The gas was forced through the mains by a large drum affair raised during the day and at night gradually sinking, its weight forcing the gas through the pipes. The large foundation upon which this drum rested is still standing near the business part of town, and several of the “retorts” may be seen in various parts of town. These “retorts” have been donated for war purposes. Mr. J. M. Thomas, known as “Gas House Thomas,” was sole owner and operator. JEFFERSON HAD FIRST ARTIFICIAL ICE Tradition, and a sworn statement, before a notary public, by the late Mr. B. J. Benefield, an honored citizen of Jefferson, gives to Jefferson, Texas, the honor of having had within its city limits the first artificial ice plant in the United States and many say in the world. Old settlers claim that it was in operation in the late 60’s but Mr. Benefield places the date at 1874 or ’75 because he returned to Marion County from Red River County in 1874 and began working for Boyle and Scott, as the first dispenser of artificial ice, using his own wagon and teams, and sold the ice for ten cents per pound. He states that the ice was made in cakes four or five feet long, two or three feet in width and one inch thick. The plant continued in operation about one year, when Mr. Boyle, who was the originator of the idea that artificial ice could be made, went north in search of some one to finance the making of the product. Mr. J. E. Hasty says that Mr. Boyle raised money before he went north, to finance his project but he was never heard of after he left and his partner, Henry Scott, went into bankruptcy, while someone else profited by their pioneer efforts. Old citizens of the state say that the plant was moved to Harrisburg, Texas, near Houston, at the time Mr. Boyle went north. One incident remaining clear to Mr. Benefield was that one of his customers, a prominent citizen, bought one thousand pounds of ice and placed it in his cistern so that he and his family might have an unlimited supply of ice water through the summer. However, the experiment failed, of course, and the man remained a daily customer of Mr. Benefield. It was Mr. Benefield’s understanding that the machine was patented in the U. S. Patent office. The gas used in the manufacturing of the ice was made at the plant and the machinery was run by steam power. The old site of the plant is within the City Limits, just beyond Willard Hill on Highway 49. Mr. Henry Scott, one of the founders, has a son and daughter now living in Dallas. At a meeting of the Southwestern Ice Association on December 3rd., 1926, Mr. F. R. Senor presented a motion, which was accepted by the Association, the erection of a memorial in Jefferson to the honor of the man and place where the first artificial ice was manufactured in the U. S. However, that monument has never been erected. CHURCHES EPISCOPAL CHURCH