The Story of Asbestos

A silent film made about 1921 under the direction of the U.S. Bureau of Mines, illustrating the mines and factories of the H. W. Johns-Manville Company. Its title cards take the viewer from an asbestos mine in Arizona, where burros carry the hand-picked fibre down the mountain, to the open pit at Asbestos, Quebec, and its mill, and then through Johns-Manville's plant at Manville, New Jersey: the making of asbestos yarn, brake lining, packings, paper, pipe covering, roofing and 85% magnesia insulation. It ends at the Asbestos Wood Company factory in Nashua, New Hampshire, making shingles, Transite and Electrobestos. It is the earliest film in the Library.

What it says about asbestos and health

Nothing. The only dust the cards mention is dust to be taken out of the fibre ("sand and dust removed"), and the film shows men and women at work among the raw fibre, at the cobbing tables, carding machines and spinning frames.

About this copy

Our copy is the Library of Congress's digital transfer of its 16 mm print, from the Chazy School Collection, shown in full, 1:30:04 long.

Intertitles

The film is silent. These are its title cards, in order, as they appear on screen.

THE STORY OF ASBESTOS

Produced under the direction of the UNITED STATES BUREAU OF MINES. Illustrating the Mines and Factories of the H. W. JOHNS-MANVILLE COMPANY

Asbestos is a mineral consisting of fine fibres that are found in rock. The fibre is non-inflammable and may be handled the same as wool or cotton. The ancient Romans mined it in the Alps and used it for the manufacture of Cremation Cloth. For centuries it was regarded chiefly as a curiosity, but, with the discovery of practical uses, the world's production grew to a volume of from 35,000 tons in 1900 to over 146,000 tons in 1918. Its uses are now numbered in hundreds, the chief of which are, automobile brake band linings, asbestos paper, curtains, packings, building materials of all kinds, and many other products, the manufacture of which is shown in this picture.

We will first visit the asbestos mines located in Arizona and Canada and then see the various methods used in the manufacture of asbestos products.

Tunnels are driven into the side of the mountains in order to reach the ore containing asbestos fibre.

Miner at entrance of tunnel cobbing rock to remove the fibre for which he is paid so much per pound.

Burros coming up mountain side to receive load of bags containing picked fibre.

Burros leaving tunnel after receiving load.

Bags of fibre in transit to the storehouse. These animals are capable of carrying a load of three hundred pounds up or down the steepest mountain paths.

Mill where the fine fibre is separated from the crushed rock. This is done by passing the rock and fibre over shaker screens.

View of main tunnel showing car of waste rock being taken to the dump.

Burros bringing in timber and sand to be used for construction purposes.

Bringing in Supplies. All material used at the mine must be transported either by truck or burro for a distance of about 65 miles.

School-house at mine, attended by Indian and Mexican children.

Store and modern home built from stone quarried at the mine.

View showing fine texture and length of asbestos fibre as it is taken from the mine.

We will now leave Arizona and visit the mine located at Asbestos, Quebec, Canada.

After arriving at Danville, Canada, let us proceed to the location of the mine by the railroad owned by this Company.

Arriving at Asbestos, we get a general view of the city and mine from a high point of vantage.

THE MINE

How the mine appeared 20 years ago

The start of the day's work. Engines leaving the round house.

Drilling shot holes with air compressor drills.

Pulling out the steel bit and blowing out the hole before placing charge.

Loading for a shot. Dynamite being placed in hole and tamping with sand.

The blast.

Cobbers gathering Fibre after the blast. This is done for the purpose of grading the fibre

Cobbing Room. Where the fibre is removed from the rock by hand, for the purpose of assorting various grades.

Loading asbestos ore with steam shovel after blast.

Rock as coming from the mine being dumped into slip before crushing.

Turning on the air to raise the gate so that rock will fall around crusher.

Crushed rock running from crusher and being picked up by elevator.

