Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1858-07-30

the exhibition, can secure them by Addressing Geo
Dwight Chief Marshal, or j. N. Bagg. Secretary
Springfield, Mass.
Correspondence Of the Richmond E.qu;r.r
Tour Through Virginia and tho South
ouR SOILS, MINERALS, MANUFACTURES, TRADES. Pa
cEs, SEEMS AND PEOPLE, PRACTICALLY oogsIDrE-
I'D AsD DEscRrsEp.
LOCOMOTIVE sKETCHBs-EO. Kill
Iron and Iron Furnaces on sAe head scater, os
James River.
The counties Of Craig Allegheny, Botetourt, Rock
BRIDGE and Bath, lying on the head wa.rs of The
Janes river, and drained by the James River and
kanawba Canal and the Virginia Central Railroad,
are the Repositories of immense beds, sven mountain
OF the richest iron iores. "The great vein Of the val
Icy" which lies at the Western foot of the Blue Ridge
or between the limestone and the sandstone traverse
The counties of Bo.eourt and Rockbridge, in Quan'i-
Ties which are emphaiicaiy ineIhaustibls, and IN
quality 10 compare with the best that the worl can
produce. 1t is the rich brown H.motlts fre. from
sand. sulphur hnt and produces the best of our ce
rbrafed mountain iron In some places this grea; .ni
continuous bed OF ore, which extends along n. rn-
lire length Of the Blue Ridge. from Pennsylvan.
through Virginia into Tennessee. exists in mountain.
like deposi,es of the grsndest and most magnificent
character. and generally II oan be qusrred from the
open face Of the hill easily and as choapiy 40 the
earth from any cut or bsnk. Those who have eeen
the vast Iron mounds Of Cornwall, in Lebanon
ty Pennsylvania, can form some idea Of the grandeur
aud extent OF this great bed Of ore 10 the Valley OF
Virginia, when they consider that II contains not
iy several tuch invaluable mounds but many. 10
Decd We be 3 seen here mountains of ore, before
which those great boasts Of the Anthracite Stat
| Sink uto insiG nc2ncs. Inroughou, this Valley be
tween this gr at formation Of the Blue Ridge end
the Western ountans numberess mounds, vein.
aud local iorms,lons of iron ores occur, OF great
lue and frequently Of great extent but the urrt
great formation Of iron ores, if not the gyea,-
esf, exist in Allegheny county, on the llns OF
tho Central Railroad and about CovIngton.
We cannot say whether these formations OF ore III
Craig, Allegheny and Bath are continuous, or ocsl
deposits but suppose them 10 be the former, Gnd
parallel with the mountains to the West OF the Val
ley lying frequently near the Western edges of The
great mestone country, and in close proximity to
whatever coal the mountains Of this region contain.
A thousand traditionary legends are told Of tho
isence OF "stone coal' here, and beautiful sample,
of the "black diamond" have been shown III ircr
various localities, until we forced to consdcr tho
existence of coal in connection with those oTet a.
| fixed fact We have not yet made the examination
personally, but hope to do go soon.
| The development of COAL whether anthracite
bituminous. in practicable quantity and quality here
would be invaluable to every interest," and worth mil
lions per to the State. The days of charcoal
furnaces are nearly over, and the most eIperleucst
| and practical beginning to look round for
| thing better
great many of our old charcoal furnaces hsvs
gone down, and many more are standing idle, prime
pally for want of wood, the great cost OF obisinn
| it. a few furnace. still in operation whose locs
| ton are more favorable than others, or where wood
| is still plentiful. On the head waters OF the Jane.
there arc some nine or ten furnaces In operation
making from fifteen to fifty tons per week, totH
| of $50 tons weekly when in blasij but they DO noi
generally run more than from six to eight months
the year. Amongst those iu operation may m.'i-
| ton New Glover Dsle," }" "Etna" and GRACE fur
naces in Botetourt courty; "Glenwood" and "Boeas
VISTA" In Rock kbridgei "Austrais" and Dolly Ann
| 10 Allegheny; and "Enterine" in Augusta. Many
Of those which are standing are on rich deposits
| Of ore, and In fine localities, bat are generally
short of TIMBER others, however, have plenty Of
| wood, but are distant from tho main aveDuea
| to Market and a few are badly located In every
point of view. But our old iron masters have
with few exceptions, located we'll In regard TO the
ores. The great difficulty Is the fuel; bad plenty
of that, and we're stone coal as plentiful and =.
we'll located the ores, might bid defiance 10 In
world In the matter Of iron manufactures. And !. "
| not1 We will prove, before We are through, tha. boh
bituminous and anthracite coal exist 10 closer con
neotion with the iron and ma Of the valley, the
most unlimited water powers 10 bstter location. gnn
orally, for manufacturing and transportation, thar
! the ores or Goals of Pennsylvania or Of England -
Though for the present. we mu.t 6nd those locations
in Montgomery county, and shall not attemp, 10 de-
scribe them in the present letter. But We may re-
| mark that the time will and must come when he
head waters Of the Jane. will rssound With the op.-s
tions of the iron manufacturer The james River
and Ksnawha Canal ia suspended just at the entrance
Of this crest region-st the colleen gstes OF Virginia
richest mines of wealth; few miles further and It
| would have penetrated the mountains from whence
Richmond ell yet be supplied with coal. and from
whence the great uudeveop.d South may draw uL-
nmi,sd quantities ofron. When the ceua i. fni-s I'D
~ Covirgton, We will be aos TO supply tho IRON ~
Wal. ss the contractors and engineers for Brazil. snd
olace our iron men footing with those OF P-rn
sylvsuia. Finish the canal TO Covipgton arc j, sil.
push i,se!f through 10 the Ksnswha.
July 20tb, 1883 DrBow.