Post by klsm54 on Mar 22, 2009 17:45:59 GMT -4
Falls Creek was a major source of sandstone, for building purposes, and sand, for glassmaking, along with other uses, at one time. Here is some information on some of the quarries that I found in a report by the Topographic & Geologic Survey of Pennsylvania, on Glass Manufacture and the Glass Sand Industry of Pennsylvania, by Charles Reinhard Fettke, Ph. D., published in 1918.
Prominent outcrops of Pottsville sandstone occur in eastern Jefferson county north of Falls Creek along the line of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh railroad and the Ridgway Branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. During the summer of 1914 four sand companies, namely the Falls Creek Sand and Stone Company, the Gocella Stone and Sand Company, the Jefferson and Clearfield Stone and Sand Company, and the Silica Stone and Sand Company, were operating plants in this region. These companies are using sandstone from the same horizon as that which is exposed in the abandoned quarry at the Fitzpatrick Glass Company at Falls Creek, in Clearfield county.
Falls Creek Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Falls Creek Stone and Sand Company is located about one and three fifths miles north of Falls Creek, on a siding of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh railroad. The quarry is located on top of the hill at an elevation of about 125 feet above the level of the railroad, at the mill. It is connected with the latter by a gravity incline about 1000 feet long. A working face 480 feet long had been opened up, in a sandstone member of the Pottsville, at the time of the writer's visit in 1914. The following section was exposed:
Section at Quarry of Falls Creek Stene and Sand Company
Soil.................................................................1 ft.
Broken rock with some soil used
for crushed stone for concrete....................... 3 ft.
Massive sandstone upper 38 feet of
medium grained texture, lower 12 feet coarse
grained texture.............................................. 50 ft.
A considerable percentage of white quartz sandstone, suitable for glass sand was exposed in the quarry face, but reddish streaks discolored by iron oxide are distributed irregularly through much of it, and other portions are stained brown by limonite, thus spoiling it for glass sand. Careful sorting would therefore be necessary in order to use very much of the output of the quarry for glass sand. At present none of the output of the quarry is used for this purpose, although one or two trial cars of glass sand have been shipped, which gave satisfaction. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher, a 9 foot Stevenson grinding pan, screens, bucket elevators, a boiler and an engine. A long steam pipe runs from the boiler at the plant to the quarry, to supply steam to the machine drill. On account of excessive condensation of the steam this arrangement has not proven very satisfactory.
Gocella Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Gocella Stone and Sand Company is situated about 2,000 feet west of Harvey's Run Station, on a long spur of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh Railroad. Only a small quarry has been opened up, with a working face about 35 feet long. In it the following section was measured:
Section at Quarry of Gocella Stone and Sand Company
Soil ............................................................3 ft.
Medium grained sandstone........................5 ft.
Very coarse grained sandstone ................10 ft.
Fine grained sandstone............................. 7 ft.
A large amount of loose talus material occurs at this site, which has been drawn largely upon to supply the mill with sandstone. No glass sand has been produced however the output having been sold largely for furnace sand, engine and motor sand, and building sand. The plant is equipped with a No 5 jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan, together with the necessary bucket elevators, screens, etc. During the writer's visit in September 1914 the mill was not in operation.
Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company is located about one and one fourth miles north of Falls Creek, on a siding of the Ridgway Branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. The quarry of the company is located at the top of the hill above the plant. It is about 135 feet above the level of the track at the mill, and is connected with the later by a gravity incline. A quarry face about 200 feet long, running nearly north and south, has been opened up. The following section is exposed:
Section at Quarry of the Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company
Broken stone with some soil used for
crushed stone for concrete..........................8 ft.
Massive sandstone.....................................48 ft.
At the south end of the quarry, the lower two thirds of the sandstone consists of nearly white quartz sandstone, while the upper one third has a reddish tinge due to the presence of iron oxides. At the north end, the lower and upper one third are white in color, while the middle one third is reddish, and contains some very coarse grained, almost conglomerate rock. This coarse rock pinches out toward the south end. Otherwise the rock is fairly uniform in texture. Some glass sand is produced. During 1914 two or three plants were being supplied. It was used for window and ribbed plate glass.
In the quarry the stone is loaded into carts which are hauled to the head of the incline by mules. Here the stone is dumped into cars which take it down to the mill. It is the intention of the present operators to open another quarry along the cliff, a short distance north of the present one, so that when blasting is going on in one quarry the men can be loading rock in the other. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan for crushing the sand. The capacity is about 150 tons daily. The glass sand is passed over an 8 mesh shaking screen. It is not washed.
