LaSalle County IL Archives News.....Alum Spring June 27, 1868
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/il/ilfiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Matthew F Menardhx@gmail.com September 17, 2018, 5:48 pm

Ottawa Free Trader June 27, 1868
Alum Spring. - Mr. J. S. Morehead, of Vermilionville, in this county, 
exhibited to us a few days ago a bottle of water, taken from a flowing 
spring which he uncovered in digging for coal, said water being impregnated 
apparently to saturation with alum.  The spring is located within a hundred 
rods of the oil well near Vermilionville.  As alum is a salt of considerable 
value, being largely used in the arts, Mr. M. is not without hope that his 
discovery is of some importance.  The ordinary alum of commerce is a 
sulphate of alumnia and potash or other alkali, and is extracted by a 
somewhat tedious process from a mineral found in many parts of the world, 
called alum slate, or alum stone.  Water percolating through this slate or 
stone is always more or less impregnated with the alum, and has the subacid, 
astringent taste of the water shown us by Mr. Morehead.  Doubtless, by 
tracing his spring to its source, Mr. M. will find a stratum or quarry of 
the alum slate or stone of which alum is made, but whether it will pay to 
erect alum works to bring it into use, wiser heads than ours must determine.

Additional Comments:
This is John Snell Moorhead who moved to Remington, Indiana where he died

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/il/lasalle/newspapers/alumspri38nw.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/ilfiles/

File size: 1.8 Kb