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Note: published 1890 as follows: "Salt springs were noticed by the very earliest settlers on YellowCreek; in fact, were known to the Indians as well as the four-footeddenizens of the forest, and when the government surveys were made,Section 34 was retained as public land containing valuable minerals.This, however, did not prevent the settlers from utilizing the springsin the manufacture of salt, which was then worth $8.00 a bushel in theOhio Valley. Henry Daniel in 1802 erected a small furnace for boiling the thesalt water. He sunk a hollow sycamore log in an upright position atthe spring, and from this, salt water was dipped into boiling kettles,producing about three bushels of salt per day. A crude processcertainly, but profitable at the then prevailing prices. When IsaacShane went there for salt in 1803 he found so many customers thereahead of him that he returned home without it. Wood was used for fuel in these furnaces, but about 1820 coal wassubstituted by Mordecai Moore who had salt water pumped into areservoir and conducted by means of wooden pipes back to the bluffwhere the fuel was obtained. But the supply from the springs waslimited and the brine weak, consequently the product was not nearlyequal to the demand. At this juncture, John Peterson, an ex-territorial constable,conceived the idea of boring a well. The facilities were very poor,the work being done by hand, assisted by a spring pole. Butperseverance prevailed and at a depth of 300 feet a flow of salt waterwas struck "strong enough to carry an egg". Other wells followed, anda plentiful supply obtained, In the meantime Mr. Moore had substitutedshallow pans for evaporating the water, superceding the old kettles,and carried on business for a number of years until competition atother points made it unprofitable. Stewart McClave purchased a part ofthis Section 34 in 1826, and just in front of the family residence onYellow Creek is a mound five feet high and several rods in diameter,composed of cinder, which marks the site of the old United States SaltWorks."
Note: !Henry Daniel is mentioned in "The History of Jefferson County, Ohio"
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