartz. It is highly probable that the beds exist in pockets of irregular
thickness and extent. * * * The formation has been traced by sur-
face float some 4 or 5 miles each way * * * and its northeasterly ex-
tension is reported in Catawba County, where the ore was superficially
worked for some old forges in former years."

70 Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

A sample from the Quickel place contained :

Si02

P ratio

4.94

54.32

.037

.840

1.546

DEPOSITS IN GASTON COUNTY

General: — In Gaston County brown hematites are found in two belts,
one in gneisses and schists immediately east of a belt of limestone, which
may be the continuation of that in Lincoln County, and the other in
quartzites about % mile still farther east. Both belts are short and
each is notable for one mine. Both mines are within a mile or a little
more of Bessemer City. The Ormond, which is on the western belt, was
at one time one of the best known mines in the State. The other — the
Little Mountain Mine — was noted because of the fanciful forms as-
sumed by its ore.

Mr. JSTitze's idea of the geological structure of the region is given in
a section, which, however, is of little value, partly because of the
scarcity of exposure of the rocks involved and partly because of the
indefiniteness of the rock determinations. The country has not yet
been mapped geologically, and until this is done it is useless to specu-
late upon its structure. There are practically no exposures in the
neighborhood of the Ormond Mine. At the Little Mountain Mine the
only rock exposed is the quartz schist that is associated with the ore.

Ormond Mine: — The Ormond Mine is about 1% miles west of Bes-
semer City in a series of talcose-quartz schists, on the northwest side
of the railroad. It is not now working, but some of the shafts and
many old pits are still easily discoverable, and on one of the dumps
is a large quantity of fresh rock. The pits extend in a line for a dis-
tance of about % mile in a direction about S. 20° W.

In the Tenth Census Report only a few words are devoted to the
description of the mine. Its greatest depth at the time had been
reached in the engine-shaft, which was down 80 feet. The ore is re-
ported to lie in lenticular masses 3 feet to 8 feet in thickness, the south-
ern end of one lying east of the northern end of the one beyond it. The
dumps "contained two kinds of ore intimately associated in the same
pieces ; the first is very dense, hard enough to scratch glass, has a brown
streak like limonite, and is distinctly magnetic; it is not at all gran-
ular, and in appearance closely resembles many of the dense homogene-
ous limonites. The other is dark colored, fine grained, and slightly

Deposits of Brown Ikon Oees 71

friable; it shows lamination, has a very dark almost black, slightly
reddish streak, and is also magnetic." An analysis of a sample of the
mixed ore gave: Fe=65.82, P=.092.

At the time of the visit of the Census geologists the mine had been
developed to a slight extent only, but when Nitze visited it, he was
able to describe it (1. c. p. 97) more in detail.

Nitze remarks that the deposits have been worked at intervals as
far back as the Revolutionary War. "The country rock is a quartzitic
talcose schist, argillaceous and decomposed to considerable depths,
striking N. 25° to 30° E., with a dip of from 70° to nearly 90° N. W."
He finds 4 types of ore: a hard black jointed ore containing generally
less than 5% water, possibly to be classified as turgite; a hard black
homogeneous ore, slightly magnetic; a porous limonite and a loose, pul-
verulent, bluish black powdery ore. The latter "may be considered a
decomposed variety of manganiferous block ore" since it "is often found
filling up the interstices formed by the joints and cracks in the same."
The ore is declared to be in overlapping lenses with a general north-
westerly dip. They are connected with each other by small stringers
of ore along which there is a flow of water. The "hanging wall is
usually a decomposed gneiss or slate and the foot wall a soft, black
muck, which has been found to contain a considerable amount of fine
black ore." The lenses varied in thickness from less than 3 to more
than 28 feet, but their length and heights had not been developed. In
all they occupied a belt from 50 to 100 feet wide.

On the western drifts of the lower level, 173 feet below the surface,
at shaft No. 4, limestone was found, which Nitze thinks is the western
boundary of the ore formation. It dips about 45° "W. and shows "signs
of erosion" where in contact with the ore. This limestone, of which
there is "great quantity on the dump, is a thinly bedded, gray and
white, very sandy variety. This is not exposed anywhere on the sur-
face, but just west of the pits is a little ridge of very friable white sand-
stone." Nitze's statement, quoted above, that the hanging wall of the
ore is a "decomposed gneiss or slate" must refer to individual lenses,
for the hanging wall of the belt of lenses, or what Nitze calls the "ore
formation", is the limestone.

At the time of ISTitze's visit the mine was working in three different
ore bodies. One, 30 feet south of the shaft, was a mass of solid
block ore 28 feet thick. (Analysis I.) Another, 100 feet north of the
shaft, was a body of similar ore 12 feet thick and at least 30 feet long.
Its composition is shown in II. The third was a lens 7 feet thick lying
against the limestone. The composition of a sample taken from 2

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

cars of mixed ore that had been prepared for shipment by crude wash-
ing in a trough is shown in III, and that of the tailings from this ore
in IV. Analysis Y is of a black powder ore.

