MISSOURI IRON ORES OF THE CARBONIFEROUS AGE. 651 



LOWER CARBONIFEROUS ORES. 



These are found in large masses and good quality in Benton, Henry, Dade, 

 Cedar, Green, Christian and Lawrence counties in Southwest Missouri, and 

 may be referred to the age of the Ferruginous sandstone of the Missouri 

 Geologists which is probably a member of the Chester group of Southern 

 Illinois. 



In Christian county, in S. B. S. E., Sec. 24, Tp. 27, E. 24, are found large 

 masses of fibrous limonite. A shaft proved it to be over eight feet thick. 

 In Sec. 19, Tp. 27, E. 23, are also large beds of the same kind of ore ; also, 

 in Sec. 7 of the same Township and Sec. 14 and 15, Tp. 27, E. 24. The lower 

 caboniferous sandstones of Lawrence, Dade and Cedar counties are very 

 ferruginous, and may prove to contain valuable deposits of iron ore. Dr* 

 A. Schmidt, in Mo. Geol. Eept. 1872, speaks of iron ore banks in St. Clair 

 and Henry counties that are undoubtedly referable to the sub-carboniferous 

 age. The Brown bank in Sec. 23, Tp. 40, E. 24, in Henry county, on divid- 

 ing ridge between Osage and Grand rivers. The ore is red, earthy hematite, 

 partly changed into brown and yellow limonite, and associated with ferrug- 

 inous sandstone. 



The Collins bank in Sec. 23, Tp. 39, E. 25, St. Clair county, is an outcrop 

 of red, earthy hematite. A very good deposit is, apparently the Marma- 

 duke bank in Sec. 23, Tp. 39. E. 25, in St. Clair county. The ore is an 

 earthy red hematite and a yellowish brown porous limonite. At many ■ 

 places in the Southern portion of Callaway county, are exposuresof red hem- 

 atite which appears to belong to the ag& of the sub-carbonifBrous. The fol- 

 lowing were the chief localities observed: Sec. 22, Tp. 45, E 10. Shaft hill 

 in N. W. qr Sec. 4. Tp. 45, E. 10, has been worked, and the ore undoubtedly 

 passes horizontally (or nearly so) through a hill of 800 feet diameter, the 

 ore seam varying from one to five feet, is sometimes in regular layers, at 

 other places in nodules or lenticular concretions. A section of the hill 

 appears thus : From top: 



1. Flint. 



2. Eed hematite. 



3. Sandstone. 



4. Conglomerate of Flint and Sandstone. 



5. Sandstone. 



6. Encrinital Limestone. 



There is another on bank on Section N. Others also, three miles north 

 of New Bloomfield on the Fulton road. In Sec. 42, Tp. 46, E. 10, there is 

 also a fine outcrop of dense and fine grained red hematite. The ore here i& 

 two feet thick, dipping 20 deg. north. 



Near Holt's Summit are similar outcrops of stratified red hematite. 



Similar ore beds of sub-carboniferous age occur in Boone, Montgomery, 

 Warren and Lincoln, some of them, forming good beds of red ochre, or 

 as commonly called, " red keel." 