Silica Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Silica Stone and Sand Company is situated about three fourths of a mile north of Harvey's Run station, on a siding of the Ridgway branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. Thus far only talus boulders, of Pottsville sandstone, have been crushed into sand. No quarry has been opened There are no prominent outcrops at this place, the sandstone being every where covered by a considerable thickness of soil. This will make the opening of a quarry a rather expensive proposition. No glass sand has been produced by this company. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan, together with the necessary screens and bucket elevators, also an engine and boiler to operate the machinery[/i]
Prominent outcrops of Pottsville sandstone occur in eastern Jefferson county north of Falls Creek along the line of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh railroad and the Ridgway Branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. During the summer of 1914 four sand companies, namely the Falls Creek Sand and Stone Company, the Gocella Stone and Sand Company, the Jefferson and Clearfield Stone and Sand Company, and the Silica Stone and Sand Company, were operating plants in this region. These companies are using sandstone from the same horizon as that which is exposed in the abandoned quarry at the Fitzpatrick Glass Company at Falls Creek, in Clearfield county.
Falls Creek Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Falls Creek Stone and Sand Company is located about one and three fifths miles north of Falls Creek, on a siding of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh railroad. The quarry is located on top of the hill at an elevation of about 125 feet above the level of the railroad, at the mill. It is connected with the latter by a gravity incline about 1000 feet long. A working face 480 feet long had been opened up, in a sandstone member of the Pottsville, at the time of the writer's visit in 1914. The following section was exposed:
Section at Quarry of Falls Creek Stene and Sand Company
Soil.................................................................1 ft.
Broken rock with some soil used
for crushed stone for concrete....................... 3 ft.
Massive sandstone upper 38 feet of
medium grained texture, lower 12 feet coarse
grained texture.............................................. 50 ft.
A considerable percentage of white quartz sandstone, suitable for glass sand was exposed in the quarry face, but reddish streaks discolored by iron oxide are distributed irregularly through much of it, and other portions are stained brown by limonite, thus spoiling it for glass sand. Careful sorting would therefore be necessary in order to use very much of the output of the quarry for glass sand. At present none of the output of the quarry is used for this purpose, although one or two trial cars of glass sand have been shipped, which gave satisfaction. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher, a 9 foot Stevenson grinding pan, screens, bucket elevators, a boiler and an engine. A long steam pipe runs from the boiler at the plant to the quarry, to supply steam to the machine drill. On account of excessive condensation of the steam this arrangement has not proven very satisfactory.
Gocella Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Gocella Stone and Sand Company is situated about 2,000 feet west of Harvey's Run Station, on a long spur of the Buffalo Rochester and Pittsburgh Railroad. Only a small quarry has been opened up, with a working face about 35 feet long. In it the following section was measured:
Section at Quarry of Gocella Stone and Sand Company
Soil ............................................................3 ft.
Medium grained sandstone........................5 ft.
Very coarse grained sandstone ................10 ft.
Fine grained sandstone............................. 7 ft.
A large amount of loose talus material occurs at this site, which has been drawn largely upon to supply the mill with sandstone. No glass sand has been produced however the output having been sold largely for furnace sand, engine and motor sand, and building sand. The plant is equipped with a No 5 jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan, together with the necessary bucket elevators, screens, etc. During the writer's visit in September 1914 the mill was not in operation.
Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company is located about one and one fourth miles north of Falls Creek, on a siding of the Ridgway Branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. The quarry of the company is located at the top of the hill above the plant. It is about 135 feet above the level of the track at the mill, and is connected with the later by a gravity incline. A quarry face about 200 feet long, running nearly north and south, has been opened up. The following section is exposed:
Section at Quarry of the Jefferson and Clearfleld Stone and Sand Company
Broken stone with some soil used for
crushed stone for concrete..........................8 ft.
Massive sandstone.....................................48 ft.
At the south end of the quarry, the lower two thirds of the sandstone consists of nearly white quartz sandstone, while the upper one third has a reddish tinge due to the presence of iron oxides. At the north end, the lower and upper one third are white in color, while the middle one third is reddish, and contains some very coarse grained, almost conglomerate rock. This coarse rock pinches out toward the south end. Otherwise the rock is fairly uniform in texture. Some glass sand is produced. During 1914 two or three plants were being supplied. It was used for window and ribbed plate glass.
In the quarry the stone is loaded into carts which are hauled to the head of the incline by mules. Here the stone is dumped into cars which take it down to the mill. It is the intention of the present operators to open another quarry along the cliff, a short distance north of the present one, so that when blasting is going on in one quarry the men can be loading rock in the other. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan for crushing the sand. The capacity is about 150 tons daily. The glass sand is passed over an 8 mesh shaking screen. It is not washed.
Silica Stone and Sand Company
The plant of the Silica Stone and Sand Company is situated about three fourths of a mile north of Harvey's Run station, on a siding of the Ridgway branch of the Pennsylvania railroad. Thus far only talus boulders, of Pottsville sandstone, have been crushed into sand. No quarry has been opened There are no prominent outcrops at this place, the sandstone being every where covered by a considerable thickness of soil. This will make the opening of a quarry a rather expensive proposition. No glass sand has been produced by this company. The plant is equipped with a jaw crusher and a 9 foot Stevenson dry grinding pan, together with the necessary screens and bucket elevators, also an engine and boiler to operate the machinery[/i]
