1S53.] 



THE MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES OP AMERICA, 



37 



extracted from the Irish peat* The following are among the 

 most, desirable localities: — Canaan, Clinton, and the towns of 

 North-East, Washington Hollow, and Rhinebeck, in Dutchess 

 County, as well as many other places in the river counties. I am 

 inclined to believe that this substance, properly prepared, where 

 it is not underlaid with marl, may be used, in the reduction of 

 the hematite ores to advantage. 



Iron Ore. — As this ore is the most abundant mineral and its 

 use almost universal, it may not be out of place to notice some of 

 its important localities in the State of New-York. At Bethle- 

 hem, hematite and bog ores are found; at Calais, black oxide of 

 iron; at Canajoharie, hematite. On the West side of Lake 

 Champlain, in Washington, Essex, Clinton and Franklin Coun- 

 ties, is found, in unlimited quantities, magnetic oxide of iron 

 existing in gigantic mountains, and in veins and beds, from one 

 to twenty feet thick ; also, specular oxide of iron, iron sand, red 

 hematite, red oxide and brown hematite. At Catskill, specular 

 iron ore is found ; at Cold Spring, magnetic iron and iron sand ; 

 at Guilderland, bog ore; at the Highlands, magnetic oxide of 

 iron; at Hills lale, hematite ore ; at Malone, black oxide of iron ; 

 at Lyons, Wayne County, argillaceous oxide of iron ; at Monroe, 

 Orange County, Mack oxide of iron, very abundant (octahedral 

 iron) ; at New Lebanon, hematite; at New- York city and island, 

 ' large beds of bog ore, containing large quantities of manganese ; 

 the oxide of manganese is contained in hollow and friable jsebbles, 

 very pure ; red oxide of iron and green phosphate of iron at Staten 

 Island; black oxide of iron, hematitic iron and ehromate of iron, 

 in Oneida and Ontario counties, likewise lenticular iron ore, in 

 immense beds, and also in Madison County. Scaly red oxide of 

 iron occurs along the shore of Lake Ontorio ; and in Saratoga, 

 magnetic iron, hematitic iron, and magnetic oxide, lenticular, 

 argillaceous oxide of iron ; in fact, almost every town in the coun- 

 ty has workable veins or beds of iron ore. Lenticular, argilla- 

 ceous oxide of iron is found, also, in the town of Vernon; 

 arsenical iron in the town of Warwick; granulated oxide of iron 

 at West Point ; lenticular argillaceous oxide of iron occurs in the 

 town of Williamson and at Carthage, Jefferson County. In 

 Hamilton, Montgomery, St. Lawrence and Lewis counties, ores of 

 iron, in great abundance and purity, exist in the vicinity of dense 

 forests capable of furnishing fuei of the best kind, with water 

 powers of vast magnitude sufficient to propel the machinery 

 necessary for its reduction. As the coal fields of England, Scot- 

 land and Wales, are giving out, may we not hope soon to hear 

 the forests of Northern New York resound with the note of pre- 

 paration to make the hidden treasures of the earth subservient to 

 man, and thus for ever shut out the pauper product of the Old 

 World ? For whilst the English landed proprietors refuse to use 

 our sugar and our cotton because it is the product of slave labor, 

 we consent to use their iron, produced by a s^tem of slavery 

 that would make the iron itself sweat drops of blood were it 

 possible. 



Lead ores are found in the following localities : — Cambridge, 

 Canaan, Canajoharie, Carlisle, Catskill, Claverack, Florida and 

 Greenbush. In Lewis County, near the village of Martinsburg, 

 there is an extensive lead and zinc mine of great value, and which 

 cannot fail to 1 e remunerative to parties working the same. It is 

 on the estate of a Mr. Arthur. Lead is found also at Rhinebeck, 

 Salisbury, and Shawangunk Mountains. At the latter, the mine 

 has been worked both for lead and zinc at intervals, but it is 

 evident the vein is copper; and it will eventually be worked suc- 

 cessfully. At the Sing Sing silver mine, the vein is highly 

 argentiferous, accompanied with masses and sheets of metal ic 



* See Kane and Upjohn's report on value oflriah peat, to House of Lord?, 

 &c., 1S46. 



