The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-05-19

THE ATHRNEGM AND THE MAILING
BUSINESS. The spirit of Improvement
during the last two years has peryaded
all parts of the city, and tits really re-
freshing to walk over portions hereto
fore noted only for the dinginess of
change which has come over them.
Houses that were too good 10 throw
away have been remoddled and made
to present q modern style of finish,
while those over which Old Time Ind
too long exercised his corroding intiu-
ence have been and are still undergo
ing the process of total construction.
Old things are passing away; the land
marks by which those who were young
thirty OF forty years ago and who hut
seldom visit the city now. have been
accustomed to refresh falling memory
as to their whereabouts, are being rap
idly removed. The ancient Jehus have
scarce n favorite haunt LEFT TO link their
memories with the palmy days of the
old coach lines when the National Road
was. the climax of human enter
prise. IL would be in vain for us
70 attempt in minute detail to note
the improvements, in the various To-
c1lities of the city. Eor the present
we Will only notice the Improvement
going ON ut the Atheneum under the
auspices OF the enterprising firm of
posed of John Butterfield, w. d. Eng
lish, and b. NJ. Eoff. Two of the firm
have had large experience in the brow
ing and mailing business, and beliey-
ing Wheeling tobe most eligible sight
for almost any enterprise, determined
/ TO give their exclusive attention to the
business and accordingly commenced
operations In the month of November,
'6S, in the large building known as
Stout warehouse, in Centre Wheeling.
Their experience has been that of every
other trm that has started any new en-
terptise In this city, that Is, any firm
who understood their business. They
succeeded beyond their expectations,
and found their business rapidly In.
creasing. In the fall OF i65 they pur-
chased the Atheneum building for
twenty thousand dollars including the
adjoining lots. This building was
erected In the days when the railroad
i }SIroF was Mt its highest pitch, in the
days when the Union Line and many
other things were gotten up on the ex-
travagant superstition that without
manufactures, without anything but
Air castles, Wheeling was TO become the
great centre OF trade and travel from
the great East to the greater West, and
has since served only as monument
lof misguided enterprise. NA
Notwithstanding the immense cost of
this building forty thousand dollars
at n time too when building material
was cheap, the prospective cost of rem
dering IL available for any useful pur-
pose, absolutely deferred the stoutest
hearted business men from yenturing
to buy It at anything like its original
cost. Thus II remained for years, a
huge elephant ON the hands of its pro-
lprietors, literally eating up their sub
stance. 1t was bought, as we have said,
by Buttertield & Co, with \ view OF
converting II into n malt house.. Tfese
gentlemen have already expended
about fifteen thousand dollars In adapt
ing the bnilding TO their purposes, and
do not expect 10 complete the NoFS un-
der 1--WE Thousand more. When finish
ed IL will be che of the moSt capacsous
I rs well as one Of the most admirably
ARRANGED establishments in The whole
co1ntTy. The second and third stories
viii each have two growing 1ioorsS
these floors arc made Of cement, and
are each one hundred and ten Eeet long
| by ferty-one teet wide There will Be
| four steep tubs Of capacity 70 steep fVNe
hundred and any 6nSheAS each. The
fourth story will Be the storage room
/ for the grain as u comes nom The mar
ket, from whence It GOES through the
various processes until Il passes into
the immense bins ON the hTSt door, rs
malt rsaISr for the brewer. There are
many things about the establishment
OF which We hope 70 speak when the
propffetors shall have gotten things In
full operation, but OF which we cannot
speaEin this article.