November 21, 2007
The Coal Fields of Mt. Alton and Lafayette Township
This is where we will begin our exploration of the coal fields of Mt. Alton and Lafayette Township. We will post more information in the coming weeks as we go through our sources.
The first report comes from the PAGenWeb McKean County, Pennsylvania site for Lafayette Township. The excerpt is from the "History of LaFayette Township from History of the Counties of McKean, Elk, Cameron, and Potter, Pennsylvania J.H. Beers, Chicago, 1890"
LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP
The Clermont coal deposit underlies the slate, shale and sandstone-capped peaks northeast and southwest of Alton, throughout the Lafayette plateau, and in the summit, southwest of Marshburg, where the cap rocks are deep, the coal is valuable, as in the old Davis mine, and in the old openings on the Newell, Bullock, Root and Whitman lands, the bottoms of all of which rest from 2,130 to 2,145 feet above tide level. This deposit is generally separated from the Alton upper coal layers by Johnson run sandstone, the thickness of which ranges from fifty to sixty feet; but near Bond Vein a black and blue slate occupied this position; on the Bullock lands a hard sandstone, and on the Matthews' lands a sandstone, separated by a six-feet deposit of red rock, rests on a twelve-inch bed of coal. The Alton deposit ranges from four to seven feet. It has been worked at Buttsville, Alton and Bon Vein. The latter mine was worked in 1877-78, by James E. Butts, for the Longwood Coal Company, giving three shallow beds above the bottom, third bed 2,034 feet above tide. The Malony mine showed six to eight feet of bony coal near the roof, and Alton coal, in two distinct beds, before reaching the hard, sandy, fire-clay deposit.
In July, 1863, the Lafayette Coal Company was incorporated, with William Cockroft of New York City, president. The Owen mine, near Buttsville, was opened years ago by Mr. Owen. In April, 1868, the Longwood Company - James E. Butts, E. Sears, I.P.T. Edwards, E.D. Winslow, G.P. Hayward, Lem. Shaw and W.F. Grubb, directors - began operations, 2,065 feet above tide level, on a solid two and one-half feet bench; but owing to its irregularity, work was abandoned. At James E. Butts' house the lower coal was found twenty-eight feet below the surface. In 1865 the Lafayette Coal Company began operations near Mr. Alton's log house, constructing a 280-feet slope to a point in the cannel and bituminous deposit, seventy feet below the level of the opening. This and several other shafts were abandoned. On the Hagadorn and Armstrong lands and at the old Davis mine explorations were made years ago.
The Seven Foot Knoll, on the Keating township line, was opened 2,053 feet above the tide level, and won its name on account of the four heavy coal benches discovered in a seventy-two feet hole, the coal being overlaid by thin beds of carbonate of iron; while in Shaft No. 1, opened 2,083 above tide, 270 feet southwest of the mouth of the drift, nodular iron ore takes the place of iron carbonate. In the vicinity several shafts were constructed, and the enterprise was carried so far by Allen Putnam, of Boston, as to explore near the old Butts saw-mill, on Three Mile creek, at an elevation of 2,037 feet. The drill went through 113 feet, meeting only two small seams.
Albert Beeman, who died near Mount Alton, in February, 1880, was credited with being the discovered of the coal beds about Alton and Lafayette. For years he was king of the hunters of this county, and was also farmer and lumberman.
© Sandy Payne, McKean County Pages
The following is an excerpt from the Flatt Family DNA Reconstruction Project page regarding coal in Corydon Township, with a mention of Lafayette Township:
Corydon Township:
Geologist Asburner, speaking of this section in 1878, states that the number of houses and shanties there could be counted on the fingers, and denied the assertion of local geologists in the matter of coal beds, asserting that never could coal be profitably mined here. He further termed it the "Barren Township," but acknowledged the existence of plateaus, to which he ascribed the general character of those in Lafayette township.
(The site states that the seated tax-payers of Corydon township in 1836-37 included Amos and Andrew Flatt. If you are from the Flatt/Vliet/Fleet/Flath/Flautt/Flat/VanVleet/Van Fleet/Van Der Vleet line you might want to contact them as they are arranging for DNA testing designed to "Reconstruct the Flatt/Van Der Vliet Family)
More to come!
©2007 MBPS