Si02

P ratio

I. Block ore, from 28 foot lens.

64.40
63.52
52.39
43.50
65.35

.048

.036
. 033.
.079
.155
.007

.055

II. Block ore, from 12 foot lens

.051

9.72

.150

IV. Tailings from III .. .. . .

.333

V. Black powder ore.. .

1.55

.010

Since the shipping ore was imperfectly washed in a trough it is
probable that with more careful manipulation in a log washer it might
be raised to Bessemer grade. This probability seems reasonable in view
of the fact that the specimens of the block ore, which must have con-
stituted a large proportion of the shipping product, were well under the
Bessemer limit.

Nitze gives several figures of sections through the mine at various
places, but they are so unlike that they apparently possess little sig-
nificance. In none of them is there shown any of the quartzitic tal-
cose schist that is said to be associated with the ore bodies, nor is there
anything to show that the deposits are in overlapping lenses. The im-
pression gained from a study of the sections is that the ore bodies are
very irregular masses lying in the schistose planes of foliated rocks,
or at the contacts of pervious and impervious layers. The erosion of
the lower contact of the limestone in ~No. 4 shaft suggests corrosion
by water. It may signify that the origin of the ore at the Ormond
Mine is analogous to that of the ore in the mines in Cherokee County,
and that in the case of the Ormond Mine the source of the iron was in
the limestone.

During its life the mine was a large producer. During the first
eight months of 1892 about 5,000 tons of ore were shipped. The mine
was then closed, refinanced, and more effectively equipped, and it pro-
duced regularly for several years thereafter.

The belt on which the Ormond Mine is situated has not been traced
beyond the old mine workings in either direction. There are prob-
ably a number of lenses in the mine property that have not yet been
discovered, but whether the belt extends to the northeast or southwest
is not known.

Little Mountain Mine: — The Little Mountain Mine, or the Devil's
Workshop, is about one mile southwest of Bessemer City Station on
the crest of a little hill of quartzite or, perhaps better, quartz. On the

Deposits of Brown Iron Ores

ridge of the hillock are outcrops of fractured quartz, cemented by
quartz. In some places the quartz is broken by gashes. In others it
is crossed by quartz veins. In other places sharp edged fragments of
quartz lie in a quartz cement. In many places the cement is porous,
or cavernous, and the walls of the holes are lined by quartz crystals.
The ore is in the cracks and caverns.

Mr. "Willis in the Tenth Census Report (p. 321) describes the ore as
limonite altered from siderite or calcite. He writes that "portions of
it are mamillary and stalactitic, but the greater number of specimens
show pseudomorphs after rhombohedra. It incloses large crystals of
quartz, sometimes 3 inches through, whose surfaces bear the impres-
sions of rhombic crystals. Associated with this limonite is an earthy
friable ore, which also shows pseudomorphs after rhombohedra, but
has a dark-reddish streak, and it is apparently manganiferous." The
ore is said to occur in a vein, 8 feet or 10 feet wide, with vertical walls
of siliceous slate. Its strike was recorded as "N. 30° E. Some of the
ore was described as containing also large apatite crystals.

Analyses of the limonite and the manganiferous ore, taken from
piles containing about 10 tons each, resulted as follows :

Limonite

Manganiferous Ore

1.63

Si02

5.28

.24

FeO

.29

86.75

Fe203

82.92

.25

AI2O3

1.33

1.00

MnO

4.11

.24

CaO

.52

.13

MgO

.16

.169

FeS2

.211

NiS

CoS

CuS

.15

CO 2

.14

.023

P205

.017

.06

C in carbonaceous matter

.03

.33

H20-

.62

9.30

H20+

4.24

100.272

Total

99.868

61.00

58.37

.009

.005

Nitze (1. c. p. 102), who examined the mine after it had been more
extensively developed repeats the statements of ^Ir. Willis, except that
he declares the ore to be limonite, goethite and turgite, with a strike
K 37° E. and a dip of from 75° K W. to vertical. He repeats the

Deposits of Beown Iron Oees

statement that it is in a distinct vein between parallel walls, and that
it is probably pseudomorphous after siderite or calcite. He gives no
evidence corroborating his conclusions, but evidently is satisfied to
follow Mr. Willis, without discussion.

He describes the vein matter as consisting of an admixture of crystal-
line quartz and ore in varying proportions, lean on the outcrop but be-
coming richer with depth, until at the bottom of the 60 foot shaft the
vein material is nearly pure ore. "This ore assumes some of the most
grotesque and beautiful shapes, * * * — hard, massive; porous, honey-
combed; stalactitic; botryoidal; mammillary; pisolitic; reniform; soft,
earthy; etc., etc."

