Texas Almanac, 1952-1953 Page: 233
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TEXAS MINERALS.
production from the Permian Basin area of
West Texas and from the Toyah Basin of
Culberson and Reeves Counties where it oc-
curs in association with gypsite. There has
been some production, notably from the
vicinity of Orla in Reeves County. Sulphur
from this area has been marketed principally
as a fertilizer.
Sulphur production from a new source be-
gan early inm 1951, when an oil company pro-
duced 1,108 tons from sour gas in Moore
County during the quarter ended June 30,
according to the State Comptroller. Under
construction was a plant in Ector County to
produce sulphur from sour gas on a large
scale.
Recent Texas sulphur production and value,
according to U.S. Bureau of Mines:
Production
Year- (L. Tons). Value.
1945 ... .......... 3,069,815 $49,117,040
1946 ................ 3.188,086 51,009,372
1947.............. 3,965.825 70,514,144
1948 ........... ... 3,973,201 71,500,000
1949 ....... ...... 3,678,196 66,208,000
*1950 ............... . 3,949,162
Salt
Oldest of the Texas mineral-producing
industries, there has been continuous pro-
duction of salt for more than 200 years,
beginning with the taking of salt from the
efflorescent deposits in the shallow salt
lakes of the Trans-Pecos and the Lower Rio
Grande Valley.
The salt mine at Grand Saline, Van Zandt
County, is the largest in the state and one
of the largest in the nation. There is also
a large salt plant at Palestine, Anderson
County, and there iS production from Fort
Bend, Harris, Brazoria, Duval, Nueces, Hidal-
go, Willacy and Hudspeth Counties. Most of
the salt production of the state comes from
salt domes or salt stocks, that are found
at many places beneath the surface of the
Coastal Plain. They are most numerous near
the coast, but are found also in East and
Northeast Texas. From deposits at the tops
of these salt domes all of the Texas sulphur
is produced, and from reservoirs around them
comes much of the Texas oil production.
Earliest salt production was from sal del
Rey in Hidalgo County, and to less extent
from Sal Vieja in Willacy County, in the
Lower Rio Grande Valley; and from the Salt
Flats in Hudspeth County, lying a short dis-
tance west of Guadalupe Mountain. Indians
trafficked in the salt from the beds of these
lakes before the coming of white men, and
they became the source of salt for large
areas in Southern and Western Texas and
Northern Mexico almost from the beginning
of Spanish settlement in -these areas. The
Salt War of 1877 resulted when private inter-
ests, filed on the land covered by the Salt
Flats and began levying a fee on those who
came to gather salt.
There was early development of salt pro-
duction from salt licks and salt brines after
the beginning of Anglo-American settlement.
There was considerable production for a num-
ber of years at Colorado City. Mitchell
County, also in Smith, Stonewall and Pecos
Counties.
Recent salt production and value in Texas
according to the U.S. Bureau of Mines:
Production
Year- (Tons). Value.
1945 ......... . . . 1,100,791 $3,490,820
1946 .......... .... 1,098,589 1.356,676
1947 ......... ..... 1,191,621 2,090,098
1948 ........... .... 1,354,109 1,712,169
1949 . .. .... 1,637,388 2.453,803
GRAPHITE
There are large deposits of graphite in
Texas, principally in the Burnet-Llano area,
*According to State Comptroller.and one quarry and mill was in operation
a few miles southwest of Burnet early in
1951, at a location where there has been
production for a number of years. There is
also a graphite mill at a deposit immediately
south of Llano but it was not in operation
early in 1951. Because of the small number
of producers, the Bureau of Mines has not
reported graphite separately since 1944, when
there was an output of 3,200,000 pounds,
valued at $185,264.
Texas Carbons.
Graphite is that form of nature's carbon
that is in the scale between anthracite coal
and the diamond. It is used for electrolytic
anodes, crucibles, lead pencils, as a lubricant.
and has other uses in modern industry.
Graphite is one of three forms of pure carbon
produced on commercial scale in Texas.
Largest production is of carbon black from
natural gas. (See p. 229.) A third form is the
activated carbon produced from lignite at a
plant at Marshall. (See p. 229.)
POTASH RESOURCES
Great potash resources exist in Texas in
the form of polyhalite, a compound of potas-
sium sulphate, calcium sulphate and magne-
sium sulphate, which is found in great quan-
tities in the Permian formation of West Texas.
Scientific interest was first directed to this
mineral by the discovery of potash salts in
a core test made near Spur, Dickens County.
in 1909. Tests later revealed that the poly-
halite deposit was especially deep in the
vicinity of Midland County, and a company
was formed to produce commercial potash on
a large commercial scale. The deposit has
not been developed, however, primarily be-
cause conventional methods of commercial
potash production have been applied princi-
ally to sylvite and carnallte which have
frnished most of the commercial production
of Europe. Development of the Texas deposits
of polyhalite was also possibly discouraged
by the subsequent discovery of a domestic
supply of potash in sylvite and carnalllte de-
posits at Carlsbad, N.M., and the beginning
of commercial production there.
MISCELLANEOUS MINERALS
Mineral Wool.-There has been a steady
production of mineral wool, or rock wool, in
Texas in recent years, though the statistics
on production are not released by the U.S.
Bureau of Mines, to avoid disclosing individ-
ual operations. Mineral wool is an insulation
material produced on air jet through molten
limestone, slag or other mineral material.
Mica.-There are numerous mica deposits
in the Trans-Pecos and some other points in
Texas, and there has been considerable com-
mercial production in the Van Horn Moun-
tains of Culberson County where there is a
mill for separating mica from feldspar and
quartz. There is some production of sheet
mica, but most of the production is in the
form of processed vermiculite for insulation.
Mica is found in appreciable quantities also
in Llano and other counties of the Central
Basin. The increase in air conditioning and
insulating may open the way for future devel-
opment of mica deposits.
Mineral Waters.-There are many mineral
springs and wells in Texas, and there is a
commercial production in the sale of the
waters in bottles and for the attraction of
tourists and health seekers. The two best-
known resorts in Texas are Mineral Wells
and Marlin. Wells are found, however, in a
large number of places, including Lampasas,
Brown, Hill, Cass, Bexar, Bowie, Brewster,
Burnet, Callahan, Dallas, Denton, Eastland.
El Paso, Ellis, Falls, Galveston, Grayson,
Gregg, Harrison. Hopkins, Hunt, Kaufman,
Lamar, Lavaca, Nacogdoches, Smith, Titus,
Tom Green, Travis, Williamson and Wilson
Counties. There is commercial production in
Mineral Wells, Palo Pinto County; Marlin,
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Texas Almanac, 1952-1953, book, 1951; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117137/m1/235/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.