Stuck and now owned by Mr. Fees, the Sand Vein was opened and showed about the same character as it did further west. East from here there are openings on properties of J. M. Smith, J. G. Snyder, R. Aigler, A. Aigler and finally on the Shipton farm, now owned by Jonathan Haines, where the ore-bed has deteriorated so much as to become practically worthless. In all these properties the Sand Vein was found from 18″–20″ thick, In this vicinity, however, the Danville bed, or “brown fossil” becomes better and has been opened in many drifts for the old Beaver Furnace. It is found from 5″–18″ thick and was mined near the outcrop first by the Paxton Furnace Company and afterwards by Messrs. Rook, Francis & Nutting. It occurs on the north side of the Ore ridge, which in the neighborhood of Aigler’s run is made up largely of the shales underlying the Ore sandstone. The dip is quite severe, amounting in places to 40°, and as the slope of the ridge is very gentle it would require very long drifts to reach this ore-bed by cross-cuts, and when reached it would be almost too thin to mine cheaply.
Mr. Boyer has a drift back of Paxtonville in this Danville bed, which developed 11″ of ore with a small parting, and near the house of Mr. Arnest, further west, the bed is from 7″–9″ thick. Both these latter places are in Franklin township and west of the latter the small synclinal basin develops, carrying the ore over a saddle beyond which it is developed as already described.
The Block-ore bed, overlying the Iron sandstone, is exposed on the north slope of the ridge in one or two places in the southeastern portion of Beaver township; but it is nowhere rich enough in iron to be of any value.
The Bird-eye fossil ore bed has not been opened in any portion of the range west of Paxtonville, although it has never been very diligently sought for in the presence of thicker and more accessible beds lying further north.
In Report F, pp. 26 et. seq., there will be found a considerable amount of additional detailed information concerning the different ore beds opened in this and adjoining townships prior to 1874, and as the region was very much more