At the time of his visit the outcrop had been explored by a trench
270 feet long, from 3 to 10 feet wide and from 3 to 20 feet deep. Two
shafts had also been sunk, one at the southwest end of the trench and
the other about 175 feet farther northeast. In the northeast shaft the
vein matter was "profusely mixed with quartz" to a depth of 30 feet,
beyond which point the proportion of quartz diminished until at its
bottom the shaft was in pure ore, 10 feet wide. Drifts proved the vein
to vary in thickness between 10 feet and 27 feet. At the 50 foot level
a crosscut into the quartz hanging passed through 17 feet of quartz
into a second vein of ore. Analysis of the ore from the bottom of this
shaft (I) and from across the vein on the 50 foot level (II) are
quoted below. Analysis III is of a sample taken from a stock pile of
50 tons of ore raised from the southwest shaft. Short drifts from this
shaft at the 25 foot and 54 foot levels developed ore at least 8 feet wide
but at no point was its extreme width established.

SiOz

P ratio

6.67
7.90
11.96

54.32
53.75
52.70

.45

.017
.045
.022

.031

.011

.083

III

.041

Mtze declares that the ore does not require washing, but that it may
be improved by crushing and jigging. He also states that from a
point 264 feet S. 40° W. from the southeast shaft a tunnel was driven
100 feet in a direction N. 10° E. but failed to strike ore.

When the writer visited the mine it had been abandoned and the
trench had been partly filled, so that access to the vein was impossible.
However, good exposures were found on the walls of the trench and

Deposits of Bkown Ikon Obes

good outcrops on the hill near the trench. As has been said, the quartz
is crushed and the fragments that resulted from the crushing are
cemented by quartz. Thus the quartz is in many places crossed by
quartz veins, many of which contain vugs lined with quartz crystals.
On the strike of the trench and on its walls, however, the cementing
quartz appears to be replaced in part by ore, and the walls of open
gashes and of vugs are coated with ore material. The ore is mainly in
crusts lining the walls of crevices and in botryoidal and stalactitic
forms in vugs. It often encloses quartz crystals and coats them concen-
trically. Usually there is a mass of earthy or porous limonite next to
the walls, or a mass of platy limonite in which the plates are thin and
arranged parallel to the walls. Next to this and surrounding quartz
crystals that penetrated the vug spaces are layers of fibrous goethite
about % inch wide. Often the goethite does not entirely close the space,
in which case its exposed mammillary surface is covered with a lustrous
black enamel.

An analysis of a sample of compact ore, made by Mr. E. T. Erickson,
in the U. S. Geological Survey laboratory, yielding this result:

Fe203

MnO

FeO

H20 above 105°

81.84

.15

.00

11.81

Goethite (FeO (OH)) contains 10.1% and limonite (Fe403(OH)6)
contains 14.5% of water. The sample is a mixture of approximately
60% of goethite and 40% of limonite.

Another type of the ore is a cellular mass of goethite, made up of thin
plates enclosing cells of rhombohedral shapes as though the iron hydrox-
ide had developed in the cleavage cracks of some rhombohedral mineral.
Where massive, rather than cellular, the mass is a reddish brown color,
and it often exhibits a rhombohedral cleavage. The writer saw none
of the impressions of rhombohedral crystals on the quartz as described
by Willis. However, the rhombohedral cleavage of some of the massive
goethite and the rhombohedral cavities in the cellular varieties suggest
that some rhombohedral mineral was present in the crevices before the
iron hydroxide was introduced. It is possible that this was siderite. If
this is so, it was oxidized to iron hydroxides, and later supplies of iron
hydroxides coated the surfaces it found, whether they were surfaces of
the hydroxide that had replaced the carbonate, surfaces of quartz crystals
that extended into cavities, or surfaces of cracks that had contained no
carbonate.

76 Deposits of Brown Ikon Ores

The sequence of events seems to have been: 1, the shattering of the
quartz ; 2, the introduction of silica forming quartz veins and the crys-
tals in the vugs ; 3, the introduction of a carbonate ; 4, the introduction
of iron hydroxide that (a) replaced the carbonate and (b) formed the
fibrous coatings of goethite. The iron hydroxides may have been brought
from some outside source, or, if the carbonate was siderite, a part might
have resulted from the oxidation of this carbonate in place and a part
from the oxidation of solutions of a similar carbonate higher up in the
deposit. The carbonate certainly originated elsewhere. There is no
marble in the series of rocks near the Little Mountain Mine, but the
layer found in the Ormond Mine, if it keeps its strike to the southwest,
cannot be more than a mile distant on the surface. i

The vein of the Little Mountain Mine has been traced for several
miles to the southwest by its outcrop of ferruginous quartz, and two
small pits about 1% miles from the mine have uncovered conditions
similar to those near the surface at the mine.

OEE RESERVES IN CATAWBA, LINCOLN AND GASTON

COUNTIES

There are a few deposits of brown ore known in these three counties,
other than those described above, but none of them are large enough to
be considered even probable sources of ore. The Ormond and Little
Mountain mines may contain fair quantities of ore, but they are so
much more expensive to operate than the deposits in Cherokee County
or similar deposits farther northeast in Virginia that they are not likely
to be able to compete with these in the near future.

STATE LIBRARY OF NORTH CAROLINA

3 3091 00772 7738

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