The Sweetwater forerunner. [volume] (Sweetwater, Tenn.) 1867-1869, 1868-09-10
Correspondence, Knoxville Press and IIerald.l
Mining and Manufacturing.
ROckwOOd, ROans County, and What
General Wilder IS Doing.

General Wilder IS Doing.
Knoxville, Tenn, Sept. 5, 1868.
Dear Sir reached lockwood at
late hour last Monday, and learning that
the house of General Wilder was full of
company, did not think proper to make
myself known to him. My mule received
a place in the stable of the company, and
| myself was accommodated in one of the
boarding houses. In the morning joined
General Wilder in taking hasty glance
at the various branches of his enterprise.
The company, under the auspices of which
it is carried on, is organized under the
laws of Tennessee, and is called the Roane
Iron Company; it is composed of iron
manufacturers and railroad men of the
North. They own about 5000 acres of
land. The iron ore is the brown hema-
tite and the red fossiliferOus. The latter
is found in two veins on an avarage feet
thick. The red fossilferous ore is the
same as that of which the Rodman guns
are made. The brown hematite has not
yet been sufficiently investigated. 1t is
thought to be abundant. The coal is semi
bituminous, capable of being worked raw;
it is very rich in carbon. The vein is
from FIVE to fifteen feet thick. There are
about one hundred acres of it. The coal
comes in from the mountain with an am
pie fall for screening, 25 feet above the
stock house, the iron Is feet, the lime at
about similar elevation. Fire clay, sand
stone of the most refractory character, and
all other materials needed, are found within
of mile of the settlement. The rail-
road to the river will be four miles. A
wagon road is now being made up the
mountain, of easy grade. About thirty
four houses are now finished. Among
them store house, wi tn two warehouses,
a saw mill furnishing fr m one to two thou
sand feet of lumber per day, fine stable,
&C., church and school building for the
white population; one for the blacks is to
be erected forthwith. The furnace is to
be an iron stack, with rock foundation.
The number of inhabitants is now. about
300. Free schools are to be taught during
ten months of the year, whether the State
is able to furnish the means or not. Any
one who brings whiskey into the settle
mcnt, is discharged, and no lots are sold,
unless the anti-whiskey pledge is taken.
General Wilder himself is mechanic, ma
chinist and engineer, and has had the d.
rect oversight in planning. surveying and
organising the enterprise. In the fitting
language of one of the employees, four
months ago nothing but rock and wood,
and now it is lockwood. The Pacific
Railroad which is likely to run through
Sparta and Crossville, is also likely to
pass through Whites Gap, to lockwood,
Kingston and Lenoir's. 1t is hardly pos
sible that Cincinnati should delay much
longer the building of the road which is
to run through Summerset and MontgOm-
cry in Morgan county, and which is to
send branch to Knoxville The liberal
spirit in which this enterprise is carried
on is likely to afford me an opportunity
of cooperating with them as far as the in
terests of immigration are concerned.
HERMAN BoKUM.
Commissioner of immigration for the
State of Tennessee.