After crushing, the rock passes through the dryer to remove all moisture before going through the various processes to separate the fibre from the rock

Tailings going over end of belt and up on elevator conveyor, on way to cars to be carried to dump.

Circular Screen.

Asbestos Grader. This machine sorts the fibres discharging the separate grades down chutes into bagging department

Sizing screens or trommels which sort the mixed rock and asbestos according to size preparatory to going onto the tables where fibre is separated from the rock

Fibreizing machine or asbestos disintegrator [with individual motor drive]. This machine liberates the asbestos fibres from the rock in which it occurs

Tailings leaving screen and starting on belt conveyor.

Tailings from cross-belt going to main belt conveyor.

Flat screen in operation.

Asbestos fibre being lifted from serpentine rock by air suction after passing over the shaker screens.

Bagging asbestos fibre for shipment to the factory.

Testing Room. Where the Fibre is tested for length and tensile strength

Bags of fibre being loaded into freight cars for shipment

Machine Shop. Equipment necessary to keep mechanical apparatus used at the mine in a working condition.

Tailings being taken to dump

View of crushing house.

900 H. P. Motor required to operate one of the plant units.

Air Compressor and motor. Large motor being repaired.

Rock containing asbestos. The asbestos fibre appears where the light streaks are shown. The thickness of the fibre varies from about ¼ of an inch to four inches.

The end of the day's work at the mine. Now let us proceed to the plant at Manville, New Jersey, and see the many methods of operation that are employed in making Asbestos products.

A new building in course of construction

The Cafeteria

Crushing and Opening Room. Here Asbestos Fibre is opened out and sand and dust removed

Putting the crude fibre into the crusher

The Roller Crusher. These Rollers weigh 6000 lbs. each—The pressure separates the rock into a mass of bulky fibres

The Crusher in Action. After crushing, the sand is removed by shaker screens

Comparing 200 lbs. of Natural rock before and after crushing

Mixing fibres to increase strength of products.

Long fibre being thoroughly opened by carding machine

Removing the fibre from card—Note the fine texture of fibre

Rear of Roving Cards. First step in making asbestos yarn

Fibre leaves carding machine and is condensed into large roving

A Doubler Machine. 48 strands of roving being condensed to wind on spool

4 of 64 Finisher Cards showing finisher laps feeding into last carding operation

Finisher Cards. This machine divides the lap into small strands of yarn to the size required and winds on spools

One of the three spinning rooms, showing 11 spinning mules in operation putting twist into the yarn

Each mule twists 360 strands of yarn at rate of 3000 turns per minute—Twisting binds the fibres together making the yarn stronger

Here the yarn is wound from spinning bobbins to spools for twisting into plies

Twisting together three strands of yarn and two of copper wire for weaving brake lining for automobiles

Putting 576 strands of yarn on a warp beam for weaving into cloth

Loom weaving brake lining

The shuttle with the woof travels back and forth through the warp threads thereby weaving the fabric

Pile of Brake Lining Bands, after same have been saturated

Finished asbestos brake lining ready for shipment

The cloth weaving department

The shuttle travels across the loom 120 times a minute

Braiding asbestos tubing, used for packing, etc.

Making rope from asbestos

The winder in action

Washing crude rubber

Mixing rubber with ingredients for making rubber cement

Sheeting-out Rubber Cement Compound. The cement next goes to mixers where it is dissolved in gasoline

Pressing Asbestos fibre into a homogeneous sheet packing for flanges and pipe joints.

Hydraulic Vulcanizing Press. Asbestos cloth cemented with rubber which is then pressed and vulcanized into ring packing

Various sizes of Sea Rings used in packing rods and plungers to prevent leakage of steam, water, gas, oil, etc.

Pressing Asbestos Cloth into cups for packing railroad air brake cylinders.

Making asbestos boiler gaskets from asbestos cloth and rubber cement

Pressing asbestos rings from lubricated asbestos for valve stems, automobile steering gears, etc.

