196 GEOLOGY OF ILLINOIS. 



at Galva, known as the shafts of Messrs. Knox & Co., Cummings, John- 

 son, Lindsey, and Barnum. The following section, made at one of them, 

 illustrates the character of all. They are in a group, within a radius of 

 a mile or two, and are as much alike as coal shafts usually are, penetra- 

 ting the same seam, and put down near together through essentially the 

 same formations and superficial deposits. 



Section of Galva Coal Mines. 



1. Yellowish drift clay 32 feet. 



2. Hard rock, bottom softer and sandy 12 



3. Soapstone, top ligh* color, bottom dark color 14 



4. Black or dark colored slate 2 



5. Coal, with clay seams No. 6 4 



6. Fire clay, about 9 



The coal here is of good quality, and similar to the Kewanee coal. 

 The seam is probably identical with coal No. 6, of the general section of 

 the Illinois Coal Measures. At Galva the clay and shale partings are 

 not so well marked as at other points, and at some of the shafts indi- 

 cations of cannel coal may be seen along the top of the seam. 



At Kewanee, much capital is employed in the coal mining business. 

 During the past year (18G7) fifty-three thousand tons were raised here, of 

 which thirty-two thousand were shipped on the Chicago, Burlington and 

 Quincy Eailroad to various points, fourteen thousand were used by the 

 railroad company, and seven thousand were used for home comsump- 

 tion in Kewanee and neighborhood. The revenue thence derived, 

 amounted, during the year, to over one hundred and forty thousand 

 dollars. The productive mines are within a radius of three miles north 

 and east of the town. Within this small area, some eight shafts have 

 been put down, and twenty drifts driven in. The shafts are sunk from 

 the general level or face of the country ; the drifts are driven upon 

 the outcrops in some deep ravines, passing up from a good sized brook 

 three or four miles north of the town. The face of the country, among 

 these mines, is rough, and covered with a scattering growth of barren, 

 oak timber. 



The shafts are operated by the following companies and individuals : 

 The Platt Coal Company, Messrs. Walker & Co., Breckens & King, 

 McCartey & Kirby, K. Murchison, J. C. Bowerrnan, H. Martin, W. S. 

 Carnly, and one or two others of less note. Of these, the Platt Coal 

 Mining Company, whose mine embraces about one thousand acres of 

 land, located one mile east of the village, does by far the largest busi- 

 ness, and by some arrangement handles and markets all the coal dug in 

 all the mines in this vicinity. Their shaft is near the railroad track, and 

 they have a very convenient mode of loading the coal into the cars. 

 At the depot, there is also a large elevator-shaped building, used for the 

 purpose of feeding passing locomotives with their supplies of coal. 



