SHELBY COUNTY. 171 



No. 3 of the above section sometimes reposes on the coal. These 

 rocks preserve a slight southerly dip for ten miles, and are found on 

 Beck's creek at the south county line about the same distance above 

 the creek ; but northwardly for four or five miles they rise more rapidly. 



Economical Geology . 



On a small branch of the Kaskaskia river, four miles north-east of 

 Shelbyville, I was informed that there was a six-inch seam of coal. A 

 small pit has been dug here and some coal taken out, but the place was 

 filled up with debris at the time of my visit. The limestone No. 2 of 

 upper Coal Measure section crops out very near, so that it is probable 

 that this coal is the equivalent of that found on Limestone creek and at 

 Nelson's in Effingham county. 



Two coal beds are worked in this county ; the upper, sometimes spoken 

 of as the "Shelby coal," I refer to No. 15 coal; it varies in thickuess 

 from eighteen inches to three feet, but is generally about twenty-two 

 inches thick. It crops out on Copperas creek and at several places 

 above its mouth near Little Wabash river ; at the water's edge, near 

 Shelbyville, and occasionally for ten miles south ; on Richland creek 

 and its tributaries, on Bobinson's creek near the railroad, above on Mud 

 creek and Brush creek below Prairie Bird, and on Beck's creek at the 

 railroad. It is generally a firm, good coal, tolerably free from impuri- 

 ties. A good deal of labor and money has been spent at various places 

 in mining for it. The following are the principal places that have been 

 worked : 



At J. Young's, in sec. 24, T. 10 N., R. 6 E., several pits have been 

 dug, but at present the place is abandoned. On the west side of 

 Little Wabash river, in the north half of township 10 north, there have 

 been several workings for coal, but at present all are abandoned. In 

 sec. 10, T. 10 N., R. 6 E., Cornelius Barrett reports having passed 

 through three feet of coal in the bottom of a well thirty feet from the 

 surface. Coal has been taken out from several of the neighboring 

 ravines. Wm. Rudy's, J. Gallagher's, Henry Allen's on Richland creek, 

 and the railroad bank on Brush creek, have been worked at various 

 times. The coal at these places is above the ordinary stage of water in 

 the creek. At Mrs. Matthews', the coal was taken out of pits sunk in 

 the bed of a branch of Richland creek. Coal crops out at many places 

 within three miles of Lilly's mill, and is generally of easy access. A 

 good deal has been taken out on land of the heirs of Middlesworth, in 

 and near sec. 6, T. 9 N., R. 4 E. At these places it is easily mined. On 

 sec. 32, T. 10 N., R. 4 E., they have drifted a short distance in the hill 