silver. It was extensively worked by Sampson Simpson, Henry 

 Remsen, Colonel James and others, from the year 1764 to 1776, 

 when the smithy houses were removed by the Continental army 

 to West Point. Valuable specimens of the metallic silver have 

 been preserved by the heirs of Mr. Simpson. Lead also occurs 

 in the towns of Vernon, Wawarsing, Westmoreland, White Creek, 

 and in several other localities. So far as I. am acquainted but 

 six of the mines are now worked, one at Wawarsing, the Ulster 

 lead and the Ancram mine, and one in Dutchess County near 

 the residence of Judge Boker, but with what success the writer is 

 unadvised ; also, in the northern part of St. Lawrence County, 

 they are working " the Great Northern," formerly " the Rossie" 

 lead mines, and the St. Lawrence Mining Company's mine, and 

 I believe both companies are producing lead. Copper also oc- 

 curs in several places in the State of New- York, of which the 

 following are the most prominent: At Shawangunk Mountains, 

 the yellow sulphuret; at Ancram, yellow sulphuret, and black 

 oxide, and "green carbonate of copper; at Canajoharie, green 

 carbonate of copper ; and at Catskill Mountains, green carbonate 

 or malachite of copper. Antimonial gray copper occurs near 

 Keesville in Clinton County ; at Florida there is a green carbon- 

 ate of copper ; also, at Fort Lee ; also, at Salisbury, in Saratoga 

 County. Green carbonate and yellow sulphuret of copper are 

 found at Staten Island; detached pieces of copper ore are fre- 

 quently met with near Fort Tomkins. Sulphuret of copperexists 

 near Ticonderoga ; copper is also met with in several places in 

 Wawarsing and Mamakaling vallies. At this time I am not ad- 

 vised of more than one copper mine worked in the State of New 

 York, and that is at Crown Point. It . is worked by Messrs. 

 Hammond & Co., but what results have been realized the writer 

 is not informed. 



Zinc ore occurs in several localities of which the following are 

 the most prominent: — Dutchess County; Columbia County; 

 Ancram; Wawarsing; Shawangunk Mountains; Martinsburg, 

 Lewis County; Verona and Westmoreland, Oneida County; Ca- 

 najoharie, Carlisle, Clinton near the College, Duphney, Florida 

 Highlands, Niagara Falls and Rome. The above locations pro- 

 duce sulphate of zinc, and ehromate and carbonate. Eventually 

 they will be worked when the price of labor is reduced or the de- 

 mand for lead increased. 



Sulphate of barytes is found at nearly all the localities of lead 

 and zinc ; also in the bed of the Genesee River near Rochester, 

 and at Pillow Point in Jefferson county, near Saeket^s Harbour; 

 also in the town of Smithville. 



Manganese. — Occurs on Manhattan Island, Staten Island, at 

 Ancram, and several other places in the State. Perhaps the 

 most important locality is near Martinsburg, Lewis county. 



Phosphate of Lime. — Many localities of this powerful fertilizer 

 are known to exist in this State ; the most important of these are 

 at Crown Point, and Mariah, Essex county. They have been 

 extensively worked. This mineral occurs in twenty-six different 

 places. One of which is in Washington county; one at 

 Anthony's Nose, and one at Lake George, and in most of the 

 magnetic iron mines in the State; also at the Highlands, also on 

 Manhattan Island. Phosphate of iron occurs also at West 

 Point. 



Gypsum. — This valual >le mineral exists in many parts of the 

 State. The following are amongst the most valuable localities : 

 Near Cayuga Lake, Cherry Valley, Chittenango, Galway, Lewis- 

 town, Oneida Creek, on the shore of Lake Ontario, and below 

 the falls on the Genesee River, at Rochester. In the absence of 

 the phosphate of lime, gypsum seems to abound ; and in that 