ASBESTOS PAPER. Fibre in bags as received from the mines. 10,000 tons of Asbestos in this room.

Charging Beaters. Here the asbestos fibre is being prepared for making paper.

Repairing one of the pulp beater rolls.

Three-Deck Asbestos Paper Machine. Showing 59 rollers in operation. On these rollers the paper is formed and dried before being made up into rolls.

Asbestos fibre being picked up on forming cylinder.

Felt whipper and baby press roll. The whipper serves to clean the felt before picking up fibre.

Main presses. Showing formed paper leaving felt before passing through dryer.

Winding roll of finished paper.

Millboard Machine, showing man cutting millboard sheet to desired sizes.

Asbestos Paper Pipe Covering. Crimping asbestos paper for making low pressure steam pipe covering.

Winding crimped Asbestos paper into pipe covering.

Trimming and splitting asbestos paper pipe covering.

Cutting and trimming saws.

Pipe covering finished with the canvas jacket.

Testing laboratory to determine how much heat is saved by various pipe coverings.

ASBESTOS ROOFING. Saturating asbestos paper with hot asphalt for roofing

Winding saturated paper into rolls

View of Saturating Machine.

Making 3-ply Asbestos Roofing. The layers of asbestos are cemented together with hot asphalt

The roofing being cooled before being wound into rolls.

Winding rolls of finished roofing

Some asbestos roofing is reinforced with a sheet of iron and then corrugated

Finished roofing ready for shipment

Making Asphalt Mastic Flooring

MAGNESIA. Limestone rock as received from Quarry—This rock contains about 42% Magnesia, 58% Lime

Rock Burning Kilns. The Magnesia Rock is burned with coke, after which the rock is immersed in water where it breaks up into small particles

Gas Compressors. These large machines draw the carbon dioxide gas from Rock-burning Kilns and force it into saturating tanks

Top of saturating tanks in which the burnt rock is placed with water and treated with carbon dioxide gas. This treatment dissolves the Magnesia

Magnesia Solution. From saturating tanks the solution flows to settling vats

Settling Vats. The lime which does not dissolve sinks to the bottom—The dissolved Magnesia and water flow from end of vat to heating kettles

Magnesia Draining Vats. By heating the Magnesia solution small white crystals are formed and then the water is drained off

Moulding Room. Here Magnesia is mixed with Asbestos and moulded in various forms for covering steam pipes and boilers

Moulding 85% Magnesia Blocks [85% Magnesia] [15% Asbestos]

A Magnesia Block Press. Daily output: 40,000 Sq. Ft. 1 in. thick

Truck of Insulating Blocks going into dry room—A wet block weighs 65 lbs.—When dry it weighs 12 lbs.

Trimming Magnesia Blocks for Boiler Insulation

Unfinished stock room.

Magnesia Pipe Covering ready for shipment—Daily output enough to cover 10 miles of pipe

The Laboratory

Boiler Room, showing automatic stokers in operation

Engine Room

From the Plant at Manville, New Jersey, we will visit the Asbestos Wood Company factory located at Nashua, New Hampshire

Pressure Rolls

Knife cutting Stock

Removing shingles from machine preparatory to pressing.

Shingles under Hydraulic Pressure

Removing shingles from plates.

Shingle Punch in operation

Inspecting and Bundling Asbestos Shingles

Stock of Asbestos Shingles

Hydraulic Presses for manufacture of Transite Asbestos Wood

Raw Material entering Press

Sanding transite and ebony Asbestos wood to size.

Drying specially prepared Transite Asbestos Wood for Ebony and removing Ebony from Impregnating Tanks

Power Saw in operation cutting Ebony Asbestos Wood

Sawing Department in operation

Moulding Transite Asbestos Wood Smoke Jacks

Erecting transite Asbestos wood smoke jacks.

Finished Stock

Department Compressing Electrobestos

Operating Electrobestos Ovens

Finishing Electrobestos

THE END