54 



NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



valleys and lowlands it is usually concealed by beds of sorted 

 gravels, sands and clays. These latter were deposited by the waters 

 which issued from the glacier during its retreat. In some of the 

 larger valleys, as those of the Hudson, Champlain and Genesee, as 

 well as in numerous smaller ones, the glacial waters were held 

 imprisoned for a time by dams so that they stood high above the 

 present levels, and the sands and clays were deposited in a series 

 of terraces in great thickness and in well-sorted arrangement. 



Beach sands are found on the shores of Long Island and Staten 

 Island and of some of the interior lakes, notably Oneida lake. These 

 are characterized by a degree of uniformity and purity which make 

 them valuable for many purposes. The sands that have been used 

 most extensively for glass making are found on Oneida lake. 



Production. The statistics of the sand and gravel industry, as 

 collected from the individual producers, give an approximation of 

 the total business, but it is not claimed that they are complete. The 

 figures for molding sand, however, are complete, as this branch of 

 the industry is conducted on a settled basis which admits of an 

 accurate canvass. The figures of building sand and gravel no 

 doubt underestimate the actual production, perhaps by as much as 

 15 per cent. The operations are so widely scattered and in many 

 places of so fugitive a nature that they can not all be included in 

 the canvass. 



Production of sand and gravel 



MATERIAL 



1912 



1913 



1914 



Building sand 



Molding sand 



$1 156 002 



422 148 



55 9io 



75 000 



840 669 



$1 102 688 



449 224 



38 57i 



75 000 



918 783 



a$i 151 521 

 310 727 



23 944 



75 000 



650 895 



Fire and core sand 



Other sand b 



Gravel 





Total 



$2 5n9 729 



$2 584 266 



$2 212 087 





a Includes filter sand. 



b Includes glass sand, filter sand except for 1914, engine sand, polishing sand and core sand. 



Building sand. The main uses of this sand are for concrete 

 and mortar. It is produced in about every community of any 

 importance, inasmuch as almost any sandy material which is not 

 too diluted with mud or silt may be employed for some of the 

 purposes for which building sand is used. The more extensive 



