Name/Title
S16.05.010Description
The Celotex Corporation gypsum mine facilities at Gypsum in Portage Township, Ottawa County, Ohio. After the gypsum-bearing rock was mined, an in-pit crusher reduced the size of the rocks to 2-3 inches. A conveyor then transported the rock to the plant, where the gypsum was separated from dolomite and shale by heavy-media separation. Commercial gypsum production in Ohio is from the F unit of the Salina Group where the gypsum occurs as nodules, lenses, and massive beds. Bedrock is from the Silurian Geologic Period.
REVIEW
For more information about the history of the Ohio's gypsum industry, see: "Gypsum in Ohio" by Mark E. Wolfe (Ohio Geological Survey, Ohio Geology Newsletter, 2001, No. 4) page 1+.
Gypsum was first recognized in Ohio in 1821. By 1822, a gypsum quarry had been established in Ottawa County.
The Celotex Company purchased all land and plant facilities from American Gypsum in 1939 and in 1946 changed from underground mining to an open-pit operation. The Celotex Company changed its name to The Celotex Corporation in 1964, and again had a minor name change in 1997 to drop "The" becoming Celotex Coporation. Since 1978, Celotex Corporation was the sole copmany mining gypsum in Ohio. In 2000, the United Kingdom company BPB plc acquired Celotex Corporation's wallboard and ceiling-tile buisness. In August 2001, the BPB-Celotex gypsum mine and wallboard plant were shut down ending 180 years of gypsum mining in Ohio.
This slide image included in the USGS National Digital Catalog for NGGDPP Grant G15AP00115 in FY2015.Context
Tall, conveyor belt arch with gypsum pile underneath. Celotex Corporation in Ottawa County,Ohio.