THE  IRON  ORES  OF  NORTHEASTERN  TEXAS. 
By  Edwin  C.  Eckel. 
INTRODUCTION. 
GENERAL    DISTRIBUTION    OF    TEXAS    IRON    ORES. 
The  brown  hematite  iron  ores  of  east  Texas,  according  to  the 
reports  of  the  Texas  Geological  Survey,  occur  in  at  least  19  counties — 
Cass,  Morris,  Marion,  Upshur,  Wood,  Harrison,  Gregg,  Panola, 
Smith,  Van  Zandt,  Rusk,  Cherokee,  Henderson,  Anderson,  Houston, 
Nacogdoches,  Shelby,  Sabine,  and  San  Augustine.  To  this  list  should 
be  added  Cam]),  which  contains  at  least  one  workable  area  of  ore, 
and  also  a  number  of  counties  farther  south  than  those  named.  In 
the  counties  listed  above,  ore  districts  aggregating  1,000  square  miles 
in  area  were  located  by  the  Texas  survey. 
Another  ore  region  which  it  is  necessary  to  consider  in  connec- 
tion with  the  brown-ore  district  is  located  in  Llano  and  adjoining 
counties,  and  contains  workable  deposits  of  magnetite  and  specu- 
lar hematite,  both  of  which  will  be  important  in  any  future  develop- 
ment of  the  Texas  iron  industry. 
GEOLOGIC    WORK    IN    THE    ORE    DISTRICT. 
The  brown-hematite  district  described  above  lias  been  examined 
and  in  part  mapped  at  different  times  by  both  the  State  and  the 
United  States  geological  surveys,  and  the  principal  reports  on  these 
iron  ores  are  noted  in  the  list  beloAv.  By  far  the  most  complete  and 
detailed  survey  of  the  district  Avas  that  executed  in  1881)  and  1890 
by  Kennedy  and  other  assistants  on  the  Texas  survey,  and  their 
report  and  mapping  can  hardly  be  improved  upon  in  default  of 
accurate  and  large-scale  topographic  base  maps.  During  the  fall 
of  11)04  the  writer  made  a  rapid  reconnaissance  of  the.  northeastern 
portion  of  this  ore  district.  Two  ends  were  in  view — a  brief  report 
on  the  present  condition  and  future  prospects  of  the  iron  industry, 
and  an  examination  of  the  district  with  a  atcav  to  selecting  areas  for 
more  detailed  Avork. 
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