372 The American Geologist. December. 1903. 
Flathead County. 
This county is located in the northwest corner of the state, 
with Canada bordering on the north, and Idaho on the west. 
It is crossed by the Great Northern railroad from east to west, 
and Kalispell is its county seat. 
The coal beds in this county undoubtedly belong to the 
Cretaceous period and are quite extensive, and the coal is semi- 
bituminous to lignite, much better than many of the older de- 
posits in the state of the same formation. They are located 
near Columbia Falls, which is north and east of Kalispell, also 
on the main line of the Great Northern R. R. The product of 
the mines is, for the most part, shipped west to Spokane, and 
also is used in Columbia Falls. Kalispell. etc. This coal is not 
of the coking kind. 
According to the latest developments there are three fields 
in this county, located on the North, Middle and South Forks 
of the Flathead river. The only real work has been done on the 
N< irth Fork mines. The seams here are from eighteen inches to 
Twelve feet thick and have a slight dip. There are several seams 
and the area of this field is quite large. The following are an- 
alyses of the North Fork product : 
Water and Fixed 
Volatile Matter. Carbon. Ash. 
North Fork No. 1 5^- x 5 4°- 2 5 9.60 
North Fork No. 2 48.20 41.20 10.60 
North Fork No. 3 5 2 -55 36.58 10.87 
The material found in the North Fork mines is a semi-bi- 
tuminous coal. 
Missoula County. 
Missoula county, directly south of Flathead count)- and 
crossed by the main line of the Northern Pacific Ry., has sev- 
eral deposits, the best being a short distance from the city of 
Missoula. This is all lignite, and while there have been several 
attempts to work the various places, it has not proved of com- 
mercial value and none has been placed on the market. Un- 
less the material be made into briquets it will be some time be- 
fore the deposits will be used. Missoula county has an abund- 
ance of hematite iron ore, and in time the coals and cokes of the 
state probably will be utilized in smelting and refining this 
