Posts Tagged ‘McEwen’

13
Jun

Coalville Has More Coal Veins

   Posted by: admin    in Coal mining, Coalville

The Fort Dodge Messenger: June 13, 1905

Coalville Has More Coal Veins

Favorable Prospects for New McEwen and Collins Mine.

The Shaft Has Been Finished

Was Pushed Down at Very Rapid Speed – Will Install Machinery and be Ready to Work Fifty Men by Next Winter – Excellent Facilities.

William McEwen of Coalville, was in Fort Dodge on Saturday and was able to report very favorable conditions on his new mine he is opening at Coalville. The Collins Brothers are interested with Mr. McEwen in the new mine which is located under the town of Coalville just alongside the railway track and near to the store. Many people had supposed that the coal deposits in this part of the town had been mined out long ago, but Mr. McEwen has demonstrated in his preliminary work of the past six months that there is a fine coal deposit there and he firmly believes it is of considerable size.

The prospecting drill demonstrated that there are two seams of coal, one at a depth of about 65 feet and the other about 80 feet down. Both veins are of lump coal of good quality and the top vein is about three and one-half feet thick and the lower four feet thick.

As soon as this was demonstrated and other drill holes had revealed the proof that a good many acres surrounding them were underlaid in the same way, Mr. McEwen started sinking a shaft and has just completed the work. It is a large shaft with three compartments, two for hoisting and the other for ventilation. The work was crowded with three shifts of men working eight hours each and the entire shaft was put down at an average speed of four feet per day. They went through some soft ground that required careful handling and through a great deal of very hard rock that needed large charges of dynamite. It was by no means an easy job to do so and the speed accomplished was very creditable.

Hoisting machinery will be installed and they will get the mine in shape to put large quantities of coal on the market this winter. Being right on the railroad track, they will be well equipped for shipping their product. They expect to work about fifty men net (sic – should be next) winter mining coal. There is but little water in the mine. They are able to hoist all that accumulates in the sump in twenty-four hours in about an hour and a half each day.

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