JEFFERSON COUNTY. 755 



at the Mingo Shaft. At Mingo, Boreland's, and the Busted Shaft a 

 band of nodular limestone was found just below the fire-clay, as in the 

 Wills Creek boring. The coal below this shaft seam (No. 40 of the sec- 

 tion) was found in the "test well" 64 feet below the main coal, and in 

 the Rolling Mill Shaft at 44 feet below. In the boring at Mingo it is ap- 

 parently represented by a thin coal 52 feet below the Shaft Coal. The 

 coal seam, which lies sisty-two and one-half feet above the Shaft Coal 

 (No. 28 of the section) was passed in the Yocum well one-fourth of a 

 mile south of Wills Creek, It is there two feet thick, and is sixty-one 

 and one half feet above the main coal. South from this point it appar- 

 ently runs out, or is replaced by heavy beds of sandstone, deposited by 

 agencies which cut it away. 



The second coal, below the main seam at Wills Creek, (No. 46 of sec- 

 tion, 98 feet below the Shaft Coal, and said to be 5^ feet thick,) was 

 passed in the Yocum Well 92 feet below the Shaft Coal— the seam be- 

 tween not appearing in the record — and is perhaps the lowest seam 

 found in the " test well," 80 feet below the Shaft Coal. 



The registers of McElroy's and Yocum's borings are essentially alike, 

 except that the first coal under the main seam is apparently wanting in 

 the latter, and a limestone is indicated at about its place. The coal was 

 perhaps passed through but was too thin to be noticed. 



When we attempt to co-ordinate the coals of Wills Creek and Steuben- 

 ville with those of the northern part of the county, we find that the 

 observations yet made are not sufficient to rid the subject of all doubt, 

 and any conclusion reached must be regarded as provisional, until some 

 farther explorations shall be made between Island Creek and Wills 

 Creek. The chief and indeed only important question to be settled is 

 in regard to the equivalency of the Shaft Coal at Steubenville,. i. e., 

 which of the coals of the northern part of the county does this represent. 

 In the open-burning character of the coal it furnishes, the Shaft Seam 

 has most resemblance to Coal No. 7 — the Salineville " Strip Vein," 

 the Groflf and Cumberland Coals, and like these it has at Steubenville 

 no workable coal above it. Still the evidence has seemed to me stronger 

 that it is Coal No. 6, the equivalent of the "Big Vein" of Linton and 

 Salineville. This evidence is briefly as follows : — 



Ist. The intervals which separate the Pittsburgh Coal and the Cri- 

 noidal limestone from the Steubenville Seam, are greater than are any- 

 where else known to occur between these strata and Coal No. 7, the dis- 

 tance between the Steubenville Shaft Coal and Coal No. 8 being no- 

 where less than 500 feet, (502 to 560.) 



2d. On Indian Creek a coal is worked which is there known as 



