The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-08-12
Germany.-The Peace Congress at Frank
Pennsylvania Iron Manufacture.

From authentic statistics gathered under the
pccs Of the Iron makers convention. which an
nualy assemblies in this city, we learn that OF the
o. counties which the State embraced at the date OF
the last report, as contain iron works, and oil the
remaining II, contain abundance OF iron ana
coal-thoUgh, owing to the absence of any cheap
road to market, they yet remain untouched--leav-
ing only counties III the State not adapted 10 the
manufacture OF iron.
There are 30l blast furnaces and bloomeries in
the State, with invested capital Of 92l $40;
their present capacity is for the making Of 550959
tons per annum in lS47 they made 3o9, 800 tons;
in S49, 253 $40 tons in $780, their probable make
is estimated at 1888 tons. or the above fur
naccs 81 use anthracite coal; have capital OF
SO 22 600, and present capacity for making 22l,-
400 tons; in 6i7 they made 1881 tons; IN lo4e,
1909 IS tons and the estimated product OF 1850 ls
| 81 1851 tons The furnaces using bitumnous coal
| arc I in number, with capital of S223,0 and
| a present capacity for making 1850 tons In 1917
they made 800 tons; in ls49 900 ons in 1850 the
| make will probably be 900 tons. furnaces use
| coke have capital of s 500 900, and present
! CAPACITY for making IL 900 tons per anuum. In
l9l7 they made 10000 tons. Eighty five are char
coal hot blast furnaces, with an Investment OF cap
| ital of S6,47o, 900. and capacity Tor making
! / 80, 105 tons per annum The make OF loiI was
95l9 lSi9 81, 300; in 1850 it will be 1880. The
charcoal cold blast furnaces number li5, with a
capital of ss5,l70,376, and capacity tor making
! l75 654 tons per annuln. The make Of ls47 was
! 1885, SO; 1919, 1855; in 1850 it will be 1921.
There are bloomeries, with capital of S2S 100
and a capacity for producing 600 tons per annum.
The product Tor lo47 was 5i5; 1913, 335; probable
! prod act of 1850, $50.
The estimate for 1850 is obtained by deducting
from the product of lS49 the amount made by such
| furnaces as are now idle. The make cannot ex-
\ coed the amount above stated, and most probably
| will fall short OF it,
Ofthe 29S furnaces III the State, lao or exactly
half in blast this year, and OF these, about
one third are making preparations to blow during
the next year. Fifteen furnaces were sold out at
sherii's sale during the first four months OF this
year
Tho estimate for 1850 shows decrease of 100, 537
since ls47, - per cent. in three years. Should
there be change in the aspect OF affairs, the make
| of 1851 will not exceed 200 tons.
The number of forges and rolling mills in the
State is 200 with a capital of 81 ,5SO, 500, with 4O2
| forge fires and 436 pudding furnaces, and capa-
| city TO make 224 900 tons per annum. Their &C
tual make for ls47 202,727 tons, and for 1919.
| 1876, S53 tons, which shows falling off of 66,S74
tons, 80 per cent. OF the above, there are III
charcoal iorges, with an investment OF capital
amounting to S2,0s6, 300. These forges have 402
fires, with capacity of l25 tons per fire per an
mum, or total of 50 $50 tons. In lo47 they made
80 997 tons and in 1919, 2S i95 tons. The rolling
mills number 70, with capital of $1,000 200.
They contain 436 pudding furnaces, which, at 400
tons per furnace, gives total capacity Of Ia 400
tons per annum. Their actual make in lS47 was
To-, 200 tons, and in 1919, los, 35S tons.
In eastern Pennsy lvania, the making of all kinds
ofiron that come in competition with the foreign
tic!e has been aba ndoncd all tho markets
from the sea or the lakes being fully supplied with
foreign iron. OF railroad iron a small amount Is
still made for the interior, but the decline in this
branch of the manufacture is very considerable.
The annual capacity of the State is $4,000 tons
The make of 1917 40 6I6; of 1919 the make
was Is 973; thus showing decrease Of 81 per cent,
or ~ 1893 tons OF the SIX rail mills IN the State,
| two are entirely stopped, and the remaining four
are not averaging half time. They when they
get contracts for their iron; so IL will be that
the make of 1850 will show still greater falling of
The other rolling mills are sustained by the
ulactu Of cut nails aud boiler plates. Cut nails
arc Of American invention, and have never been
imported. Boiler plates the English cannot make.
at any price, equal to best charcoal platcs, but
they furnish all the inferior ones, well as all the
iuc and sheet-iron which is sold.
There arc COG nail machines in the State, the
nual product Of which is GD6,OO0 kegs, of 20 300
tons; being average of 1000 kegs, Of 100 lbs.
each, to a single machine. There are 10 works en-
gagged in the conversion Of iron into steel making
annually Co.'s tons. Five Of these works are in
Philadelphia, fix in Pittsburg, one in Lancaster,
and one in York.
The whole number Of iron works IN the State is
504 with capital Of 500, 500 076invcsted in lands
and machinery, employing Immediately 3OlOJ
men and ~, 562 hOrscs besides ,5l3 aborers not
in the pay Of the iron masters, but directly depend
ont on the iron works for support; making total
of A. ,6l6 men. Allowing five persons 10 each la
borer, aud We have as the population dependent on
the iron works pos 050, about one-tcnth Of the
population Of the State.
In 1871, the consumption Of fuel in all the iron
works Of the State 4S3 900 tons Of anthracite
coal, at an average value Of s per ton, making
! s ,44S 600; 1907 600 bushels Of bitumnous coal
at five cents per bushel, making $50 $780, and
400 252 cords Of wood at 81 per cord, ,9S0, 50i
Thus giving the total cost OF fuel S4,579,5Ss.
The following valuable table shows the rise anC
progress of the iron business in this State. IL gvc
the number Of works in running order, or now
running, and the number Of each kind built in th,
State in each period Of ten years previous to 1870
and each year since that date, with the number o
failures, &c.