Texas Almanac, 1939-1940 Page: 226

                                
226                 THE TEXAS ALMANAC.-1939.

OTHER METALS.
There are considerable evidences of man-
ganese deposits in Texas, and there has been
much interest because of the scarcity in this
country of this essential metal to the steel
industry. Nearly all the manganese used in
the United States is imported. Manganese
ores are found in Presidio, Brewster, Terrell,
Maverick and Burnet Counties. During the
World War, when there was a great premium
on manganese, there were shipments of sev-
eral hundred cars from Texas. There have
been some small shipments for experimental

purposes during the last few years. Though
quantity is unproven, there is sufficient evi-
dence to lead reliable authorities to believe
that deposits may be developed some day.
Manganese is the principal metal used in giv-
ing steel the quality of hardness without
brittleness.
Some evidences of tin are found in Huds-
peth and El Paso Counties. This is another
metal in which the United States is deficient,
most of the supply being imported. Very
little is known about the quantity and quality
of Texas tin deposits.

Construction Material Minerals.

Next to fuels and minerals adapted to use in
chemical    industries,   the    construction
materials of Texas are of significance to the
future economic development of the state.
Because of the weight of most construction
materials in relation to value, these commodi-
ties are usually not shipped long distances to
market. However, the abundance In Texas
of practically every type of construction ma-
terial found among the minerals furnishes the
state with stone, sand and gravel, cement,
asphalt, and clay and gypsum     products for
the future building program    that will ac-
company industrial expansion.
PORTLAND CEMENT.
Limestone and marls and shales suitable for
manufacturing Portland cement are found
throughout a wide area in the limestone re-
gion of Texas. There are two cement plants
each at Dallas, Houston and San Antonio and
one cement plant each at Fort Worth, Waco
and El Paso.     The principal deposits are
found in the Blacklands and Grand Prairie
territories, the Edwards Plateau and Trans-
Pecos. There is no surface limestone in the
coastal belt but two cement plants operate
at Houston, utilizing shell that is dredged
from the shallow bays of the Gulf in great
quantities. Though not properly classed as
a mineral resource this mudshell-the accumu-
lation of thousands of years on the oyster
shoals-occupies an important place in Tex-
as industry. Something like 2,000,000 cubic
yards are dredged from the bays annually
and carried by barge lines to Gulf Coast
points.
Production and value of Texas cement:
(In thousands.)
Prod'n                  Prod'n
Year.   (Bbls.) Value.  Year.   (Bbls.) Value.
"1894 ..     8    $24   1919 ... 2,319 $4,226
1895 ...    10     30   1920 ... 2,562   5,765
1896 ...     8     24   1921 ... 2,669   6,171
1897 ...     7     23   1922 ... 3,730   7,515
1898 ...     8     24   1923 ... 4,178   8,011
1899 ...   t      t     1924 ... 4,488   8,323
1900 ...    26     52   1925  .. 4,736   8,729
1901 ...   t      215   1926 ... 5,007   9,523
1902 ...   165    234   1927 ... 5,656 10,232
1903-08   t      t      1928 ... 6,231 10,938
1909 ...   656    809   1929 ... 7,084 11,806
1910 ... 1,292   1,644  1930 ... 6,972 10,782
1911 ... 1,700   1,785  1931 ... 6,265   8,281
1912 ... 1,763   2,062  1932 ... 3,798   4,862
1913 ... 2,109   2,663  1933 ... 3,091   5,269
1914 ... 2,100   2,680  1934 ... 3,418   5,996
1915 ... 1,939   2,500  1935 ... 3,715   6,427
1916 ... 2,213   3,010  1936 ... 5,853 10,077
1917 ... 2,359   3,661  1937 ... 6,688 11,489
1918  .. 1,919   3,298
*Prior to 1894 there was no production of Port-
land cement but a considerable output of hydraulic
cement. In 1890 the production of hydraulic ce-
ment amounted to 40,000 barrels valued at $40,-
000. The output dwindle and was last reported in
1902 when the production was 17,000 barrels val-
ued at $28,900.
tNot reported.

STONE.
Texas has an endless variety of stone
,adaptable to construction purposes. A large
part of the state is underlaid by limestone,
and numerous quarries have been opened.
Those near Cedar Park in Williamson Coun-
ty probably have had the greatest produc-
tion in recent years. Limestone is quarried
also in Jones, Wise, Coryell, McLennan, Dal-
las, Tarrant, Bosque, Travis, Comal, Bexar,
El Paso and other counties. Sandstone is
found in many sections of the state, varieties
of which are used for ornamental trimming.
Marble is found throughout the limestone
areas, much of which is adaptable to both in-
terior and exterior construction purposes.
Much of the limestone and marble of Texas
is of rare beauty.
Texas Granites.
Most notable of the Texas stone resources
are the granites of the Burnet-Llano and
Trans-Pecos areas. The first granite quarry
to be operated on a large scale in Texas was
that at Granite Mountain near Marble Falls
in Burnet County which was opened in the
early '80s to produce stone for the present
State Capitol. It has been in operation ever
since. Besides the pink granite produced at
this and some other quarries in the Central
Basin area there is a variety of gray and
opaline granites that command a large mar-
ket. A number of quarries operate around
Llano. Some fine grades of granite are found
in the Trans-Pecos mountains but distance
from rail transportation has not permitted
development to date except on snall scale.
There are some deposits of basalt, or trap-
rock, principal production beln from Uvalde
County. Intrusions of this igneous stone
rise to the surface in a number of places
along the Balcones Fault line from Austin to
the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass.
An investigation made by the bureau of eco-
nomic geology at the University of Texas
several years ago revealed several hundred
kinds of commercially valuable stone in the
area west of Austin, including Travis, Bur-
net, Llano, Mason, Lampasas, Gillespie and
San Saba Counties. A display of these is
maintained at the bureau's headquarters at
the university.
Production and value of stone in Texas:
(In thousands.)

Yea
1917
1918
1919
1920
1921
1921
1922
192(
1925

Prod'n
r.    (tons.)
8  .    *
9 ...... 599
...... 680
L ......1,045
2 ......1,336
3 ......2,201
4 ..2...2,207
5 ......2,503
6 ......3,117
7 ......3,268
*No report.

Val.
$697
647
630
890
1,243
1,314
2,102
1,887
2,242
2,595
2,535

Prod'n
Year.     (tons.) Val.
1928 ..... 3,130 $2,522
1929 ......3,647 2,949
1930 ......2,808 2,496
1931 ......1,235 1,181
1932 ...... 920 1,366
1933 ......1,216 1,141
1934......2,749 2,183
1935 ......1,246 1,404
1936......2,048 2,324
1937......2,149 2,219