196 THE IRON ORE DISTRICT OF EAST TEXAS. 



posit on Mr. B. Wofford's land, about three-quarters of a mile southeast of 

 A thens, is reported as showing the clay to be thirty feet thick and to contain 

 numerous leaf impressions in the lower divisions of the beds. 



A deposit of a bright red colored clay occurs on the top of a hill on the 

 south side of the J. B. Attwood head right. This deposit is four feet thick 

 and is covered with a thin ferruginous, gravelly soil, and lies upon a red 

 colored sand. 



A deposit of dark blue lignitic clay occurs underneath a deposit of lignite 

 on the southwest side of the C. M. Walters headright. This deposit is four 

 feet, and possibly more, in thickness. 



The clays of the county may be divided into three divisions, viz.: 1st. 

 Clays suitable for building materials, such as the common building bricks, 

 ornamental or front pressed bricks, and terra cotta ware 2nd Refractory 

 clays, or clays suitable for the manufacture of furnace and cupola linings, fire 

 bricks, fire backs for grates, etc. 3rd. Pottery clays, or those suitable for 

 the manufacture of ordinary earthenware. 



1. BRICK CLAY. 



Extensive deposits of clay suitable for the manufacture of ordinary red 

 building bricks form the surface deposits in many portions of the county. 

 At the Texas Fire Brick and Tile Company's yard fine red colored pressed 

 brick, suitable for frontal purposes, have been made from a mixture of the 

 overlying brown sandy clay and the upper or stained part of the company's 

 fire clay bed. Bricks made from this mixture and repressed by a Raymond 

 press take a fine skin and clear red color. These brick burn very hard and 

 solid. 



A bright red clay found on the south side of the J. B. Attwood headright 

 is used by Mr. Henry Morrison as a mixture with the upper lying division of 

 his white clay bed for the manufacture of an ornamental brick. These 

 bricks burn hard and have a strong tendency to glaze. The ornamentation 

 on these bricks burns sharp and clear. Paving tiles and blocks are also made 

 from this mixture and appear to serve this purpose very well. Some portions 

 of the streets of Athens have been paved with these tiles for several years, 

 and as yet do not show any signs of breakage. 



Ordinary building bricks are made from the brown sandy clay overlying 

 Mr. Morrison's white clay, but these bricks have a tendency to split in the 

 burning. 



Ordinary building bricks have been made by several parties around Athens, 

 but with the exception of a few made by Mr. Morrison no continuous work 

 in this class of building materials is carried on. Bricks made from mixtures 

 of these clays when burned hard have a pale brownish gray color, spotted 

 with iron stains, and are extremely hard. 



