Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-08-08
Iron ShipbuiIding on the Potomac.


The following letter from this city is
published in the New York Iron Age and
will be read with interest The advantages
possessed by this city for the construction OF
ships has been frequently alluded to ard We
are glad to see that the subject is eciting at
tenton:
ALEXANDRIA, Va, July IS, 1872
70 the Editor Of The Iron Age:-In a pre-
vious letter. which appeared IN your issue OF
May 80, | presented some figures relative to
the cost of making iron along the line of the
Chesapeake aud Ohio Railroad, showing that
it can be produced from the ores, spint coal
and limestone of that section at az outside cost
of $l585 per ton. think these figures sug-
Where if We are to undertake the building Of
iron shi ps for our OVID use or the use of other
nations, IS the point which offers the greatest
tant industry? To those who are Interested
in this subject, would present. some facts which
seem to NE we'll worthy OF attention.
With the completion of the chesapeake aud
| Ohio road from Stanton east to Washington
| and Alexandria, those cities will be brought
within 10 miles by rail Ut the great iron ore
| beds of Allegheny county. and $50 to 21O miles
of the coal fields west of the Alleghauies This
| town is, therefore, the nearest point on deep
water to the iron and coal lying along the
line of the new road-a most Important adj
vantage, as [ shall show. As proof of the
great depth of water here, need only mention
the fact that splendid ship, the e. A. Far
well, OF your city, has just loaded 1850 tons Of
Cumberland coal from the wharf OF the Amerl-
can Coal Co., and sails this week for San Fran
cisco with this immense freight of the finest
steam coal 10 the world. 1t will thus be seen
that, upon the completion of the G. & q. R. K.
and its branch to Washington, that this city OF:
fers the greatest natural advantages in nearnesS
to the great coal and iron deposits of Vir.
| GINA, depth of water. and overland connections
with all parts of the country, by the completion
of the Pennsylvania Central R r north aud
south, the Orange, Alexandria aud Manassas
Gap Railroad, the Washington and Ohio Rail.
road, and the Piedmont and Potomac road, a.
well as by the numerou. lines of steamers con-
meeting us and Washington with all the large
cities to the North Having this splendid
situation on deep water, with more than thlr-
teen times the amount Of camel, spllnt and
btuminous coal combined, 10 West Virginia.
that Pennsylvania has of anthracite; with red
and rownIhematite ore. in we'll defined veins
from FOUR feet up to 90 feet thick, and past al
computation as to quantity, With positive
certainly that short y after the completion OF
the &. l. O. road this iron or the coal will be
transported AT one cent per ton, per mile or
from 50 to 50 80 per ton. as 10 the location
we have every facility for shipbullding on an
extensive scale, aud can build ships cheaper
and better than they can be built IN any other
city on the Atlantic sea'oard. 1t cannot be
long before capital will seek investment along
the line Of the g. & O. road in mining opera
tons. furnaces, fouudries and rolling wills, and
to this point must come for use OF shipment
the abundant supplies of cheap iron and cheap
coal Which. within very ftw years, Virginia
will offer as her contribution to the vast aud
ever increasing aggregate Of the nations pro
duction aud with these advantages at oul
command | know of no city, nor do think one
can be found, 10 which The business OF lrol
shipbuil,ling can be established With equal GER
tainty of permanency and profit.
Yours, very truly, NJ. L.